People Are Getting Microchipped in Sweden, and It’s Pretty Normal – VICE

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HELSINGBORG, Sweden Jowan sterlund lays down a sterile cloth, puts on gloves and uses a needle to slide a microchip under Micco Grnholms skin. The whole process takes only a couple minutes. Im a cyborg, Grnholm tells VICE News.

The radio frequency identification technology that the chip uses has been around for decades, but the idea of implanting it under the skin seems pretty dystopian. It can be used to enter doors like your office, home or gym to log into computers, and even to make contactless payments.

sterlund, a self-proclaimed science fiction nerd and the founder and CEO of Biohax International, says he has chipped around 6,000 Swedes in the last six years. He chalks up its success to Swedens culture of openness.

The geopolitical situation historically gives us the kind of initial higher trust in the government. I think a lot of people would be way more apprehensive in a lot of countries, sterlund said.

Walk through Swedens bustling capital in Stockholm and youll see what he means. Abandoned cash machines, card-only parking meters and market vendors who only accept mobile payments, nearly all aspects of life in Sweden are digitized.

Ninety-seven percent of the transactions are done without bills, Anders Ygeman, Swedens Minister for Energy and Digital Development told VICE News.

Known globally for its welfare system, the Scandavian country of 10 million has a storied history of embracing new technologies from tax subsidies for home computers in the 90s, to mobile technology infrastructure. The country is nearing complete digitization of both public and private sectors, and has now its sight set on artificial intelligence, all with the goal of making life more convenient, efficient and equitable for its citizens.

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People Are Getting Microchipped in Sweden, and It's Pretty Normal - VICE

10 Biggest Ways The DCEU Has Changed From Original Plans – WhatCulture

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Warner Bros. and DC's interconnected superhero series - the DC Extended Universe - hasn't always received the same amount of critical acclaim as their great rivals over at Marvel Studios, but it's still made almost five and a half billion dollars at the box office over the course of eight movies, to rank as the tenth highest-grossing franchise in cinematic history.

Most of the DCEU's early output was dogged by problems such as an unrelentingly grim tone, constant rumors of studio interference and a penchant for announcing movies and then doing absolutely nothing with them. However, once the studio made a conscious effort to head in a new creative direction following the disappointment of Justice League, the future for their roster of superheroes is looking brighter than ever.

Had things gone to plan, we'd have seen Ben Affleck's The Batman and The Flash by now, while the game-changing events of Zack Snyder's Justice League Part Two would have impacted the stories of both Cyborg and Green Lantern Corps, and maybe even the Suicide Squad spinoff for Jared Leto's Joker and Harley Quinn.

Instead, a combination of poor reception to the movies from both fans and critics, constant changes in leadership behind the scenes, abandoned projects and some high-profile re-castings have seen the DCEU drastically alter the highly ambitious plans that were originally laid out, as the franchise suffered greatly from trying to run before it had learned to walk.

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10 Biggest Ways The DCEU Has Changed From Original Plans - WhatCulture

Bellator In The 2010s: Looking Back At The Female Divisions – The MIX

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Over the past decade, Bellator has had crowned champions in three female divisions with a total of four fighters winning the belts.

Currently, just two of those divisions are active.

Cris Cyborg added Bellator gold to her UFC, Strikeforce and Invicta FC titles earlier this year, while Ilima-Lei Macfarlane is the only flyweight champion.

Zoila Gurgel held the strawweight title in 2010 for over two years, but the belt has been inactive since she left for Invicta FC.

In January, Cris Cyborg made history, becoming the first-ever fighter to hold gold in the UFC, Bellator, Strikeforce and Invicta FC.

Cyborg scored a victory over Julia Budd at Bellator 238 in Inglewood, California on January 25, 2020.

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For over 1,000 days, Julia Budd was the champion in the division.

Budd won the title at Bellator 174 on March 3, 2017 with a victory over Marloes Coenen. She held it for exactly 1,137 days win defenses over Arlene Blencowe, Talita Nogueira and Olga Rubin.

The one and only champion in the Bellator flyweight division, Ilima-Lei Macfarlane has held the title for nearly 1,000 days.

Macfarlane won the inaugural belt at Bellator 186 on the campus of Penn State University on November 3, 2017 with a victory over Emily Ducote.

She earned successful defenses in 2018 vs. both Alejandra Lara and Valerie Letourneau, following up in 2019 with wins vs. Veta Arteaga and Kate Jackson.

At Bellator 34 on October 28, 2010, Zoila Gurgel won the inaugural Bellator strawweight title with a victory over Megumi Fujii from Hollywood, Florida.

The tournament bracket also included future UFC champion Carla Esparza, Lisa Ward, Aisling Daly, Lynn Alvarez and Jessica Penne.

She would hold the strap for 831 days without defending it before departing for Invicta FC on February 5, 2013.

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Bellator In The 2010s: Looking Back At The Female Divisions - The MIX

Rick and Morty and Nihilism: Embracing a Show That Cares About Nothing – tor.com

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When I decided to major in English, my parents thought I might use this highly versatile degree to pursue law or medicine. Little did they know that Id end up applying that (much too) expensive education to analyzing a television show about a drunken, sociopathic mad scientist with a flying space car. Rick and Morty, created by Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon, is pretty much an instant cult classic. Kayla Cobb calls it a never-ending fart joke wrapped around a studied look into nihilism, and personally I think she hits the nail on the head with that description. There are probably a thousand different philosophical lenses through which you could study this show and never get bored. And probably someone who is better versed in philosophy should do just that (because yes please!)

The best I can do is follow my own laymans curiosity down the rabbit hole. What exactly is it about this shows gleeful nihilism that appeals to so many fans, the vast majority of which would not consider themselves nihilists in any sense of the word? The draw of the show is strong for Millennials in particular, which is odd, since were the ones who obsess over Queer Eyes unbridled optimism, Marie Kondos blissful joy, and Steven Universes wide-eyed hopefulness in equal measure. In a society enamored by the concept of self (self-care, self-responsibility, self-love), what is so fascinating about a fantasy world that revolves around the destruction of any sense of individual importance? As Morty so succinctly tells his sister, Nobody exists on purpose. Nobody belongs anywhere. Everybodys gonna dieCome watch TV.

Rick Sanchez, the aforementioned mad scientist, is the lynchpin of the show in that all of the zany plots and fart jokes are his doing, directly or indirectly. Rick is an anarchist of the highest degree, vocally disgusted by any sort of rules or law, including those of decency and familial obligation. So I think its fair that a dive into the shows nihilistic philosophy should center on him. Im sure he wouldnt have it any other way.

In Rick theres no doubt an element of the (toxic) masculine archetype: Tortured Genius Who Is Lonely and Doesnt Care Because Feelings Are Overrated. Hes a character of frustrating paradoxes. Every act of debauchery or callousness is tempered by a glimpse of grudging generosity or heroism. He relentlessly mocks his grandchildren, using every possible opportunity to convince them how little they matter to him, but anytime someone else tries to take advantage of Morty or Summer, hes quick to avenge. In season one, after a chaotic nightmare of an adventure, Morty leads Rick on an ill-fated quest, determined to prove that adventures should be simple and fun. Mortys fantastical adventure takes a nightmarish turn when hes assaulted in a bathroom by an alien named Mr. Jellybean. Traumatized, Morty is ready to bail, but Rick, clearly intuiting whats happened, helps Morty to bring their adventure to a satisfying conclusionand then hops back through the portal to execute the alien pervert, for good measure.

In a later episode, Summer starts her first job in a shop run by Mr. Needful, aka the actual Devil (voiced by Alfred Molina) selling cursed artifactsyou know, typical high school job. Jealous of his granddaughters admiration for Mr. Needful, though he refuses to admit it, Rick starts a successful campaign to run the shop out of business, much to Summers dismay. But when the Devil pulls a Zuckerberg and screws Summer out of her share of the business empire she helped him build from the ground up, Rick joins her in a plot to get ripped and beat the shit out of her former boss during a TED Talk. Sweet revenge.

In Auto Erotic Assimilation, which is arguably one of the most emotionally fraught episodes of the series, Ricks oscillating character arc reveals a poignant, unexpected moment of the ordinary humanity he despises so much. After a run-in with an ex, a hive mind named Unity (voiced mainly by Christina Hendrix) who has plans to assimilate the entire universe, Rick goes on a debauched, sex- and drug-fueled bender that eventually causes Unitys control over the planet to falter. When Morty and Summer express concern, Rick dismisses them out of hand, explaining to Unity, Theyre no different from any of the aimless chumps that you occupy. They just put you at the center of their lives because youre powerful, and then because they put you there, they expect you to be less powerful.

Rick remains oblivious to the full impact of his words (His next order of business is: Im not looking for judgement, just a yes or no: Can you assimilate a giraffe?), but shortly thereafter Unity dumps him, leaving behind a series of breakup notes telling Rick that its too easy for Unity to lose itself in him, because in a strange way, youre better at what I do without even trying.

Rick pretends to be nonchalant and indifferent, but that night he attempts suicide with a death ray that only narrowly misses the mark. It is without doubt one of the darkest momentsif not the darkest momentof the series thus far, and in my opinion lays bare the crux of Ricks character. With infinite intelligence comes an infinite loneliness that makes you wonder if his borderline sociopathy is cause or effect. Maybe a little of both. The show certainly gives no clear answer.

In fact, if anything, the writers spend a great deal of time building up the trope of the lonely genius, only to poke fun at it every chance they get. In the season three premiere, we get a look into Ricks tragic and somewhat clich backstory, in which a young Rick is visited by an alternate version of himself and doesnt like the lonely, narcissistic future he sees. He announces to his wife that hes giving up science, only for the alternate Rick to toss a bomb through the portal, destroying both his wife and young daughter. After losing his family, Rick throws himself back into science and discovers interdimensional travel. Its another moment of humanity for the otherwise emotionally inscrutable Rick. Or it would be, except that its a totally fabricated origin story that Rick uses to trick Galactic Federation agent Cornvelious Daniel (voiced by Nathan Fillion) and escape the Series 9000 Brainalyzer in which he is imprisoned.

Theres never any solid footing when it comes to Rick Sanchez. Hes impossible to pin down. As Morty tells his sister, Hes not a villain, Summer, but he shouldnt be your hero. Hes more like a demon. Or a super fucked-up god. The show repeatedly suggests that we shouldnt admire Rick, but also constantly undermines itself with evidence to the contraryhe always comes out on top, hes always one step ahead, he always manages to protect his family (except for that one time he and Morty transformed the earth into a Cronenberg-style hellscape and then bailed into a new reality, but alls well that ends well, I suppose).

Screenshot: Cartoon Network

Ricks character is distinctly problematic, which is really a nicely academic way of saying that hes a piece of shit and if he somehow existed in real life I would hate him on principle. But in the fictional world he inhabits, hes a reflection of the darkest part of the human psyche. A safe, harmless way to embrace the shadowy corners of our minds that we otherwise avoid. We can find escapism in the romanticizing of life, the universe, and everything (through shows like Queer Eye or Steven Universe, for example) or in the oppositein the offhand dismissal of all we hold to be true and right. Im no psychologist, but I do think theres an element of cognitive dissonance that is key to our survival, if not as a species then as individuals. We need to be able to lose ourselves in nihilistic shows about demons and super fucked-up gods on occasion without losing who we are or what we believe in.

No disrespect to Nietzsche and his bros, but IRL we truly care about friends and family and cat videos and injustice and global warming. We have to. Its what makes us human, and I wouldnt have it any other way. There are many who would argue that all the fiction we consume must reflect the values we aspire to in our everyday lives, lest we lose sight of our own morality, and I get that. I really do. I try my best to support media that supports a better world, but Im not going to pretend to be a hero, here. As Rick proves time and time again, the universe is a chaotic and crazy place, and sometimes I need a break from the fraught emotional tangle of reality. And for that, I find my escape in shows like Rick and Morty, which are complex enough to analyze for layers of meaning, to study the problematic tropes that get dismantled and the ones that get reinforced. But its also fun and simple enough to kick back with an adult beverage, too much pizza, and just not think about it. Its less of a guilty pleasure and more of a release valve. Watching a show that cares about nothing is a way to siphon off the pressure of caring so damn much about everything.

And at the root of it all, I think its that pure escapism that attracts us most to Rick and Morty and their misadventures (aside from clever writing, complex emotional payoffs, and a character literally named Mr. Poopy Butthole, but I digress). The characters inhabit infinite realities where actions have virtually no consequences. Accidentally ruin this world? No problem. All you have to do is find a new reality, bury your own corpse, and youre back in business. Easy peasy.

I will gladly lose myself (and my clutter) in Maries joyful world, and I love to eat candy and dream big with Steven and the Gems. But some days require an escapism of a different caliber. We are burdened with the not-so-glorious purpose of surviving in a world where even an errant tweet can bear the most devastating of fruit, where assholes who think theyre smarter than everyone else are just assholes (no genius involved), where once we destroy the planet with global warming, there is no portal gun we can use to hop neatly into a new reality.

Rick and Morty doesnt give a shit about Twitter, or feelings, or this universe, or anything at all. And while youre watching it, you dont have to either. Sometimes thats exactly what you need, at least until the next season of Queer Eye drops.

Originally published in August 2019.

Destiny Soria lives and works in the shadow of the mighty Vulcan statue in Birmingham, Alabama. Destinys first book, Iron Cast, was published in 2016 to critical acclaim. Her second, Beneath the Citadel, is available now.

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Rick and Morty and Nihilism: Embracing a Show That Cares About Nothing - tor.com

The nihilism of Mitch McConnell – The Boston Globe

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Theres not going to be any desire on the Republican side to bail out state pensions by borrowing money from future generations, McConnell was quoted telling conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt.

The effort to so clearly and ostentatiously turn a national tragedy into yet another partisan issue was met with an immediate and sharp backlash. Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York pointed out that states like Kentucky, which McConnell represents, take in far more federal spending than they return in taxes the opposite of states like New York, which pays more in taxes to the federal government than it receives. But in a plea for decency, Cuomo said, "If there was ever a time for humanity . . . and a time to stop your obsessive political bias and anger, now is the time.

But were talking about Mitch McConnell. This is the man who mobilized his Republican caucus to prevent witnesses from being called in President Trumps impeachment trial; who rammed through, on a partisan vote, Brett Kavanaughs ascendancy to the Supreme Court; and who has shut down the Senate from crucial business except for the confirmation of conservative federal judges. He also strongly resisted efforts to expose Russias interference in the 2016 election on behalf of Trump. I have little doubt he did so because such exposure would have undermined Trumps White House bid and, in turn, possibly eroded McConnells Senate majority.

And if we want to go further back, this is the same senator who in 2009 and 2010 did exactly what hes doing now. In the midst of the most severe economic crisis since the Great Depression, he used his 41-seat Senate minority to shoot down virtually every effort to pass stimulus measures that would have lessened the toll, because prolonging the countrys economic pain was in the political interests of the Republican Party.

Were seeing a variation of such political nihilism now.

There are lots of theories on why McConnell is resisting money for state and local governments now. Hes trying to cripple Democratic state governments by forcing them to cut basic services, goes one argument. Declaring bankruptcy might force states to default on their pension obligations, which would cripple public-sector unions (which strongly support Democratic candidates).

As President Trump hinted at Tuesday, when he said that payments to states would be contingent on the removal of laws creating sanctuary cities, perhaps McConnell is using the desperate fiscal situation as leverage. Indeed, his new-found focus on granting liability protection to businesses that force employees back to work and his concession earlier this week that state and local funds will probably be included in the next stimulus package suggests that might be what hes thinking.

But with McConnell, the best explanation for his behavior usually comes back to politics. As I wrote last year, For McConnell, politics is fundamentally about accruing political power for the sole purpose of accruing more political power.

Sure, squeezing Democratic states will boomerang against red states too. Not only will it make the economic downturn worse, which would further undercut Trumps reelection chances, but it will hurt red-state governors in Florida, Georgia, Texas, and Ohio too.

But from McConnells perspective, it will have the useful political effect of making the coronavirus pandemic a partisan issue. Already, Republicans have portrayed COVID-19 as a problem that is afflicting blue states more than red ones. Why should the country suffer because of New York City? one insidious line of argument goes. Blue state governors in swing states like Michigan and Wisconsin are enduring the brunt of partisan attacks for their tough line on strict social distancing rules. Why not up the ante?

The specifics of the bailouts matter less than the opportunity to find political advantage and activate Republican animosity toward liberals. Sure, if you can undercut public sector unions or maybe squeeze out some legal protections for Republican donors, all the better.

Its a troubling conclusion, but its also one that those who look closely at McConnells career generally arrive at. As Jane Mayer wrote in a recent profile of McConnell for The New Yorker, For months, I searched for the larger principles or sense of purpose that animates McConnell. . . . Finally, someone who knows him very well told me, 'Give up. You can look and look for something more in him, but it isnt there. I wish I could tell you that there is some secret thing that he really believes in, but he doesnt.

Politics has long been the only motivating factor for McConnell: the explanation for everything that he has done over the past several decades to undercut democracy and enable an authoritarian president, dangerously unqualified for the awesome power he wields.

Why should a deadly pandemic and an economic catastrophe be any different?

Michael A. Cohens column appears regularly in the Globe. Follow him on Twitter @speechboy71.

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The nihilism of Mitch McConnell - The Boston Globe

Coronavirus, the definition of ‘global’ and climate curriculum – Education Dive

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Dylan Craig is a high school English teacher in Maryland's Anne Arundel County Public Schools.

For many in a more privileged sphere, the coronavirus has broken the comfortable illusion that a global catastrophe like this just wont happen, at least not in my bubble. Catastrophe is now a reality and "global"means "global,"as in everyone.

With the bursting of this comforting bubble and the definition of the "global"in "global catastrophe"clearer than ever, it is now time to seriously invest in a climate crisis curriculum for our students. We have a new sense of what it means to be affected by and to tackle something globally, and we need to equip our students with the practical and political power to address these challenges, as well as build a sense of global solidarity and shared responsibility.

When people are not informed or prepared, as well as believe catastrophes happen in faraway places, we get reactions like those seen in response to the coronavirus.In my students, for example, I saw disbelief turning to shock, turning to a range of emotional defense mechanisms, such as detachment, humor, denial, nihilism and in some cases, powerful fear.

These reactions parallel those in response to recent climate revelations, with global projections of catastrophic proportions coming within our lifetimes. When Wuhan, China shut down, my friends in Maryland discussed it, but the chances of it affecting us were an abstract notion. When New York City shut down with the coronavirus, in Maryland we mainly thought, "Yikes, but still, what are the chances this will affect me personally?"

These reactions are similar to when we hear about heat waves in Europe, locust plagues in Africa, or more frequent and intense hurricanes in the south. Those are bad, caused by climate change, but this probably wont affect me personally. The "global"in "global catastrophe"often feels like a half-empty word to the more privileged, having a similar meaning to "a lot of people."

However, coronavirus forced many to go through the denial of the "global"definition quickly, as it did make its way to our front door, much like the "in our lifetime"climate predictions, and soon many who were in denial a week ago were out of school or work and sheltering in place the next. We can now learn from this in our approach to climate change, pressing forward with our students new understanding of "global,"and the realization for many that yes, it will impact me. And yes, there is a shared responsibility to address it. From this, we can both show that we are in this together and promote the idea that it shouldnt take a crisis coming to our front door to build global solidarity.

If global solidarity were built from the beginning in the coronavirus, the situation may have turned out much differently, with all our political power and resources going to help China battle what could affect us all. But with the climate crisis we have a few advantages one being time.

Although certain effects of climate change are escalating quickly (side note the release of new viruses is one of those effects), the coronavirus has had a much steeper learning curve. However, we still have time to tackle major effects of climate change, as well as the knowledge of potential solutions and mitigation strategies that are often not in place simply due to a lack of political will and lack of notions of shared responsibility.

With these advantages, a climate crisis curriculum could have a major impact on those who are going to be facing the brunt of the consequences of this global challenge, and coronavirus allowed many to realize that they are not somehow excluded from the "global"definition.

We must now use this realization in order to implement a curriculum that leads to action and solidarity. This curriculum would give students a better understanding of why this climate crisis is happening, what effects have become inevitable, what effects can be mitigated, what effects can be stopped, as well as ways to build political power and global solidarity to address them.

In many ways, it would be a hopeful curriculum, and one that helps keep students from relying on the emotional defense mechanisms seen during the coronavirus.Overall, the curriculum could embody a version of Martin Luther King Jr.s statement, Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere, as an environmental mantra for global solidarity and shared responsibility, especially now that students see how true this really is.

It is not ideal that it took a global catastrophe for major parts of the population to realize they are not untouchable, and I truly wish the notions of global solidarity were already in place so that we could live in a world that does not commit acts that endanger others who they will never meet and in places that they will never see.

However, we have the opportunity to build that solidarity with a better understanding of global consequences and shared responsibility than ever. The fact that we are already sacrificing so much in the name of coronavirus mitigation in order to help those we will never meet speaks to our readiness to continue, as well as the benevolent aspects of human nature in general. This can and must continue to be fostered in our students to address our next great global challenge to help save our near and distant global future with a renewed sense that we are all in this together.

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Coronavirus, the definition of 'global' and climate curriculum - Education Dive

Thanos Used The Infinity Stones To Make… The Perfect Woman? – Screen Rant

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The MCU showed the world thedestructive might of the Infinity Stones, but what could that power be used to create in those same hands? In 1991, Marvel's TheInfinity Gauntletfollows The Mad Titan, Thanos, as he wields the most powerful weapon in the universe. Drunk with power and jaded in love, Thanos creates his vision of the perfect companion: Terraxia the Terrible!

Since hiscreation by Jim Starlin in 1973, Thanos has often been portrayed as a cold, unfeeling megalomaniac. But not without some sympathy, sinceThanos has been outcast his entire life, due to his appearance and his obsession with morbidity and nihilism. Only one being in the whole universe shows him any affection: the avatar of death incarnate,Mistress Death. She sees his potential to deliver her an unprecedented number of souls, and begins manipulating him from his earliest years as a child on Titan. Thanos relentlessly pursues herapproval by decimating Titan's population in a nuclear holocaust, going on a killing spree across the universe, and even going as far as slaughtering his own child. Death is unimpressed by his efforts, as her hunger can never truly be sated.

Related:Thanos Originally Looked Like DC's [SPOILER], Not Darkseid

Afterhis death at the hands of Adam Warlock, Thanos is resurrected by Lady Death for the sole purpose of ending half of all life in the universe. Thanos tricks her into helping him gather the Infinity Stones to aid him in his task, and thereby surpassed even the cosmic entity of Death in his power. Scorned, Death continues to spurns his amorous pursuits, refusing to utter a single word or even acknowledge his presence. Despite Death's cold shoulder, Thanos snaps away half of all life in the universe. Still, Death is unmoved. Thanos, furious and desperate, realizes that no matter his efforts, he will never earn that which he seeks. But he is a god, and will not be denied his quarry. If he can't earn love, then he will create it. To this end, he blinks into existence a "perfect" woman in the form of Terraxia.

Terraxia looks less like an ideal lover for Thanos than his sister. She shares his purple skin, black eyes, and is dressed in a female tailored replica of Thanos's uniform, right down to the gauntlets and horned head piece. It makes sense for an egomaniac such as Thanos to envision the perfect woman as simply an extension of himself who lives only to please him. Even while Terraxia is clinging to Thanos's leg like a harem girl, Thanos is attempting to impress Death with his exploits. As the massive army of Marvel superheroes approach, Thanos knows he must seize this final opportunity to win over his true love. Realizing that there is no bravery in absolute power, Thanos temporarily severs his connection to the Mind, Soul, Time, Space, and Reality Gems, leaving only the Power Stone at his disposal.

Thanos and Terraxia face down the gathered forces side by side, and for a brief moment, it seems as though Thanos is proud of the viciousness with which Terraxia tears through their foes, having decapitated Iron Man and crushed Spider-Man's skull with a rock. But at the climax of The Infinity Gauntlet, when they are banished to the void of space, Thanos quickly realizes he may have forgotten to provide Terraxia the ability to survive in the vacuum. And just as quickly, Thanos moves on, with nary a tear for his lost love.For all his effort, Death still shows no feeling toward Thanos, and eventually goes as far as to make him immortal, so that he may never know Death's embrace. Thanos's true weakness is not his love, but his own hunger for power.

The Infinity Gauntlet shows Thanoswants Death because she is the only thing can never possess, despite his raw might. His lack of vision while he possessed true omnipotence proves that he has no true purpose, save for the accumulation of more power. Thanos had everything he could ever dream of, but lacked the imagination to dream.

More:The Silver Surfer Used The Infinity Gauntlet... For Good (Mostly)

Why Did Batman Actually SLAP Robin, Anyway?

Doug Romshe is a writer, comic book historian, and most importantly a fan. He lives in Durham, North Carolina where he enjoys comics, novels, video games, craft beer, and cheap whiskey. Doug holds a degree in Philosophy with a minor in writing from Kent State University.

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Thanos Used The Infinity Stones To Make... The Perfect Woman? - Screen Rant

Film Adaptation ‘Capital In The Twenty-First Century’ Is An Autopsy Of A Broken System – WBUR

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I was working at a bookstore in 2014 when Thomas Pikettys Capital in the Twenty-First Century became a sensation, and if youd asked me what was about to replace Gone Girl as our most requested title, a French academics 696-page hardcover doorstop detailing the history of economic inequality wouldnt exactly have been my first guess. At the time I joked it was about to become the most popular book that people bought and didnt finish since The Satanic Verses, but theres no denying that Pikettys thesis struck a chord with the public. The New York Times bestseller was the biggest blockbuster in the history of the Harvard University Press, and these kind of sales for a book thats extremely difficult to lift, let alone read, are saying something.

Arriving six years later, yet feeling weirdly right on time, is director Justin Pembertons documentary adaptation, which opens this Friday, May 1, at the Coolidge Corner Theatres Virtual Screening Room. A nifty overview as to why everything is terrible, Capital in the Twenty-First Century is a brilliantly assembled, blood-boiling examination of the past 100 years in economics that, viewed during our current disaster, feels like the autopsy of a broken system. Pikettys argument delivered in Pembertons slick, propulsive cinematic style depicts capitalism as a self-perpetuating beast with a natural inclination to bloat the rich and starve the poor to ever-increasing, unsustainable levels. Unless attentively restrained via stiff regulations and progressive taxation to redistribute wealth throughout the economy, itll all get hoarded at the top.

Speaking as someone who used to fall asleep in math class (theres a reason I went to film school, folks), Pikettys book fell pretty far outside my purview. But Pembertons film adaptation turns out to be a dazzling entertainment, putting cogent arguments in laymans terms with witty visual correlations. The army of talking heads is offset with smartly chosen film clips, clever animation and some strikingly innovative use of the overhead drone photography thats become a clich in so many lesser documentaries. The film has a knack for making tricky economic concepts accessible to all, even dummies like me who got a D in algebra.

Beginning just before World War I, Capital charts swelling and plummeting fortunes in various countries all the way up to and through the 2008 economic collapse. Patterns emerge in the macro view, with the aristocracy of various ages doing their best to insulate and further their own interests. The increasing inequality eliminates any middle class and removes opportunity for advancement, resulting in a widespread nihilism that eventually takes the form of either fascist nationalism or violent revolution. Fun.

Pembertons pugnacious approach uses shrewdly selected film clips ranging from Wall Street to The Grapes of Wrath attempting to puncture oft-reported, received wisdom like the stock market having anything to do with the lives of everyday people. The film angrily attacks the mentality were all brought up with, a notion one pundit describes as every American being a millionaire-in-waiting. With 75% of all the money in the world endlessly recycled through a closed system of shell companies and other offshore tax cheats among the 1%, the bootstrap mythology is a suckers bet.

The films most eye-opening segment shows us footage from a psychology experiment at the University of California at Irvine. Two strangers are set against one another in a game of Monopoly. According to a coin toss, one player is given twice as much money than the other to start with. That player also gets the use of two dice as opposed to the other players one, collecting twice as much money whenever they pass Go. It takes almost no time for the players who win the coin toss to dominate the game, and we watch them almost immediately become ruder, mocking their disadvantaged competitors, gloating about their prowess and even eating more pretzels than the losers who never had a chance.

According to psychologist Paul Piff, not a single winner in the entire study credited their victory to the ludicrously unfair advantages provided by the coin toss. To a person, they all think that they won because they were better players. Since seeing the movie Ive been unable to stop thinking about this sequence, wondering if its somehow hard-wired into our national psyche by years of consumerist conditioning, this adamant need to believe that any good fortune is somehow deserved. Acknowledging that it all might be an accident of birth or a coin toss undoes Americas entire idea of itself.

One could argue that 102 minutes isnt enough time to cover a tome the size of Pikettys, and that Capital in the Twenty-First Century gives short shrift to subjects like factory robotics and climate change that will play a huge part in determining the future of our economy. (See also: global pandemics.) But this is urgent, brashly entertaining filmmaking, full of arguments you may have a hard time shaking off.

Capital in the Twenty-First Century begins streaming Friday, May 1, at the Coolidge Corner Theatre's Virtual Screening Room.

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Film Adaptation 'Capital In The Twenty-First Century' Is An Autopsy Of A Broken System - WBUR

Chloe Wyma on Other Points of View – Artforum

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The anti-institutional, anti-formal, anti-aesthetic nihilism of the Surrealists, Clement Greenberg wrote in 1944, . . . has in the end proved a blessing to the restless rich, the expatriates, and aesthete-flaneurs in general who were repelled by the ascetism of modern art. Surrealist subversiveness justifies their way of life, sanctioning the peace of conscience and the sense of chic with which they reject arduous disciplines. The implicit target of his words was View, an avant-garde magazine founded in 1940 by the Mississippi-born poet and flaneur Charles Henri Ford, the last protg of Gertrude Stein, and coauthor with the writer Parker Tyler of the banned 1933 gay novel The Young and the Evil.

Curated by Tirza True Latimer, the exhibition Other Points of View employs a loose, associative logic to bring together the various currentsSurrealist, magic realist, modernist, and neo-Romanticthat coursed through the publication during its seven-year run. Treasures on display include Kristians Tonnys quixotic mural sketches of nude horsemen, flying buffalo, and floating castles (made in 1937 for the Avery Auditorium at the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford, Connecticut) and Isamu Noguchis carceral brass-wire Spider Dress, 1946, worn by Martha Graham in the role of Medea in Cave of the Heart, first performed that same year. View fixture Pavel Tchelitchew is also represented by his psychedelic renditions of metabolic systems, confectionary sketches for ballets and costume balls, an insouciantly obscene drawing of an all-male orgy, and old-masterish portraits of Ford, his longtime lover. The editor himself appears, in a swaggering 1935 photograph by Henri Cartier-Bresson, as a dandified enfant terrible, buttoning his fly outside a Paris pissotire, known as a premier gay sex spot since the time of Rimbaud. Latimers inclusion of Fords later Poem Posters, 196465lithographic montages of Op-art graphics and concrete poetryand hisrelatedexperimental 1967 film reveal linkages between the uptown bohemia of the 40s and the downtown scene of the 60s.Footage, shot by Jonas Mekas, Jack Smith, Stan VanDerBeek, Andy Warhol, and others, of his star-studded opening at New Yorks Cordier & Ekstrom Gallery in 1965 is chopped and screwed to a shrieking free-jazz score. A grid of covers for View by the likes of Marcel Duchamp, Leonor Fini, Morris Hirshfield, Wifredo Lam, Fernand Lger, Georgia OKeeffe, Kurt Seligmann, and Yves Tanguy suggest the untheorized, and, to an extent, cliquish eclecticism (to borrow scholar Stamatina Dimakopoulous apt characterization) of the magazine.

Originally an organ for refugee Surrealists displaced by World War II, View quietly seceded from the official movement with January 1943s Americana Fantastica issue, its collage cover by Joseph Cornell concatenating images of trapeze artists, King Kong, the Empire State Building, and stock depictions of American Indians amid the torrents and vapors of Niagara Falls. In his introductory editorial, Tyler declared the fantastic the inalienable property of the untutored, the oppressed, the anarchic, and the amateur, impervious to academic methodologies and the tyranny of the father and the schoolteacher, taking an Oedipal dig at Surrealisms grand fromage, Andr Breton.

Where Bretonian Surrealism was dogmatic, partisan, and patriarchal, View was commercial, catholic, and, perhaps most problematically for Breton, unabashedly queer. In a particularly nasty, homophobic barb, Breton once referred to the magazine as pederasty international. Greenbergclearly no friend of Surrealismsaw Views putrescent cosmopolitanism as the movements logical conclusion, and savored its undoing with bitter irony: Not all the steadfastness of its leader in protesting against corruption wherever he could see it has prevented this ambivalence in the effects of Surrealism from eating back into and corrupting Surrealism itself. Corruption. Ambivalence. Anthropophagy. If these are Views inheritance, then art historyas Latimers show beautifully arguesis all the richer for it.

Chloe Wyma

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Chloe Wyma on Other Points of View - Artforum

Guinea-Bissau PM and three ministers test positive for COVID-19 – Face2Face Africa

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Guinea-Bissaus Prime Minister, Nuno Gomes Nabiam, and three members of his cabinet have tested positive for the novel COVID-19, according to the health ministry. Health Minister, Antonio Deuna, told journalists that Nabiam, Interior Minister Botche Cande and two other ministers were diagnosed on Tuesday and have been quarantined at a hotel in the capital Bissau.

Although the health minister did not reveal details of the officials condition or treatment, he warned that the countrys rate of infection could rise.

So far, the country has confirmed over 70 cases and one death.

Africas case

Infection rates on the continent are low and so is the case count even in comparison to individual countries such as France, Belgium, Italy and the Netherlands. Many more Africans are recovering from the virus by the day too and yet, many Africans and those who are not, remain unconvinced by less-than-horrific statistics.

The people believe the scourge will be worse for them than theEuropeanshad it because Africas leaders are woefully incompetent. Africas professional class insists that there are a lot of causes for concern and Euro-American spectatorship wonders how the people on the poorest continent arent dying as much.

There has been a 43% jump in confirmed cases over the last week but real numbers tell a highly manageable coronavirus problem in Africa. So why are observers worried?

There are arguments to be made about Africans distrusting their own institutions apsychopathologyof colonization.

They do not teach in a class on philosophy of statistics, the emotional compendium necessary for interpreting any sort of mathematical data set. Put simply, what it means for one to be in theright frame of mindin order to read from given scientific data is poorly conceptualized and sorely under-urged.

Are Africans and outsiders expecting the continents problem to grow exponentially because they are not in theright frame of mind?

But perhaps, we may say that the doom prophesied is as a result of empiric inefficiencies in the modern African way of life.

Probity and accountability have not been selling points of many of the national governments over the decades. It is thus considerably hard to find the best way of accepting such information as Mauritania claiming it is coronavirus-free; Ghana arguing that its infection rate is 1.5% or Madagascar insisting that a new tonic advertised by the countrys prime minister is a coronavirus suppressant.

A coronavirus-ensured doom may also be prophesied of the continent where so much of the economy depends on vis--vis, cash-dependent interactions that happen in crowded and environmentally-questionable surroundings.

This is the same continent with the poorest health networks and healthcare facilities, poor modern communications capacities and where it is more difficult to maintain law and order, according to Ugandas presidentYoweri Museveni. Add the problem of food security to this list.

Statistics, on the other hand, is pliable and results could be predetermined by carefully choosing what to count and how to count it. A question of how governments are arriving at their coronavirus-related numbers is important to ask of authorities in Africa and anywhere else.

The problem with Africa therefore, is not the clichd dilemma of how much water there is in the glass. We are debating whether there is a glass at all and whether there is any water in it.

We are dared to embrace some sort of nihilism forced by endemic pessimism. No belief in the leaders, no belief in the numbers, no belief in the physical structures and no belief in the rules and regulations.

How do a people emerge on the other side of a pandemic when they are being dared to embrace nihilism? This question may seem far-fetched until you realize answering it opens the door to the discussion on what normal times will be in these days of the novel coronavirus.

There are over 40 vaccines at various levels in trial but we have been warned that we may have to wait until 2021 for the proper treatment of COVID-19. This therefore means that lockdowns, the restrictions employed by many countries to calm the spread of the virus, would have to be lifted at some point this year.

South AfricasCyril Ramaphosaput it bluntly: Our people must eat.

Life must go on but what kind of life are we talking about? How do they live when the people have been beaten into their shelves and asked to entertain solely, pessimism and nothing more?

One could make the argument that life must go on but we should not live as though we are in normal times. Although that is understandable, the gaping problem is that these are unchartered waters and we may not find our way back to the dock, now or ever.

What Africans have always entertained will be their refuge in these unfamiliar times. If the people are in search of new normal times, the pessimism and near-nihilism which have been entertained for so long will provide no comfort.

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Guinea-Bissau PM and three ministers test positive for COVID-19 - Face2Face Africa

‘Normal People’ Streaming: How to Watch the Series Online – Newsweek

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Normal People, the 2019 New York Times best-selling novel from Sally Rooney, has been adapted into a 12-part drama by Room director Lenny Abrahamson. The series debuted on the U.K.'s BBC iPlayer service on April 27, and will be available to watch in the U.S. soon on Hulu.

The Hulu release date for the series will be Wednesday, April 29, when the show is expected to air from midnight PT. At that time, all 12 half-hour episodes of the drama will be streaming at once. All of the episodes are streaming in the U.K. on iPlayer now, and on RTE in the show's native Ireland.

As well as streaming the episodes online, Hulu allows users to download episodes of Normal People and its other shows to watch offline. To download episodes, users have to select a show and move onto the "Episodes" tab, where there should be a download button next to each instalment of the show.

New Hulu subscribers can watch Normal People for nothing with a free trial. Users can get 30 days for free, after which time the service costs $5.99 a month for Basic (with ads), or $11.99 for the ad-free Hulu Premium. Users can also save money with a yearly subscription.

Disney+ subscribers are also eligible for a Hulu deal. Users can get a bundle where they can get Disney+, Hulu Basic and ESPN+ for $12.99 a month.

The Hulu synopsis for the series reads: "Based on Sally Rooney's New York Times best-selling novel, Normal People tracks the tender but complicated relationship of Marianne (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Connell (Paul Mescal) from the end of their school days in a small town in the west of Ireland to their undergraduate years at Trinity College.

"At school, he's well-liked and popular, while she's lonely, proud, and intimidating. But when Connell comes to pick up his mother from her cleaning job at Marianne's house, a strange and indelible connection grows between the two teenagersone they are determined to conceal.

"A year later, they're both studying in Dublin and Marianne has found her feet in a new social world but Connell hangs at the sidelines, shy and uncertain."

Director Abrahamson, who helmed the first six episodes of the series, told the Financial Times: "It's about a generation that I think we don't do justice to very often. We either make it cute, or we pathologize itEuphoria does that a bit, where it's all about drugs and nihilism.

"I think that show is brilliant, but it's a well-worn road. Somebody like Sally, who is so close to that generation and treats it really seriously, I found that really great."

Normal People is released on Wednesday, April 29 on Hulu.

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'Normal People' Streaming: How to Watch the Series Online - Newsweek

Ricky Gervais interview: They think that every joke is a window to the comedians soul – The Independent

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Ricky Gervais generally has reliable comic timing. He helped usher in a renaissance of documentary-style cringe comedy as a creator and star ofThe Office.And he has successfully positioned himself against the well-heeled Hollywood crowd that occasionally invites Gervais to mock them to their faces as host of the Golden Globes. (In his routine in January, Gervais roasted his celebrity peers for their displays of social consciousness while they worked for corporations like Amazon, Apple a company that runs sweatshops in China and Disney. If Isisstarted a streaming service, youd call your agent, wouldnt you? he said.)

But will the current cultural moment be as receptive to season two of Gervaiss dark comedy series After Life, whichNetflix released last Friday?

On this show, which Gervaiswrites and directs, he plays the lead role of Tony Johnson, a widower still mourning his wife, Lisa (Kerry Godliman), who died of breast cancer. In his grief, Tony resolves to become the person hes always wanted to be self-assertive, impolitic and largely resistant to the efforts of friends who hope to steer him onto more positive paths.

Sharing the full story, not just the headlines

After Lifeis suffused with an existentialism that could make it either an ideal tonic right now or too uncomfortably real and Gervais knows that its tone is tricky even under normal circumstances. As he said in a recent video chat from his home in north London: The big worry for me was, could people go from laughing about something ridiculous to crying about something very real? I think the answer is yes.

How is your quarantine going?

Were in one of the better places called the Vale of Health. I think thats a good omen. Were on lockdown, but youre allowed to exercise every day. Ive turned into that guy when I see people having picnics and stuff like that, I want to call the police: Theres some neer-do-wells having fun and games!

Gervais created and starred in the hugely successful The Office (Alamy)

Are things really all that different for you?

Apart from the gigs that were postponed, my life hasnt changed much. I didnt go out a lot, and theres always enough booze in the house for a nuclear winter. You wont hear me complain. Not when, every day, I see some millionaire celebrity going, Im sad that Im not on telly tonight. Or, I had a swim in the pool, that made me feel a little bit better. [Begins to sing] Imagine theres no heaven

Your comedy is often critical of fame and the people who covet it. Do you think that the pandemic has accelerated our distaste for celebrity culture?

Ive got nothing against anyone being a celebrity or being famous. I think that people are just a bit tired of being lectured to. Now celebrities think: The general public needs to see my face. They cant get to the cinema I need to do something. And its when you look into their eyes, you know that, even if theyre doing something good, theyre sort of thinking, I could weep at what a good person I am. Oh dear.

But when you perform a stand-up routine like the one you did at this years Golden Globes, dont you have to look over your shoulder when the night is over?

No, the world hasnt changed. No one looks at me differently. And Ive got nothing against those people, really. I think thats the mistake people make: they think that every joke is a window to the comedians soul because I wrote it and performed it under my own name, that thats really me. And thats just not true. Ill flip a joke halfway through and change my stance to make the joke better. Ill pretend to be right wing, left wing, whatever wing, no wing. Ive got to go after the richest people in the room, and NBC and the Hollywood Foreign Press [Association, which organises the Golden Globes]. Ive got to be a court jester, but a court jesters got to make sure that he doesnt get executed as well. Ive got to make all the peasants laugh at the king, but the kings sort of got to like it. [Laughs]

A lot of political conservatives became fans of yours after that performance because they felt youd finally stuck it to the Hollywood elite. Do you think any were driven away after they learned you didnt share their viewpoints on other issues?

I didnt notice that on Twitter until a couple of disgruntled liberal elites suddenly said, Oh, Gervais is alt-right now. And I went, what? Whats right-wing about taking the mickey out of the richest, most powerful corporations on the planet? But Ive had this before. People that followed me, if they were far right, theyre probably not atheists like me. They probably dont like some of the language that I use. They probably dont agree with my anti-trophy hunting stance. In general, I think most normal people follow a person for a particular reason or two. If the tweets I hate outnumber the ones I like, Ill unfollow him. No one has to be perfect to have friends. They just have to be, on balance, OK.

The dog, literally and metaphorically, saves Tonys life, over and over again (Natalie Seery/Netflix)

The themes of death and how we deal with loss are pervasive in After Life.Does that make it any more attuned to the current moment? Or does that make it harder to watch?

I think we second-guess people too much. We worry about what the people at home can take. Real lifes worse. They can take all of this. It stuns me that people still think, Oh, you shouldnt joke about that. Were reading about it in the paper why cant we joke about it? With other shows of mine, people come up to me on the street, and they usually say, I love the show.But with this one and this was before coronavirus they come up to me and say, I just want to say, I lost my sister three weeks ago. Or, I lost my husband. No one said, Oh, I had to turn it off because it was too upsetting, or, It reminded me of something bad. You suddenly realise, of course everyones grieving. And the older you get, the more youve got to grieve.

Theres a scene in one of the new episodes when Tony tells another character: Everythings bad for you. Were all dying. Being healthy is just dying more slowly.Do you think about moments like that one differently now?

I think it would be different if I did a show that was specifically about coronavirus[wearily] which there are going to be hundreds. And novels. And weird, fake reality shows. But in the abstract, its a joke about death, and people are dying all the time. People arent going, No one was dying until this year that joke didnt age well. Tonys acting nihilistically. Hes reminding people that hes not over it. He still wants to punish the world. Theres a narcissism to his grieving, in a way. And then he confronts people that are worse off than him and make him feel slightly spoiled. We all go through that.

What gets us out of our nihilism and gets us over attitudes like that?

One of the ideas in After Lifeis about how the mundane saves us. We need those little things. The fact that the dog, literally and metaphorically, saves Tonys life, over and over again. I say to the dog, If you could open a can, Id be dead now. Death is the last taboo. Its imminent. Its going to happen. We just dont want it to be now, whenever it is. But we can still joke about it. I dont know if that makes the show any more or less poignant or entertaining than any other time. But people do all the things theyre supposed to now.They stay in. They wash their hands. They phone their family. And then, I think, they want to watch Tiger King.You know? No ones thinking about coronavirus when theyre watching. And life goes on. Lifes got to go on. Life goes on.

'After Life' is available on Netflix

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Ricky Gervais interview: They think that every joke is a window to the comedians soul - The Independent

What do you watch when you’re in need of a big ol’ laugh? – Fashion Journal

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Laugh it up, baby.

Welcome to Ask the FJ Community. Weve tapped our brilliant community of creatives writers, artists, designers, stylists, makeup artists, photographers and asked them some of the questions that have been bouncing around our heads during isolation. For the third instalment, we asked: What do you watch when youre in need of a big ol laugh?. We think we could all do with some lols during this time, and we hope you enjoy their answers as much as we do.

Genevieve Phelan, writer and FJ contributor

Nothing cures nihilism like Kath and Kim. Theyre also very good at oi-solation. Or go international with some virtual partying courtesy of Geordie Shore reruns from the very beginning. Wye aye.

Kaitlyn Bosnjak, photographer and FJ contributor

SNL (particularly Diner Lobster, or Close Encounter).

Rob Povey, makeup artist and FJ contributor

This will really show my age (and lack-of coolness), but I think Ive watched all eleven seasons of Frasier more than eleven times over. It just blends broad and highbrow humour so perfectly and I find myself discovering new one-liners every time I rewatch it.

Hannah Cole, writer and FJ contributor

Seinfeld is on current rotation its easy, mindless and I love Elaines socks and shoe combos. Im banking on a Parks & Recreation binge soon too.

Olivia Hart, writer and FJ contributor

Sitcoms! I get hectically into rewatching all the sitcoms available. So far Ive binged Friends, Seinfeld, The IT Crowd and How I Met Your Mother.

Sabina McKenna, writer, artist, curator and FJ contributor

I have just started using TikTok not to make content, just for the funny people! Ghost Honey is my favourite so far, but be warned its very silly.

Indah Dwyer, writer, model and FJ contributor

Ugh, Kath and Kim always! And also my camera roll.

Maggie Zhou, FJ intern

Stupid TikTok videos Or even better, watching back on videos of me trying to learn TikTok dances. Theyre saved in my drafts and Im bringing them to the grave with me.

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What do you watch when you're in need of a big ol' laugh? - Fashion Journal

I thought I was being safe. Then I found out I had been exposed to coronavirus. – Grist

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the illusion of certainty

This essay was first published in our semi-weekly newsletter, Climate in the Time of Coronavirus, which you can subscribe to here.

A few weeks ago, I got sick. My whole body ached so persistently that the only place I could really be comfortable was in a bath, which isnt really sustainable over long periods of time unless youre one of those merpeople. My lymph nodes protruded so far out of my neck that the skin around my jaw felt tight and painful. I was so tired I ended up sleeping between 12 and 18 hours a day.

While I was writhing around between my couch and my bed, the only other human Id seen up close in a month told me that hed been diagnosed with COVID-19. So the coronavirus had in all likelihood found me!

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I thought I had protected myself reasonably well mask on, limited trips to the grocery store, a few walks on quiet streets, and seeing exactly one(!) other person. That felt safe enough; we both lived alone, worked from home, didnt see anyone else barring basic errands. I thought I was being smart and cautious, taking what felt like a small, garden-variety risk to sustain just enough human interaction to keep me reasonably sane. But it turns out theres no place you can be truly safe from coronavirus.

As Grists advice columnist, a substantial percentage of the questions I receive are from readers seeking certainty about the threat of climate change. What will happen? When will it happen? Where will it happen? And what can I do to ensure that it will not happen to me? It is a completely reasonable human response to a huge, difficult-to-comprehend threat. You want to know how to protect yourself; what the risk to you is.

I dont attempt to answer any of those queries. There is no way to do so; these readers are seeking an impossible assurance. Climate change and coronavirus are inescapable for the same reason: They will each transform society, wholly and against our will, and humans can do our very best to prepare and adapt. But even with the very best preparation and adaptation, the utmost cautiousness, you have no idea what or when or where you will experience its impacts.

I think every generation believes they are living through unprecedented change, and I dont think mine is particularly special. This change, the pandemic, is certainly really sudden and strange. The warming climate isnt sudden at all, and yet its no less threatening. I will continue to do my best to prepare for and adapt to and mitigate, where I can, the impacts of climate change. I thought I had done what I reasonably could to mitigate at least for myself the risks of contracting coronavirus, and that went out the window so spectacularly I have to laugh.

All things considered, I was fortunate. After three days of feeling wretched, I feel completely fine now. My friends experience was much worse. Our illnesses started on the same day, but his symptoms were more severe and lasted much longer. I waited fretfully for his symptoms to subside, prickly with the guilt that I had had it so much easier.

Im aware we were both lucky to recover at all.

I might never be 100 percent certain that I ever actually had It, as I was denied a test (my doctor said Im young, healthy, and my treatment would have been the same regardless) and antibody tests remain elusive. But why does it matter to me now? The promise of immunity, of course, of some form of protection; that its over, I faced the threat, it was fine, and now I no longer have to worry. The badge of having survived COVID unscathed is perhaps the most coveted security blanket of the moment.

And yet, I am under no illusion that I have any real power over whats coming, with regard to climate change. and I dont really think that was ever the goal. Who has ever been able to control the future, anyway? But please do not misunderstand that to be an expression of nihilism or defeat. I have not given up, to the contrary; I am ready for a future that I know I cannot imagine.

The way that humanity tackles this pandemic parallels how it might fight climate change. Sign up for our semi-weekly newsletter,Climate in the Time of Coronavirus.

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I thought I was being safe. Then I found out I had been exposed to coronavirus. - Grist

Is It OK to Laugh During Dark Times? – The New York Times

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In Its OK to Find Humor in Some of This, Alex Williams writes:

Unreasonably dark joke, read a coronavirus meme circulating on social media in recent weeks. Shouldnt we wait until after the pandemic to fill out the census?

The joke is dark, yes. But is it any darker than countless other coronavirus memes out there?

Even more pointed is a spoof movie poster for Weekend at Bernies, the 1989 film comedy about two buddies toting around a dead man on their partying adventures, called Weekend at Boris. It cast as the corpse Boris Johnson, the British prime minister, who at that point was still in intensive care for Covid-19, as the corpse.

Since the pandemic took hold, the internet has been awash with coronavirus-centric joke memes, Twitter wisecracks and self-produced comedy sketches shot with smartphones in shelter-in-place kitchens and living rooms. And thats not counting whats happening in private conversations during quarantine.

Laughing while others die may seem inappropriate, even tasteless, like concentration camp prisoners finding humor during the Holocaust. But in fact many did, according to a 2017 documentary, The Last Laugh.

Throughout history, humor has played a role in the darkest times, as a psychological salve and shared release. Large swaths of the population are living in isolation, instructed to eye with suspicion any stranger who wanders within six feet. And coronavirus jokes have become a form of contagion themselves, providing a remaining thread to the outside world for the isolated and perhaps to sanity itself.

Mr. Williams discusses a private Facebook group moderated by Lori Day, an educational psychologist and consultant in Newburyport, Mass., devoted to pandemic-themed videos and memes:

Its the kind of edgy humor people dont feel comfortable putting on their own Facebook wall, for the risk of having their parents say, How could you? Ms. Day, 56, said.

Tasteless or not, virus jokes provide her a fleeting distraction, and a needed smile, as the pandemic has put her life and consulting business on hold. Its very similar to the feeling I get looking at baby animals online, which is another thing I dose myself liberally with these days, Ms. Day said.

The same goes for other members of the group. Some members are ill with Covid-19. Theyre thanking me from their beds, she said. Theyre thanking me from their hospital rooms.

Humor can divide as well as unite generations, made plain on the social media each favors. Baby boomers and Gen-Xers seem to be gravitating toward were-all-in-this-together observational humor in the memes they post to Facebook (Anyone else starting to get a tan from the light in your refrigerator?), or gags that focus on specific villains (foot-dragging political leaders, say) and implicit solutions (throw the bums out!). Calm down, everyone, reads one such meme. A six-time bankrupted reality TV star is handling the situation.

As The Cut recently noted, the outpouring of coronavirus content among Generation Z types on TikTok runs the gamut: disgust, resignation, frustration, despair and hope. One could also add: barely concealed nihilism, perhaps a response to the discovery that members of that generation are coming of age in a world that suddenly seems even more messed up than already thought.

In one TikTok video, by a 20-year-old in California named Andreas, his mother finds him still in bed at 4 p.m. as he sings, Oh hi, thanks for checking in, Im still a piece of garbage.

Students, read the entire article, then tell us:

Is it OK to joke during dark times? When is it inappropriate, and when is it not? Should any topics be off limits in humor and comedy?

Do you ever laugh at coronavirus-related jokes or memes? Did you find any of the examples in the article funny? Were any inappropriate or offensive to you? Are you drawn to dark humor? If yes, why?

What role do laughter and humor play in your life? Mr. Williams writes that coronavirus jokes provide a remaining thread to the outside world for the isolated and perhaps to sanity itself. Do you agree? Is humor a coping mechanism for you?

What can we learn about the role of humor during the Black Plague, the Holocaust and Sept. 11? What does laughter tell us about what it is to be human?

What makes you laugh these days? Tell us your go-to sources for comedy. What are your favorite comedic movies, television shows and websites? Do you have a favorite comedian?

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Is It OK to Laugh During Dark Times? - The New York Times

On the Darknet Side: The Role of Crypto as a Means of Exchange – Cointelegraph

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Due to the transition of many people around the world into a stay at home mode, where the only viable way of communicating and receiving something is through the global network, some new information regarding darknet activity has begun to surface.

In the time of COVID-19, there has been an increase in both the activity of cyber fraudsters using the capabilities of cryptocurrencies and general illegal activity on the World Wide Web.

Of course, not all darknet operators are using the epidemic for malicious advantage, and comply with the code of honor. Nonetheless, Cointelegraph decided to figure out how Bitcoin is associated with the darknet, whether the global pandemic affects illegal crypto operations, and how authorities around the world are coping.

Digital assets are used in many areas, including acting as a means of payment on the darknet by those seeking maximum anonymity while performing operations deemed questionable by regulators.

Cryptocurrencies are especially popular with sellers of items like illegal drugs, weapons and other restricted goods. Darknet users provide impetus to markets in the network by using special software such as the TOR browser to circumvent inaccessibility to such goods through the use of crypto, with its pseudo-anonymity for transactions. These kinds of transactions and the concept of decentralization itself has put limitations on the control of global intelligence agencies.

Sellers of illegal goods latched on to the decentralized principle of cryptocurrencies early on, using them long before Bitcoin (BTC) became a household name. A striking case is the online market Silk Road, launched as part of the darknet. It relied heavily on Bitcoin while the token was still a mystery to many back in 2011.

On the darknet, all connections are established between trusted nodes through special protocols and ports. All IP addresses are hidden, so its not possible to enter the darknet through familiar browsers such as Chrome, Firefox or Safari. The entire network operates on the principle of decentralization and is not controlled by any authority. Due to this, users receive some degree of security, since many sites in the darknet use TOR encryption protocols, which hide the identities of users and replace their IP addresses.

There are many sites selling illicit goods on the darknet, among which AlphaBay and Oasis stand out. They have arguably caused the price of privacy-oriented cryptocurrency Monero (XMR) to skyrocket in the past after adding the token as a payment option. Anonymous token transactions have allowed the dark network to progress, but this has, in turn, developed a connection between cryptocurrencies and illegal activity in the minds of many people today.

Aleksadnr Lazarenko, the head of the R&D department at Group-IB one of the biggest providers of solutions aimed at detecting and preventing cyber attacks shared his opinion with Cointelegraph on why cryptocurrencies are popular among criminals:

Despite the fact that transactions carried out in Bitcoin are noted for their transparency, they still grant cybercriminals with considerable anonymity. Since cryptocurrencies are normally decentralized and do not belong to some particular national jurisdiction, operations with their use are not that closely monitored by monetary authorities. Another obvious reason that explains cybercriminals passion for cryptocurrencies, is no need to disclose valid personal information for their holders.

There is still an opinion that BTC and other cryptocurrencies are used only for criminal purposes. However, offshore banking systems are more suitable for financing terrorist activities and money laundering than an anonymous decentralized network through which payments pass.

Undoubtedly, BTC helped to run the darknet economy of Silk Road, but marketplaces on the darknet have begun to close up shop over the last few years and for good reason. According to Chainalysis experts, darknet deals flourished in 2019, especially thanks to cryptocurrencies. However, these online assets are subject to sharp fluctuations in price, which affects their use on the darknet.

Carles Lopez-Penalver, cybercrime analyst at Chainalysis, told Cointelegraph that sellers reduced their activity during periods of decline in the BTC price, fearing that the funds they accept may not be worth anything the next day:

While we think darknet markets are resilient and here to stay, it was interesting to observe that darknet market revenue fell much more than we expected following Bitcoins recent major price drop associated with COVID-19.

Nevertheless, experts agree that no matter what the price rate of a particular cryptocurrency is, they will still be popular on the darknet. Lazarenko opined:

Cryptocurrency is de facto the main currency of the underground, therefore, it will definitely be popular. The extent of its popularity and use will directly depend on the state of the underground market if it grows, there are likely to be more transactions in cryptocurrencies. When it comes to the main payers on this market, there are few cryptocurrencies that can compare to Bitcoin in their popularity, perhaps, well see the growth of Ethereum 2.0, once it sees the world, but it is still likely to be behind Bitcoin.

Despite the decline in cryptocurrency operations on the darknet, criminal activity seems to be moving to distributed platforms and encrypted applications, and this is where Telegram Open Network may come in.

Many think that TON will be a new darknet, and here is why. The usual websites that users see when opening a link in a browser work on the basis of the Transmission Control Protocol, Internet Protocol and Hypertext Transfer Protocol. TCP is responsible for the reliable transfer of the byte stream from one computer to another, IP is for routing the dataset or determination of all data transfer points, and HTTP works one level higher, allowing for information to be encoded in the form of documents.

Overlay networks such as TOR or a VPN can be created based on these protocols. Most of them are designed to eliminate privacy issues like low security and lack of anonymity. The Telegram team has proposed another one TON Sites. Technically, the sites created on the TON network will look like regular web pages, but the difference is that content will not be stored on any server but rather distributed across network nodes and users. Instead of IP addresses on this network, there will be an Abstract Datagram Network Layer protocol providing encryption by default, while access to regular HTTP sites and vice versa will be possible through gateways.

Not surprisingly, some analysts see TON sites as an element of a technologically advanced darknet platform, the core of which is the Gram cryptocurrency. Russian law enforcement authorities have thus voiced concerns about the platform, publishing a notice in March that called on contractors to investigate and block anonymous networks, including both TOR and TON as targets.

Moreover, darknet platforms like TOR or potentially TON dont solely utilize cryptocurrencies, but also blockchain technology as a whole. There are already a few projects that are actively using the blockchain in order to access their resources. Experts at Chainalysis confirmed:

There are some markets and fraud shops that have implemented blockchain technology beyond a mode of currency. Multiple carding shops and some small drug shops operate through Blockchain DNS, which uses Namecoin and Emercoin to protect marketplaces against ISP DNS blocking to make sure their customers are able to access their marketplace.

Regulators around the world are increasingly concerned about the role of cryptocurrencies in money laundering and the financing of various illegal activities. Since the beginning of 2020, many governments have begun to actively combat this situation, and have introduced various legal measures designed to strengthen their protection against financial cybercrime.

According to Chainalysis, the number of darknet users directly relates to how strict government policies are toward the internet. Therefore, the darknet is mainly used in the United States, Russia and some European countries such as Germany, the Netherlands and France.

Echoing moves by Russia, where the central bank periodically introduces strict recommendations on how financial institutions should detect suspicious transactions including digital currency exchange, the U.S. law enforcement and regulatory agencies established a cryptocurrency intelligence program in March that proposed new rules and tax reporting requirements to help pave the way for the widespread adoption of blockchain technology.

At the end of March, the International Criminal Police Organization announced a partnership with South Korean data intelligence startup S2W Lab to analyze darknet activity, including cryptocurrency transactions. However, it is not yet clear how effective their measures will be, as users on the dark side of the net tend to find new ways of continuing their illegal activities one way or another.

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On the Darknet Side: The Role of Crypto as a Means of Exchange - Cointelegraph

New bill threatens journalists ability to protect sources – TechCrunch

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Runa Sandvik works on digital security for journalists, founded upon her experiences working at The New York Times, the Freedom of the Press Foundation and The Tor Project.

Online child exploitation is a horrific crime that requires an effective response. A draft bill, first proposed by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) in January, intends to provide exactly that. However, technology experts warn the bill not only fails to meet the challenge, it creates new problems of its own. My job is to enable journalists to do their work securely to communicate with others, research sensitive stories and publish hard-hitting news. This bill introduces significant harm to journalists ability to protect their sources.

Under the Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies (or EARN IT) Act, a government commission would define best practices for how technology companies should combat this type of material. On the surface, EARN IT proposes an impactful approach. A New York Times investigation in September found that many tech companies failed to adequately police sexual abuse imagery on their platforms. The investigation highlighted features, offered by these companies, that provide digital hiding places for perpetrators.

In reality, the criticized features are exactly the same ones that protect our privacy online. They help us read The Washington Post in private and ensure we only see authentic content created by the journalists. They allow us to communicate with each other. They empower us to express ourselves. And they enable us to connect with journalists so the truth can make the page. This raises the question of whether the bill will primarily protect children or primarily undermine free speech online.

It should be pointed out that EARN IT does not try to ban the use of these features. In fact, the bill does not specifically mention them at all. But if we look at how companies would apply the best practices, it becomes clear that the government is intending to make these features difficult to provide, that the government is looking to discourage companies from offering and increasing the use of these features. By accepting EARN IT, we will give up our ability and our childrens future abilities to enjoy online, social, connected and private lives.

Four of the best practices relate to requiring companies to have the ability to identify child sexual abuse material. Unfortunately, its not possible to identify this material without also having the ability to identify any and all other types of material like a journalist communicating with a source, an activist sharing a controversial opinion or a doctor trying to raise the alarm about the coronavirus. Nothing prevents the government from later expanding the bill to cover other illegal acts, such as violence or drugs. And what happens when foreign governments want to have a say in what is legal and what is not?

Our digital life is protected by the same features that allow some bad people to do bad things online. They protect us as we visit The Washington Post website, use the Signal app to contact one of its journalists or use the Tor Browser to submit information to their anonymous tip line. These features all enable privacy, a core component of the journalistic process. They enable journalists to pursue and tell the truth, without fear or favor. And not just in the U.S., but globally. We should empower and enable this work, not sabotage it by removing crucial capabilities, even in the name of child protection.

The same New York Times investigation found that law enforcement agencies devoted to fighting online child exploitation were left understaffed and underfunded, even as they were asked to handle far larger caseloads. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), established by Congress in 1984 to reduce child sexual exploitation and prevent child victimization, was ill equipped for the expanding demands. Its worth asking, then, why EARN IT does not instead empower these agencies with additional resources to solve crimes.

We must consider the possibility that this bill fails to achieve its stated goal. That it will not protect children online, and will introduce harm to their digital presence and ability to speak freely. Everyone deserves good security, and its on us to find ways to prevent harm without compromising on our digital rights. To force companies to weaken our protection to give law enforcement greater insight would be the equivalent of forcing people to live without locks and curtains in their homes. Are we willing to go that far?

Thats not to say we have to accept no solution. But it cant be this one.

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New bill threatens journalists ability to protect sources - TechCrunch

Anger as Italy slowly emerges from long Covid-19 lockdown – The Guardian

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It has endured Europes longest lockdown, but when Italy enters its much-anticipated phase two tomorrow, few will find reason to celebrate.

Last week, after Italys prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, outlined plans to slowly ease the countrys quarantine, millions of people were overcome with feelings of anger and disappointment as their hopes were dashed by what many described as a false reopening.

Italians will now be able to travel within regions to visit relatives, provided they wear masks, but schools, hairdressers, gyms and many other commercial activities will stay closed; cafes and restaurants will offer takeaways only; and all travel between regions will be banned except for work, health or emergency situations. Restrictions on funerals have been relaxed, with a maximum of 15 mourners allowed to attend, but masses and weddings will have to wait.

For this reason, last Friday, Pietro Demita, a stylist in Lecce whose company is a leading wedding dress designer, set fire to his entire collection in protest against the lockdown, which has brought the wedding industry to near-collapse.

I set my creations alight, the fruits of my talent and my artistry, to send a strong message, Demita told the Observer. Because, even if I hadnt, the economic and political decisions imposed during the coronavirus crisis would have sent them up in smoke anyway.

Expectations had been high for a quick return to normality, especially in the south, where there have been fewer Covid-19 cases than in the north. The mood is sombre, not only because the virus, despite its slackening, continues to claim lives, but also because people are on edge after having been forced to stay at home for more than 50 days.

It seems theyre having a good laugh at our expense, says Costantino Montalbano, 31, a hair stylist in Palermo. Its as if theyre telling us to go out, but to stay at home. All this time locked up has affected our mental health, but its also hit us hard in the wallet. If we dont return to normality soon, coronavirus will have killed not only thousands of people, but the entire economy as well.

Like bars and restaurants, hairdressers should fully reopen on 1 June; museums and retailers from 18 May. Factories already geared towards exports and public construction projects resumed activity last Monday, while the majority of Italys industry will restart tomorrow. However, as the country plunges into recession, many businessmen and shopkeepers are complaining about the lack of financial support.

With summer around the corner, experts predict that the impact of Covid-19 on tourism, one of the countrys most important sectors, will be devastating. According to Italys National Confederation for Artisans and Small- and Medium-Sized Businesses (CNA), there will be 25 million fewer foreign tourists between July and September. The risk is that thousands of hotels, resorts and B&Bs will be forced to close their doors for the foreseeable future.

Bars and restaurants are the lifeblood of the economy of so many Italian cities and towns, but thousands have come together in protest against reopening, feeling that the restrictions of post-lockdown social distancing could spell the end for many.

As part of a series of symbolic gestures organised by a movement called Movimento Imprese Ospitalit (MIO), the owners of 75,000 bars and restaurants switched on the lights of their premises to mark the last day of business last Tuesday night before handing over the keys to their respective mayors the following morning. On Friday night, they switched off the lights in their homes for an hour.

Paolo Bianchini, a restaurant owner in Viterbo, Lazio, and spokesperson for MIO, said the peaceful protest was to show how much the hospitality sector was struggling. We only want to open when we know well be able to work efficiently, he said. For example, my restaurant has 100 covers with social distancing this will be reduced to 30. If I do so little business, my restaurant will close, as I wont be able to cover my costs. Paradoxically, we will fail if we open. We need liquidity how is it that serious countries like England are managing to help business owners, but Italy isnt lending a hand?

During the debate in the Senate on Thursday, the opposition parties grilled Conte. Ex-prime minister Matteo Renzi, who has called for less restraint in the reopening, remarked, The people in Bergamo and Brescia who are gone, those who died of the virus, if they could speak, theyd tell us to relaunch the country for them, in their honour.

Renzis controversial statement was harshly criticised by doctors who warned that the spread of the disease, which, as of Thursday, had killed almost 30,000 people in the country and infected more than 205,000, was not over and that a misstep could take the entire country back to mid-March coronavirus levels.

We risk a new wave of infections and outbreaks if were not careful, said Tullio Prestileo, an infectious diseases specialist at Palermos Benefratelli Hospital. If we dont realise this, we could easily find ourselves back where we started. In that case, we may not have the strength to get back up again.

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Anger as Italy slowly emerges from long Covid-19 lockdown - The Guardian

Putting the economy back together again: What the future holds for Americans – CNBC

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A stylist wearing a protective mask cuts a customer's hair at a barbershop in Atlanta, Georgia, on Monday, April 27, 2020.

Dustin Chambers | Bloomberg via Getty Images

When the coronavirus crisis, or at least the worst of it, passes, the U.S. economy will still be big the biggest in the world, with any threat to be overtaken likely put at bay for many years.

But in other ways, things will feel smaller, much smaller in fact.

Growth rates will be lower. Big crowds will be few. Profit margins will be tighter.

Life will continue in many regards, but nothing will be the same, not for a long time. Much of what will become routine daily life will go against instinct. Society will reach for ways to continue churning forward. But that will come with a mind not to repeat the trauma wrought by seven weeks of social distancing that has separated this connected world in ways that few ever thought possible.

"There will be lower densities of people everywhere," said Nick Colas, a Wall Street veteran and co-founder of DataTrek Research. "That affects restaurants and bars and sports and everything."

The size of the world and the magnitude of the task will be important as policymakers try to piece together a broken economy. Layoffs have soared as thriving businesses have been shuttered indefinitely. Manufacturing is in a steep recession, retail and restaurants could take years to get back to normal, and governments will be hamstrung in trying to provide basic services.

As the world indeed is apt to feel smaller, it will require big ideas to get the U.S. moving again.

While formulating investment strategies and market analysis, Colas spends a lot of time studying sociological trends how behavioral patterns impact what we do with our money and how we view our lives. One day he might be writing about thought exercises using game theory, the next examining, as he did in a recent daily note, how long specifically it takes people to develop new habits 66 days, it seems, a number useful when considering the current lockdown.

Looking at the present social distancing situation, Colas figures on some key trends developing.

He expects a faster return to domestic travel than might be apparent. Restaurants and retail will grapple with a host of challenges, like how to arrange seating and what happens in clothing stores when customers want to try on something. Sports will continue, but with fans mostly watching from home.

All of it will come against a backdrop that will force people to keep a safe space from each other, something profoundly counterintuitive to a culture ingrained with hugs, handshakes and kisses.

"It's very hard, because it goes against the most fundamental human need of social contact. We're social animals," Colas said. "This current phase already has been hard on people, particularly in areas like New York where a lot of single people live alone. They're going to want to have contact. That's human nature, that's the human spirit. It's going to be hard to tamp that down without mental health disruptions."

Regions of the country are taking the first steps, albeit gingerly, back to normalization.

New York is reopening parts of the state, while Mississippi also has loosened restrictions. Idaho is transitioning into the first phase of relaxing its stay-at-home order. Arizona and Nevada have extended their directives to May 15 but relaxed some rules. You can now play golf in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, but most of the Keystone State remains closed. Some resorts around the country are taking reservations for June.

Reopened areas will serve as fishbowls for others looking to relax restrictions. More than that, they will provide a window into how quickly the $21.5 trillion U.S. economy can get back on its feet.

Gross domestic product contracted 4.8% in the first quarter of 2020, the worst decline since the Great Recession, and more than 30 million people have filed unemployment claims, making the progress toward normalization all the more important and urgent.

"The issue's going to be, can you get people feeling like the new normal feels like the old normal?" Colas said. "It should end up feeling a whole lot better, because some of your normal life is back. You can at least hang out with your friends in the backyard while maintaining social distance. But at least people are coming over again."

How that translates into economic activity, though, remains uncertain.

Economists have been pondering the shape of the recovery: Will it be a U? V? W? Check mark? Square root? Nike swoosh?

No one seems to know, though the immediate expectations are that after the first-quarter slip the second quarter will post a number worse than anything the U.S. has seen before. In fact, the GDP number may be so bad something on the order of a 20% collapse or even worse and the unemployment rate peak anything from 15% to 30% seems perfectly likely as to become meaningless.

What will matter more is the path forward.

Most economists expect a considerable rebound after the second quarter. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said he sees "a fairly large increase given the size of the fall," thought "it's unlikely it would be bring us quickly back to pre-crisis level. "

That's all theory, though. As a practical matter, the country just has to get moving again.

"The point estimate of GDP right now is not really that valuable," said Marin Gjaja, a partner with Boston Consulting Group, which is helping businesses come up with strategies for reopening and how to conduct business in an altered landscape.

"The variation by sector is enormous," he added. "You've already seen what this has done to airlines, cruise ships, amusement parks, concert venues, amusement parks, any place where there are large amounts of people involved. They're trying to figure out how they can come back, what they can do to change their business in order to survive."

Gjaja also sees a landscape dominated by smaller social gatherings.

At a business level, that means shopping and eating closer to home. That benefits small retailers and locally focused restaurants but still leaves into question community-based businesses like barber shops and movie theaters.

"We've never seen a recession impact that looked like this with this degree of volatility in terms of impact by sector and geography," Gjaja said. "The degree of variability is really unique. We're going to have to figure out a way to navigate through that."

Boston Consulting released a report called "COVID-19: Win the Fight, Win the Future" that outlines what businesses need to do.

Gjaja stressed that different locales will have different needs. New York won't be the same as Montana which won't be the same as Michigan. Certain general rules, though, will apply.

Among the contingencies businesses need to take into account before opening are safety for employees and customers, preparation for additional shutdowns, and health monitoring for workers once they do return, he said.

For the travel industry, such questions are paramount.

The World Travel and Tourism Council, which represents the industry perhaps most impacted by the coronavirus lockdown, is advocating for a global set of rules to follow in airports, hotels and on planes.

"These must provide the reassurance travelers and authorities need, using new technology, to offer hassle-free, pre-vaccine 'new normal' travel in the short term," saidGloria Guevara, the council's president and CEO.

Guevara sees the liftoff in travel starting with something approaching "staycations" with trips near home, but then being led by younger people who can take advantage of lower fares to move about the country.

According to the WTTC, some of the changes travelers are likely to see at hotels will include digital check-ins, hand sanitizers in plentiful supply and contactless payments rather than cash. Cruise line workers will wear gloves and the ships themselves will be cleaned more frequently. At airports, flyers will be tested when boarding and exiting, and likely will have to wear masks while on board.

Companies that fail to follow safety guidelines may have to pay a steep price just in terms of business lost.

A survey from Vital Vio, a New York-based biotech company, found that 51% of people won't do business with companies that don't show a commitment to being sanitary, while 76% said they will "hold brands accountable" that don't invest in cleaning up their spaces.

Respondents also said they are willing to pay more for cleaner and safer travel as well as activities like dining out and going to the gym.

All of the measures will combine to tell what kind of a recovery the U.S. has after what could well be the worst downturn in its history.

Analyzing companies on how safe they are to reopen based on potential to spread the disease, Goldman Sachs said the first sectors will be manufacturing, professional services and agriculture. The riskiest industries, and thus the last ones likely to come back online, are health care, education, retail, arts and entertainment and the accommodation and food service industries.

The firm's economists compared the U.S. open to what's happening in Sweden, where social distancing practices were widely used through the country did not shut down at a level comparable to the U.S., and China, because it is well ahead of the U.S. on the recovery timeline.

"We believe that the level of economic activity in the US will get better rather than worse over the remainder of the year for several reasons," Goldman's economists wrote. "Partial relaxation of shutdown orders will allow some businesses to reopen, people will learn to adapt in ways that minimize the economic costs of social distancing, wider antibody testing should allow those who are hopefully immune to resume normal activity, and improvements in treatment should reduce fear and raise willingness to be around others. In addition, fiscal stimulus should largely short-circuit the usual second-round effects of income losses."

They found, however, that China's pace is "too optimistic" for the U.S. while Sweden offers some hope though the country is still using fairly strict social distancing measures. In China, commerce has largely come back, but traffic studies show that consumers are driving to work during the week but not going out on the weekends, indicating that a significant level of fear remains.

How well the U.S. comes back ultimately will come down to a lot of factors, but feeling safe is likely to be paramount.

"It's not just what the numbers say. A lot is going to come down to how it feels, how much of people's normal lives they can reclaim," DataTrek's Colas said. "As we restore some normalcy, it will feel a lot better."

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Putting the economy back together again: What the future holds for Americans - CNBC

While at Home, Lets Color the World – The New York Times

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The Timess Travel section is tasked with bringing you the world. But with the world on pause, were inviting you to explore far-flung destinations through another, more interactive medium: coloring pages, inspired by some of our favorite travel photos.

Coloring books for children and adults alike have emerged with a new zeitgeist as an unbreakable, noiseless and screen-free indoor activity; AdAge named them one of the key creative trends to emerge from the pandemic.

They are also a potentially helpful antidote to the blahs.

Coloring books have been shown to reduce stress and anxiety while promoting relaxation as they help users remain present and focused, said Martha Dorn, the executive director of The Art Therapy Project, a nonprofit based in New York City. Repetitive strokes provide temporary relief from life stressors, and the focus required to color can keep negative emotions away.

Many hotels and other travel companies have jumped into the coloring-book game through downloadable, print-at-home pages: one effort to keep would-be guests engaged during a period of stay-at-home orders and border closures.

One&Onlys coloring books are inspired by its resorts in Australias Wolgan Valley (images include wombats, kangaroos) and in Los Cabos, Mexico (sea turtles, sharks). Xanterra Travel Collection, which operates Yellowstone National Park and several other parks in the United States, is transporting humpback whales and bighorn sheep to family rooms across the country.

The Leading Hotels of the World, a collection of independent luxury hotels and resorts, teamed with the Delaware-based artist Dallas Shaw to depict sketches of bucket-list stays like the Grand Hotel Fasano in northern Italy. And Elizabeth Sutton, an artist based in New York City, turned St. Barts, Aspen and other jet-setter destinations into a coloring book for Embark Beyond, a luxury travel agency.

Painting is always a way for me to escape, so I figured, why not offer the same to the world? said Ms Sutton. Its an escape through colorful and happy artworks to inspirational destinations around the globe.

Now its your turn to escape, by putting your creative spin on some of our best travel photography from Zadar, Croatia, to Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic. Download, print and share the results on Instagram, by tagging @nytimestravel to have your work featured.

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While at Home, Lets Color the World - The New York Times