Airbnb guests shocked by decomposing corpse in garden

A group of friends who rented a house on Airbnb for a party weekend in a French town got a nasty surprise when they discovered the decomposing body of a woman in the garden. “Her body was found at the bottom of the property which opens out into a woods,” a police source said. Foul play is suspected.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/doodlegirl/airbnb-guests-shocked-by-decomposing-corpse-in-garden

Nigeria government's audit removes nearly 24,000 non-existent workers

The Nigerian government has removed nearly 24,000 workers from its payroll after an audit revealed they did not exist, the Finance Ministry has said. The move has enabled a monthly saving of around $11,5m (£8m). The audit is part of an anti-corruption campaign by President Muhammadu Buhari, who took power last year.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/Pfennig88/nigeria-governments-audit-removes-nearly-24000-non-existent-workers

An Open Letter to the Republican Establishment

You are the captains of American industry, the titans of Wall Street, and the billionaires who for decades have been the backbone of the Republican Party.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/spaceghoti/an-open-letter-to-the-republican-establishment

Doctors promoting treatments on social media routinely fail to disclose ties to drug makers

An examination of hundreds of social media accounts shows that health care professionals virtually never note their conflicts of interest, some of them significant, when promoting drugs or medical devices on sites such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. The practice cuts across all specialties.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/nanno/doctors-promoting-treatments-on-social-media-routinely-fail-to-disclose-ties-to-drug-makers-stat

Jobs don't need to be lousy

There doesn't need to be sub-standard jobs in order for there to be enough jobs to go around.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/kxh/jobs-dont-need-to-be-lousy

MAP shows what continent REALLY thinks of EU

EUROPE is turning against Brussels with anti-EU feeling spreading through the Continent - as our exclusive map today reveals.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/Appaloosa/map-shows-what-continent-really-thinks-of-eu

Iran election: Reformists win all 30 Tehran seats

Allies of Iran’s reformist President Hassan Rouhani win a landslide victory in Tehran, in the first elections since the nuclear deal with world powers.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/AdelleChattre/iran-election-reformists-win-all-30-tehran-seats

Could the Internet Do What the Euro Couldn’t?

A plan to connect the Continent online could help its moribund economy.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/rti9/could-the-internet-do-what-the-euro-couldnt

U.S. Duty-Free Limit for Online Shopping Puts Canada in the Shade

Americans are now allowed to spend more than 40 times as much as their northern neighbours without paying duty on products shipped from abroad as a result of a law signed by President Barack Obama last week.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/jcscher/us-duty-free-limit-for-online-shopping-puts-canada-in-the-shade

File-Sharing Site's PayPal Account Returns After EFF Intervention

The EFF has successfully intervened in a dispute between classic file-sharing service Soulseek and PayPal. In 2015 and after 14 years of business together PayPal nuked Soulseek's ability to receive donations, apparently over copyright concerns. While Soulseek is now a PayPal customer once more, others in the same sphere may not be so lucky.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/geoleo/file-sharing-sites-paypal-account-returns-after-eff-intervention

The Deactivation of the American Worker

From factories to cubicles to open offices to Slack channels. By Carter Maness.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/AdelleChattre/the-deactivation-of-the-american-worker

YouTube CEO says 'we're listening' to growing criticisms of complaint system

YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki tonight tweeted out a message of thanks to the YouTube community at large, vowing that the company is "listening" to recent feedback from creators, who've taken issue with the site's complaint system. A growing number of popular YouTubers have criticized the company's way of handling copyright violations and, in turn, the appeals process about those notices. Channels impacted by the complaints system can lose out on monetization...
Read more: http://snapzu.com/gottlieb/youtube-ceo-says-were-listening-to-growing-criticisms-of-complaint-system

AT&T gave $62K to lawmakers months before vote to limit muni broadband

A Missouri legislative committee last week approved a bill that would limit the spread of municipal broadband networks, helping private Internet service providers such as AT&T avoid competition.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/nanno/att-gave-62k-to-lawmakers-months-before-vote-to-limit-muni-broadband

Decline of Pollinators Poses Threat to World Food Supply, Report Says

Many pollinator species are facing extinction, including some 16 percent of vertebrates like birds and bats, according to the document. By John Schwartz.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/AdelleChattre/decline-of-pollinators-poses-threat-to-world-food-supply-report-says

The New Republic Is Sold

Chris Hughes, the owner of The New Republic, said on Friday that he had sold the magazine to Win McCormack, a publisher and editor based in New York and Portland, Ore., who founded the literary quarterly Tin House. Mr. McCormack will appoint Hamilton Fish, the publisher of The Washington Spectator and a former publisher of The Nation, to be publisher and editorial director.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/gladsdotter/the-new-republic-is-sold

Alfred E. Mann, entrepreneur behind the rechargeable pacemaker and an artificial retina, dies at 90

Over the years, biotech pioneer Alfred E. Mann's companies developed devices that helped the blind to see, the deaf to hear and the paralyzed to control their limbs.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/nanno/alfred-e-mann-entrepreneur-behind-the-rechargeable-pacemaker-and-an-artificial-retina-dies-at-90

Samsung Wins Appeal in $120 Million Apple Patent Dispute, Though Case Largely Moot

Samsung won an appeal in its second patent dispute with Apple Thursday, but in reality it got the better of Apple a long time ago — at least in the court battle. When Apple first started suing Samsung several years ago, what it really wanted to do was stop Samsung from shipping key Android phones and get the hardware maker to change the way it designed products. Instead, the judge in the case, Lucy Koh, declined to issue injunctions.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/hedman/samsung-wins-appeal-in-120-million-apple-patent-dispute-though-case-largely-moot

Made in North Korea: $300 ski jackets, and a whole lot more

Australian sportswear brand Rip Curl made a public apology this week after it emerged that some of its ski gear had been made in one of North Korea’s state-owned factories — some of the world’s worst places to work, whose profits help prop up one of its most abusive regimes. The leisurewear, destined to insulate snowboarding Westerners for $300+, was labeled “Made in China” before it made its way to retailers.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/geoleo/made-in-north-korea-300-ski-jackets-and-a-whole-lot-more

How America’s Most Useless Crop Also Became Its Most Commonly Grown One

Contrary to what you may think (and what your food labels may suggest) corn is not the most grown crop in America. The most grown crop is something no one is eating, no one is asking for, and no one is quite sure what to do with. It’s your lawn. The U.S. devotes a full one-fifth of its land to agriculture (408 million acres, or 637,500 square miles) for farmers to grow on, of which corn is the largest food crop. However, there are almost 50,000 square miles...
Read more: http://snapzu.com/messi/how-americas-most-useless-crop-also-became-its-most-commonly-grown-one

Sears announces it's closing at least 50 stores

Sears doesn't want to waste any time. The retailer announced on Tuesday that it planned to "accelerate" the closing of at least 50 "unprofitable stores." Sears (SHLD), which also owns Kmart, originally planned to close the stores over the next few months, but poor sales have sped up the timeline. In its earnings report Tuesday, Sears said it expects total revenue to hit $7.3 billion for the fourth quarter -- down from $8.1 billion last year.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/wildcard/sears-announces-its-closing-at-least-50-stores

Nursing Home Evictions Strand The Disabled In Costly Hospitals

Federal rules mostly prohibit nursing homes from refusing to readmit residents after a hospital stay. But states rarely enforce the regulations. Some California families are now suing the state.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/nanno/nursing-home-evictions-strand-the-disabled-in-costly-hospitals

The strange life of Q-tips, the most bizarre thing people buy

Q-tips really are one of the most perplexing things for sale in America. By Roberto A. Ferdman.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/AdelleChattre/the-strange-life-of-q-tips-the-most-bizarre-thing-people-buy

Inside The Anonymous World Of Caffeine

We speak of being "caffeinated;" sometimes too caffeinated. We consider the choice of caf versus decaf coffee, and whether there's entirely too much caffeine in energy drinks. Rarely, though, do any of us ever see caffeine, or consider where it comes from.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/gladsdotter/inside-the-anonymous-world-of-caffeine

Why Is Stan Lee’s Legacy in Question?

It’s the 93-year-old comic-book god’s universe. He built Marvel Comics and laid the foundation for today’s blockbuster superhero movies. So why, at 93, is his legacy in question? By Abraham Riesman.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/AdelleChattre/why-is-stan-lees-legacy-in-question

Drug maker slammed for 'ridiculously high' price of TB drug

Doctors Without Borders wants Otsuka Pharmaceutical to lower the price of its TB drug for low- and middle-income countries. The price tag for the Otsuka drug may place the total cost of treatment out of reach for some governments, according to Sharonann Lynch, the HIV and TB policy advisor at Doctors Without Borders.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/nanno/drug-maker-slammed-for-ridiculously-high-price-of-tb-drug

WTO swats down India’s massive solar initiative

The U.S. filed a complaint against India for requiring use of domestically produced panels, and the WTO took America’s side.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/nanno/wto-swats-down-indias-massive-solar-initiative

The next Librarian of Congress could be awesome

She's against censorship, hates surveillance, and is an actual LIBRARIAN.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/isbnsodium/the-next-librarian-of-congress-could-be-awesome

J&J must pay $72 million for cancer death linked to talcum powder

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) was ordered by a Missouri state jury to pay $72 million of damages to the family of a woman whose death from ovarian cancer was linked to her use of the company's talc-based Baby Powder and Shower to Shower for several decades. In a verdict announced late Monday night, jurors in the circuit court of St. Louis awarded the family of Jacqueline Fox $10 million of actual damages and $62 million of punitive damages, according to the family's lawyers and court records.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/darvinhg/jj-must-pay-72-million-for-cancer-death-linked-to-talcum-powder

Apple Is Said to Be Trying to Make It Harder to Hack iPhones

Apple engineers have begun developing new security measures that would make it impossible for the government to break into a locked iPhone using methods similar to those now at the center of a court fight in California, according to people close to the company and security experts. If Apple succeeds in upgrading its security — and experts say it almost surely will — the company will create a significant technical challenge for law enforcement agencies...
Read more: http://snapzu.com/zritic/apple-is-said-to-be-trying-to-make-it-harder-to-hack-iphones

Development: Slow down population growth

Within a decade, women everywhere should have access to quality contraceptive services, argues John Bongaarts.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/AdelleChattre/development-slow-down-population-growth

The Place Where the Poor Once Thrived

San Jose, in the heart of Silicon Valley, used to be the best place in the country for kids to experience a Horatio Alger, rags-to-riches life. Is it still? By Alana Semuels.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/AdelleChattre/the-place-where-the-poor-once-thrived

Tea and technology: Memories of great tea times

There was one special haven of tea, perhaps even more central to everyday English life than Starbucks has been in the US. This was J. Lyons, whose tea houses from the 1890s through to the early 1980s offered the best and most affordable quality, service and ambience. In addition, a fact that is almost unknown to Silicon Valley, Lyons invented the business computer, in 1951. Peter Keen retells the story of the Lyons tea house and more little known facts about it.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/gladsdotter/tea-and-technology-memories-of-great-tea-times

Art That Appeals to People's “Greed”

Maywa Denki’s “specialty” isn’t easy to define, but the Japanese art group has a long track record of making uncanny, whimsical products that dwell in a borderland between musical instruments and toys. From “Otamatone,” a note-shaped electronic musical instrument, to “Mr. Knocky,” a wire-operated percussion toy, the group has created and marketed a seemingly endless roster of products that look like nothing any other company would (or could) try to make.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/Dino55/art-that-appeals-to-peoples-greed

No Wool, No Vikings

The fleece that launched 1,000 ships.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/Dino55/no-wool-no-vikings

What would a President Trump mean for the Fed?

Donald Trump recently said he's in favor of legislation that calls for a full audit of the Federal Reserve. Trump does not seem to be a fan of current chair Janet Yellen or her predecessor Ben Bernanke. But he admires Paul Volcker.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/Appaloosa/what-would-a-president-trump-mean-for-the-fed

Paramount Must Explain 'Star Trek' in Court or Lose Ownership

The Paramount lawsuit claims that the Axanar Kickstarter infringes upon “thousands of copyrights” and the Axanar team has asked the simple question: “Which ones?” Because Star Trek now exists over several different universes, time periods, and casts, it’s not so simple. The universe is so spread out, it is almost impossible to define what Star Trek actually is. To that end, the burden is on Paramount to explain what Star Trek is — in a legal sense.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/spaceghoti/paramount-must-explain-star-trek-in-court-or-lose-ownership

How we can save $17 billion in public assistance—annually

Raising the federal minimum wage to $12 by 2020 would lift wages for more than 35 million workers nationwide and generate about $17 billion annually in savings to government assistance programs.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/spaceghoti/how-we-can-save-17-billion-in-public-assistanceannually

The Sanders “Economic Plan” Controversy

Economist Gerald Friedman did an analysis of Senator Bernie Sanders's plan suggesting it would produce significant growth in the economy -- and then a group of left-leaning economists flipped out. By Dave Johnson.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/AdelleChattre/the-sanders-economic-plan-controversy

The Open Refrigerator

We’ve traveled a long, long way from the storied four-decade publishing association of Alfred Knopf with Thomas Mann, nostalgia for which is a fairly useless emotion in our Godzilla vs. King Kong world of death-match throwdowns against Amazon and Apple and Google and the Justice Department. By Gerald Howard.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/gladsdotter/the-open-refrigerator

Making Blue Skittles Is About to Get Way More Complicated

Food companies are pulling the plug on artificial dyes: Is this the end of taste the rainbow?
Read more: http://snapzu.com/nanno/making-blue-skittles-is-about-to-get-way-more-complicated

Behind the Scam: What Does It Take to Be a 'Best-Selling Author'? $3 and 5 Minutes.

I would like to tell you about the biggest lie in book publishing. It appears in the biographies and social media profiles of almost every working “author” today. It’s the word “best seller.” This isn’t about how The New York Times list is biased (though it is). This isn’t about how authors buy their way onto various national best-seller lists by buying their own books in bulk (though they do). No, this is about the far more insidious title of “Amazon Bestseller”...
Read more: http://snapzu.com/everlost/behind-the-scam-what-does-it-take-to-be-a-best-selling-author-3-and-5-minutes

This is the first fast-food chain in America that requires zero human interaction

Eatsa is almost fully automated, functioning like a human-powered vending machine spitting out freshly prepared quinoa bowls.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/Appaloosa/this-is-the-first-fast-food-chain-in-america-that-requires-zero-human-interaction

Confessions of an Overeducated A/C Man

There is a specter haunting Middle America—the specter of higher education. By Albert Morgan.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/AdelleChattre/confessions-of-an-overeducated-ac-man

Mars recalls chocolate bars in 55 countries after plastic found in product

An international recall of a range of chocolate bars has been announced by Mars because of fears that customers could choke on pieces of plastic. The recall, which affects 55 countries, could end up costing the company tens of millions of dollars.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/Splitfish/mars-recalls-chocolate-bars-in-55-countries-after-plastic-found-in-product

This might be Ted Cruz’s worst idea

Ted Cruz has come down with a bad case of Midas delusion. Now, it usually only afflicts people wearing bowties, but the politicians those people donate to are also at risk. We can't say for sure if that's how Cruz contracted it, but the fact that his biggest benefactor is a goldbug means that we can't rule it out either.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/spaceghoti/this-might-be-ted-cruzs-worst-idea

Amazon pushes its free shipping minimum to $49

Amazon has increased the minimum price of an order that qualifies for free shipping from $35 to $49, unless you're buying more than $25 worth of books. The last time that the cost went up was the back end of 2013, when it was bumped by $10 from $25 to $35. Of course, shipping is free if you opt to pay $99 a year for Prime, which has whip-fast shipping as well as music and video streaming.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/TNY/amazon-pushes-its-free-shipping-minimum-to-49

Free TV for Life is Here, and it May Even be Legal

The online ads sound too good to be true. "Say goodbye to your cable bills and get your TV for free," boasts an advertisement for the Free TV Box in Canada. A U.S. company promotes its TV box as the "cable killer."
Read more: http://snapzu.com/jcscher/free-tv-for-life-is-here-and-it-may-even-be-legal

Lo Mein Loophole: How U.S. Immigration Law Fueled a Chinese Restaurant Boom

In the early 20th century, the Chinese faced draconian immigration rules. But owners of a few types of businesses could get special visas. In 1915, restaurants got on that list. The rest is history.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/rti9/lo-mein-loophole-how-us-immigration-law-fueled-a-chinese-restaurant-boom

Mastercard to start using selfies as ID for online payments

Mastercard has confirmed that it is to start accepting selfies and fingerprints as an alternative to passwords when verifying IDs for online payments. The credit card firm has been testing selfie software in the US and Netherlands. Some 92 per cent of test subjects preferred the new system to passwords. Some security researchers have said that biometric checks have the potential to cut fraud, but others have warned that they might not be as secure as traditional methods.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/geoleo/mastercard-to-start-using-selfies-as-id-for-online-payments

Verizon leads a long list of cloud conundrums

Verizon paid a premium for Terremark. When announced, Verizon offered $19 and Terremark was trading just above $14. Where Verizon could have made an enormous infrastructure steal, it’s now mostly toast. But they’re not the only visible mistake.
Read more: http://snapzu.com/sjvn/verizon-leads-a-long-list-of-cloud-conundrums