View time: 1 min 23
Level : Advanced
Author: natixis-ezine
Sustainable investing advocate says ‘anti-woke’ backlash in US won’t stop the movement
Read time : 3 mins
Level : Advanced
By STAN CHOE AP Business Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — Maria Lettini already knew of the backlash against ESG investing when she took over as chief executive of US SIF last year.
US SIF is an advocacy group that supports sustainable investing, which encourages investors to consider a wider set of risks including the environment, social issues and corporate governance in hopes of improving their returns.
But returning to the U.S. after several years working in the U.K., Letting wasn’t prepared for how widespread the backlash against ESG was. Lettini spoke with The Associated Press about that and sustainable investing generally. The conversation has been edited for clarity and length. Continue reading
Autoworkers learn sign language hoping connection with deaf colleagues improves work and lives
Read time : 2 mins
Level : Intermediate
By DANICA KIRKA Associated Press
LONDON (AP) — One doesn’t need to know sign language to understand what Michael Connolly feels about his colleagues’ efforts to break down the barriers posed by his deafness.
When asked what he thought of his teammates’ decision to learn British Sign Language, the 45-year-old autoworker at the Nissan plant in Sunderland, England, grinned and flashed a universal symbol: Two thumbs up.
Connolly loves having the chance to banter with his workmates, to talk about everyday things — the kids, vacation plans, a TV program. And now he can, because the entire 25-member bumper-paint team at Sunderland started learning BSL at the beginning of the year. Continue reading
Spacewalking is the new domain of the rich as billionaire attempts first private spacewalk
View time : 1 min 14
Level : Intermediate
Fine dining restaurants serve up VIP tables for one as solo dining trend dishes out personal culinary experiences
View time: 2 min 18
Level : Advanced
A robot begins removal of melted fuel from the Fukushima nuclear plant. It could take a century
Read time : 3 mins
Level : Advanced
By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press
TOKYO (AP) — A long robot entered a damaged reactor at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant on Tuesday, beginning a two-week, high-stakes mission to retrieve for the first time a tiny amount of melted fuel debris from the bottom.
The robot’s trip into the Unit 2 reactor is a crucial initial step for what comes next — a daunting, decades-long process to decommission the plant and deal with large amounts of highly radioactive melted fuel inside three reactors that were damaged by a massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011. Specialists hope the robot will help them learn more about the status of the cores and the fuel debris.
Here is an explanation of how the robot works, its mission, significance and what lies ahead as the most challenging phase of the reactor cleanup begins. Continue reading
Interest in Plant-Based Desserts Rises in 2024
Read time : 2 mins
Level : Intermediate
Tara Gerner | Wealth of Geeks undefined
Although classic desserts such as chocolate chip cookies and ice cream never go out of style, interest in vegan desserts continues to rise in 2024. In fact, the latest numbers show The global vegan dessert market is estimated to reach $3.75 billion this year, and it won’t be stopping anytime soon.
Global Growth Insights reports vegan frozen desserts, cakes and pastries, and cookies and biscuits were the most popular plant-based sweet treats last year. While interest grows in other areas, North America remains the dominant region for vegan desserts, despite still be dominated by love for traditional desserts.
Dessert popularity is affected by local traditions, customs, and preferences. Many regions in the United States have a favorite or signature dessert built into their culinary legacy. Continue reading
Startup makes cocoa in laboratory as climate change threatens chocolate supplies
View time : 1 min 15
Level : Intermediate
AI may not steal many jobs after all. It may just make workers more efficient
Read time : 3 mins
Level : Advanced
By PAUL WISEMAN AP Economics Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — Imagine a customer-service center that speaks your language, no matter what it is.
Alorica, a company in Irvine, California, that runs customer-service centers around the world, has introduced an artificial intelligence translation tool that lets its representatives talk with customers who speak 200 different languages and 75 dialects.
So an Alorica representative who speaks, say, only Spanish can field a complaint about a balky printer or an incorrect bank statement from a Cantonese speaker in Hong Kong. Alorica wouldn’t need to hire a rep who speaks Cantonese.
Such is the power of AI. And, potentially, the threat: Perhaps companies won’t need as many employees — and will slash some jobs — if chatbots can handle the workload instead. But the thing is, Alorica isn’t cutting jobs. It’s still hiring aggressively. Continue reading
Schools seek solutions to student absenteeism as classes resume
View time: 1 min 16
Level : Advanced