GM’s Wall Street vindication is here as it outperforms peers in 2024
GM’s Wall Street vindication is here as it outperforms peers in 2024
Mary Barra, chair and chief executive officer of General Motors Co., during a news conference at the Hudson’s building in Detroit, Michigan, US, on Monday, April 15, 2024.
Jeff Kowalsky | Bloomberg | Getty Images
DETROIT — General Motors is proving it’s a standout among automakers this year as it continues to consistently outperform Wall Street’s earnings expectations and its competitors.
Shares of the Detroit automaker have risen 54.7% ahead of Monday’s opening, outperforming legacy competitors, Tesla and U.S. electric vehicle startups Lucid Group and Rivian Automotive.
“You may still not believe it, but it’s true, GM keeps on trucking,” BofA Securities analysts John Murphy wrote in an investor note last month after the automaker beat Wall Street’s third-quarter expectations.
GM has done so with the assistance of $12.4 billion in stock buybacks since last November, which the automaker said will continue for the foreseeable future. But it’s also proving itself to be operationally better than its crosstown rivals Ford Motor and Chrysler parent Stellantis, as well as other sector peers.
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General Motors vs. Ford Motor stock
CEO and Chair Mary Barra has touted that kind of differentiation for years, but it has largely fallen upon deaf ears. For the most part, GM stock has traded in lockstep with Ford due to their histories and the cyclical nature of the automotive industry.
But not this year. Ford stock is off 10% as of Friday’s close. Others, including Ferrari, which has been among Wall Street’s top auto performers, are also trailing GM.
Even with shares of Tesla surging more than 30% during the past week following President-elect Donald Trump winning the U.S. presidential election, the electric vehicle maker continues to trail GM. Tesla CEO Elon Musk heavily campaigned for Trump.
General Motors (GM): 54.7%Ferrari (RACE): 34.3%Tesla (TSLA): 29.3%Hyundai Motor* (HYMTF): 27.9%BYD Co.* (BYDDF): 27.2%Toyota Motor (TM): down 6.2%Ford (F): down 10%Honda Motor (HMC): down 13.3%Volkswagen* (VWAGY): down 28.2%Nissan Motor* (NSANY): down 36.1%Li Auto (LI): down 36.8%Stellantis (STLA): down 42.5%Nio Inc. (NIO): down 43.9%Lucid (LCID): down 47.5%Rivian (RIVN): down 54.9%* Over-the-counter shares
GM, unlike many competitors, has not lowered its 2024 guidance or underperformed Wall Street’s quarterly earnings expectations. Instead, it’s actually raised key financial targets despite facing ongoing market challenges in the U.S. and its ******** operations losing hundreds of millions of dollars amid increased competition.
While GM has said it’s cutting costs, it has not had to be as aggressive as other automakers this year. Nissan, Volkswagen and Stellantis are conducting massive business restructurings that include layoffs, production cuts and other cost-saving measures.
Shares of GM under Barra, who started leading the automaker in January 2014, have been lackluster for investors for most of her tenure. The stock’s average closing price under her tenure is $38 per share —lower than the $40.02 per share closing price before she became CEO, according to FactSet data.
Cumulative, as of Friday’s close, shares are up 38.9% under Barra’s tenure. That compares to a nearly 300% increase for the S&P 500 during that timeframe. GM’s all-time high stock price under Barra was $67.21 on Jan. 5, 2022, as Barra presented GM’s EV ambitions and growth plans.
Whether GM can continue its hot streak going into next year is yet to be seem, but the automaker has advised it expects the 2025 performance of the company to be in line with this year, including signaling a weaker fourth quarter.
Barra, when discussing quarterly earnings Oct. 22, reiterated her stance that GM will continue to “build on our competitive strength and deliver the performance that differentiates us from others in the industry.”
“We’re going to be disciplined and we’ll be resilient, and we’ll make adjustments to the extent that we can to continue to drive growth and profitability,” Barra said. “In the weeks and months ahead, you’ll see more clearly than ever how we intend to leverage the tailwinds that are within our control to deliver strong results in 2025 that are in a similar range to 2024.”
GM stock on average is weighted overweight with a price target of $59.85 per share, according to average Wall Street estimates compiled by FactSet.
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Who’s to blame on the Bears? Accountability for such a bad loss goes through whole franchise
Who’s to blame on the Bears? Accountability for such a bad loss goes through whole franchise
CHICAGO — Fans booed and chanted to ***** the head coach. They headed for the exits in droves.
The locker room had an all-too-familiar silence to it. The players who spoke were stunned and lacked answers to the obvious.
How did the Chicago Bears get here?
“Can’t put it into words,” wide receiver DJ Moore said. “Difficult loss. Go back to the drawing boards and just be real with ourselves.”
No one in the locker room will play the blame game, but to lose 19-3 at home to the New England Patriots is an institutional ********. Every decision that led to this point deserves scrutiny, whether it was something as micro as quarterback Caleb Williams throwing a swing pass to Moore instead of handing it off or something as franchise-altering as the front office deciding to keep head coach Matt Eberflus.
That’s how bad a loss in this situation was. As Eberflus said when asked about the offensive coordinator position, “Everything is going to be looked at.”
“It was pretty bad,” tight end Cole Kmet said. “We’ve got a lot that we’ve got to get corrected.”
Only 14 days ago, the 4-2 Bears played a flexed late-afternoon game against the Washington Commanders. Everything seemed to be going in the right direction coming off a three-game winning streak and a bye to fix what wasn’t working: the first-quarter offense and run defense.
GO DEEPER
The Bears offense is broken. They can’t afford to let it break Caleb Williams, too
Now the Bears are 4-5. They’ve been shut out in the first quarter in five consecutive games. They had one of their worst offensive performances in years against a 2-7 Patriots team that ranked 26th in yards per play allowed, 27th in yards per pass allowed, 28th in sacks per pass and 27th on third down.
The Bears responded by putting up 142 yards of offense and 4.0 yards per pass. They allowed nine sacks for the seventh time in franchise history and went 1-for-14 on third down.
If that juxtaposition sounds familiar, it was a similar refrain last week after a 29-9 drubbing at the Arizona Cardinals.
When given an opportunity to respond to losing in an unimaginable fashion against the Commanders, the Bears were beaten in all three phases by the Cardinals. When given an opportunity to bounce back and get a needed win before division play against a last-place team, they couldn’t move the football.
Rookie quarterback Drake Maye and a two-win Patriots team embarrassed the Bears at Soldier Field on Sunday. (Michael Reaves / Getty Images)
One of the themes after the game from Eberflus and Williams was that the Bears have the players. If you go up and down the roster, they do. The offensive line was in tatters Sunday and even when healthy has struggled, but this is one of the better Bears rosters in the post-Lovie Smith era.
Williams accepted the blame for his role in the losing. He has completed 50.5 percent of his passes in the past three games. His accuracy has been off. He’s not getting the ball out quickly enough. A lot of that is to be expected, though, from a rookie, even one as heralded as Williams.
If the Bears have the quarterback and the players around him, how did the organization ****** this up?
• Offensive coordinator Shane Waldron simply has not put the offense in a position to succeed. Running back D’Andre Swift had his moments Sunday, but then we’d see the run abandoned. Too much was put on a banged-up offensive line and, therefore, Williams. The rookie quarterback acknowledged his errors on third down, but like the past two weeks, this scheme isn’t giving him layups. We saw Patriots quarterback Drake Maye get some nice, easy chunk plays to open receivers. That didn’t happen for Williams, and he has better receivers.
• On Feb. 22, Eberflus stood at the lectern at Halas Hall to introduce Waldron. He lauded the team’s two-week process that landed its coordinators. He thanked his bosses for the resources that allowed him to travel the West Coast and interview play callers. The stakes were high with the No. 1 pick and the fact that Eberflus’ first choice as offensive coordinator, Luke Getsy, didn’t work. He chose Waldron. He chose to promote Chris Morgan to run game coordinator and pair him with Waldron. However the Bears got to Waldron, and however they built this offensive staff, is rightly under heavy criticism.
For the second week in a row, Eberflus took full accountability after the game, saying, “I’ll take responsibility for it.”
“The whole thing,” he said. “The operation of it: offense, defense, kicking. That’s the job of the head coach. So, to me, that’s accountability for everything.”
Eberflus knows that everything that goes on reflects on him, but the coordinator decision goes above him too, as does blame for Sunday’s dismal performance. The Bears put themselves in this position. Their performance on offense means a serious examination of everything that led to it.
GO DEEPER
NFL Week 10 takeaways: Who’s more disappointing, Jets or Cowboys? Are Steelers Super Bowl worthy?
• General manager Ryan Poles and his staff built a roster that looks nothing like the one he inherited in 2022, but a three-game losing streak that has put heat on the coaching staff raises the ultimate question: Should Eberflus have been retained after last season? Though Poles improved the offensive line depth, as he sees how many times Williams has been sacked, should more have been done to fortify the starters?
• This goes above Poles, too, to president/CEO Kevin Warren, who had an opportunity in his first offseason to make a major change to help the infrastructure that would get its best chance to right the quarterback ship. Warren, whose downtown stadium plans are stalled while the team sits on land in Arlington Heights, could still be the wild card that would allow this iteration of the Bears to make in-season moves.
• And then it goes to chairman George McCaskey, whose hiring committee identified Poles and Eberflus nearly three years ago. Under McCaskey’s tenure, the Bears have won zero playoff games, are on their fifth head coach and third GM and could be moving on to their 10th offensive coordinator.
With Williams, Moore, Swift, Kmet, Keenan Allen and Rome Odunze on offense, the Bears scored 3 points against the Patriots at Soldier Field.
For the offense to combust in such spectacular fashion after back-to-back weeks of chatter about team meetings and accountability, that’s the type of loss that falls on everyone in the organization.
Sunday was supposed to be a return to .500, an opportunity to take advantage of a rebuilding Patriots team before the Green Bay Packers come to town. Instead, it was one of the Bears’ worst losses in years.
And that’s saying something.
(Top photo of Caleb Williams getting sacked by Jahlani Tavai: Michael Reaves / Getty Images)
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xAI’s Grok-2 might be available for free on X soon
xAI’s Grok-2 might be available for free on X soon
Elon Musk’s xAI launched its AI chatbot, Grok, at the end of 2023 and it has remained exclusively available to X (formerly Twitter) premium users since. Now, one year later, Grok is seemingly coming to free X users in select areas, TechCrunch reports.
The news comes from multiple reports on X by researchers and users who spotted updates to Grok. According to X user Swak, there are stipulations to who can access Grok for free and how much they can use it. For starters, accounts need to be at least seven days old and have a phone number attached to them. Free users are also reportedly limited by how many things they can do in two hours. They can ask the Grok-2 model 10 questions and the Grok-2 mini model 20 questions within that time frame. Furthermore, free users only get three image analyses each day.
The Grok-2 and the Grok-2 mini models are relatively new, releasing late summer of this year. Grok-2 is xAI’s most advanced AI chatbot to date and pulls real-time information right from X, while the company claims the mini version “offers a balance between speed and answer quality.”
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Scientists unlock mechanisms of liquid-repellent surfaces
Scientists unlock mechanisms of liquid-repellent surfaces
Credit: Griffith University
Griffith University scientists have made significant strides in understanding and controlling liquid interactions on tiny, advanced surfaces, a breakthrough that could impact a wide range of industries, from self-cleaning materials to medical devices.
In a study published in the journal Advanced Materials Interfaces, researchers at Griffith’s Queensland Micro- and Nanotechnology Center explored how specific surface structures—called re-entrant microstructures—could repel water and other liquids.
The paper—chosen as the Editor’s Choice and set to feature on the journal’s cover—revealed how factors such as shape, material, and spacing of these microstructures influenced their ability to resist wetting or liquid spreading.
“Our research dives deep into why some surfaces are better at repelling water than others,” said Dr. Navid Kashaninejad, one of the study’s lead researchers.
“This understanding allows us to design surfaces that can either repel or attract liquids, which is important for applications like self-cleaning materials or surfaces that avoid fouling.”
The team focused on two materials, silicon dioxide (SiO₂) and silicon carbide (SiC), which each offered unique properties.
While SiC is known for its inherent hydrophobic (water-repelling) nature, the researchers found the overall geometry—especially the spacing and shape of these tiny cap-like structures—played a more significant role in influencing liquid behavior than the type of material itself.
Credit: Griffith University
They found re-entrant structures with larger gaps between them effectively trapped air pockets, enhancing water repellence and preventing the liquid from fully wetting the surface.
This intricate balance between material properties and structure provided a new perspective on designing highly efficient, liquid-repellent surfaces.
Dr. Kashaninejad said the implications of these findings were wide-reaching. “In environmental technology, self-cleaning surfaces could reduce maintenance costs and improve performance in sectors such as solar panels and water-repellent coatings.
“In the biomedical field, liquid-repellent materials could help develop medical devices that resist bacterial build-up, improving hygiene and patient safety.
“These findings also open doors to creating materials that can withstand extreme conditions, such as high temperatures or harsh chemicals, using materials like silicon carbide.
“This study not only contributes to the growing body of knowledge in surface science but also positions Griffith University at the forefront of innovative materials design.”
Dr. Kashaninejad said the team was hopeful further exploration of these properties would lead to even more advanced applications across multiple industries.
More information:
Hoang Huy Vu et al, Exploring Wettability of Re‐Entrant Microstructures: Effects of Geometry and Material Composition, Advanced Materials Interfaces (2024). DOI: 10.1002/admi.202400626
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Griffith University
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Scientists unlock mechanisms of liquid-repellent surfaces (2024, November 11)
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Fresh concerns over NHS England registries procurement
Fresh concerns over NHS England registries procurement
The ongoing procurement process for NHS England’s Outcomes and Registries Platform (ORP) continues to draw concerns over the state of the project’s data security practices, amid claims that the whole enterprise may be riding roughshod over compliance with public sector procurement regulations.
The ORP project is designed to bring together various, world-renowned clinical devices registries, established over many years by medical specialists and technologists, that act as a repository of data to support the NHS in the nationwide operation and management of clinical services. They enable the commissioning of services, the introduction of new treatments and better identification of effective (or ineffective) treatments, a large range of quality assurance processes, research and policy development, and help to ensure patient safety.
Earlier this year, Computer Weekly reported how the project’s login page was accessible to anybody with an internet connection, rather than via the Health and Social Care Network (HSCN), and was not protected by multifactor authentication (MFA), which runs contrary to NHS England rules.
Responding at the time, NHS England said that it was moving to enhance security on the ORP platform and MFA has been implemented since that article was published.
This has gone a little way to alleviating some of the worries previously highlighted by the Federation of Clinical Registries (FCR), a group of registry lead healthcare professionals and technologists who are concerned at the ORP programme’s direction of travel, and say they are being repeatedly sidelined by NHS England when they try to raise their doubts.
According to the FCR, other security concerns are going unaddressed by NHS England, allegedly including far deeper data protection issues that have been ignored.
“Even though they’ve introduced MFA, what have they done about the fact that practically anybody can register for that system? Things are being sent around on spreadsheets and users are being pre-registered in bulk without even asking whether they want to be on the system,” an FCR representative said, speaking to Computer Weekly on condition of anonymity. According to responses supplied to the FCR, there are at least 6,000 registered users, and only 900 of those are classed as “active” users.
“It’s [also still] sat on the internet, which goes against the cloud security guidelines for Class Five data. The FCR has repeatedly chased the NHS England Cyber Security Department for clarification on these security issues.”
Class Five data is defined within the NHS as cloud-hosted data that carries the highest level of risk. Official guidance holds that operating services at this level requires “board-level organisational commitment, following specialist advice and guidance”.
The FCR representative said that NHS England should be aware of the risks to the various datasets because one of the existing registries, the National Major Trauma Registry (NMTR), previously known as the Trauma Audit and Research Network (TARN), was compromised by a ransomware gang in a 2023 ******* on the University of Manchester. The university no longer runs the registry in question.
Responding to questions over the ongoing security concerns, NHS England told Computer Weekly that the system conformed to NHS cyber security guidance and that there was no specific requirement for it to be part of the HSCN.
Contract award
The FCR also said that it has significant concerns over the process of how the ORP contract was awarded in the first place. The genesis of the FCR was a perceived threat to established world-renowned registries following the issue of a new draft contract by NHS England, which the established registries say they saw as “essentially a notice to quit”.
In the wake of this, the FCR said it found many issues, including instances where registry contract payments were withheld, data flows to key registries stopped, registry projects stalled, and historical data left unavailable or deleted because legal contracts had been allowed to expire. Subsequently, FCR contacts within NHS England told the group that ********* supplier NEC had been tapped to develop the wider ORP platform and the various registries in scope, in light of which the FCR set out to try to find out more about how that contract came to be awarded.
What it uncovered was a contract worth about £1m dating to March 2023, described as “somewhat vague” in its nature, that covered the initial development of ORP including integration of two of the clinical registries, vascular ********* and ****** conditions, into the platform. At the time of writing, this has not yet been delivered.
However, the FCR was unable to establish any other details of the contract via the government contract finder service – which is where they would normally be published, albeit often in redacted form.
“We then became aware that they [NEC] were working on multiple other registries which didn’t get any mention in what we could see about the contract. All we had was the title, so it was very difficult for us to know what it was covering and what it was not,” said the FCR representative.
“Every time we asked them, they just kept pointing back to the original contract and saying it covers all this work on cochlear, ******* implants, ligaments, everything. But there was no reference to that in the title, so we thought this can’t be true.”
The FCR started to file freedom of information (FoI) requests to try to establish the costs of the development of the individual registries and their integration into ORP, but was told there were no further details to share.
Undeterred, the group continued to escalate through the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which over the summer of 2024 found that NHS England had ******* to comply with the group’s requests appropriately.
However, according to the FCR’s version of events, its contacts within NHS England subsequently found another ORP contract for £1.24m, awarded to NEC on 23 February 2024 but officially unpublished until 11 July 2024, almost three months after a question had been raised about it in the House of Commons.
“They didn’t disclose it in response to the MP in Parliament, they didn’t disclose it when we were doing all the FOIs, they didn’t disclose it on the public website where all the contracts are meant to be published. It wasn’t on there and when the FCR asked the senior responsible owner [SRO] for that programme, they didn’t disclose it either. They kept pointing back to that original contract.
“We couldn’t understand how all these other registries were being developed under that initial contract, and they kept saying, it’s covered by that. Well, actually they’re all in the second contract,” said the FCR representative.
A further claim made by the FCR is that both of the contracts were directly awarded to NEC without following proper process and without a proper market evaluation. Responding to the FCR’s questions, the NHS England ORP SRO at the time said that a market evaluation was conducted, but subsequently the NHS England transformation director has changed tack on this, saying they were not. This situation has led to resentment among FCR members who feel it is they – rather than NEC – who have proven expertise in the delivery of medical registries.
NHS England said that its response to the ICO related to the contracts and expenditure in place at the time of the FCR’s initial request, and that it has now provided “further details to the ICO’s satisfaction”.
Following the rules
Additionally, the FCR said the publication of the second NEC contract some months after it was awarded suggests that those in charge of the procurement are trying to retroactively wave it through and give the appearance that the rules have been followed.
The ORP contract timeline became murkier still in August and September 2024, when a new procurement process appeared to kick off, which this time took the form of a request for information (RFI), followed by a demonstration from suppliers and then the award of a contract, initially appearing to cut out the tender process entirely.
“Suppliers asked, ‘What’s the specification for the system?’, and NHS England said, ‘We’ll only disclose the specification for the system to the winning bidder’. How does that make any sense?” said the FCR representative.
Coupled with the publication of the second NEC contract some months after it was awarded, the convoluted processes involved in what should have been a straightforward procurement has lent additional weight to the FCR’s belief that the ORP project is being retroactively given the green light.
“They know they haven’t followed the right processes and now it’s just a case of trying to protect themselves. All of these non-responses to FOIs, they’re trying every trick in the book to avoid landing themselves in it,” said the FCR’s whistleblower.
NHS England said that the contracts had been awarded under established framework agreements – details of both being available via Contracts Finder, located here and here. However, responding to the FCR’s concerns over costs, it said these were withheld for commercial confidentiality reasons under section 43(2) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
The organisation confirmed that it had issued a single RFI for the new contract, which is currently live, and said all respondents were being kept informed of progress and timescales for engagement.
An NHS England spokesperson told Computer Weekly: “The tracking and monitoring of devices and implants is crucial for patient safety, and the Outcomes Registries Platform meets all appropriate standards in cyber security and data protection. We are running an open and transparent procurement process for the next phase of the programme.”
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Market vendor describes fatal ****** *******
Market vendor describes fatal ****** *******
BBC
Adam Kadirzadah told BBC London how a man with a big ****** attacked his customers
A market vendor has described the moment his customers were stabbed in front of him, one of them fatally.
Adam Kadirzadah, who sells fruit in East Street in Walworth, south London, told BBC London how a man approached shoppers from behind.
“It was a nice morning, there were a lot of customers in the market, it was a busy time,” Mr Kadirzadah said. “The guy was shouting out with a big ******… It was really shocking, I couldn’t sleep all night. It was really bad.”
One man was ******* in Sunday morning’s *******, while a man and a woman were taken to hospital. Their condition is unknown. A man, believed to be in his 60s, was arrested at the scene.
This article contains detail that some may find distressing.
PA Media
Mr Kadirzadah said his customers were shopping for fruit when the ******* happened
“We had a few customers at my stall, they were buying the fruit for the family,” Mr Kadirzadah told BBC London.
He said some people ran away when they saw the man with the ******, adding: “The two customers we had at the front of my stall, they couldn’t see it.
“The customer was picking up a lemon and he [the attacker] was stab-stab-stabbing. He stabbed from the back.”
Mr Kadirzadah said two of the victims fell to the ground, and the man with the ****** fled.
“As soon as he left my stall, a lot of people were running after him to not let him go until the police came,” he said.
“Luckily, the police came quick or it could have been more than 20 or 30 people.”
The stabbing happened in East Street in Walworth on Sunday morning
Cdr Peter Stevens of the Met Police said his thoughts and sincere sympathies were with the family of the man who was ******* and the people who were injured.
He said officers were working hard to establish exactly what happened, adding that nobody else was being sought in relation to the *******.
Police tape continued to surround the market area on Monday, with debris scattered across the road.
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Xbox Teases Spyro Coming to Xbox Game Pass
Xbox Teases Spyro Coming to Xbox Game Pass
·
·
November 11, 2024
Xbox has teased that Spyro will be added to Xbox Game Pass in the near future.
The tease came from the official Xbox Game Pass X handle (formerly Twitter), which posted a 27-second short video on a chest from Spyro. Several minutes after the post, the official Spyro X handle replied with several eye emojis, suggesting that an announcement was on the horizon.
Earlier this year, rumors surfaced that several Activision games, including Spyro, would be coming to Game Pass, but the exact timeframe could never be determined.
In October, Game Pass saw the addition of Call of Duty to the service, which some analysts believed increased the service’s subscriber count by several million. Now, though, it seems like Xbox and Activision are gearing up for another huge release in the form of your favorite purple dragon.
Activision announced in 2007 that the Spyro The Dragons series sold over 20 million units, but as of September 2023, the Spyro Reignited Trilogy sold over 10 million units across all consoles.
Xbox typically likes to announce and release its Game Pass games on a Thursday, so keep your eyes peeled later this week.
Are you excited to see Spyro coming to Game Pass? Let us know on the Insider Gaming Forum.
For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out the news about the growth of India’s gaming market
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Retirees should invest bolder as they grow older, study suggests
Retirees should invest bolder as they grow older, study suggests
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain
Retirement is a longed-for milestone in most workers’ lives, but the transition requires a delicate financial balance. Retirees must anticipate life expectancy, inflation, recurring expenses and more as they manage their investments to ensure their life savings last through their golden years.
A study by Doug Waggle, professor of finance at the University of West Florida, and Pankaj Agrrawal, Nicolas M. Salgo, Professor of Finance at the University of Maine, simulated five potential approaches, or glide paths, to assess their performance amid fluctuating stock prices and other uncertainties. Their findings countered the approach that most financial advisers currently recommend.
Most financial advisors recommend that retirees follow decreasing glide paths, which gradually assume a lower-risk mix of investments over time. A common recommendation is that the percentage of stocks to bonds in a portfolio should equal 100 less than their age, meaning someone who is 100 should invest their entire portfolio in bonds.
Waggle and Agrrawal’s study, however, finds that an increasing glide path, which increases the proportion invested in stocks over time, may be optimal for most retirees who can count on Social Security.
The paper, titled “Guaranteed Income and Optimal Retirement Glide Paths,” which was published in the Journal of Financial Planning, reasoned that investment portfolios are more vulnerable in early retirement, when large losses may threaten their ability to provide lifetime income.
A more ************* approach early on reduces retirees’ vulnerability to this risk. Furthermore, as an individual progresses through retirement, the timeline for their income stream shortens and variables—like one’s desired income—become more certain.
Those developments, coupled with the portfolio’s growth during retirement, frees one to shift to a riskier investment mix that offers greater growth potential. The study’s authors caution, however, that this strategy is currently not widely accepted by financial advisers, who retirees should work with to develop their investment plans.
The aim of the study, Agrrawal said, was to explore the tradeoffs retirees and financial planners have to make as they choose an investment strategy for a given retirement portfolio.
The paper also examined the impact of factoring in Social Security payments into the withdrawal plans for their retirement savings. Including guaranteed income in a retiree’s portfolio reduces the amount and importance of an ongoing income stream from investments, which frees them up to focus their portfolio on building wealth.
This approach, the study found, particularly benefits risk-averse retirees who wish to leave an inheritance behind as a portfolio that factors in guaranteed income will have higher starting allocations in stock.
“The paper takes a break from the classic models of post-retirement asset allocations; the inclusion of Social Security payments has significant implications for the equity-bond mix. Utilizing Monte Carlo modeling, we find that increasing glide path equity allocations over time is optimal for the retirees’ wealth function,” Agrrawal said.
The research by Waggle and Agrrawal used computer models to run thousands of potential scenarios through these paths that accounted for common differences among retirees like guaranteed income, initial savings, risk aversion and whether they wish to leave assets to their heirs.
The duo also analyzed how each of the paths—increasing fast, increasing slow, constant, decreasing slow, decreasing fast—performed with varying withdrawal rates.
More information:
Doug Waggle et al. Guaranteed Income and Optimal Retirement Glide Paths. Journal of Financial Planning (2024) www.financialplanningassociati … tirement-glide-paths
Provided by
University of Maine
Citation:
Retirees should invest bolder as they grow older, study suggests (2024, November 11)
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Microsoft stealthily installs Windows 10 update to nag you to upgrade to Windows 11 – and not for the first time
Microsoft stealthily installs Windows 10 update to nag you to upgrade to Windows 11 – and not for the first time
A new patch is being quietly pushed to Windows 10 (and 11) PCs
It’ll force upgrades in certain circumstances to keep the PC in support
This update will mean more nag prompts coming to your PC
Windows 10 users – and those running an out-of-date version of Windows 11 – are getting an update stealthily pushed to their PCs that will allow Microsoft to force a future update to the OS (to keep it in support), and also to nag users about support running out, too.
Neowin spotted the deployment of patch KB5001716, which the site notes has been quietly installed on Windows 10 PCs following the release of the October cumulative update. (It was also pushed to Windows 11 version 21H2 devices, which ran out of support over a year ago).
The patch is an update for Windows Update, essentially, and Microsoft notes: “When this update is installed, Windows may attempt to download and install feature updates to your device if it is approaching or has reached the end of support for your currently installed Windows version.”
Microsoft also observes: “After this update is installed, Windows may periodically display a notification informing you of problems that may prevent Windows Update from keeping your device up-to-date and protected against current threats.”
This means that KB5001716 will allow notifications to be presented to Windows 10 (and 11) users telling them that their device is running an unsupported version of Windows that is past its sell-by date for updates and is therefore insecure. For Windows 10 users, this likely translates into further badgering to move to Windows 11.
In some cases, given the first point Microsoft notes, the update may also be forced on your PC (eventually), as we see happening when any given version of Windows 10 or 11 runs out of road and is no longer supported for further upgrades.
(Image credit: Shutterstock/fizkes)
Analysis: Repeat performance – the odd history of KB5001716
What Microsoft is doing here is trying to keep your device secure, so in some ways, it’s a perfectly understandable measure. As you may recall, Windows 10 has less than a year of support left now.
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However, there are problems with the approach here: namely the stealthy way in which the update turns up on PCs. After checking for updates, this one seemingly just lands on your system – ***** – without any warning.
What’s also odd is that if you search for KB5001716 on the web, you’ll find that there’s a history of this update mysteriously appearing on PCs. As reported on various forums such as Reddit, KB5001716 turned up in April 2024, and was piped to PCs before that in October 2023 as well.
What gives? That’s a good question. Presumably, these are revisions of KB5001716 – tweaked updates – that are being redelivered to Windows 10 (and 11) PCs. However, in some cases in the past, there were errors caused by the reinstallation, which seemingly conflicted with previous installs of the patch in some way. If you’ve recently got a message that KB5001716 ******* to install on your PC, this is likely to be what’s happened.
The apparent cure for those scenarios is to go to the Windows Update page (in Settings) and click on View update history, then click on Uninstall updates at the top of the panel. Now, scroll back to find the previously installed KB5001716, then select and remove it. Reboot, head back to Windows Update, and check for updates again – whereupon the latest version of KB5001716 (for October 2024) should install okay (hopefully).
There’s seemingly no getting around this update, as it is a necessary upgrade for Windows Update (it’s possible that it may do other things in the background, too, apart from the reminders to upgrade and everything else mentioned in the support notes).
We should clarify that this won’t force a Windows 11 upgrade on a Windows 10 PC which isn’t compatible with the stricter requirements for the newest OS – but it’ll likely continue to nag you about upgrading (for your own good, Microsoft would obviously argue).
Indeed, we’d be surprised if it fired up any upgrade for Windows 11 automatically, even if the PC in question was compatible – but, we guess, perhaps this could happen. Normally forced upgrades are for feature updates, though, meaning new versions of your current operating system, like 24H2 which recently arrived as this year’s annual update for Windows 11. Migrating to a whole new OS, like jumping from Windows 10 to 11, is a much ******* move.
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Arkansas Gov. Sanders Unites ****** Leaders to Tackle State’s Key Social Issues
Arkansas Gov. Sanders Unites ****** Leaders to Tackle State’s Key Social Issues
Hunger continues to be a national concern, and it’s no different here in Arkansas where one food bank alone is providing more than 11 million meals each year.
Kent Eikenberry, CEO of the Northwest Arkansas Food Bank, said, “Food insecurity across the nation affects 40 million people, based on the latest number I’ve heard. The problem is far too large for any single organization to solve.”
This is why the Northwest Arkansas Food Bank collaborates with more than 100 agencies to provide nutritious food to children, the working poor, and senior citizens in their region.
Christen Butler, of the C.A.L.L. Foster Family Ministry, explained, “Food insecurity is a significant reason why children enter foster care. We need to get ahead of it to help keep kids from entering the system and to stabilize foster families, so children receive the help, love, and healing home they need.”
Supporting those in need was the reason more than 100 area ****** leaders gathered in Little Rock for the first Arkansas ****** Summit.
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said, “There are so many silos within the state, from government to the ****** community to the private and public sectors. Bringing everyone together in a collaborative spirit allows us to tackle some of the state’s biggest issues.”
Flanked by her father, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, Sanders spoke candidly about her belief that ****** is a driving force behind addressing issues like food insecurity, foster care, social media concerns, and educational freedom.
“I hope this becomes an annual event in Arkansas,” said Stephanie Nichols, of the Arkansas Justice Institute, who emphasized the importance of school choice in education and how the state’s LEARNS Act provides funding for parents of eligible students who choose private schooling or homeschooling.
Nichols added, “One example I encouraged attendees to consider is how my kids attend a homeschool co-op held in a *******. If more churches opened their facilities for educational purposes, we’d have more children educated with biblical worldviews.”
Governor Sanders recently launched the Arkansas ******-Based Initiative website, which allows individuals and organizations to connect online and engage in various community initiatives. She noted, “A lot of these entities are already doing some of this work, but bringing them together to work collectively will allow us to make a much ******* impact and potentially make Arkansas a model for other states to follow.”
While states like Florida and Tennessee also promote ******-based initiatives, Sanders believes Arkansas’ ****** Summit is a unique statewide networking event. “I encourage other governors to explore if a similar event could work in their states,” she said.
The governor told attendees she’s not trying to turn the capitol dome into a ******* steeple, but encouraged people to live out their ******. And a big part of that, she said, is working together to help others.
“When your ****** is authentic, you don’t leave it behind when you step into any role, whatever job it may be.”
Part of the summit included a discussion on the separation of ******* and state and how Christians can be bolder in their ****** without ***** of crossing boundaries.
Stephanie Nichols expressed her hope for innovation within the ********** community, saying, “I hope we see more creativity from the body of ******* going forward, because I believe we all have something to bring to the table with that approach.”
Justin Bilson, from Fellowship ****** *******, reflected, “Whenever this many ****** leaders gather, everyone brings their own thoughts and opinions. But I really appreciate that we can come together under one purpose—to acknowledge the importance of the intersection of ****** and government and to believe in a greater purpose for our state. I believe the ******* should be at the forefront.”
What may result from the summit’s outreach ******** to be seen. However, Eikenberry expressed optimism, referencing the story of ****** feeding the 5,000: “I often joke that ****** himself ran the first food bank. He took five loaves and two fish and fed a multitude. That’s what we are asked to do every day.”
***Please sign up for CBN Newsletters and download the CBN News app to ensure you keep receiving the latest news from a distinctly ********** perspective.***
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Call of Duty 2025 Needs Much More of 1 Mission Type from ****** Ops 6
Call of Duty 2025 Needs Much More of 1 Mission Type from ****** Ops 6
Released on October 25th, ****** Ops 6 has been a major success, effectively bringing the Call of Duty franchise back to its roots. The game features a compelling campaign with an immersive narrative that ends on a gripping cliffhanger, a robust Zombies mode, and an enjoyable multiplayer experience with new weapons, maps, and an innovative movement mechanic.
Players are really enjoying the game, particularly its campaign mode. | Image Credit: Treyarch
****** Ops 6 has renewed hope among fans, who are already anticipating what the 2025 installment will bring. Treyarch has ***** a solid foundation with this release, but to fully capitalize on its success, CoD 2025 should introduce more immersive campaign missions. Particularly, missions that go beyond the usual combat and encourage players to engage with the story through puzzle-solving, exploration, or searching for hidden items.
Why ****** Ops 6’s Puzzle Missions Were So Effective
The ****** Ops 6 campaign is packed with intense action-packed missions, but in between these missions, there were a few standout moments that were completely different from the typical “****** everything that moves” formula. These missions added a variety to the mission catalog and also tested players’ intellect, patience, and curiosity.
The two most notable examples were the Emergence mission, where players must search an abandoned facility (filled with creepy mannequins) to find keycards that unlock doors, and the Separation Anxiety mission, where players enter the mind of Pantheon’s leader, Jane Harrow, and navigate through psychological puzzles (her memories) to find the clue.
Both of these missions were a breath of fresh air in a game that otherwise leans heavily towards chaotic and fast-paced ********* gameplay, offering players a break from the usual gameplay loop and creating some of the campaign’s most memorable experiences. The strength of these missions ***** in their ability to create a different kind of tension.
This approach added variety to the campaign and helped deepen the player’s engagement with the narrative. As Call of Duty continues to release new installments annually, it would be interesting if Treyarch expands on these types of missions in future titles. The potential for adding more non-combat challenges is high as they offer players a refreshing shift from the standard gameplay and further immerse them in the story.
The Need for More Non-Combat Missions in Call of Duty 2025
The future installments in the franchise now have a very solid foundation. | Image Credit: Treyarch
For Call of Duty 2025 to build upon the success of ****** Ops 6, Treyarch should lean into the idea of more non-combat, puzzle-solving missions. This doesn’t mean that combat should be sidelined, after all, action is the franchise’s core appeal. However, expanding on the two standout search/puzzle missions in ****** Ops 6 has the potential to make CoD 2025 stand out even more in terms of its campaign experience.
In a franchise that releases a new title every year, ****** Ops 6 has ***** an excellent foundation for its follow-up. By adding more puzzles, keycard hunts, hidden facilities, and even psychological missions like Separation Anxiety, CoD 2025 can bring a new level of depth to the series.
While players undeniably enjoy the high-octane action sequences (which should remain a staple), giving them opportunities to use their minds and explore the narrative beyond combat can inject fresh energy into the formula. This would offer variety and challenge, providing a well-rounded campaign experience.
The importance of a strong campaign mode is evident, especially after the disappointment of Modern Warfare 3, which left many fans frustrated over its lackluster story. By introducing more non-combat missions, CoD 2025 could deliver a richer, more intricate narrative that goes beyond the typical good guy vs. bad guy dynamic.
In the end, players are hoping that the next entry in the franchise will elevate both storytelling and gameplay, allowing room for both brains and brawn in the campaign.
What type of missions do you want to see more in future installments? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section below.
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End of an era: Microsoft is planning to phase out Windows 11’s Mail and Calendar apps by the end of this year
End of an era: Microsoft is planning to phase out Windows 11’s Mail and Calendar apps by the end of this year
Microsoft is ending support for Windows 11’s built-in Mail and Calendar apps after December 31, 2024, and users will need to switch to the web-based Outlook app
Users can still access emails and calendar events in view-only mode in the Mail and Calendar apps, but won’t be able to send or receive emails
Microsoft aims to unify email and calendar management in Outlook, though users are concerned about the web app’s lack of offline access and inconsistent design when compared to the rest of Windows 11
Microsoft is shutting down the built-in Mail and Calendar apps in Windows 11, which means you’ll no longer be able to send or receive emails or manage your calendar using those apps after December 31, 2024. This has been a long time coming, with Microsoft showing pop-up notifications about this in both apps for months – and now the end is officially nigh.
Users are being urged to switch to the new web-based Outlook app for Windows 11, as explained in a support document that outlines how Microsoft is planning to end support for the Mail, Calendar, and People apps on December 31. It appears that Microsoft wants to streamline all of its email and calendar features and services into this one app that will be accessible on every Windows device.
If you want to use those apps after December 31, it appears you can still do that by switching off the ‘New Outlook’ setting (by unchecking it) found in the new Outlook app’s settings, specifically Outlook > Settings > General > About Outlook.
Windows Latest reports that this will likely be a ‘view-only’ mode, allowing you to view your emails, drafts, contacts, and other details in the Mail and Calendar apps, but you won’t be able to send or receive emails, and will be redirected to the web-based Outlook. It apparently doesn’t work offline yet, and Microsoft is working on adding support for this in the next few weeks, which is good news as most people would expect a desktop email client to let you see and compose emails even if you briefly lose your internet connection.
(Image credit: Shutterstock/Drazen Zigic)
What this means for Mail and Calendar app users
What this means for you is that starting January 1, 2025, you’ll have to switch to the new Outlook or use a third-party app. In the meantime, you can choose to follow Microsoft’s advice or close the reminder pop-up, clicking the ‘Not now’ option, although this will reappear the next time you use these apps.
One other workaround that you can try is to downgrade your Mail and Calendar apps to the previous versions, which seemingly gets rid of the pop-ups altogether, but this loophole will also stop working on December 31, 2024.
If you have emails, calendar events, and contacts in the Mail and Calendar apps that are saved only on your device, and you want to be able to access them in the web Outlook app, you’ll be able to export this information by using the ‘Export’ feature in both apps to add those emails or events to either a suitable third-party app of your choosing or to Outlook.
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It looks like the reception of the new web Outlook app isn’t so hot, with some people complaining that it doesn’t ‘feel’ like the rest of the operating system. There seems to be a disconnect with the rest of Windows 11, and along with the lack of offline access, it still feels more like a website than a convenient app for many.
Along with Microsoft’s recent mishaps and problems brought on by the new Windows 11 24H2 update, I don’t see this move winning many people over. I think being able to see all of your admin information in one place is useful, but users of the Mail and Calendar apps may have come to rely on using these built-in applications which have been tightly integrated into Windows 11.
If the replacement Outlook web app lacks features and polish, I think Windows 11 users will feel let down at a time when Microsoft needs more people to switch to its latest operating system.
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Hoffenheim ***** coach Matarazzo after bad start
Hoffenheim ***** coach Matarazzo after bad start
******* club Hoffenheim have fired their ********* coach Pellegrino Matarazzo with the team sliding toward the Bundesliga relegation zone after failing to score in their last three league games.
Matarazzo had been in charge since February 2023 and leaves with the team 15th place in the 18-team Bundesliga and mid-table in the Europa League.
The team’s only win from the last six games in all competitions was against second-division Nuremberg in the ******* Cup.
It’s a far cry from last season, when Matarazzo’s team won praise for finishing seventh in the Bundesliga to qualify for the Europa League, and finished on a high by upsetting Bayern Munich 4-2 on the last day of the season.
The club had been in a relegation battle when Matarazzo took over and steered it to safety.
Sturm Graz coach ********** Ilzer is reportedly a candidate to take over.
Hoffenheim fired sporting director Alexander Rosen and technical director Bastian Huber in the off-season replacing them with Andreas Schicker and Paul Pajduch respectively, who came from Graz.
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Review – RetroRealms: Double Feature (PlayStation 5) | GameHype
Review – RetroRealms: Double Feature (PlayStation 5) | GameHype
Right in time for the peak of spooky season is California based indie dev: WayForward with their old-school rendition of two horror giants: Ashley Williams and Michael Meyers within RetroRealms: Double Feature. Author: Kyle Doherty for Game Hype ***.
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Chimpanzees’ Task Performance Improves With Human Audience, Study Finds
Chimpanzees’ Task Performance Improves With Human Audience, Study Finds
Chimpanzees have shown improved performance on challenging computer-based tasks when observed by humans, a study published in iScience on November 8 reveals. Conducted at Kyoto University, the research observed chimpanzees undertaking number-based tasks on touchscreens, monitored under different audience conditions. It was found that their performance increased with the task’s difficulty when the number of human observers also rose. However, for simpler tasks, chimpanzees performed worse in the presence of larger audiences, pointing to a nuanced relationship between observation and performance.
A Unique Setting for Chimpanzee-Human Interaction
Researchers, including Christen Lin of Kyoto University, explored whether chimpanzees experience an “audience effect,” typically attributed to reputation management in humans. The study, led by Shinya Yamamoto and Akiho Muramatsu, focused on chimpanzees accustomed to daily interactions with humans and familiar with touchscreen tasks for food rewards. Given the animals’ comfortable coexistence with humans, the researchers saw an opportunity to examine if audience dynamics might influence their task performance, as it does in humans.
Complex Effects of Human Observation
During thousands of sessions spanning six years, chimpanzees’ task performances were measured across various task difficulties. The study revealed a distinct improvement in complex tasks when observed by a larger human audience, while simpler tasks saw a decline in accuracy under similar conditions. The researchers found this surprising, as it indicated a level of social awareness previously thought to be more exclusive to humans.
Implications for Understanding Social Dynamics in Primates
The findings suggest that the impact of being watched, even by another species, may not be unique to humans. As noted by Yamamoto, the influence of an audience on performance in non-human primates provides valuable insights into the social behaviours that may have shaped early primate societies, long before human reputation-based systems emerged. Further study could help understand the evolutionary basis of this social trait in great apes.
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Itel S25, Itel S25 Ultra With 6.78-Inch AMOLED Screens, 50-Megapixel Rear Camera Launched: Price, Specifications
Apple’s Automatic ‘Inactivity Reboot’ iPhone Feature Could Impact Thieves, Law Enforcement
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Adding ceramic powder to liquid metal thermal paste improves cooling up to 72% says researchers
Adding ceramic powder to liquid metal thermal paste improves cooling up to 72% says researchers
A new colloidal thermal interface material (TIM) promises to significantly outperform commercially available liquid metals like Thermalright, Thermal Grizzly, and Coollaboratory products. Researchers at the Cockrell School of Engineering, part of the University of Texas, summarize their new invention as a mechanochemistry-engineered mix of Galinstan alloy and ceramic aluminum nitride. The bottom line is that the new TIM can outperform the best commercial liquid metal alternatives by between 56% and 72%, highlights Golem.de.
According to the researchers, the new TIM could reduce the cost and complexity of cooling power-hungry systems. “The power consumption of cooling infrastructure for energy-intensive data centers and other large electronic systems is skyrocketing,” noted Guihua Yu, professor in the Cockrell School of Engineering’s Walker Department of Mechanical Engineering and Texas Materials Institute. “That trend isn’t dissipating anytime soon, so it’s critical to develop new ways, like the material we’ve created, for efficient and sustainable cooling of devices operating at kilowatt levels and even higher power.” The scientists go on to underline the fact that around 40% of a data center’s energy expenditure is on cooling.
A key cooling performance figure shared by the researchers is that the new TIM can cut the energy needed for the cooling pump by 65%. Its performance is such that it “can enable sustainable cooling in energy-intensive applications, from data centers to aerospace, paving the way for more efficient and eco-friendly technologies,” said Kai Wu, lead author in Yu’s lab. It is expected to be a compelling solution in AI data centers.
The major difference with this new TIM is how it is made into a colloidal substance using mechanochemistry. Basically, a liquid metal alloy called Galinstan (gallium, indium, and tin), is mixed with microscopically dispersed insoluble particles of ceramic aluminum nitride. A mechanochemistry technique ensures the optimal dispersion of the ceramic in the liquid metal – resulting in its attractive thermal properties.
Golem.de, which seems to have accessed the full scientific paper, notes that the researchers “achieved heat transfer resistances that were between 56 and 72 percent lower than the best liquid metals.”
Unsurprisingly, the Texas-based boffins frame the new thermal material as a great solution for energy-hungry data centers. However, their awareness of the commercially available liquid metal TIM products that are popular among PC enthusiasts is encouraging – it should speed the new colloidal TIM into the hands of Tom’s Hardware readers. In other words, we hope the researchers’ mention of brands like Thermal Grizzly will mean this new TIM’s manufacturing method and ingredients can be commercially licensed sooner rather than later.
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Man and woman seriously hurt after their tent was ‘intentionally set on *****,’ deputies say
Man and woman seriously hurt after their tent was ‘intentionally set on *****,’ deputies say
Deputies in Orange County are investigating after a man and woman were hurt in an overnight *****.
The ***** was reported around 2:40 a.m. in a wooded area at 555 N. John Young Parkway, near a Greyhound bus station.
Deputies said a man and woman in their 20s were seriously hurt after a tent they were inside was “intentionally set on *****.”
Watch: Deputies investigate after man found shot at Orange County gas station
Both victims were taken to a hospital.
The Orlando Police Department and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office responded to the incident.
Deputies said the State ***** Marshal is investigating.
Read: Accused stalker sought after cutting off GPS monitor in Marion County, deputies say
No other details were released by law enforcement.
Channel 9 has a crew at the scene working to gather more information and will provide updates on Eyewitness News.
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Apple now has replacement parts for the iPhone 16 series
Apple now has replacement parts for the iPhone 16 series
It’s no secret that most technology nowadays isn’t exactly built to last forever, with new product models regularly on ***** on replace malfunctioning items. However, Apple, which famously announces new products each September, is taking new steps to let people repair their own devices. Apple has launched parts and tools for the iPhone 16, including the Plus, Pro and Pro Max.
Now, if you have an iPhone 16 model that’s acting up, you can go to Apple’s ************* repair store and — possibly — get what you need to fix it. Choose the product type and model then pick from the iPhone 16’s choices of back glass, battery, camera, top speaker, TrueDepth camera, SIM tray and more. Apple’s iPhone 16 should be easier to fix than its predecessor, receiving a 7/10 on the iFixit repairability scale, compared to a 4/10 for the iPhone 15.
You can either get kits or just the necessary part with prices varying based on your phone model. For example, a battery and ****** kit for the iPhone 16 Pro Max is $119, but its $99 for the regular iPhone 16. You can get quite a lot of money back on the kit prices if you return the replaced piece afterward. The iPhone 16 Pro Max, for instance, goes down to $61.88 after you send back the old battery.
Apple created its self-service program in 2022, giving its customers access to actual Apple parts when something in their device *******. However, Apple states that the service “is intended for individuals with the knowledge and experience to repair electronic devices. If you are experienced with the complexities of repairing electronic devices.” So, repairs might not be as accessible if you or someone you know isn’t savvy in making the swaps.
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Teaching methods must change to address globally poor reading skills, experts say
Teaching methods must change to address globally poor reading skills, experts say
Performance on four reading subskill measures for the first three instructional years. Credit: Nature Human Behaviour (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41562-024-02028-x
New research led by a team from Royal Holloway and the World Bank asserts that teaching methods should improve, after discovering that global literacy goals will not be met without major intervention.
The study, which is published in Nature Human Behaviour, concluded that evidence-based reading instruction methods—such as systematic phonics—should be put into practice as soon as possible in low- and middle-income countries.
Systematic phonics is explicit instruction about how the alphabet is used to represent spoken words, allowing children to take parts of words—such as “oy” in the word “boy” or “ay” in the word “play”—and apply them to unfamiliar words.
The research could prove of huge significance in efforts to improve global literacy. The researchers examined reading skills in more than 500,000 pupils in 48 low- and middle-income countries, assessing the children on things like the names of letters and correct pronunciation of single words.
Researchers found that basic reading skills are falling far below the minimum benchmarks, and that the performance gap widens across the first three years of learning to read, meaning children across the 48 countries are falling at the first hurdle when it comes to literacy.
Global literacy goals that were set out in the ******* Nations Sustainable Development Goals in 2015, will not be achieved without major intervention, according to the conclusions of the research.
The consensus among researchers is that the best method of developing literacy in children is to use high-quality, systematic phonics in the crucial early years of reading instruction. Systematic phonics has been used in England for around 15 years and has led to dramatic rises in basic reading skills. This is something that policy makers should introduce urgently in low- and middle-income countries, according to the researchers.
The researchers underlined the importance of improving global literacy, as being able to read is seen as an important foundation of economic growth, and a key contributor to health, gender equality and political participation. The researchers stressed that wider investments into global education are less effective than they should be because children are not learning to read.
Professor Kathy Rastle from the Department of Psychology said, “Our findings reveal a major ******** of public policy. Teaching children to read is the most important task for education systems worldwide, and yet, children in low- and middle-income countries are not even getting off the starting block. Systematic phonics provides the means to get these pupils onto a trajectory for successful reading.”
Michael Crawford from the World Bank added, “We have over 30 years of research showing how to develop successful readers. Education decision makers should urgently put that evidence into action.”
More information:
Michael Crawford et al, Inadequate foundational decoding skills constrain global literacy goals for pupils in low- and middle-income countries, Nature Human Behaviour (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41562-024-02028-x
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Dublin City Council teams with Ookla to tackle telecoms deficits
Dublin City Council teams with Ookla to tackle telecoms deficits
Dublin City Council (DCC) has teamed up with connectivity intelligence firm Ookla and the City Telecoms Association to identify and tackle telecoms deficits in the Irish capital.
The partnership is regarded by its members as a first-of-its-kind initiative, and aims to offer a practical blueprint for cities across Europe to drive digital inclusion and optimise network outcomes through actionable, data-driven insights. It’s looking to demonstrate how a data-driven approach can enhance connectivity outcomes in a tangible way, empowering cities to better serve citizens.
In 2022, DCC established a Telecoms Unit to centralise and streamline functions related to telecoms and digital infrastructure in a dedicated unit in the city’s organisational structure. The unit is intended to serve as a one-stop shop for all telecoms-related activities in the city, offering a single point of contact for citizens, industry and public bodies to engage with.
The data-driven strategy is also being used to bridge digital divides, with analysis of how socio-economic factors affect connectivity outcomes, especially in areas with high social deprivation.
The collaboration saw Ookla collect Speedtest network data for 4G and 5G networks across the city over two 12-month periods (June 2022–June 2023 and June 2023–June 2024), with a sample size in the tens of millions.
Geospatial analysis created a localised tile-based grid across the entire city to categorise mobile network performance at different times of the day.
Performance was evaluated against two metrics: signal strength and download speed. Each location tile was categorised as unacceptable if it had less than 11 dBm signal strength and 5 Mbps download speed. Anything above 11 dBM and 5 Mbps was categorised as acceptable.
Through Ookla’s data, DCC has gained insights into its telecom performance relative to other ********* cities, highlighting areas of competitive strength in 5G availability and identifying room for improvement in 4G speeds. This is said to have created the “most comprehensive” analysis of mobile network performance ever conducted at the city level in Ireland.
By using the Speedtest Insights platform, DCC was able to integrate other data sources, such as internal city asset registries, mobile site location maps from Ireland’s telecoms regulator, ComReg, and social deprivation data from Pobal.
Ookla’s real-world data has enabled DCC to pinpoint key areas in Dublin with significant connectivity issues, influencing policy and planning to prioritise interventions where they are most needed. The council has now launched a public educational initiative on telecom infrastructure, including visualisations of before-and-after network improvements from new site deployments, to engage citizens and increase acceptance of new infrastructure.
Commenting on the survey and the results, DCC smart city manager Jamie Cudden said: “To close this information gap, the City Council needed a bold new approach using best-in-class data from Ookla to support our telecoms strategy. By applying our own custom methodology, we were able, for the first time … to understand network performance in Dublin across different times of day, device types, and both indoor and outdoor settings – making this the most advanced city-led study of its kind in Europe to date.”
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Pelican News
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3 Fast-Growing Stocks Analysts See Doubling in Price
3 Fast-Growing Stocks Analysts See Doubling in Price
Several healthcare stocks have consensus price targets suggesting that their shares may more than double in the coming quarters.
Immunocore, GH Research, and Intellia may see major stock rallies upon the release of a significant new ***** treatment, or when encouraging clinical trial results become publicly available.
However, companies in the clinical-stage biotech space are often risky investments, as there is no guarantee drugs in the pipeline will necessarily make it to market.
Comparing and selecting stocks for investment may involve any number of increasingly complex strategies and approaches, but sometimes simpler is better: targeting a stock with significant upside potential at an opportune moment. Certainly, achieving this goal is easier said than done, and there is no guarantee that a company expected to make sizable gains will follow through on that promise. However, looking to Wall Street analyst ratings and predictions can be a helpful place to start.
In a screen of stocks which analysts believe will at least double in value based on consensus price targets, a number of healthcare names in particular emerge. The portion of the healthcare sector made up of companies testing, developing, and marketing new ***** treatments is known for high-flying stock rallies.
When one of these firms makes a breakthrough therapeutic discovery, reports strong clinical trial data, or successfully launches a game-changing medicine, shares often skyrocket. On the other hand, these investments are often considered to be extremely high-risk, as the ******** of a product may even lead to the company’s demise.
Three smaller healthcare companies that analysts expect to more than double in share price include Immunocore Holdings (NASDAQ:), GH Research (NASDAQ:), and Intellia Therapeutics (NASDAQ:).
1. Immunocore: Strong Oncology Product Pipeline
Immunocore is a biotech firm that develops treatments for types of *******, autoimmune *********, and other conditions. One of the company’s latest and strongest products is KIMMTRAK, a therapeutic used in the treatment of metastatic uveal melanoma.
This ***** has also shown promise in clinical trials for the treatment of certain other types of melanoma. This has led to KIMMTRAK revenues of more than $80 million in the latest quarter, 28% higher than one year earlier. Analysts expect KIMMTRAK to reach the broader market by 2027.
Crucially, Immunocore also has a broad pipeline of other treatments at various stages of development and testing, including trials for brenetafusp, a potential treatment for other types of cancers. Overall, analysts believe Immunocore’s price target is $73.73, about 115% above current levels. However, there is not uniform consensus on this stock’s suitability for investors—analysts at UBS initiated coverage with a “sell” rating in late October based on an expectation of increased competition to come.
2. GH Research: Potential for Growth in Major Therapeutics Market
GH Research is an Irish pharmaceutical company working to develop potential treatments for various types of depression as well as psychiatric or neurological disorders. Nearly 30% of adults have been diagnosed with depression at some point in their lives, meaning that the market opportunity for therapeutics for the treatment of depression is enormous.
GH’s leading candidates, known as GH001 and GH002, are undergoing phase 2b trials, and analysts are optimistic about the potential for each of these drugs based on prior results. Further, the company appointed in September a new CEO known for his specialization in this field, which has helped to boost analyst confidence.
All told, analysts believe GH’s shares could more than quadruple in price to $36.67. It’s important to note, though, that this is based on just three ratings.
3. Intellia: Promising Gene Editing Technology
Intellia is a genome editing company that uses engineered cell therapies, among other things, to develop treatments for cancers and autoimmune *********. The company recently reported strong trial enrollment and demand for its multiple leading therapeutic candidates.
While it may be some time until the firm has late-stage trial results, with close to $1 billion in cash reserves it should have sufficient money to sustain its operations for about two more years.
Losses per share beat analyst estimates for the most recent quarter and improved by about 4% year-over-year, while total revenue also topped predictions despite falling nearly a quarter in the same *******.
During this quarter, the company also made significant progress toward approval of its in vivo gene editing technology nex-z. Analysts believe shares of NTLA could rise by more than 250%, based on a consensus price target of $58.13.
Making a Bold Bet
Each of these three firms is preparing potentially transformative therapeutic products or technology for market launch. While there are signals that progress is being made, it is no guarantee that these developments will come to fruition, or that they will yield significant financial benefits.
Thus, it’s important for investors to consider the risks of these and similar stocks before getting caught up in the excitement of massive upside potential.
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Pelican News
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Post Office scandal drama ‘brought urgency’, says Badenoch
Post Office scandal drama ‘brought urgency’, says Badenoch
The airing of the TV drama into the Post Office scandal “brought the urgency” to speed up compensation pay outs for sub-postmasters, ************* leader Kemi Badenoch has said.
The government needed to be “seen to be doing the right thing”, said Badenoch, who was business secretary at the time.
She accepted at the inquiry into scandal that it was “extremely disappointing” that it took the ITV drama to escalate the issue.
But she said her row with the Treasury over the time it was taking to issue compensation last August was not just a case of her “posturing”.
Between 1999 and 2015, hundreds of sub-postmasters and postmistresses were wrongly prosecuted after a faulty computer system called Horizon made it look like money was missing from their branches.
Monday marked the start of the final week of evidence at the inquiry into the scandal, more than two and a half years since it started hearing evidence in public.
Badenoch said the four-part ITV drama, which went out in January, raised awareness of the issue, turning compensation from “a value for money perception to a public perception question”.
She insisted work was being done on the issue by the previous government, but admitted it was “too slow”.
The inquiry heard how Badenoch told the Treasury she wanted to give £100,000 “flat offers” to all sub-postmasters with a claim, with the inquiry to the counsel Jason ***** KC describing her mention of “ministerial direction” as a threat.
He said this could be seen as “soft power” or “posturing”.
But Badenoch denied the claim, saying: “It was signalling the direction I wanted the department to take to make it very clear.”
She said she believed speed should triumph over accuracy, and admitted that this might not have represented value for money from a taxpayer point of view.
Mr Bates vs The Post Office received thrust the inquiry back into the spotlight after it aired.
Earlier on Monday, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said ownership of the Post Office should be handed over to its thousands of sub-postmasters across the ***.
“Nothing should be off the table for the future of the Post Office,” he said, adding that the organisation’s future will be set out in the first half of next year.
He said Post Office’s corporate culture was “at the root of this scandal” and that some sub-postmasters had “lost all ****** in the justice system” because of it.
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Pelican News
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Genshin Impact Update 5.2 Releases November 20
Genshin Impact Update 5.2 Releases November 20
Genshin Impact’s update version 5.2, dubbed “Tapestry of Spirit and Flame,” will be released on November 20.
Genshin Impact’s update 5.2 introduces two new Natlan tribes, the Flower-Feather Clan and Masters of the Night-Wind. The elite warriors of this tribe are Chasca and Ororon, and they can be transformed into Saurian companions for players to move and ****** mid-air. At the same time, you get to explore the ancient, ruined city of Ochkanatlan while investigating a mysterious incident in the region as a part of the leading seasonal event of the update.
Take to the Skies in Genshin Impact Update 5.2
Two new species of Saurians will arrive with this update, Qucusaurs and Iktomisaurs. The Qucusaurs are known to be the best rides in the Flower-Feather Clan. They have an accelerated guiding mode that allows you to cover a lot of distance. You can also use Phlogiston to gain altitude or perform horizontal rolls in mid-flight.
Iktomisaurs, on the other hand, are known for reaching vertical heights rather than travelling horizontally. At the same time, they have a unique ability to see, which helps them discover hidden objects. The Iktomisaurs are known as the guides of the Master of the Night Wind. They can also draw energy from Phlogiston-infused objects or craft special items from graffiti patterns.
New Characters in Genshin Impact Update 5.2
Genshin Impact introduces Chasca and Ororon in update 5.2. Chasca is known as the great warrior and peacemaker in the Flower-Feather clan and is a 5-star Anemo bow wielder. The characters use a Soulsniper as their firearm and can float in the air while ******* different elemental bullets at enemies. Chasca can also use homing bullets for a lethal strike and restore Phlogiston by eliminating enemies.
Ororon, on the other hand, is the four-star Electro bow wielder from Masters of the Night Wind. Brought up by Iktomisaurs, this character also can rise in the air and have a keen sense of perception. Ororon can also enter Spiritspeaker state while charging an aimed shot, which allows the character to extract power from the graffiti and runes in Natlan. Lastly, having him on your team increases your gliding speed, too.
Other Features and Content
Genshin Impact’s update 5.2 will continue the story with Archon Quest Chapter V: Interlude, “All Fires Fuel the Flame, with Captain and Kansan assisting the tribe to recover from the damage caused by the Abyss. New threats and a boss called “Tenebrous Papilla” can be found in Natlan, and this monster has been powered by absorbing memories from the corrupted Ley Lines.
The developers have added the Imaginarium Theater, Serenitea ****, Artifacts, and other key gadgets with this update. Check out the blog post for complete details.
In other news, Apex Legends might be receiving a monthly subscription service. Also, the Pokemon TCG Pocket ***** has revealed a new booster pack, an expansion, and more. What are your thoughts on Genshin Impact update 5.2?
Let us know in the comments or our new community forum!
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Pelican News
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‘Perception of people with disabilities is antiquated”
‘Perception of people with disabilities is antiquated”
BBC
Chris McCausland (right) is Strictly’s first ****** contestant
Strictly Come Dancing contestant Chris McCausland has told the BBC that people’s views of disabilities are “antiquated”.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he said his participation on the show is “extreme” but hopes it will “go some way in stretching people’s ideas of what is possible for a person with disabilities”.
He added: “I think there are low expectations of people with disabilities – sometimes you’ll come down a set of steps into a taxi and people say ‘wow, how did you do that?'”
During McCausland’s dance on Saturday, he placed his hands over partner Dianne Buswell’s eyes as the room faded to ******.
The lights came back up moments later to show him spinning Buswell around on his shoulders.
The judges praised McCausland for his “poignant” dance that reflected the experience of blindness.
“I pitched this idea to Dianne to have a moment of darkness instead of something that was a gimmick,” McCausland said.
“I actually wanted to put the audience in the dark so it was a complete surprise for them to see me spinning Dianne when the lights came on.”
McCausland’s dance follows a performance in 2021 from actor Rose Ayling-Ellis who is deaf and paid tribute to the deaf community by dancing for a short while with her partner Giovanni Pernice in complete silence.
It won the former EastEnders star a Bafta for the best must-see TV moment.
Getty Images
McCausland – who is the BBC programme’s first ****** contestant – added that he is surprising himself every week with what is possible.
“I said no to Strictly a few times because it was completely unknown in terms of standard and what the dances were because I couldn’t even go and watch it.”
While he may appear calm and confident during the dance performances, McCausland said he was “good at masking *****” because it is actually “terrifying to do this on live TV with no previous experience”.
‘Defying expectations’
McCausland was registered ****** after losing his sight to retinitis pigmentosa in his 20s and 30s.
Earlier this week, students at the Royal National College for the ******, in Hereford, where McCausland studied, told the BBC he was defying expectations.
One student said: “Some people think that people that have visual impairments can’t really do anything or can’t do much with their life beside piano tuning.
“He’s doing so well now, it’s quite surreal but it’s really good, especially for those who don’t know anything about the eye,” they added.
Another student said it would be “really cool if someone who is visually impaired like us” won the competition.
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Pelican News
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