Why America has so few carpenters
By Mark Dent
/ May 20, 2022
When Desmond Collins was in his 20s, he cycled between low-paying jobs at places like McDonald’s and Taco Bell, grasping...
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Starlink wants to disrupt in-flight WiFi |
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Elon Musk’s most recent obsession seems to be getting to Mars. So it may surprise you that SpaceX, his rocket company, is working to solve an all-too-familiar problem here on Earth. Per CNBC, Starlink, the company’s satellite internet division, is working on a solution to disrupt the in-flight WiFi industry. The in-flight WiFi market…… is led by 2 players in the US:
Some airlines use both vendors. The market for in-flight WiFi has massive growth potential. A recent report valued the sector at $3B in 2020 and predicted it could reach $6.7B by 2027. That’s one reason companies have made investments to improve the product. While in-flight WiFi can be powered by towers or satellites, more and more planes have transitioned to the latter, which drastically improves connectivity. Starlink…… has 2 distinct advantages over competitors:
Starlink is also testing — and going through regulatory hurdles for — an aviation-specific antenna that allows planes to connect to its network. If successful…… Starlink could become an important player in a growing market and, in a rare instance for the airline industry, a favorable consumer brand. JD Power’s 2019 airline satisfaction study found in-flight services to be the lowest ranked factor for passengers and poor connectivity is one reason why. While Musk has been under fire lately for his intergalactic colonization plans, if he can finally solve the in-flight WiFi sh*tshow, all might be forgiven. |
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| SNIPPETS |
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Shopify’s new Linkpop feature is a link-in-bio tool that lets users promote several links and products on a single page. #ecommerce-retail Cool: Brookfield Properties’ One Manhattan West, a 67-story skyscraper in New York City, will be completely powered by renewable energy. #clean-energy The Routing Company is like Uber or Lyft, but with a bus. Its on-demand public transit solution is currently available in Seattle and Houston. #emerging-tech Fintech company Jeeves raised $180m in Series C, bringing its value to $2.1B. The rapidly growing startup is a corporate card and expense management platform for businesses. #fintech-crypto Another delivery lawsuit: Washington DC is suing Grubhub, saying it has a history of gouging customers through hidden fees. #big-tech |
| New nightmare? |
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Zachary Crockett |
Are advertisers going to infiltrate our dreams? |
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Last year, Molson Coors, the esteemed purveyor of watered-down frat-party beer, ran a jarring “experiment.” In a discreet building in downtown Los Angeles, 18 subjects were instructed to watch a strange video featuring a synth-laden soundtrack and natural imagery interspersed with glimpses of Coors Light cans. The participants were then asked to drift off to sleep while listening to an 8-hour soundtrack featuring audio from the video. Coors’ stated goal was science-fiction worthy: The company wanted to “shape and compel [the] subconscious” into dreaming about beer. Shockingly, it seemed to work. Now, as ads have infiltrated every facet of our lives, researchers say our last remaining respite — the dreamscape — is under siege. We spoke to half a dozen leading sleep scientists and researchers to better understand advertisers’ efforts to infiltrate our dreams. |
| Read the full story → |
| Free Resource |
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We’re with you, from liftoff to landing. Learn more below. |
| Power me, HubSpot → |
| No Free Lunch | |||||
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Lunchflation is real — and office workers are feeling it |
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The return to the office has been difficult for several reasons — gas prices, readapting to being in public, putting on pants. But there’s another woe on the rise: lunchflation. As of February, restaurant prices were up 6.8% YoY, per the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s the largest 12-month increase since 1981. The culprits: Food and laborThe Producer Price Index for all food increased 14.3% between January 2021 and January 2022, while average hourly earnings among restaurant employees jumped 13.2%, per the National Restaurant Association. Meanwhile, Starbucks announced in February it would have to accelerate its price hikes and cut marketing to make up for increased transportation costs and supply chain issues. What does lunchflation feel like?Payments company Square analyzed the cost of lunch staples in major US cities and found significant YoY increases.
The Wall Street Journal spoke with workers who found their usual orders have increased by $4-$10. Coupled with surging gas prices, expensive food is yet another reason some are hoping to return to remote work. Others lament they’re missing team-building opportunities because they can’t afford lunch out with colleagues. And while a packed lunch is almost always cheaper than going out, grocery prices are up 8.6% YoY — also the largest increase since 1981. BTW: CNBC has some grocery-saving tips, including meal planning to avoid waste and changing up your menu to cut back on pricey items. |
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| AROUND THE WEB |
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🆗 On this day: In 1839, the abbreviation “O.K.” was published in the Boston Morning Post, meaning “oll korrect,” an intentional misspelling of “all correct.” Thus, one of our most commonly used terms was born. 🦜 Useful: Curious about that bird calling outside your window? Use Merlin, an app for identifying bird noises. 👀 That’s interesting: Scan of the Month takes an ordinary object and offers a unique look inside using a CT scanner. ✏️ Wow: An artist shares his 1st realistic self-portrait, then compares it to the progress he’s made in 5 years. 🚢 Cure boredom: Guess the country this game is referring to based solely on its exports. |
| Meme of the day |
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So accurate. (Source: Imgflip.com) |
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