Paint It Black

Crook

 

Charlie

 

Carry

 

Cheaper

 

Christmas

 

In the NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> "Dirty Dancing" and "Beverly Hills Cop" are among 25 movies added to Library of Congress National Film Registry (More) | See complete list of 900 “culturally, historically, or aesthetically” significant films on the registry (More)

> Children's television series "Bluey" to get feature film in 2027 produced by BBC and Disney (More) | Diane Delano, actress known for roles on "Northern Exposure" and "Popular," dies at 67 (More)

> Vermont tops Marshall 2-1 to win their first-ever NCAA men's soccer national championship (More) | The European Super League relaunches as the Unify League, will feature 96 soccer clubs across Europe (More)


Science & Technology
> Alabama woman receives gene-edited pig kidney, becomes the fifth person to undergo animal-to-human gene-edited organ surgery (More) | What is xenotransplantation? (More)

> Study suggests brain cells mature faster in microgravity environments like space compared to Earth; research used organoids—lab-grown organ-like structures—to study the effects (More)

> Archaeologists discover evidence of systematic cannibalism in a Bronze Age burial site near Bristol, England (More)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close lower (S&P 500 -0.4%, Dow -0.6%, Nasdaq -0.3%); Dow falls for ninth straight day, its longest losing streak since 1978 (More)

> Grammarly, maker of AI-powered writing assistant, acquires productivity startup Coda; financial terms of the deal not disclosed (More) | Databricks raises $10B in financing, valuing the data analytics company at $62B (More)

> Japan's Honda and Nissan reportedly to begin merger talks; automakers are considering operating under a single holding company and eventually bringing in Mitsubishi (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Luigi Mangione, accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, is indicted in New York on 11 counts, including first-degree murder and murder as an act of terrorism (More) | Gilgo Beach murder suspect Rex Heuermann is charged with another murder, bringing number of alleged victims to seven (More)

> Federal Trade Commission announces rule banning junk fees—hidden charges—on hotel and event ticket prices (More) | Biden administration finalizes rule clarifying who can apply for H-1B work visas, including expanding definitions of specialty occupation positions (More)

> President-elect Donald Trump sues The Des Moines Register for a poll in the lead-up to Election Day showing him trailing Vice President Kamala Harris in Iowa by 3%; Trump ultimately won the state by 14% (More)

SOURCE:  1440 NEWS

Christmas is Soon

 Christmas 2024 is only 5 days away, 4 days if you don't count today.

Are you ready?

What I mean to ask is:

• Are your decorations up, inside and outside?
• Is your tree up?
• Are all your presents purchased, cooked, or made?
• Are your Christmas card emails sent?
• Everything purchased for your Christmas meals.
• Are you ready for all the parties you will be asked to attend?

Being retired, there is not much for my wife and I to do.  My family is out of state and don't want to visit and we are either too poor to fly or too old to drive.  

My daughter is in Iceland and my wife's son is nearby and will visit us with his girlfriend. Our decorations are up, and all cards have been sent or delivered.

We stopped buying each other presents, so nowadays we just buy something for the house.  This year, we are putting new windows in our sunroom.

Usually, my wife wants to put everything away, the day after Christmas instead of leaving it all up until after New Year's Eve.  It does not matter to me at all, I have learned to just following instructions during these types of holidays.

Somewhat Political

 

China's Powerhouse Robot Factory

Chinese robotic startup MagicLab has introduced a fleet of collaborative humanoids at a factory for job training.

The humanoids also demonstrate small-scale collaborative operations, showcasing their ability to work efficiently together.

In January, MagicLab unveiled its third-generation humanoid robot, MagicBot, designed to rival Boston Dynamics’ Atlas. By February, a video update showcased the robot roasting marshmallows, performing magic tricks, and dancing.

The firm joins a growing wave of companies deploying robots in industrial settings as China aims to mass-produce humanoids by 2025 and dominate the market by 2027.   READ MORE...

Ozark Mountain Daredevils - If You Want To Get To Heaven - Lyrics in des...

Take a Break

 

Genders

 

Crimes

 

Months

 

Crack

 

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> "Wicked" sequel gets official title "Wicked: For Good" with film set for November 2025 release date (More) | Lionel Messi-inspired animated series tapped for Disney Channel and Disney+ (More)

> Jill Jacobson, actress known for roles on "Falcon Crest" and "Star Trek," dies at 70 (More) | Dick Van Arsdale, three-time NBA All-Star, dies at 81 (More)

> Documentary in the works by filmmaker Alex Gibney about the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson (More) | Jamie Lee Curtis in talks to play lead role in upcoming "Murder, She Wrote" film (More)


Science & Technology
> Google's DeepMind reveals Veo 2, the latest update to its AI-generated video platform; product is meant to compete with OpenAI's Sora (More) | Generative AI 101, from how it works to why it hallucinates (1440 Topics)

> James Webb Space Telescope confirms two-decade-old mystery, finds evidence planets bigger than Jupiter formed around stars much earlier in the universe than predicted by theory (More) | Explaining the JWST in four minutes (More, w/video)

> Researchers discover closest known relative to Psilocybe cubensis, also known as magic mushrooms; fungi potentially reached North America as much as a million years earlier than believed (More)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close mixed (S&P 500 +0.4%, Dow -0.3%, Nasdaq +1.2%); Nasdaq notches record ahead of Federal Reserve's interest rate decision tomorrow (More) | Nvidia closes in correction territory, down roughly 11% from record close last month (More) | Bitcoin hits new record midday, briefly surpassing $107K (More)

> TikTok asks Supreme Court to block the US' divest-or-ban law pending an appeal of a lower-court ruling to uphold the law taking effect Jan. 19 (More) | Ken Leech, former co-chief investment officer at Western Asset Management Co., pleads not guilty to federal charges over improperly allocating trades to favored clients (More)

> Honeywell considers spin-off of lucrative aerospace business—a move backed by activist investor Elliott Investment Management, which took a $5B stake in the conglomerate last month (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Japanese tech giant SoftBank pledges to invest $100B into US companies over next four years and create 100,000 jobs; SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, who met with President-elect Donald Trump yesterday, made a similar pledge in 2016 (More)

> Former FBI informant pleads guilty to fabricating claim that President Joe Biden and his son Hunter accepted bribes from a Ukrainian energy company; false claim was used as part of evidence in GOP-led efforts to investigate Biden family (More)

> Canada's Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland resigns following dispute with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau over tax policy and the country's response to Trump's tariff threats (More)

SOURCE:  1440 NEWS

Education

 

I heard this morning that the auto industry is in need of 35,000 auto mechanics (automotive technician).  It takes no college at all to become an automotive technician.

The average college tuition is $30-$50,000/year or $120-$200,000 for a complete 4-year education.  However, since there are so many 4-year degree graduates out there, employers are recommending that if you want to advance, you need a master's degree - another 2 years.

To save money, one could go to a Community College for the first two years and then transfer to a college or university, but do you want to spend all that money on education when you will spend the majority of your career paying off that educational loan.

One should seriously consider going to a Community College and pursue a TECHNICAL degree in something like:

• auto mechanics
• heavy duty mechanics
• computers
• electronics
• electricity
• carpentry
• plumbing
• heating & air conditioning
• programming
• criminal justice
• construction
• physical therapy
• massage therapy
• nursing
• paralegal
• etc.

Another idea is to apply for a job in retailing, hospitality, restaurants, manufacturing, real estate, life insurance, and/or maintenance.

No matter what career that you pursue, you are going to have to PAY YOUR DUES anywhere from 10-20 years before you move up through the ranks and attain one of those few high paying management jobs. 

ALL CAREER LEVELS HAVE THEM...  it just takes time to get there.

Somewhat Political

 

Webb Telescope Confirms: Universe is Expanding

WASHINGTON, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Fresh corroboration of the perplexing observation that the universe is expanding more rapidly than expected has scientists pondering the cause - perhaps some unknown factor involving the mysterious cosmic components dark energy and dark matter.

Two years of data from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope have now validated the Hubble Space Telescope's earlier finding that the rate of the universe's expansion is faster - by about 8% - than would be expected based on what astrophysicists know of the initial conditions in the cosmos and its evolution over billions of years. The discrepancy is called the Hubble Tension.  READ MORE...