Is it just my perception or is the fake news phenomenon not slowing down at all? When Facebook announced that it would weed out false reporting I was hopeful it would come to an end. Instead, the frequency of misleading sponsored posts on my timeline has increased and the phenomenon is getting deeper ingrained into our journalistic and even scientific culture. Let me tell you how.
Was one of Panamarenko’s most iconic pieces inspired by a ’70s Nazi hoax? Follow me across a weird and wonderful story past twentieth century legends and pop-culture folklore. At the very least, you’ll learn about a few sensational tales and have a more profound appreciation for my favorite artist’s work, I promise.
Kind of a tech geek, my attention was drawn to this article in Business Insider today. Yes, I know, your wallet has been mobile all along. Mine too, but I was kind of hoping it was about hardware wallets. Turns out that mobile wallets are apps that store payment card information in your smartphone, allowing you to make in-store payments. Mastercard, heavily invested into the phenomenon with its Masterpass, did some market research about mobile wallets and came up with a conclusion that seems rather biassed. Mobile Wallets were mentioned In 75% (!) of 3.5 million social media conversations about new payment methods. Yet these apps are used in just 1% of retail sales. Their conclusion: mainstream breakthrough is hindered by too many available mobile wallet apps, lack of support for store loyalty cards and consumers waiting for wearable wallets. My two cents: with 75% awareness and 1% penetration, could it be that the public just isn’t interested? 🙂 My wallet contains all cards I need, is finished in premium leather and I do wear it … in my back pocket.
After the success of my travel top tip for charging your devices, it’s time for a follow up. Not only will I reveal a hidden option to charge your devices, I will resolve one of the great hotel room mysteries: the shavers only outlets in the bathroom.
Maybe it’s just the remarkable advertising profile Facebook has given me, but adverts on my Facebook wall have been strange for a while. Endless Kickstarter wristwatch suggestions have just given way to middle-aged women with the intention to show their knickers. Written in fluent Gibberish, this particular one reads something like On the feelings of a woman alone, you will have experienced differently. Passion impulse, tremendous delight from here. Recipes, tips and all things kitchen for any level of chef. The links leads to either this blank website or this Facebook page with a picture of a smiling girl. Strange, isn’t it? Who pays for such useless publicity?
Our increasing use of smartphones, tablets and laptops while traveling implies a constant quest for a power outlet to charge them. Hotels, on the other hand, try to minimize their electricity bill by using a key card holder, so the electricity switches off when you’re not there. As a result, hotel guests are not able to charge batteries while out-and-about. There is a clever way around it, however. Refrigerators do not switch off, as it would make them useless. Just use that outlet for charging, while you’re not there. It may require some fidgeting or even a splitter, but I guarantee it works.
An insignificant investment with a potentially huge pay-out. Such gambles do not cross you path very often. But that’s what is was, a gamble, I knew it. Odds were stacked against me, yet I could not resist. Let me tell you what I stumbled across while researching URL shortening services and one-character internet domains, and how it panned out.
For over a decade Paypal has been my preferred means of online payment. It’s reliable, swift, offers good support and any kind of dispute is solved without a hitch. They had really earned my trust, but a recent practical problem has made me wonder if Paypal has realized that times have changed. They are not suited for international travelers at all, which is extremely peculiar for an online payment system in the 21st century. Let me tell you why.
Yesterday, a video of a ritual performed in front of a statue of Hindu deity Shiva on the grounds of CERN in Geneva, surfaced. It immediately reminded me of the famous quote by Robert Oppenheimer, after the first atomic bomb had been detonated. He quoted Vishnu out of the Hindu scripture Bhagavad Gita. “I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.”. His actual intended message is a discussion for another time, and yesterday’s ritual was quickly dismissed as a joke. Let’s put aside the fact that the ritual had some similarities to initiation rituals of gnostic societies and focus on the question that seems to have been missed in mainstream media. Why does the home of the Large Hadron Collider have a statue of Shiva?
These day, apps are all the rage … for some reason every online service needs it’s own app. Supposedly for your convenience, but really so all separate service providers can collect your personal data. This NY Times article/documentary now praises the strategy of the Chinese WeChat app, were all online services imaginable are being combined into one app. Disruptive, pioneering, innovative … well, not really. What is such an app called if you think outside the hyped frame-of-mind? An internet browser, isn’t it? The only difference … more online services forced back towards a single application, enable the provider to get hold of your behavior and profile. Not too fond of the business world turning to totalitarian regimes for inspiration, quite frankly.
http://www.nytimes.com/video/technology/100000004574648/china-internet-wechat.html?smid=fb-share