Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Eskimo Pies to be renamed after nearly a century

It has been almost 100 years, but the makers of Eskimo Pie ice cream have revealed that they are on the way to changing the name of the popular dessert. A spokesperson for Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream said in a statement, “We are committed to being a part of the solution on racial equality, and recognize the term is derogatory.” Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream had been looking over the business for some time. In addition to the name change, the company will also alter the way the ice cream treat is marketed. They plan to move away from its traditional use of a young boy dressed up using indigenous attire references. According to the Alaska Native Language Center, the term “Eskimo” comes from an Ojibwa word meaning “to net snowshoes.” The center says the term is commonly used in Alaska to refer to all Inuit and Yupik people of the world, but is considered derogatory in many other places. This is because the name was given by non-Inuit people. The word is also interpreted to mean “eater of raw meat.” (CBS News)

Making the most of failure

Our previous missteps can be our most effective teachers, showing us what we might try differently next time around. And yet, research suggests we go out of our way to shield ourselves from failures, even in situations where we’re just thinking to ourselves and not at risk of embarrassment. Why the aversion to learn from our mistakes? We may not realize how useful mistakes are. One way to help us see the light? “Mental contrasting,” where we imagine a project and anticipate potential obstacles. (BBC Worklife)

Drive-In Concerts Happening Due to Social Distancing

Drive-in concerts and other events are springing up around the country, in a bid to bring back physical gatherings while observing social distancing. Movies, the live music and events industry has been among the most impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Country star Garth Brooks is hosting a virtual drive-in concert experience at 300 drive-in theaters around the U.S. Brooks sold about 50,000 tickets in less than two hours. In Downtown Los Angeles, stars of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” are joining together for a “Drive ‘N Drag” experience. On July 4, rock band Los Lobos will perform in a social distanced, drive-in concert in Orange County, Calif. Over 600 musicians have asked Congress in a letter to provide financial support to independent music venues as a result of the pandemic. Drive-in movie theaters have seen a resurgence in popularity amid the pandemic. (Billboard)

Virus fallout goes beyond the mall

The pandemic’s devastating blow to shopping malls is having a wider impact on communities they serve. Malls act as economic engines to local governments, providing hundreds or potentially thousands of jobs while financially shoring up the tax base. With as many as a third of U.S. malls at risk of closing within the next year, local governments are dipping into reserves or scrambling to adjust their budgets. A retail analyst expects a record 25,000 store closures this year, about 60% of them in U.S. malls. (CNBC)

Robots are heading to the farm

As the pandemic makes farm labor increasingly risky, farmers are beginning to turn to a new generation of robots to handle the job. One of the latest on offer? An autonomous weed cutter from San Francisco-based FarmWise, which uses cameras and other vision tech to map out a farm plot and can tend to weeds while leaving crops safe. Farm robotics is expected to grow like, ahem, a weed, with shipments of such tech expected to increase 100 times over by 2030, according to ABI Research. (Axios)

Arctic records its hottest temperature ever

Temperatures in Verkhoyansk, Siberia, reached 100.4°F this past Saturday (6/20), the hottest temperature ever recorded north of the Arctic Circle. Verkhoyansk is normally one of the coolest places in the world, but comes as other northern cities have also been experiencing a heat wave. Environmentalists and researchers have been concerned about the heat wave in Siberia, as the Climate Change Service recorded May 2020 as the “warmest May on record.” (CBS News)

Amid a continuing labor dispute and a rising number of COVID-19 cases, MLB has yet to strike a deal to play in 2020

MLB team training facilities in Arizona and Florida have been shut down temporarily after multiple teams reported staff with positive COVID-19 cases. MLB’s player union is still negotiating a “return to play” plan with the league. Players will delay a vote on whether to return to play, originally scheduled for Sunday, to further evaluate health and safety protocols. MLB is reportedly considering hosting all 30 MLB teams in Southern California, home to three MLB teams and other college ballparks. Previous plans considered creating “bubbles” in Arizona, Texas and Florida. On Friday (6/19), the Los Angeles Angels reported two COVID-19 cases within the organization. This is while five players and three staff members of the Philadelphia Phillies tested positive for the virus. 1994 marked the last year a full MLB schedule was not played, after a players’ strike. (ESPN)

The rich aren’t spending like before

In this rarest of “service-sector” recessions, the hardest hit are those depending on big spenders and tippers: bartenders, workers at restaurants and salons. These lower-wage earners are among those who cut spending by 30% in the early days of the pandemic, according to economists, as those in the highest income quartile reduced outlays by 36%. But while spending for the lowest earners bounced back with government support, it still hasn’t among the wealthy. And until it does, “service-sector” workers will likely need more aid. (The New York Times)

Remote workers are on the move

Scores of newly remote workers are reconsidering where they want to live. With the pandemic temporarily closing offices, the assumption that American workers need to live near hot job markets is being challenged, and many are choosing to leave big cities in favor of being closer to family or fresher air. The shift comes as companies assess the effectiveness of remote work, with some, like Facebook and Twitter, declaring the recent experiment a success and moving toward more permanent remote opportunities. (The Wall Street Journal)

The American Museum of Natural History in New York will remove a statue that depicts Theodore Roosevelt on horseback, flanked by an African man and an Indigenous man

In the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd at the hands of the police, protesters have demanded the removal of statues celebrating historical figures linked to slavery. Mayor Bill de Blasio said he agreed that Roosevelt’s statue should be removed because it depicts Black and Indigenous people “as subjugated and racially inferior.” The museum said that the issue is not linked to Roosevelt’s legacy, but to the way in which the former president is depicted in the statue. Some historians, however, say that Roosevelt was racist in his last years. He has also been described as an imperialist who sought to seize control of the Caribbean. Several monuments were toppled by protesters at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco on Friday, including a statue of former president Ulysses S. Grant. (The New York Post)

Another consequence of the pandemic: a nationwide shortage of coins

While Americans are being nickel-and-dimed with coronavirus-related costs in a shaky economy, the latest national shortage includes a coin shortage in the United States. Banks and businesses have shuttered or changed the way they operate. And so there are fewer coins reaching the public. To mitigate the coin shortage, the Federal Reserve Banks began the “strategic allocation of coin inventories” to evenly distribute coins across banks and credit unions. Those “strategic allocation” measures include imposing order limits based on the historic order volume of those coins and how many coins the U.S. Mint is currently producing. In the meantime, the Federal Reserve is working with the Mint to produce more coins and lift supply constraints. The Reserve encourages institutions to order only the amount of coins they need to meet customer demand in the short term. (USA Today)

Oregon town renames park after whale it blew up 50 years ago

An Oregon town has named a park after a whale that the state blew up 50 years ago. “Exploding Whale Memorial Park” in Florence opened last week, taking its name from a massive, rotting sperm whale that officials dynamited in 1970 after it was determined there was no safe way to remove it. The whale washed up on the banks of Siuslaw River, and was too big to bury. As it started to rot, it turned into a public health risk, according to the Oregon Historical Society. People had been touching, climbing or “falling in” the carcass, but blowing it up sent chunks of blubber raining down across the area. One piece was large enough to crush a nearby car. The city voted in a public poll last year as to what to name the recreation site: Exploding Whale Memorial Park won 439 out of 856 votes, beating such names as “Dune View Park,” “Bridge View Park” and “Little Tree Park.” (Fox News)

Apple announces it will ditch Intel and use its own chips

Apple’s developer conference started on yesterday (6/22) afternoon. It’s announcing a bunch of new software, including the latest version of iOS, the iPhone operating system.  Apple also announced that future Mac computers will use its own chips. Previously, Mac computers used Intel chips. Apple said the transition would enable the company to offer faster performance on its laptops and desktops. Future Macs will use Apple-designed chips, Apple said. Apple previously used Intel chips on Mac laptops and desktops. Apple said it was designing its own chips specifically for the Mac to provide more performance while using less power. Apple currently uses its own chips on its iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, and Apple TVs, and said it had shipped over 2 billion chips so far. Macs with Apple’s own chips will also be able to run iPhone and iPad software. Apple emphasized that one of the reasons it is making the change is to get more performance while using less power. The transition will require software makers to update their software for compatibility. (CNBC)

Tuesday Slips In With:

• America’s Kids Day (Fourth Sunday)
• Columnists Day
• Eat At A Food Truck Day
• Hydration Day
• International Widows’ Day
• Let It Go Day
• Pecan Sandies Day
• Pink Day
• Pink Flamingo Day (Lawn Ornaments)
• Public Service Day
• Ratha Yatro
• Runner’s Selfie Day
• SAT Math Day
• Typing Day