Friday, October 11
Thursday, October 10
In The NEWS
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> OpenAI signs deal with Hearst—publishing giant responsible for Esquire, Cosmopolitan, and more—that will provide direct citations to Hearst's content via ChatGPT (More)
> New York Jets fire head coach Robert Saleh after 2-3 start to the NFL season (More) | Luis Tiant, Cuban-born three-time MLB All-Star pitcher, dies at age 83 (More)
> Disney World, Universal Studios, and Sea World among theme parks to close as central Florida braces for Hurricane Milton (More)
Science & Technology
> Nobel Prize in Physics awarded to John Hopfield (Princeton University) and Geoffrey Hinton (University of Toronto) for foundational work in machine learning (More) | Prize in Chemistry awarded this morning at 5:45 am ET; see selection (More) | The history of the Nobel Prize (More, w/video)
> Study suggests elephants remember former zookeepers by scent more than a decade after separation; findings shed light on the long-term memory and social relationships of the animals (More)
> Engineers demonstrate solar-powered desalination system requiring no external batteries to remove salt from water (More) | Desalination 101 (More)
Business & Markets
> US stock markets close higher (S&P 500 +1.0%, Dow +0.3%, Nasdaq +1.5%) led by tech stocks (More) | The history of Wall Street, from colonial wall to a financial powerhouse (More, w/video)
> China imposes tariffs on EU brandy imports following the bloc's tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles; France, which supplies 99% of China's brandy imports, expected to be hard-hit (More) | See EU-China trade data (More, w/graphics)
> PepsiCo reduces 2024 revenue outlook following disappointing Q3 earnings report (More) | Walmart expands pet care offerings—including veterinary care, grooming—to five locations in Arizona, Georgia (More)
Politics & World Affairs
> Over a dozen states sue TikTok, accusing the social media platform of harming children's mental health through addictive algorithms, violating consumer protection laws (More, free w/email) | The rise of TikTok (More, w/video)
> Israel says it has killed at least two unnamed, would-be successors to Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah; Hezbollah has not commented as of this writing (More) | Who is Hashem Safieddine, Nasrallah's presumed successor? (More) | FBI arrest Afghan man who was allegedly plotting an Election Day attack in the US (More)
> Supreme Court indicates it is likely to uphold Biden administration's 2022 regulations on sales of unserialized gun part kits, following oral arguments (More) | See previous write-up (More)
Rule of 72
.jpg)
In 2001, our father was in the Norfolk Naval Hospital, and my brother treated me to a large vanilla cappuccino at the Starbuck's stand in the lobby. He paid a little bit less than $7 for both cups of coffee. Needless to say, it was delicious, and I have been drinking Starbuck's vanilla cappuccino ever since.
This afternoon, October 2024, twenty-three years later, I purchased a large vanilla cappuccino at the new Starbuck's location that just opened up about 30 minutes from the house. I paid $6.75 for that cup of coffee using a gift card. Needless to say, it was delicious.
MYPOINT: My Starbuck's coffee, same size, 23 years later has doubled in value +/- a few pennies.
The Rule of 72...
If you take the current interest rate that leading institutions are paying you to invest your money with them, and divide that % into 72, the answer will approximate that number of years it will take your money to DOUBLE IN VALUE at that interest rate.
For example...
interest rate is 10%
72 divided by 10 equals 7.2 years
Here is a spin on the rule of 72...
Take the inflation rate and divide that % into 72 and the answer will approximate the number of years that it will take the cost of living to double at that rate...
So, if the inflation rate is 3%
72 divided by 3 equals 24
Now...
My large cappuccino coffee from Starbucks pretty much double in value after 23 years, +/- a month or two.
Therefore, one could conclude that our inflation rate while going up and down over the last 23 years has averaged about a 3% annual rate of inflation... of course, this is totally based upon one consumer item and may not be indicative of our economy as a whole...
Still, it is interesting that it worked out this way and does somewhat reinforce the Rule of 72, at least in my opinion.
Nuclear Reactors to Save Humanity
A version of this story appeared in CNN Business’ Nightcap newsletter. To get it in your inbox, sign up for free, here.
But that’s all going to change, the AI bulls tell us. Because the only thing standing in the way of an AI-powered idyll is heaps upon heaps of computing power to train and operate these nascent AI models. And don’t worry, fellow members of the public who never asked for any of this — that power won’t come from fossil fuels. I mean, imagine the PR headaches.
No, the tech that’s going to save humanity will be powered by the tech that very nearly destroyed it. READ MORE...
Wednesday, October 9
I Went Downhill at SIXTY
For my entire adult life (after age 25), I was active every day, lifted weights, exercised, played every type of sport there was available: football, baseball, basketball, volleyball, field and track.
At the age of 40, I quit smoking, drinking, eating red meat, fried foods, and sugars on a regular basis. I also walked 3-5 miles a day, seven days a week. Maybe 4 pizzas a year, 1-2 cheeseburger and hot dogs once a year, a glass or two of wine around Christmas, along with a few pieces of chocolate.
I did not have high cholesterol, high blood pressure, or any of the other triggers that might cause a heart attack and yet at the age of 60, I had a heart attack severe enough, a triple bypass was recommended. I was on the treadmill at the time of the attack and my body was so damn healthy, they dozens of small arteries had been created providing a natural bypass that saved my life.
A few months earlier, I had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkins Lymphoma - the two incidents were not related. A years after my diagnosis of Lymphoma, I was diagnosed with Melanoma, and it was surgically removed from the bottom of my left foot. Because it was so small, no treatment was given.
Five years later, the Melanoma had metastasized to my groin and a few months after that, to my neck where it was removed and discovered to be DEAD as a result of Opdivo and Radiation - the most up to date treatment from MD Anderson.
Two years ago, FIVE DISKS in my LOWER BACK were fused together due to spinal stenosis and the threat of ending up in a wheelchair for the rest of my life, if I did not do something about it.
A year ago, I did something to my right shoulder when building a garbage platform for the trash cans and this past spring, I tripped over the power washer hose, landing on my left shoulder. An MRI of both shoulders discovered that a tendon had been pulled completely off of both rotator cuffs and had retracted.
A reverse shoulder replacement needed to be performed but there would be no guarantees that I would be able to wipe my butt with either hand after the surgery was performed. I decided to live with it. I have a hard time lifting items above my head.
Just about two months ago, I got out of bed one morning and my left leg all but collapsed. Over the next few days, the pain increased and now I walk around with a cane. The pain is not at the knee but below the knee to the inside. According to diagrams there is a tendon there that could have become torn or bruised. Only an MRI will tell.
In addition to all these problems, my eyesight is failing as is my hearing and I had to invest in a pair of hearing aids which are not cheap.
Further, I have undergone numerous root canals and crowns for my teeth that may or may not have been caused by all my cancer treatments.
At 76 years of age, almost 77, I am just now ending my 16th year of treatment where I have experienced 1-2 infusions each month in addition to taking a cancer pill where my out-of-pocket costs are $1,200/month but I was awarded a grant from the Leukemia Foundation to pay those expenses.
While my body is still strong and able to withstand all this punishment, I am beginning to believe that it is slowly breaking down. Otherwise, I would not have any problems with my shoulders or knee.
All the weightlifting I did as a teenager, young adult, and adult did in fact build up my muscles and made me very strong with large broad shoulders, as you age and cannot keep lifting weights, those muscles TURN TO FAT. Looking in the mirror is not always a pretty sight.
Looking back, there is still nothing about my life that I would change...
In The NEWS
Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> The 2024-25 NHL regular season kicks off tonight; see preview and predictions for all 32 teams (More) | New England Patriots safety and team captain Jabrill Peppers arrested on strangulation and drug possession charges (More)
> Taylor Swift passes Rihanna to become richest female musician in the world with an estimated net worth of $1.6B (More)
> Connecticut Sun take on Minnesota Lynx tonight (8 pm ET, ESPN2) in decisive WNBA Semifinals Game 5 (More) | LeBron James and son Bronny become NBA's first father-son duo to share court as both played in the Los Angeles Lakers preseason game Sunday night (More)
Science & Technology
> Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine awarded to pair of researchers for their discovery of microRNA, tiny molecules that help regulate gene expression (More) | Prize in Physics announced at 5:45 am ET this morning; see selection here (More)
> Comb jellies, a type of deep sea jellyfish, can fuse their bodies together following injury; behavior has never been observed in any other species (More)
> Researchers find a common chemotherapy drug may kill healthy cells in cases of colon and gastrointestinal cancers; findings may lead to improved drug combinations in such cases (More)
Business & Markets
> US stock markets close lower (S&P 500 -1.0, Dow -0.9, Nasdaq -1.2%) as US 10-year Treasury yield rises above 4% for first time since August (More) | Shares of generator maker Generac close up nearly 9% as Hurricane Milton intensifies (More)
> Activist investor Starboard Value reportedly takes $1B stake in Pfizer, looks to tap former Pfizer CEO Ian Read and other ex-executives for help in turning around the drugmaker (More) | "Assassin's Creed" maker Ubisoft reportedly considering going private (More)
> Judge orders Google to offer alternatives to its Google Play store as part of final ruling in Epic Games' antitrust lawsuit against the tech giant (More) | Amazon kicks off second annual Prime Day 48-hour sale today (More)
Politics & World Affairs
> Hurricane Milton strengthens to Category 5 storm—the strongest level—as Florida braces for landfall midweek, with storm surge warnings posted for Florida's western Gulf Coast (More) | Why Tampa Bay is vulnerable to the storm (More)
> New York City deputy mayor Phil Banks (D) resigns, becoming latest member of Mayor Eric Adams (D) administration to step down amid corruption probe; Adams was indicted last month on charges including bribery and wire fraud (More)
> Georgia Supreme Court restores state's six-week abortion ban while it considers an appeal to a lower court decision that had briefly struck down the 2022 law (More)