Week InReview
Friday | Aug 20, 2021
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Images: Bohdan Skrypnyk/iStock, CT/iStock |
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The most striking revelation from an 80-year Harvard study of health and aging is that close relationships are what keep people happy throughout their lives, and these relationships with family, friends, and community delay mental and physical decline. These social ties are better predictors of our happiness and longevity than social class, IQ, or genetics.
So if social connection, or belonging, is the most important driver of our well-being, how are we doing after more than a year of social isolation, fear, uncertainty, and social tension? Our social connectedness drives our happiness; after more than a year of social isolation, there’s a clear opportunity for brands that can build belonging.
— Fast Company
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Gary Gensler, a longtime policy maker and former banker at Goldman Sachs, SEC chair since April.
Photo: The Wall Street Journal
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A new breed of digital asset exchanges is potentially the holy grail for cryptocurrencies: online places for people to trade and lend that purportedly involve no middleman setting the rules or taking fees. But these peer-to-peer networks, so far completely unregulated in the U.S., may not be immune from oversight, said Gary Gensler, chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. (The Wall Street Journal | Aug 19)
Minutes of the Federal Reserve’s late July monetary policy meeting didn’t reveal much concern among central bank officials about the massive flow of cash into the Fed’s reverse repo facility. As part of a broader debate over whether the central bank should pare its $120 billion a month in bond buying stimulus, Fed officials also mulled recent developments regarding the reverse repo facility, according to the minutes released Wednesday. (The Wall Street Journal | Aug 18) see also Fed reverse repo facility usage climbs to record $1.116 trillion (Bloomberg Markets | Aug 18)
A boom in U.S. corporate borrowing has laid the foundation for a wave of defaults at financially risky companies, according to leading debt rating agencies that assess and rank bonds and loans. Analysts anticipate wave of fragile companies facing future defaults after ‘clear signs of risk taking.’ (Financial Times | Aug 18)
Janet L. Yellen dedicated most of her professional life to the Federal Reserve. Now, as Treasury secretary, Yellen is getting another chance to shape the future of the institution. She will be a critical voice in deciding who ought to lead the central bank in what some see as a once-in-a-generation opportunity to remake an institution that shepherds America’s economy and helps to regulate its largest banks. (The New York Times | Aug 17)
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Gensler asks staff for human capital disclosure proposals |
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(Aug 18) — Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler has asked staff to propose recommendations for the SEC's consideration on human capital disclosure. “This could include a number of metrics, such as workforce turnover, skills and development training, compensation, benefits, workforce demographics including diversity, and health and safety,” he said on Twitter. |
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Illustration: Elena Lacey/Wired |
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Millions of web camera feeds are exposed
A vulnerability is lurking in numerous types of smart devices – including security cameras, DVRs, and even baby monitors – that could allow an attacker to access live video and audio streams over the internet and even take full control of the gadgets remotely. What's worse, it's not limited to a single manufacturer.
How to secure wireless devices in public settings, as told by the NSA
The NSA’s recently published official guidance on how to protect mobile devices in public settings, published on July 29, 2021, covers everything from wireless device security best practices to a comprehensive list of Dos and Don'ts when using Wi-Fi, NFC, and Bluetooth connections.
CISA launches new joint cyber defense collaborative
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency announced the startup of the Joint Cyber Defense Collaborative (JCDC) on August 5th with the goal of driving down risk before an incident happens and unifying defensive actions should an incident occur. The JCDC is a new agency effort to lead the development of cyber defense operations plans, and facilitate execution of those plans in coordination with partners from the federal interagency, private sector, and state, local, tribal, and territorial (SLTT) government stakeholders.
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Illustration: Elena Lacey/Wired |
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Deepfakes are now making business pitches
Ernst & Young calls these its virtual doubles ARIs, for artificial reality identity, instead of deepfakes. Whatever you call them, they’re the latest example of the commercialization of AI-generated imagery and audio, a technical concept that first came to broad public notice in 2017 when synthetic and pornographic clips of Hollywood actors began to circulate online.
One number to gauge where the economy is headed
The yield on the 10-year Treasury note is often a reliable indicator of how Wall Street views the prospects of economic growth — especially when other data points send confusing signals.
All the best cars as the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance returns
In the end, it was as big as ever. After skipping last year due to the coronavirus pandemic and early reports major automakers were planning to pass, the 70th anniversary of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance attracted thousands of ticket holders and 230 collector cars in a striking return to normalcy.
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