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Fang

Will Amazon ‘feel the Bern?’

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Looks like its Bernie being Bernie… and Senator Bernie Sanders suggested that we start charging Amazon and other big companies a special tax. The special tax would be the result of large corporations underpaying employees which ultimately requires said employees to rely on government assistance. Bernie wants companies like Amazon to start paying a “living wage,” which by his estimate is about $15 per hour.

 

Come on, Jeff… you make so much money and pay your employees so little – what gives? While this man rolls around in his billions, Amazon employees rely on food stamps, Medicaid, and subsidized housing. Thus, Sanders plan is to levy a massive tax on companies that equals the value of the government benefits these employees are receiving.

 

But Amazon says “not so fast”… because the information that Sanders is posting is misleading at best. The underpaid workers in question either worked at Amazon for a short-period or chose to work part-time. The full-time, hourly pay for a fulfillment center employee is actually over $15 per hour – including cash, stock, and incentive bonuses. And Bezos invites you to compare his company’s compensation with any other large retailer. Walmart, on the other hand, had no comment…

Fang

Google will deliver a laboratory to your dorm room

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Virtual reality laboratories… allow you to skip the classroom, danger, and social aspect of biology class in college. These remote virtual labs are brought to you by Google and Labster, a remote virtual lab company. The courses available (30 of them) include gene therapy, cytogenetics, and RNA extractions.

 

It is better than real life… according to an Arizona State University student who was impressed with the VR labs ability to enhance the real world experience. It’s realistic, too – even requiring you to go to the eyewash station after spilling chemicals on yourself. Thus, students can make mistakes that won’t end in disaster. Other features include chatting with virtual patients and the use of virtual microscopes.

 

Making education more convenient… because these VR labs give students the option to get lab work done on their own time. In the past, the online aspect of college has been mostly limited to lectures and not available for hands-on projects. But, as with any new technology, they are still working on the limitations – such as bringing multiple classmates into the experience at once. Do we really need that?

Fang

Now you CAN’T feed the Insta-trolls…

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We have even more new features for IG… and these features are more functional than they are entertaining. However, the company has decided to get ahead of the problems that plague Facebook and Twitter, among other platforms, with updated security features. The goal? To keep you and your information safe – because you won’t do it on your own.

 

Don’t feed the trolls… IG is trying to keep the trolls away from you and under their bridges where they belong. Keeping trolls at bay means ensuring that the person behind the account is who they claim to be. Insta’s “About This Account” feature will allow users to see the date the account was started, country of origin, other accounts with shared followers, and usernames changes in the past year.

 

Other features include… the option to use third-party authenticator apps to log into Instagram more securely. Also, public figures can apply to verify their accounts with their username, full name, and a copy of identification. These celebs, public figures, and other famous accounts will be verified, similarly to Twitter, with a badge. God, I want a badge…

Read more

Fang

Instagram is going back to school

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In an attempt to… get more college students on the app, Instagram has created a new feature that will make it easier for classmates to connect with one another. The tool will enable students to join a virtual community where they can exchange direct messages.

 

Here’s how it works… to join, you must opt-in. From there, you can accept or reject messages from people that don’t follow you, or you can block people entirely. Coincidentally, IG came out with this feature days after Tinder announced Tinder U, a feature that allows users to filter for other college students. Both of these features can be used for romance, friends, or even finding a study buddy (just kidding, who is going to use it for that?).

 

All of this makes sense… because over half of Tinder users are between 18 and 24. Instagram also wants to attract younger users, so this will undoubtedly appeal to them. The new feature should be good news for Facebook (who owns IG) because it looks like Instagram will be able to continue to carry the team and FB certainly won’t do that…

Fang

Why does Jeff Bezos need a cardiologist?

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Amazon hires a cardiologist… and a good one at that. Yes, the company hired Maulik Majmudar, an associate director of the Healthcare Transformation Lab at Massachusetts General Hospital. This announcement came from Majmudar himself as he tweeted the news to the world. However, what he will be doing at Amazon remains unclear.

 

We already knew… how serious Amazon is about operating in the pharmaceutical space and this could be yet another step in that direction. The tech giant acquired PillPack in June, a company that holds a pharmacy license in all 50 states. Amazon is also working with Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan to lower health care costs for companies and employees alike. And, last but not least, the retailer also offers a line of private label OTC medicines.

 

The perfect fit… because Majmudar has experience working with healthcare and tech. Majmudar said, “The one reason I am taking on this opportunity is the possibility of making a significant impact on the health and wellbeing of hundreds of millions of individuals throughout the world.” With expectations like that, we shall eagerly wait to see the results of this new partnership. The rest of health care and pharmaceuticals – maybe not so much.

Fang

Netflix users call ‘bull***’ after this stunt

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They thought we wouldn’t notice… Netflix began testing video promotions this week. Netflix commercials mark a binge-watchers worst nightmare, and many subscribers threatened to cancel the service altogether. But relax, people – they can be skipped.

 

If you can find your remote… you can use it to skip the commercial. However, all Netflix wants to do is give you new ideas for the next show to watch. So they aren’t selling you anything, per se, and hey, maybe you will see something you like. This way you can avoid sifting through the endless garbage Netflix has to offer only to switch back to ‘The Office’ when you don’t find anything suitable.

 

False alarm… a spokesperson said that Netflix tries many different things throughout the year (most of which don’t stick). But overall, the streaming giant wants to get you watching more and surfing less. If you are one of 130 million strong – what was your reaction? Hopefully, you left your subscription, television, and living room in-tact after hearing the news.

Fang

Facebook wants to bring you faster MRI exams

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You don’t need to be on Facebook… to “like” this news because it benefits everyone in some way. Facebook announced that their artificial intelligence lab is working toward making MRI exams ten times faster than they are now. Rather than taking up to an hour, an MRI exam could be completed in just minutes.

 

Yes, tests can take up to an hour… which, if you are claustrophobic, would be hell on Earth. Also, the longer people lay in that tube, the more it costs everyone because hospitals are limited in the number of exams they can complete each day.

 

Here’s how they’ll do it… researchers will use data to train an algorithm to recognize bones, muscles, ligaments, and various other things that we are made of. With this knowledge, artificial intelligence can create a portion of the necessary image and save time. However, researches need to do this while being sure they aren’t missing any important details that the exam would otherwise detect. And you thought Facebook was only good for leaking your information…

Fang

Amazon is coming to a theater near you

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They are changing everything… so why not movie theaters next? That is what Amazon is asking as they are in the running to purchase Landmark Theaters. Landmark Theaters is a small chain of around 50 theaters that shows independent and foreign movies. However, the company is controlled by Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner – a name or two you may recognize.

 

Why do they even want a theater… actually, this is something we touched upon last week with mattress company Casper moving to brick-and-mortar locations. Amazon may see value in having a significant online presence and physical presence in the future. The move could also bolster Amazon’s reputation for their digital entertainment offerings.

 

But unlike pharma… where Amazon showed their intention to enter the market and made investors freak out, the same response was not there upon the theater announcement. Shares of AMC and Cinemark were actually up on Thursday. However, you never know because Amazon has a way of disrupting just about everything – it is possible that movie theaters could be next.

Fang

How close are Google and China?

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Let’s put it this way… not close at all. Okay, that is not the cleverest wording, but at least you get the point. Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced that the company is nowhere close to launching a censored app for China. This is the first time we have heard a peep from Google since reports that a censored search engine was something the company may be working toward.

 

It could never happen… because Google may not be open to creating a censored app for China. However, they are in the “exploration stage” and are seeing if this is even doable. The website would need to comply with Chinese government censorship, which is unfortunate for those that live in China because I don’t think any of us could imagine life without Google.

 

As you can imagine… China represents a massive market for Google that cannot be ignored. At the same time, Google would look hypocritical agreeing to censored terms when the company advocates for free and open internet. But, then again, the amount of money at stake would get many to change their tune…

Fang

Some alternative stocks to sink your ‘FAANGs’ into

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FAANG stocks are all good bets… and they include Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, and Google, in case you didn’t know. And although these stocks have been getting hammered lately, they will probably be okay in the long run. However, there is life outside of FAANG people…including small and mid-cap stocks which include promising future technologies like artificial intelligence and self-driving cars.

 

Also, if you can stomach crypto… maybe you should consider buying now while the price is far below its $20,000 glory days. Blockchain technology could have an impact on business for many years to come. Although cryptocurrency may be going through a rough patch, you can’t introduce a new currency and expect a seamless transition.

 

Think about Tesla… because Elon Musk doesn’t seem to be joking about taking his company private. Moreover, the $420 per share price tag seems like a good deal for whoever will ultimately provide the funding. Just a few ideas to get you out of the FAANG bandwagon.

IA