Electricity market design for the prosumer era (Nature Energy)
The market capitalization of these 5 companies are as large as the bottom 350 S&P 500 stocks combined, and almost as much as the entire rest of the developed market around the world.
Myth & Truth
Animal #Art
Oil prices dip below zero as producers forced to pay to dispose of excess (Guardian)
US crude fell to negative value for first time in history as stockpiles overwhelmed storage facilities, before rebounding to just over $1 on Tuesday
When oil became waste: a week of turmoil for crude, and more pain to come (Reuters)
The magnitude of how damaged the energy industry is came into full view on April 20 when the benchmark price of U.S. oil futures, which had never dropped below $10 a barrel in its nearly 40-year history, plunged to a previously unthinkable minus $38 a barrel.
As US Shale Oil Plunges, Trump Admin Takes Aim at Venezuela (Mintpress)
A confluence of factors suggests that such a Panama-style invasion of Venezuela is not only a possibility, but increasingly likely.
US crude prices tumble as world’s largest oil ETF backs out (FT)
West Texas Intermediate drops more than 27% one week after sub-zero dive
Russia Steals Chinese Oil Market Share From Saudi Arabia (oilprice.com)
China imported 31 percent more oil from Russia last month while its intake of Saudi crude slipped by 1.8 percent compared to March 2019, Reuters reported, citing calculations based on official customs data. Overall crude oil imports rose by 4.5% on the year to 9.68 million bpd.
How much is a barrel of oil worth? (resilient.org)
If you were an oil futures trader wanting to unload a May 1 contract on Monday, April 20, a barrel of oil was worth $-37. That’s right, traders were, in effect, willing to pay someone—anyone—to take ownership of a commodity that powers modern industrial society, and has suddenly become too abundant.
The Next Chapter of the Oil Crisis: The Industry Shuts Down (Yahoo Finance)
Negative oil prices, ships dawdling at sea with unwanted cargoes, and traders getting creative about where to stash oil. The next chapter in the oil crisis is now inevitable: great swathes of the petroleum industry are about to start shutting down.
Oil Slides After Crude ETFs Move Into Later-Dated Contracts (Yahoo Finance)
Oil fell after the biggest oil ETF said it would sell out of its June WTI futures position as physical oil storage levels continue to balloon.
Europe’s new jobless urged to pick fruit amid huge farm labour shortage (eco-business)
Farmers fear crops could be left to rot as coronavirus lockdown leaves them short of hundreds of thousands of seasonal labourers.
World Food Programme warns at least 30 million people could die of starvation during pandemic (theglobeandmail)
The head of the World Food Programme, who recently recovered from COVID-19, says at least 30 million people could die of starvation if the UN agency doesn’t receive critical funding needed to feed the world’s most vulnerable during the global pandemic.
Russia Halts Wheat Exports, Deepening Fears of Global Food Shortages (Time)
For the first time in a decade, the world risks being cut off from Russian wheat at a time when some key buyers are rushing to import it.
Coronavirus pandemic 'will cause famine of biblical proportions' (The Guardian)
Governments must act now to stop 265 million starving, warns World Food Programme boss
Coronavirus threatens to trigger new round of global food crisis: China official (wkzo)
The global coronavirus pandemic threatens to cause a huge shock to international food trade and trigger a new food crisis, a top agriculture official in China said on Monday. "The fast spreading global epidemic has brought huge uncertainty on international agriculture trade and markets," said Yu Kangzhen, China's deputy agriculture minister.
Pandemic alters – and threatens – supply chain for end users (resource-recycling)
As the coronavirus impacts continue throughout the U.S., manufacturers are highlighting the importance of curbside recycling as a feedstock supply channel. Meanwhile, processors are seeing changes in demand for their material as consumer spending shifts.
Maximator: European signals intelligence cooperation, from a Dutch perspective
This article is first to report on the secret European five-partner sigint alliance Maximator that started in the late 1970s. It discloses the name Maximator and provides documentary evidence. The five members of this European alliance are Denmark Sweden, Germany, the Netherlands, and France. The cooperation involves both signals analysis and crypto analysis. The Maximator alliance has remained secret for almost fifty years, in contrast to its Anglo-Saxon Five-Eyes counterpart.
Market Forces: The development of the EU Security-Industrial Complex
Despite the economic crisis, EU funding for new security tools and technologies will double in the 2014-20 period compared to the previous 6 years. The biggest winners have been the “homeland security” industry whose influence on European policy continues to grow, constructing an ever more militarised and security-focused Europe.
Netherlands commits to Free Software by default
In an open letter to the Parliament, the Dutch minister for internal affairs Raymond Knops commits to a "Free Software by default" policy and underlines its benefits for society. Current market regulations shall be reworded to allow publishing Free Software by the government.
The Last Supper on Zoom
Overfitting
Pinduoduo to invest USD 7 billion in rural areas in next five years (kr-asia)
Over 240 million users have bought agricultural products on Pinduoduo last year, amounting to USD 19.3 billion in sales.
Chinese Tech Landscape Overview - by National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence
The National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NSCAI) was established in August 2018 as part of the military budget "to consider the methods and means necessary to advance the development of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and associated technologies to comprehensively address the national security and defense needs of the United States."
French researchers to test nicotine patches on coronavirus patients
Study – which stresses serious health risks of smoking – suggest substance in tobacco may lower risk of getting coronavirus
Milan announces ambitious scheme to reduce car use after lockdown (Guardian)
Milan is to introduce one of Europe’s most ambitious schemes reallocating street space from cars to cycling and walking, in response to the coronavirus crisis.
Paris To Create 650 Kilometers Of Post-Lockdown Cycleways (Forbes)
Paris is the latest global city to roll out emergency bike lanes for the use of key workers and others during the lockdown. 650 kilometers of cycleways—including a number of pop-up “corona cycleways”—will be readied for May 11 when lockdown is eased in France.
Douglas Engelbart's vision of "Augmenting the Human Intellect" is ultimately egotistical and short-sighted. Consider "Augmenting the Human Capacity for Love - Compassion, Simplicity and Humility".
"I'm feeling anxious and vulnerable" - Disgustingly manipulative predictive programming - by BBC
"you are ugly, stupid and worthless" - is the mantra of the advertising industry