Facebook postpones Insta for kids
Recently, Wall Street Journal published internal company documents that showed Facebook is fully aware that Instagram has a toxic effect on the self-esteem of teenage girls. A number of members of Congress immediately demanded that it shelve plans for Instagram Kids—which is designed for children under the age of 13. And activists pointed out the obvious: “10 to 12-year-olds would not migrate to the ‘babyish’ app and it would just onboard even younger children to Instagram.” Given all the hue and cry, Facebook has hit pause—for now. (Quartz)
Another big tech company under fire: Amazon—which is the latest target of the RSS-affiliated magazine Panchjanya. In a cover story titled ‘#Amazon: East India Company 2.0,’ the publication accuses Amazon of using corrupt practices to “kill Indian retailers” and gain “sole rights of the Indian market.” The RSS has always been on the side of small and medium retailers against big, bad Amazon. But this particular attack is raising eyebrows because it comes on the heels of a similar tirade against Infosys—which was accused of aligning with “Naxals, Leftists and the tukde-tukde gang.” (The Telegraph)
China moves to limit abortions
First, the government forced women to only have one child—as part of its extremely rigid population control policies. But now, Beijing wants more babies who will grow up and support its rapidly aging population. So now it is cracking down on abortions for “non-medical reasons.” No one knows what “non-medical” means, but previously health authorities claimed that abortions to end unwanted pregnancies harmed women’s bodies and risked causing infertility. A human rights researcher says:
“This government in the past 40 years has tried to restrict women’s reproductive rights, making women forcefully abort their children and now restricting abortions. I don’t know what non-medical means, but everyone who knows Chinese government knows this isn’t good. The core of the policy is the same – to restrict women’s reproductive means, to see women as a tool.”
Taliban’s new target: barbers
The group has banned hairdressers from trimming or shaving beards—which it calls a breach of Islamic law. Barbershops are also not allowed to play music. The statement warned: all violators “will be dealt with according to the Sharia principles and they will not have the right to complain.” Another reason that business is drying up: “Customers don’t shave their beards [because] they don’t want to be targeted by the Taliban fighters in the streets. They want to blend in and look like them.” (BBC News)
Two key numbers to note
One: New numbers in the Lancet shows that around 1.1 million children lost their primary caregiver between March 2020 to April 2021. The worst hit: Peru where 10.2 children per 1,000 lost their caregiver. The total number for Mexico: 118,362, while in India over 75,000 children lost one or both parents between April and July 2020 alone. (Wall Street Journal via Mint)
Two: Employment in India has increased by 29% since 2013-14. There was a rise in every sector except for trade (minus-25%) and accommodation & restaurants (minus-13%). IT/BPO sector had the most impressive growth (152%). (The Hindu)
A new, scary drug in town
California police arrested a couple in possession of 46 pounds of an extremely lethal opioid called Carfentanil. This is the latest in increasingly powerful synthetic drugs—and is typically used as a tranquilizing agent for elephants. Also this: “When administered to humans, the drug is 10,000 times more potent than morphine and 100 times more potent than fentanyl.” Where a lethal dose of fentanyl is 2 milligrams, even a nanogram of Carfentanil is known to be fatal: “If mixed in with other drugs, the 21 kilos of carfentanil seized could have been enough to potentially kill more than 50 million people.” (USA Today)
A very big IMAX screen
The world’s biggest Imax screen will open on Sept. 30 in Germany—just in time for the premiere of the James Bond flick ‘No Time to Die’. It weighs over 500 pounds and is 70 feet high and around 125 feet across—wider than a Boeing 737 airliner. It was so large it had to be painted by a specifically designed robotic arm. The theatre can seat 574 lucky people. (Variety)
Two very ‘talented’ animals
One: Researchers have discovered exactly how an ancient species of all-female beetles can reproduce without having sex. The answer: cloning. A process called “Meselson effect” allows the beetle to create different copies of its genetic information with separate mutations. Yes, it looks like any other creepy crawly. (Futurism)
Two: No less impressive is a German hamster named ‘Mr Goxx’—who trades in cryptocurrencies, and is kicking ass. He is outperforming the S&P 500. How he trades:
“First, Goxx runs on the ‘intention wheel’ to pick which one of about 30 cryptocurrencies to trade. Once the crypto is chosen, the hamster runs through one of two ‘decision tunnels’ that trigger either a buy or sell trade of the chosen cryptocurrency.”
Business Insider has more details. Or check out a guided tour from Mr Goxx below:
Mike Tyson makes an Indian debut
The former boxer will star in Vijay Deverakonda’s upcoming film called ‘Liger’—which is being made in Hindi, Telugu, Tamil etc. What we know so far: “‘Liger’ tells the story of a mixed martial arts expert, played by Deverakonda, and will feature ‘Iron Mike’ in a significant and mighty role.” See the teaser below:
