Blockchain Veterans Create Blockcap, a Massive Bitcoin Mining Operation in North America – Business Wire

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LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Veterans of major crypto mining infrastructure firms, including one of the largest blockchain infrastructure companies in the United States, today announced the formation of a new mining entity, Blockcap Inc. (Blockcap), which is believed to be the largest independent cryptocurrency mining operator in North America.

Blockcap combines the assets of five pre-existing Bitcoin mining companies, taking advantage of economies of scale in purchasing equipment and managing energy risk in order to ultimately provide higher returns for its investors. Blockcap operates what is among the largest collections of hashing power in North America, including highly-valued public companies. Blockcaps current mining fleet includes close to 13,000 next generation Bitmain S19 mining rigs and 500 upgraded S17s, of which 8,442 are presently deployed and 1,426 in the process of being deployed. Present hashing power is approximately 800 Petahashes, with projections to reach close to 1 Exahash at full deployment. With the entire Bitcoin mining network operating approximately 132 Exahashes at present, Blockcaps operation could represent approximately 0.75% of the total hashing power.

Blockcap mined 425 Bitcoin (BTC) in Q3 2020. Publicly-traded mining company Riot Blockchain, Inc. (NASDAQ: RIOT) reported that it had mined 222 BTCs during the same period. Blockcaps recent gross earnings also exceeds that of other competitors including Hive Blockchain (OTCMKTS: HVBTF), Hut 8 Mining (OTCMKTS: HUTMF), and The Marathon Patent Group (NASDAQ: MARA). During this same period, Blockcap operated on a cash flow positive basis, and projects further BTC revenue growth in Q4.

From the team we have put together, to our state of the art ASICs, and our top notch infrastructure partners, we are proud about what we have achieved with Blockcap, said Peter Novak, President of Blockcap. Moreover, we have the resources and relationships necessary to continue to scale Blockcaps mining operations in a financially efficient manner to take advantage of the rapidly expanding market for digital currency.

In the coming months, Blockcap will look to expand its operations by adding more servers and acquiring other existing mining companies.

About BlockcapBlockcap, Inc. (the Company or Blockcap), was founded in 2020 by blockchain industry veterans who have successfully structured or co-founded other large technology companies. All mining equipment is currently hosted at data center facilities in the United States. The Company will exceed more than 1 Exahash of processing power within Q1 2021.

For more information, visit https://www.blockcapinc.com/.

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Blockchain Veterans Create Blockcap, a Massive Bitcoin Mining Operation in North America - Business Wire

WISeCoin, the Innovative Tokenized Service of WISeKey, Authenticates People, Products and Machines Using Blockchain and AI – GlobeNewswire

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WISeCoin, the Innovative Tokenized Service of WISeKey, Authenticates People, Products and Machines Using Blockchain and AI

WISeKey allows Connected Electric Cars to Pay with WISeCoin Cryptocurrencies at Autonomous Electric Charging Stations

ZUG, Switzerland December 21, 2020 WISeKey International Holding (WISeKey, SIX: WIHN, NASDAQ: WKEY), a leading cybersecurity IoT company, today announced that its WISeCoin IoT solution enables secure people-to-people, people-to-machines and machines-to-machines digital communications using blockchain and AI technologies.

WISeKey combines its blockchain technology, with extensive experience in digital identities and PKI, and expertise with secure microcontrollers, to create a tokenized service offering, the WISeCoin utility token. WISeCoin provides an innovative way to verify connected objects wanting to interact with one another. Through this unique service offering, WISeCoin AG, a Special Purpose vehicle created by WISeKey to build the infrastructure for secure intra-object interactions and transactions, aims at becoming the ubiquitous industry solution for facilitating secure IoT interactions.

The solutions provided by WISeCoin AG allows any person, object or machine to exchange information or value in a trusted manner while significantly reducing the risk of malicious cyber threats, frauds and hacks. WISeCoins are however not a means of payment, but a service offering. It is enabled through the token which is stored in a digital wallet and entitles the holder to the service offering of the WISeCoin. The token is indifferent to the wallet provider and can be incorporated into any ERC-20 compatible wallet.

The WISeCoin Validation Service uses AI provided by HIRO (via the certificates validation authority) to analyze the digital certificate of different actors and recognize and trust the identity of other parties they are interacting with. To do this, WISeCoin token gives its token holders (stored on digital wallets) access to the WISeKey Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), which provides the verification service in order to mitigate malicious actors and hackers from compromising interactions.

Objects send the validation authority the third partys public key and the digital certificate for validation. WISeKey checks that the corresponding public key holds a valid WISeCoin and if so, the identity is verified. In order to get the verification, the object making the request needs to hold at least 1 WISeCoin in its wallet, which is valid for 12 months or 100 requests. WISeCoin AG can, over time, adjust the number of tokens required to get verified, the longevity of the token and entitled verifications per token. The WISeCoin Validation Service is used for the verification of the validity of digital identity of the object in real time, thus ensuring secure use of digital identities for authentication of an object connected to the Internet and the activation of attributes such as digital signing, transactions, or sending WISeCoin Machine to Machine Cryptocurrency technology allows connected cars to pay with WISeCoin at the Electric Charging Stations, completing the transaction without using credit cards or any other traditional payment. Connected car owners can charge their cars and pay by transferring WISeCoins via NFC technology, from their car wallet to the electric charging station.

WISeKey is already providing the integration of WISeKey IoT and PKI in the manufacturers connected car solutions allowing them to authenticate legitimate car components and enabling owners to securely interact with the cars smart features. The fact that the electric car includes a WISeKey digital certificate stored on a WISeKey microchip acting as a secure hardware module it allows to send securely the WISeCoins required to execute the payment transaction between the electric car and the electric charger without any intermediaries or paying any transactional fees.

WISeCoin also includes an unforgeable digital identification for the ecar and echarger, securing both. Virtually all new cars on the market today include electronic technologies that could pose vulnerabilities to hacking or privacy intrusions if data security is not addressed. For example, smart cars without cybersecurity protection technology could allow hackers to gain remote access by exploiting vulnerabilities in their ecosystem of connected components and online services. As the number of cars connected to the Internet is growing quickly smart car manufactures are working to identify and reduce potential hacking vulnerabilities in their vehicles.

About WISeKey

WISeKey (NASDAQ: WKEY; SIX Swiss Exchange: WIHN, NASDAQ: WKEY) is a leading global cybersecurity company currently deploying large scale digital identity ecosystems for people and objects using Blockchain, AI and IoT respecting the Human as the Fulcrum of the Internet. WISeKey microprocessors secure the pervasive computing shaping todays Internet of Everything. WISeKey IoT has an install base of over 1.5 billion microchips in virtually all IoT sectors (connected cars, smart cities, drones, agricultural sensors, anti-counterfeiting, smart lighting, servers, computers, mobile phones, crypto tokens etc.). WISeKey is uniquely positioned to be at the edge of IoT as our semiconductors produce a huge amount of Big Data that, when analyzed with Artificial Intelligence (AI), can help industrial applications to predict the failure of their equipment before it happens.Our technology is Trusted by the OISTE/WISeKeys Swiss based cryptographic Root of Trust (RoT) provides secure authentication and identification, in both physical and virtual environments, for the Internet of Things, Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence. The WISeKey RoT serves as a common trust anchor to ensure the integrity of online transactions among objects and between objects and people. For more information, visitwww.wisekey.com.

Press and investor contacts:

Disclaimer:

This communication expressly or implicitly contains certain forward-looking statements concerning WISeKey International Holding Ltd and its business. Such statements involve certain known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which could cause the actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements of WISeKey International Holding Ltd to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. WISeKey International Holding Ltd is providing this communication as of this date and does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements contained herein as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities, and it does not constitute an offering prospectus within the meaning of the Swiss Financial Services Act (FinSA), the FinSAs predecessor legislation or advertising within the meaning of the FinSA, or within the meaning of any other securities regulation. Investors must rely on their own evaluation of WISeKey and its securities, including the merits and risks involved. Nothing contained herein is, or shall be relied on as, a promise or representation as to the future performance of WISeKey.

The securities offered will not be, and have not been, registered under the United States of America Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States of America, absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of said Act.

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What is enterprise blockchain? Everything you need to know – TechRadar

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If you say blockchain to the average person and ask them what immediately springs to mind, you might get references to Bitcoin, the dark net, fortunes made and lost, Facebooks Libra. Or, you might just get a blank stare.

So when you tell them that some of the worlds most conservative firms are using it or that the Italian banking system now depends on it, its perhaps no surprise when their heads start to spin.

It is indeed true that many of us in the enterprise blockchain world have been working for over five years now to apply techniques pioneered by Bitcoin to solve problems for todays businesses. But the technologies weve built and the applications were developing couldnt be further from that starting point, and we havent already done a good job of taking people on the journey that we ourselves have travelled.

About the author

Richard Brown is CTO at R3

Here, I will attempt to dispel the myths around enterprise blockchain that do it a disservice and explain what it actually is, and how it can bring benefits to the business world.

In attempting to separate blockchain and Bitcoin, it might seem counter-intuitive to begin by talking about how Bitcoin came about; but the truth is, you cant explain the history of blockchain without talking about Bitcoin.

When the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto released Bitcoin: a peer-to-peer electronic cash system'in 2009, the world was introduced to a manifesto which proposed an alternative form of currency thatwas a purely peer-to-peer version of electronic cash. This particular form of alternative cash, as launched by Nakamoto, is Bitcoin.

Importantly, Nakamoto didnt wake up one day wanting to build a blockchain. No. Instead, it turned out that the vision of a peer-to-peer electronic cash systemrequiredan architecture where there was no single party in overall control, where each participant could verify transaction histories for themselves, and where everybody needed a way to be sure thattheirview of the ledger was the same as everybody elses. The need for a blockchain architectureemergedfrom Bitcoins requirements.

But once the idea of a shared network where each participant verifies updates for themselves and where there is an agreed mechanism to ensure people are in agreement has been created, its natural to start to identify other problems it can also solve.

So its helpful to think of Bitcoin as simply one of a number of different applications of blockchain technology.

At its core, a blockchain is an architecture for a distributed network where each participant can verify that their view of any relevant transactions is identical to that of their counterparts. It allows you to build applications where each participant knows for sure that what you see is what I see (WYSIWIS). This is what Nakamoto needed in order to make Bitcoin work: a way for each participant to check things for themselves (no trusted third parties) and a way to ensure everybody reaches the same conclusion as to what actually happened in a case where two valid butcompetingactions happen at near the same time (double-spend prevention).

But, what does that actually mean, and how does it apply in an enterprise context?

The description I have above doesntsoundlike much. But when you know youre in sync with your trading partners and know you have agreedup frontwhat the rules are for any updates, it creates some extremely powerful possibilities.

For example, consider a borrower negotiating a loan from a complex syndicate of lenders. Lots of moving parts, lots of lawyers, lots of incompatible IT systems, and a set of contracts that might last for the next thirty years.

If you could be sure that all participants ultimately ended up with thesameview of the deal and shared the same business rules about how the contract would evolve in the coming years, you could massively reduce the amount of error, duplication, queries and reconciliations.

The WYSIWIS idea, when applied to networks of businesses trying to manage a complicated business process, is extremely alluring. And its the fundamental promise of a blockchain architecture.

But theres also a problem.

The traditional permissionless blockchain architectures in which all data is shared with all parties upon which the likes of Bitcoin were built, dont fit well in an enterprise environment. Worse, permissionless blockchains try hard toobscurethe identity of their participants, whereas businesses want to be completely sure who theyre signing contracts with!

So my firm and others found ourselves in a curious position at the starts of our journeys five years ago. The fundamental WYSIWIS promise of blockchains have the potential to transform entire industries but the specific implementations that support the public cryptocurrencies have designs that render them useless in an enterprise context!

This is why the blockchains being used to solve real problems for businesses today are almost entirely ground-up developments. Heavily inspired by the public platforms, but architecturally different in fundamental ways.

At its heart, enterprise blockchain is creating a way of allowing different systems to speak to one another in a way that ensures they can be sure they are in sync, so that businesses can do what they already do, but better.

One way to think of blockchain is as email for machines. Emails work very well to allow us to communicate and share information with people at all the firms we work with. But, blockchain lets us communicate and share information withsystemsin the firms with which we work. It serves as a common technology that can be used by all industries.

Bearing the same attributes that email does for inter-firm communication, enterprise blockchain brings together institutional-grade identity management; self-sovereign service advertisement; secure asynchronous messaging; shared business and flow logic; and integration capabilities. This is the essence of what you need to link applications in different firms together.

Moving from a world where everybody builds and runs their own distinct applications, which are endlessly out of sync, to one where everybody is using a shared market-level application, dramatically drives down deviations and errors. And thats what we mean when we talk about helping businesses do what they do better.

Herein lies the real opportunity for blockchain technology: to optimise not just entire firms, but entire markets. Most businesses are centralised but the markets that most businesses operate in are decentralised.

Enterprise blockchain is the enabler of this market-wide transformation, and enterprise blockchain platforms achieve some of their magic because they make seemingly trivial improvements to inter-firm business processes. In doing so, they dramatically drive up levels of automation and consensus.

The promise of enterprise blockchain has made incredible headway since it first came to mainstream consciousness some five years ago. We have seen uses cases in just about every industry imaginable and there are few sectors which could not benefit from its core features of trust and transparency.

As with any disruptive technology, understanding its premise and coming to terms with the idea of departing from the status quo will perhaps be the greatest challenge in unlocking enterprise blockchain at scale.

Blockchain when applied to solve business isnt about upending legacy systems, but connecting them and offering a new technology that can enable them to work together, better.

If the first fifty years of financial technology were focused on optimising the operations of individual firms, the future will undoubtedly be about optimising entire markets. This is the ultimate promise of enterprise blockchain technology for financial services and beyond.

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What is enterprise blockchain? Everything you need to know - TechRadar

FICO partners with Crystal Blockchain to combat cryptocurrency ML – The Paypers

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Analytics tools provider FICO has teamed up with Crystal Blockchain to help financial institutions combat money laundering involving cryptocurrencies.

Crystal Blockchain is an arm of the Bitfury Group that specialises in analysing digital currencies. As part of the agreement, at the end of each day, Crystal Blockchain will launch queries against its database of transactions that FICO will then share with organisations using its software to generate a risk score for transactions that might require additional verification. The aim of this process is to help financial institutions to identify suspicious activity involving cryptos that many of them now accept as a form of legitimate species.

The Crystal Blockchain platform can detect how many addresses are controlled by a particular user regardless of the entity involved. RTInsights reports that the company employs proprietary clustering techniques to identify a list of addresses generated by the same private key. Crystal Blockchain can track more than 20 types of entities, including exchanges, miners, gambling services, and darknet marketplaces to identify which users are associated with entity wallets.

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FICO partners with Crystal Blockchain to combat cryptocurrency ML - The Paypers

Grant Thornton Cyprus Becomes An Authority Masternode On VeChainThor Public Blockchain – PRNewswire

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Grant Thornton Cyprus,one of the largest business advisory firms in Cyprus and a member firm of Grant Thornton's sprawling business network present in over 140 countries, has formally announced it has become one of the 101 Authority Masternodes for the VeChainThor blockchain.

Earlier this year, Grant Thornton Cyprus and VeChain announced an official partnership with the joint intent of providing and expanding services related to the implementation of blockchain solutions for both local and foreign businesses.

Grant Thornton Cyprus's decision to come forward and announce itself as one of the VeChainThor Authority Masternodes, helping form part of the critical backbone of VeChainThor's architecture. Their joining of the program is a tacit recognition of both the legitimacy of the project, the strength of its network and its future, as well now actively continuing to the dynamic growth of VeChain's ecosystem as a whole.

Authority Masternodes are the critical backbone of the VeChainThor blockchain, ultimately they package, process and add blocks to the blockchain. Therefore, a careful and legally compliant selection is key to ensure high standards are maintained. In the VeChainThor consensus model, 101 Authority Masternode holders represented by enterprise users, blockchain development teams, business development partners, community contributors and academic research partners, are responsible for maintaining the validation of transactions in the entire blockchain ecosystem.

Sunny Lu, General Secretary of the VeChain Foundation, said, "To truly provide a mature and reliable blockchain platform and ecosystem, the VeChain Foundation has always recognized the significance of ecosystem partners. As the enabler in the blockchain ecosystem, the Foundation will power GT-Cyprus to take on more business opportunities and create valuable transactions on the VeChainThor blockchain."

Instead of developing blockchain solutions from scratch, as an Authority Masternode, Grant Thornton Cyprus can leverage VeChain'sblockchain protocol, technical features designed for business adoption including fee delegation, multi-task transactions, as well as the applications already built on VeChainThor. With the extra rewards to the Authority Masternode, Grant Thornton Cyprus will be able to lower the cost and eliminate the barriers of using blockchain technology to provide services to their customers.

"Becoming an Authority Masternode of VeChainThor will provide us with the ability to better cater the needs of our clients by launching proprietary products with the nascent blockchain technology," Mr. Alexis Nicolaou, Director of Distributed Ledger Technologies at Grant Thornton Cyprus stressed."We recognize the potential impact of blockchain technology and have paved the way for re-designing traditional industries like finance, supply chain management, renewable energy, e-commerce, and health & safety. Together with VeChain, we will explore business growth within several industries."

With Grant Thornton Cyprus, DNV GL and other renowned entities securing and validating transactions on the VeChainThor blockchain, enterprises, government agencies and community dApps that build on VeChainThor will be safely assured of the data immutability.

About Grant Thornton Cyprus

Grant Thornton Cyprus is one of the oldest accounting practices on the island. Founded in 1942, the firm became a member firm within Grant Thornton International in 1982. As a member firm within Grant Thornton International, we can combine the knowledge and experience of our local marketplace with the technologies, methodologies and specialist resources of a professional services organisation at the forefront of the global accounting profession. In September 2018, Grant Thornton (Cyprus) Limited grew its technology services with the launch of a new service line. The distributed ledger technology department (or blockchain) has been providing advisory services related to the implementation of DLT technologies for local and foreign businesses. For more information, please visit the official website: https://www.grantthornton.com.cy/services/distributed-ledger-technologies/

About VeChain Foundation

Launched in 2015, the VeChain Foundation has worked tirelessly to build the bridges between blockchain technology and the real world. VeChainThor's evolution continues to gather pace, transitioning from consortium network to best-in-class public blockchain platform using Proof of Authority consensus, boasting advanced technical features, governance structure and economic model.

As the ecosystem enabler, the Foundation's mission is to empower builders and innovators by developing tools that systematically eliminate adoption hurdles. Through the development of a suite of innovative tools such as Multi-task transaction, fee delegation, etc., VeChain has been able to substantially lower the barriers to entry for businesses and developers alike.

VeChainThor has already been applied across a diverse array of use cases including Walmart China, Bayer China, BMW Group, BYD Auto, PICC, H&M Group, Shanghai Gas, LVMH, D.I.G, ASI Group and more.

For more information about VeChain Authority Masternode, please visit: http://www.vechain.org

SOURCE VeChain

http://www.vechain.org

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DeNations, a Blockchain-Powered Metaverse, Launches the First INO – Initial Nations Offering | Press release – Bitcoin News

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PRESS RELEASE. Smatoos, which is already known in the blockchain industry as a token economy platform, has released the blockchain-based metaverse, DeNations. DeNations is a blockchain-based decentralized metaverse where anyone can manage nations, cities, and civilizations.

Metaverse is a combination of meta, which means beyond, and universe, which means a virtual space that interacts with the real world, where people can engage in economic, cultural, and social activities. Currently, in the blockchain industry, services that gamify a metaverse such as Decentraland and Roblox have already been released. Unlike other services, DeNations closely connected the real world with the metaverse and was designed to create profits while playing games.

DeNations users own the nation and can build cities and civilizations. Users can make money from taxes and token farming by developing nations, cities, and civilizations. Nations, cities, and civilizations are issued with Ethereum Non-Fungible Token (NFT) cards, proving their authenticity and ownership, even outside the game. NFT card holders develop nations, cities, and civilizations in DeNations and earn tokens and profits. Various national policies are determined by the Quadratic Voting proposed in the book by Eric Posner & Glen Weyl. DeNations develops nations, cities, and civilizations in the direction NFT card owners are aiming.

Currently, 5 NFT cards for France, Japan, India, Italy, and the Republic of Korea are already on sale at Opensea. Each Nation NFT card is issued in limited quantities and is sold at a 50% discount during the first week of release only.

Individuals in the real world cannot build and manage nations, cities, and civilizations, said Justin Jang, VP of DeNations. All of thats possible in DeNations, he said. The time has come for anyone to own, manage nations and cities, and as a result, make the profit they dream of in the metaverse.

DeNations aims to become a leader among blockchain-powered metaverses. It is expected that it will not only contribute to relevant ecosystems within the blockchain-based metaverse but also have a positive impact on the real world as a national management simulation game because users can experiment with and experience political and economic systems in DeNations.

Join DeNations (Decentralized Nations) at:Website: https://denations.com/Telegram: https://t.me/smatoosTwitter: https://twitter.com/SMATOOS_nowMedium: https://smatoos.medium.com/

This is a press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

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DeNations, a Blockchain-Powered Metaverse, Launches the First INO - Initial Nations Offering | Press release - Bitcoin News

VeChain Foundation Announces Partnership With the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) Blockchain Innovation Hub, Accelerating Blockchain…

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VeChain & RMIT Blockchain Innovation Hub: A World Class Collaboration

The RMIT Blockchain Innovation Hub is the world's first research center focused on the social science of blockchain and unites aworld-class team of economists and social science researchers. The body consists of many professional researchers who focus on the institutional possibilities and challenges on blockchain applications across fields such as compliance, economics and healthcare.

Working closely with the head of VeResearch, Chief Scientist Dr. Peter Zhou and VeChain's Senior Blockchain Researcher Dr. Zhijie Ren, the group intends to enhance current studies on blockchain governance models and accelerate the standardization of blockchain governance consensus.

Thecollaborative work will initially focus on developing a framework for evaluating and comparing governance systems of public blockchains. Specifically, the team will develop a theoretical understanding of the trade-offs and dimensions of decentralization for public blockchains. Based on the framework, the next step of the study will be to design governance models to better incentivize various stakeholders to participate in the governance process and ultimately use the research to promote mass adoption of blockchain.

Blockchain Governance Consensus:Key For Unlocking Enterprise Mass Adoption

As a long-term research goal, the joint research team will investigate governance models that are suitable for enterprises, with respect to the future regulatory environment and readiness of individual enterprises. This collaboration further cements VeChain's role as a harbinger of public blockchain standards and set forth the building for the mass adoption of blockchain among governments, enterprises and educational research facilities.

Dr. Peter Zhou stressed that, "Blockchain governance plays a vital role in growing a healthy and sustainable blockchain ecosystem. This research collaboration is going to answer some of the most important and fundamental questions about blockchain governance and will contribute to the long-term growth of VeChain's ecosystem and to achieving our goal of mass adoption."

Dr Chris Berg, Co-Director of the RMIT Blockchain Innovation Hub, commented that,"We are excited to be working with VeChain to explore and research governance models for public blockchains. With this important research we are hoping to build towards a general theory of blockchain governance contributing to VeChain's ecosystem and providing benefit to the broader blockchain community".

VeResearch continues on its mission to build a global grant program that engages in research with academic communities and contributes to framing high-level practical responses to industrial challenges. The program has worked closely with multiple high-profile academic bodies such as Michigan State University, University of Oxford, Dartmouth College, Tsinghua University, and South China Normal University across research areas encompassing blockchain consensus, token economics, cryptocurrency market predictions, smart contract security, blockchain-based ecosystem design and more.

About RMIT Blockchain Innovation Hub

RMIT University, based in Melbourne, Australia, is known for applied leading-edge research that engages with business and technology. The RMIT Blockchain Innovation Hub is the world's first research centre on the social science of blockchain

The RMIT Blockchain Innovation Hub is an interdisciplinary team of researchers in economics, political-economy, organizational theory, law, sociology, politics and communications. The Hub seeks to develop a deeper understanding of crypto-economics, business strategy and adaptation to blockchain technologies, maps the blockchain economy, and identifies the public policy challenges that will hold back or accelerate this economic revolution.

Website: http://www.rmitblockchain.io

About VeChain Foundation

Launched in 2015, the VeChain Foundation has worked tirelessly to build the bridges between blockchain technology and the real world. VeChainThor's evolution continues to gather pace, transitioning from consortium network to best-in-class public blockchain platform using Proof of Authority consensus, boasting advanced technical features, governance structure and economic model.

As the ecosystem enabler, VeChain's mission is to empower builders by developing tools that systematically eliminate adoption hurdles. Through the development of a suite of innovative tools such as Multi-task transaction and fee delegation.VeChain has been able to substantially lower the barriers to entry for businesses and developers alike.

VeChainThor has already been applied across a diverse array of use cases including Walmart China, Bayer China, BMW Group, BYD Auto, H&M Group, Shanghai Gas, LVMH, D.I.G, ASI Group and more.

Website:www.vechain.org

SOURCE VeChain

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SFOX Named to Blockchain 50 Ranking by CB Insights and Blockdata – PRNewswire

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PALO ALTO, Calif., Dec. 19, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --CB Insightshas named independent crypto prime broker SFOXas one of the world'stop 50 blockchain companies. The firm was given a place on CB Insights' first ever Blockchain 50, a list of the top private companies using blockchain technology to solve some of businesses' biggest problems. Winners were selected from a pool of 2,700 companies. SFOX provides its services in multiple categories including as an Exchange, Custody, Capital Markets, and Wallet services provider, and was honored in the Exchange category.

CB Insights CEO Anand Sanwalexplained in a statement, "Blockchain moved from possible to practical in 2020 as evidenced by the enterprise adoption we tracked. At the same time, the blockchain company ecosystem also became more crowded, creating noise and uncertainty for enterprises as they evaluate vendors and partners. The Blockchain 50, which we've created in conjunction with Blockdata, was born out of a desire to reduce that uncertainty and recognize the pioneering companies using the blockchain."

"As the longest running prime brokerage platform, SFOX has been a trusted partner for traders since 2014 and has expanded its offering to meet the demand from funds, financial services providers and institutions. We look forward to continuing to innovate to address the challenges our customers face in this highly complex and rapidly changing market,"said Akbar Thobhani, founder and CEO of SFOX.

When selecting the winners, CB Insights based its evaluation on factors including business models, market potential and momentum, competitive landscape, team strength, investor profiles, data submitted by the companies, and Mosaic scores. Many of the companies to make the list have established blockchain service contracts with enterprises like government agencies, retailers and traditional banks.

"We are honored that SFOX has been selected for inclusion on the CB Insights Blockchain 50 list. Our mission is to bring the most advanced and secure trading and custody solution to professionals, traders and institutions in this rapidly maturing market. Earning this recognition from CB Insights is a testament to SFOX's innovation and leadership in driving institutional adoption of crypto assets," said George Melika, co-founder of SFOX.

About CB Insights

Founded in January of 2008, CB Insights is based in New York and builds software to help its clients better understand future technology trends. To do this, the firm will analyze millions of documents so it can provide its clients with the information they need to make stronger and better business decisions. CB Insights provides services to a wide range of Fortune 100 companies and has garnered more than $11 million in funding since its inception.

About SFOX

Headquartered in Los Angelesand founded in 2014, SFOX is a leading prime dealer that seeks to connect its clients with cryptocurrency trading platforms across the globe so they can compare prices and establish trading routes that best meet their ideals and goals. The companyoffers an assortment of ordertypes including standard market and limit orders, smart routing, sniper and instant, so traders can finalize their crypto trades under the easiest and most secure conditions.

Contact: [emailprotected]

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Topl Closes $3M Seed Funding Round, Builds Blockchain for Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Global Initiatives – Business Wire

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HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Topl, the blockchain ecosystem built to prove a companys ethical and sustainable practices, today officially announced the closing of $3 million in seed funding led by Mercury Fund.

Additional investors in the round include GOOSE Capital, Chingona Ventures, Beni Venture Capital, Blue Collective, RevTech Ventures and Social Impact Capital. Topl has now raised $4.4 million in total venture capital funding since its founding in 2017.

Topl intends to leverage funds from the seed venture capital round to speed the launch of their Blockchain-as-a-Service solution in early 2021, which grants access to the Topl blockchain in two clicks. Topls technology simplifies certification processes, drastically cutting operational costs and increasing transparency throughout the supply chain.

Were grateful to have closed an oversubscribed venture round during a pandemic, especially given the unfortunate truth that many women-led startups are getting much less investment during this time, Kim Raath, Topls CEO, said. Bringing transparency to causes dedicated to environmental and social good has never been more important. We are building a modern blockchain for a world where purpose and profit go hand in hand.

Topls commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion is reflected both in its team and its board of directors. Forty percent of the team is female, and the majority of the board are representatives of minority groups, including women, immigrants, and people of color. Those actions are some of the first steps Topl is taking to create a more diverse and inclusive company.

A Blockchain Built Specifically for the Impact Sector

According to data from management consulting company McKinsey, an increasing body of research shows a positive link between environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance and financial performance or value creation.

Topls blockchain technology allows companies and communities to make verifiable claims about their social or environmental impact by recording data to an immutable ledger. By unlocking new certification systems, Topl opens the door to enhanced transparency in ethical supply chains and the ability to trace funds earmarked to achieve development objectives.

By leveraging Topls infrastructure, a fashion company can transparently track and measure their ecological impact, from water usage for crops, to pollution produced through the production line, to transportation emissions. Similarly, farmers using sustainable practices such as crop rotations and reduced tillage can record proof of these efforts and mechanize that impact.

Earlier in December, Topl announced a strategic partnership with TrackX (TSX.V:TKX | OTC:TKXHF | FSE:3TH), a SaaS-based enterprise IOT asset management and supply chain solution provider. The two companies are teaming up to provide a verifiable tracking and tracing solution to meet the growing demand for greater supply chain sustainability, transparency, and efficiency.

Investor Perspectives on $3M Seed Funding Round

A companys social and environmental impact has become a necessary point of differentiation for brands, and Topl has the potential to be the leading player for brands who are serious about ESG, said Blair Garrou, managing director of Mercury Fund.

Kim and the Topl team have created a custom-designed method to measure and verify your companys sustainability efforts. Were excited to be part of this intersection of cutting-edge technology and positive impact, said Samantha Lewis, formerly director of GOOSE Capital. Lewis was instrumental in helping Topl secure its first round of funding in 2019, and sits on Topls board of directors.

Topls track-and-trace solution appeals to so many core industries: from healthcare to agriculture to energy, said Manolo Snchez, former chairman and CEO of BBVA Compass and also a member of Topls board. Anyone who needs to ensure transparency, efficiency and sustainability would benefit from their technology.

About Topl

Topl, Inc., is a Houston-based venture-backed ESG technology company developing a purpose-built blockchain ecosystem to prove a companys ethical and sustainable business practices. Founded in 2017, Topl empowers companies to drastically cut operational and certification costs, through the use of their purpose-built blockchain technology. The company will expand its offering to include a new Blockchain-as-a-Service (BaaS) solution in early 2021, allowing its customers and technology partners two clicks to gain off-the-shelf access to the Topl Blockchain. Topl employs a diverse team and centers ESG as one of their core values, utilizing the UNs 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a guidepost. http://www.topl.co

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Topl Closes $3M Seed Funding Round, Builds Blockchain for Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Global Initiatives - Business Wire

AICPA Whitepaper Focuses on Conducting SOC Audits Involving Blockchain – CPAPracticeAdvisor.com

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The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) has issued a new white paper to help auditors providing SOC for Service Organization (SOC) reports on organizations that have incorporated blockchain into their service delivery systems.

Implications of the Use of Blockchain in SOC for Service Organization Examinations was developed by a Working Group of the AICPA Assurance Services Executive Committee (ASEC). The paper examines the skills and competencies auditors need to perform such engagements, the unique features of blockchain, the risks associated with using blockchain, and how the use of blockchain by service organizations may affect their SOC examinations.

As the use of blockchain increases, its likely that more service organizations will decide to use blockchain. Auditors hired to perform their SOC engagements need a deeper understanding of the technology and the risks it presents to the service organization and those who use their services, said Amy Pawlicki, AICPA Vice President Assurance and Advisory Innovation.

The paper is divided into two parts:

Part 1

Part 2

SOC 1, SOC 2 and SOC for Supply Chain

While this paper specifically addresses SOC 1 and 2 examinations, it may also be helpful to a practitioner performing a SOC for Supply Chain examination. In March 2020, the AICPA unveiled a new supply chain risk management reporting framework to help manufacturers, producers, distribution companies, and their customers and business partners identify, assess and address supply chain risks. Information on the guide can be found here.

Service organization management is responsible for identifying and assessing blockchain-related risks, and for designing and implementing effective controls to mitigate those risks to acceptable levels, explained Pawlicki. When performing a SOC engagement, its critical for auditors to understand those risks and controls.

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AICPA Whitepaper Focuses on Conducting SOC Audits Involving Blockchain - CPAPracticeAdvisor.com

Web 3.0 Infrastructure Blockchain The Graph Now Live on Ethereum – Yahoo Finance

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TipRanks

The coronavirus pandemic crisis shows no signs of abating, even with a vaccine coming on to the markets. Were still facing severe social lockdown policies, with a number of states (such as California, Minnesota, and Michigan) forcing even harsher restrictions on this round than previously.Its a heavy blow for the leisure industry that is still reeling from one of the most difficult years in memory. The difficulties faced by restaurants are getting more press, but for the cruise industry, corona has been a perfect storm.Prior to the pandemic, the cruise industry which had been doing $150 billion worth of business annually was expected to carry 32 million passengers in 2020. Thats all gone now. During the summer, the industry reeled when over 3,000 COVID cases were linked to 123 separate cruise ships, and resulted in 34 deaths. After such a difficult year, its useful to step back and take a snapshot of the industrys condition. JPMorgan analyst Brandt Montour has done just that, in a comprehensive review of the cruise industry generally and three cruise line giants in particular."We believe cruise shares can continue to grind higher in the near term, driven overwhelmingly by the broader vaccine backdrop/progress. Looking out further, operators will face plenty of headwinds when restarting/ramping operations in 2Q3Q21, but significant sequential improvement of revenues/cash flows over that period will likely dominate the narrative, and we believe investors will continue to look through short-term setbacks to a 2022 characterized by fully ramped capacity, near-full occupancies, and so far manageable pricing pressure," Montour opined.Against this backdrop, Montour has picked out two stocks that are worth the risk, and one that investors should avoid for now. Using TipRanks Stock Comparison tool, we lined up the three alongside each other to get the lowdown on what the near-term holds for these cruise line players.Royal Caribbean (RCL)The second-largest cruise line, Royal Caribbean, remains a top pick for Montour and his firm. The company has put its resources into facing and meeting the pandemics challenges, shoring up liquidity and both streamlining and modernizing the fleet.Maintaining liquidity has been the most pressing issue. While the company has resumed some cruising, and has even taken delivery of a new ship, the Silver Moon, most operations remain suspended. For Q3, the company reported adjusted earnings of -$5.62, below consensus of -$5.17. Management estimates the cash burn to be between $250 million and $290 million monthly. To combat that, RCL reported having $3.7 billion in liquidity at the end of September. That included $3 billion in cash on hand along with $700 million available through a credit facility. Total liquidity at the end of Q3 was down more than 9% from the end of Q2. Since the third quarter ended, RCL has added over $1 billion to its cash position, through an issue of $500 million senior notes and a sale of stock, putting an additional 8.33 million shares on the market at $60 each.In his note on Royal Caribbean, Montour writes, [We] are most constructive on OW-rated RCL, which we believe has the most compelling set of demand drivers... its extensive investments in premium priced new hardware, as well as consumer data, all set RCL up well to outgrow the industry in revenue metrics, margins, and ROIC over the longer term.Montour backs his Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating with a $91 price target. This figure represents a 30% upside potential for 2021. (To watch Montours track record, click here)Is the rest of the Street in agreement? As it turns out, the analyst consensus is more of a mixed bag. 4 Buy ratings and 6 Holds give RCL a Moderate Buy status. Meanwhile, the stock is selling for $69.58 per share, slightly above the $68.22 average price target. (See RCL stock analysis on TipRanks)Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH)With a market cap of $7.45 billion and a fleet of 28 ships, Norwegian Cruise Line found its relatively smaller size as an advantage in this pandemic time. With a smaller and newer fleet, overhead costs, especially ship maintenance, were lower. These advantages dont mean that the company has avoided the storm. Earlier this month, Norwegian announced a prolongation of its suspension of voyages policy, covering all scheduled voyages from January 1, 2021 through February 28, 2021, plus selected voyages in March 2021. These cancellations come as Norwegians revenues are down in the third quarter, the top line was just $6.5 million, compared to $1.9 billion in the year-ago quarter. The company also reported a cash burn of $150 million per month.To combat the cash burn and minimal revenues, Norwegian, in November and December, took steps to improve liquidity. The company closed on $850 million in senior notes, at 5.875% and due in 2026, during November, and earlier this month closed an offering of common stock. The stock offering totaled 40 million shares at $20.80 per share. Together, the two offerings raised over $1.6 billion in new capital.On a more positive note, Norwegian is preparing for an eventual resumption of full services. The company announced, on Dec 7, a partnership with AtmosAir Solutions for the installation of air purification systems on all 28 vessels of its current fleet, using filtration technology known to defeat the coronavirus.JPMs Montour points out these advantages in his review of Norwegian, and sums up the bottom line: This coupled with a relatively newer, higher-end, brand/ship footprint would generally lead us to believe it was in a good position to outperform on pricing growth, though its demographics skewing to older age customers probably will remain a drag through 2021. Ultimately, NCLH is a high-quality asset within the broader cruise industry, with a higher beta to a cruise recovery, and it should see outperformance as the industry returns and investors look further out the risk spectrum.Montour gives the stock a $30 price target and an Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating. His target implies an upside of 27% on the one-year time frame.Norwegian is another cruise line with a Moderate Buy from the analyst consensus. This rating is based on 4 Buys, 4 Holds, and 1 Sell set in recent months. Like RCL above, the stock price here, $23.55, is currently higher than the average price target, $23.22. (See NCLH stock analysis on TipRanks)Carnival Corporation (CCL)Last up, Carnival, is the worlds largest cruise line, with a market cap of $23.25 billion, more than 100 ships across its brands, and over 700 destination ports. In normal times, this giant footprint gave the company an advantage; now, however, it has become an expensive liability. This is clear from the companys fiscal Q3 cash burn, which approached $770 million.Like the other big cruise companies, Carnival has extended its voyage cancellations, or, in the companys terms, the pause in operations. The Cunard line, one of Carnivals brands, has cancelled voyages on the Queen Mary 2 and the Queen Elizabeth through early June of next year. Carnival has also cancelled operations in February from the ports of Miami, Galveston, and Port Canaveral, and pushed back the inaugural voyage of the new ship Mardi Gras to the end of April 2021. These measures were taken in compliance with coronavirus restrictions.Carnivals shares and revenues are suffering deep losses this year. The stock is down 60% year-to-date, despite some recent price rallies since the end of October. Revenues fell to just $31 million in the fiscal third quarter, reported in September. Carnival reported a loss of nearly $3 billion in that quarter. The company did end the third quarter with over $8 billion in available cash, an impressive resource to face the difficult situation.This combination of strength and weakness led Montour to put a Neutral (i.e. Hold) rating on CCL shares. However, his $25 price target suggests a possible upside of 23%.In comments on Carnival, Montour wrote, [We] believe that some of the same relative net yield drags it saw in 2018-2019 due to its sheer size will likely become top of mind on the other side of this crisis However, given CCLs relative share discount, less pricing growth ahead of the crisis, and geographical diversification, we see it as the company with the least downside over the next few months and are not surprised by its recent outperformance. We believe this will reverse in the 2H21. Overall, Carnival has a Hold rating from the analyst consensus. This rating is based on 10 reviews, breaking down to 1 Buy, 8 Holds, and 1 Sell. The stock is selling for $20.28 and its $18.86 average price target implies a downside potential of ~7%. (See CCL stock analysis on TipRanks)To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks equity insights.Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.

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Web 3.0 Infrastructure Blockchain The Graph Now Live on Ethereum - Yahoo Finance

Blockchain Can Provide Efficiencies in Healthcare and Other Sectors – Business West

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More Than Just Bitcoin

By Matthew Ogrodowicz, MSA

Blockchain is a term used to broadly describe the cryptographic technology that underpins several applications, the most widely known of which is Bitcoin and other similar cryptocurrencies.

Matthew Ogrodowicz

Even though it is the largest current application, a survey conducted on behalf of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) in 2018 found that 48% of American adults were not familiar with Bitcoin, Ethereum, or Litecoin, three cryptocurrencies among those with the largest market capitalizations. The largest of these, Bitcoin, currently sits at a market capitalization of approximately $355 billion. If half of all adults are unfamiliar with this largest application, it is safe to assume that even fewer know about other ways the technology could be used including for some of the regions major industries.

Three of these largest industries in Western Mass. are healthcare, manufacturing, and higher education. In each of these industries, the secure and verifiable information network created by blockchain can provide efficiencies. This network, essentially a public ledger, consists of a series of transactions (blocks), which is distributed and replicated across a network of computers referred to as nodes. These nodes each maintain a copy of the ledger, which can only be added to by the solving of a cryptographic puzzle that is verified by other nodes in the network.

The information on the ledger is maintained by another aspect of cryptography, which is that the same data encrypted in the same way produces the same result, so if data earlier in the chain is manipulated, it will be rejected by the other nodes even though the data itself is encrypted. Thus, an immutable chain of verifiable, secure information is created, capable of supporting applications in the aforementioned fields.

Each of these industries can benefit from the blockchains ability to host smart contracts. A smart contract is a digital protocol intended to facilitate, verify, or enforce the performance of a transaction. The simplest analogue is that of a vending machine once payment is made, an item is delivered. Smart contracts would exist on the blockchain and would be triggered by a predefined condition or action agreed upon by the parties beforehand. This allows the parties to transact directly without the need for intermediaries, providing time and cost savings as well as automation and accuracy.

Combined with the security and immutability noted earlier, smart contracts should prove to be a valuable tool, though there is still work to be done in codifying and establishing legal frameworks around smart contracts. Other applications of blockchain technology are more specifically applicable to individual fields.

In the field of healthcare, blockchains ability to process, validate, and sanction access to data could lead to a centralized repository of electronic health records and allow patients to permit and/or revoke read-and-write privileges to certain doctors or facilities as they deem necessary. This would allow patients more control over who has access to their personal health records while providing for quick transfers and reductions in administrative delay.

In the field of manufacturing, blockchain can provide more supply-chain efficiency and transparency by codifying and tracking the routes and intermediate steps, including carriers and time of arrival and departure, without allowing for unauthorized modification of this information. In a similar fashion, blockchain can provide manufacturers assurance that the goods they have received are exactly those they have ordered and that they are without defect by allowing for tracking of individual parts or other raw materials.

Finally, in the field of higher education, blockchain could be used to improve record keeping of degrees and certifications in a manner similar to that of electronic medical records. Beyond that, intellectual property such as research, scholarly publications, media works, and presentations could be protected by the blockchain by allowing for ease of sharing them while preserving the ability to control how they are used.

And, of course, blockchain development will be a skill high in demand that will benefit from the creation of interdisciplinary programs at colleges and universities that help students understand the development of blockchain networks as well the areas of business, technology, law, and commerce that are impacted by it.

For these reasons and many more, businesses should feel an urgency to increase their knowledge of blockchains impact on their industries while exploring the potential dividends that could be reaped by a foray into an emerging technology.

Matthew Ogrodowicz, MSA is a senior associate at the Holyoke-based accounting firm Meyers Brothers Kalicka, P.C.

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Blockchain Can Provide Efficiencies in Healthcare and Other Sectors - Business West

HIVE Blockchain to Provide Corporate Update and Results from the 2020 Annual General Meeting – Yahoo Finance

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TipRanks

The coronavirus pandemic crisis shows no signs of abating, even with a vaccine coming on to the markets. Were still facing severe social lockdown policies, with a number of states (such as California, Minnesota, and Michigan) forcing even harsher restrictions on this round than previously.Its a heavy blow for the leisure industry that is still reeling from one of the most difficult years in memory. The difficulties faced by restaurants are getting more press, but for the cruise industry, corona has been a perfect storm.Prior to the pandemic, the cruise industry which had been doing $150 billion worth of business annually was expected to carry 32 million passengers in 2020. Thats all gone now. During the summer, the industry reeled when over 3,000 COVID cases were linked to 123 separate cruise ships, and resulted in 34 deaths. After such a difficult year, its useful to step back and take a snapshot of the industrys condition. JPMorgan analyst Brandt Montour has done just that, in a comprehensive review of the cruise industry generally and three cruise line giants in particular."We believe cruise shares can continue to grind higher in the near term, driven overwhelmingly by the broader vaccine backdrop/progress. Looking out further, operators will face plenty of headwinds when restarting/ramping operations in 2Q3Q21, but significant sequential improvement of revenues/cash flows over that period will likely dominate the narrative, and we believe investors will continue to look through short-term setbacks to a 2022 characterized by fully ramped capacity, near-full occupancies, and so far manageable pricing pressure," Montour opined.Against this backdrop, Montour has picked out two stocks that are worth the risk, and one that investors should avoid for now. Using TipRanks Stock Comparison tool, we lined up the three alongside each other to get the lowdown on what the near-term holds for these cruise line players.Royal Caribbean (RCL)The second-largest cruise line, Royal Caribbean, remains a top pick for Montour and his firm. The company has put its resources into facing and meeting the pandemics challenges, shoring up liquidity and both streamlining and modernizing the fleet.Maintaining liquidity has been the most pressing issue. While the company has resumed some cruising, and has even taken delivery of a new ship, the Silver Moon, most operations remain suspended. For Q3, the company reported adjusted earnings of -$5.62, below consensus of -$5.17. Management estimates the cash burn to be between $250 million and $290 million monthly. To combat that, RCL reported having $3.7 billion in liquidity at the end of September. That included $3 billion in cash on hand along with $700 million available through a credit facility. Total liquidity at the end of Q3 was down more than 9% from the end of Q2. Since the third quarter ended, RCL has added over $1 billion to its cash position, through an issue of $500 million senior notes and a sale of stock, putting an additional 8.33 million shares on the market at $60 each.In his note on Royal Caribbean, Montour writes, [We] are most constructive on OW-rated RCL, which we believe has the most compelling set of demand drivers... its extensive investments in premium priced new hardware, as well as consumer data, all set RCL up well to outgrow the industry in revenue metrics, margins, and ROIC over the longer term.Montour backs his Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating with a $91 price target. This figure represents a 30% upside potential for 2021. (To watch Montours track record, click here)Is the rest of the Street in agreement? As it turns out, the analyst consensus is more of a mixed bag. 4 Buy ratings and 6 Holds give RCL a Moderate Buy status. Meanwhile, the stock is selling for $69.58 per share, slightly above the $68.22 average price target. (See RCL stock analysis on TipRanks)Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH)With a market cap of $7.45 billion and a fleet of 28 ships, Norwegian Cruise Line found its relatively smaller size as an advantage in this pandemic time. With a smaller and newer fleet, overhead costs, especially ship maintenance, were lower. These advantages dont mean that the company has avoided the storm. Earlier this month, Norwegian announced a prolongation of its suspension of voyages policy, covering all scheduled voyages from January 1, 2021 through February 28, 2021, plus selected voyages in March 2021. These cancellations come as Norwegians revenues are down in the third quarter, the top line was just $6.5 million, compared to $1.9 billion in the year-ago quarter. The company also reported a cash burn of $150 million per month.To combat the cash burn and minimal revenues, Norwegian, in November and December, took steps to improve liquidity. The company closed on $850 million in senior notes, at 5.875% and due in 2026, during November, and earlier this month closed an offering of common stock. The stock offering totaled 40 million shares at $20.80 per share. Together, the two offerings raised over $1.6 billion in new capital.On a more positive note, Norwegian is preparing for an eventual resumption of full services. The company announced, on Dec 7, a partnership with AtmosAir Solutions for the installation of air purification systems on all 28 vessels of its current fleet, using filtration technology known to defeat the coronavirus.JPMs Montour points out these advantages in his review of Norwegian, and sums up the bottom line: This coupled with a relatively newer, higher-end, brand/ship footprint would generally lead us to believe it was in a good position to outperform on pricing growth, though its demographics skewing to older age customers probably will remain a drag through 2021. Ultimately, NCLH is a high-quality asset within the broader cruise industry, with a higher beta to a cruise recovery, and it should see outperformance as the industry returns and investors look further out the risk spectrum.Montour gives the stock a $30 price target and an Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating. His target implies an upside of 27% on the one-year time frame.Norwegian is another cruise line with a Moderate Buy from the analyst consensus. This rating is based on 4 Buys, 4 Holds, and 1 Sell set in recent months. Like RCL above, the stock price here, $23.55, is currently higher than the average price target, $23.22. (See NCLH stock analysis on TipRanks)Carnival Corporation (CCL)Last up, Carnival, is the worlds largest cruise line, with a market cap of $23.25 billion, more than 100 ships across its brands, and over 700 destination ports. In normal times, this giant footprint gave the company an advantage; now, however, it has become an expensive liability. This is clear from the companys fiscal Q3 cash burn, which approached $770 million.Like the other big cruise companies, Carnival has extended its voyage cancellations, or, in the companys terms, the pause in operations. The Cunard line, one of Carnivals brands, has cancelled voyages on the Queen Mary 2 and the Queen Elizabeth through early June of next year. Carnival has also cancelled operations in February from the ports of Miami, Galveston, and Port Canaveral, and pushed back the inaugural voyage of the new ship Mardi Gras to the end of April 2021. These measures were taken in compliance with coronavirus restrictions.Carnivals shares and revenues are suffering deep losses this year. The stock is down 60% year-to-date, despite some recent price rallies since the end of October. Revenues fell to just $31 million in the fiscal third quarter, reported in September. Carnival reported a loss of nearly $3 billion in that quarter. The company did end the third quarter with over $8 billion in available cash, an impressive resource to face the difficult situation.This combination of strength and weakness led Montour to put a Neutral (i.e. Hold) rating on CCL shares. However, his $25 price target suggests a possible upside of 23%.In comments on Carnival, Montour wrote, [We] believe that some of the same relative net yield drags it saw in 2018-2019 due to its sheer size will likely become top of mind on the other side of this crisis However, given CCLs relative share discount, less pricing growth ahead of the crisis, and geographical diversification, we see it as the company with the least downside over the next few months and are not surprised by its recent outperformance. We believe this will reverse in the 2H21. Overall, Carnival has a Hold rating from the analyst consensus. This rating is based on 10 reviews, breaking down to 1 Buy, 8 Holds, and 1 Sell. The stock is selling for $20.28 and its $18.86 average price target implies a downside potential of ~7%. (See CCL stock analysis on TipRanks)To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks equity insights.Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.

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HIVE Blockchain to Provide Corporate Update and Results from the 2020 Annual General Meeting - Yahoo Finance

GHB was awarded new technology at the 2020 Blockchain Awards Ceremony – Yahoo Finance

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TipRanks

The coronavirus pandemic crisis shows no signs of abating, even with a vaccine coming on to the markets. Were still facing severe social lockdown policies, with a number of states (such as California, Minnesota, and Michigan) forcing even harsher restrictions on this round than previously.Its a heavy blow for the leisure industry that is still reeling from one of the most difficult years in memory. The difficulties faced by restaurants are getting more press, but for the cruise industry, corona has been a perfect storm.Prior to the pandemic, the cruise industry which had been doing $150 billion worth of business annually was expected to carry 32 million passengers in 2020. Thats all gone now. During the summer, the industry reeled when over 3,000 COVID cases were linked to 123 separate cruise ships, and resulted in 34 deaths. After such a difficult year, its useful to step back and take a snapshot of the industrys condition. JPMorgan analyst Brandt Montour has done just that, in a comprehensive review of the cruise industry generally and three cruise line giants in particular."We believe cruise shares can continue to grind higher in the near term, driven overwhelmingly by the broader vaccine backdrop/progress. Looking out further, operators will face plenty of headwinds when restarting/ramping operations in 2Q3Q21, but significant sequential improvement of revenues/cash flows over that period will likely dominate the narrative, and we believe investors will continue to look through short-term setbacks to a 2022 characterized by fully ramped capacity, near-full occupancies, and so far manageable pricing pressure," Montour opined.Against this backdrop, Montour has picked out two stocks that are worth the risk, and one that investors should avoid for now. Using TipRanks Stock Comparison tool, we lined up the three alongside each other to get the lowdown on what the near-term holds for these cruise line players.Royal Caribbean (RCL)The second-largest cruise line, Royal Caribbean, remains a top pick for Montour and his firm. The company has put its resources into facing and meeting the pandemics challenges, shoring up liquidity and both streamlining and modernizing the fleet.Maintaining liquidity has been the most pressing issue. While the company has resumed some cruising, and has even taken delivery of a new ship, the Silver Moon, most operations remain suspended. For Q3, the company reported adjusted earnings of -$5.62, below consensus of -$5.17. Management estimates the cash burn to be between $250 million and $290 million monthly. To combat that, RCL reported having $3.7 billion in liquidity at the end of September. That included $3 billion in cash on hand along with $700 million available through a credit facility. Total liquidity at the end of Q3 was down more than 9% from the end of Q2. Since the third quarter ended, RCL has added over $1 billion to its cash position, through an issue of $500 million senior notes and a sale of stock, putting an additional 8.33 million shares on the market at $60 each.In his note on Royal Caribbean, Montour writes, [We] are most constructive on OW-rated RCL, which we believe has the most compelling set of demand drivers... its extensive investments in premium priced new hardware, as well as consumer data, all set RCL up well to outgrow the industry in revenue metrics, margins, and ROIC over the longer term.Montour backs his Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating with a $91 price target. This figure represents a 30% upside potential for 2021. (To watch Montours track record, click here)Is the rest of the Street in agreement? As it turns out, the analyst consensus is more of a mixed bag. 4 Buy ratings and 6 Holds give RCL a Moderate Buy status. Meanwhile, the stock is selling for $69.58 per share, slightly above the $68.22 average price target. (See RCL stock analysis on TipRanks)Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH)With a market cap of $7.45 billion and a fleet of 28 ships, Norwegian Cruise Line found its relatively smaller size as an advantage in this pandemic time. With a smaller and newer fleet, overhead costs, especially ship maintenance, were lower. These advantages dont mean that the company has avoided the storm. Earlier this month, Norwegian announced a prolongation of its suspension of voyages policy, covering all scheduled voyages from January 1, 2021 through February 28, 2021, plus selected voyages in March 2021. These cancellations come as Norwegians revenues are down in the third quarter, the top line was just $6.5 million, compared to $1.9 billion in the year-ago quarter. The company also reported a cash burn of $150 million per month.To combat the cash burn and minimal revenues, Norwegian, in November and December, took steps to improve liquidity. The company closed on $850 million in senior notes, at 5.875% and due in 2026, during November, and earlier this month closed an offering of common stock. The stock offering totaled 40 million shares at $20.80 per share. Together, the two offerings raised over $1.6 billion in new capital.On a more positive note, Norwegian is preparing for an eventual resumption of full services. The company announced, on Dec 7, a partnership with AtmosAir Solutions for the installation of air purification systems on all 28 vessels of its current fleet, using filtration technology known to defeat the coronavirus.JPMs Montour points out these advantages in his review of Norwegian, and sums up the bottom line: This coupled with a relatively newer, higher-end, brand/ship footprint would generally lead us to believe it was in a good position to outperform on pricing growth, though its demographics skewing to older age customers probably will remain a drag through 2021. Ultimately, NCLH is a high-quality asset within the broader cruise industry, with a higher beta to a cruise recovery, and it should see outperformance as the industry returns and investors look further out the risk spectrum.Montour gives the stock a $30 price target and an Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating. His target implies an upside of 27% on the one-year time frame.Norwegian is another cruise line with a Moderate Buy from the analyst consensus. This rating is based on 4 Buys, 4 Holds, and 1 Sell set in recent months. Like RCL above, the stock price here, $23.55, is currently higher than the average price target, $23.22. (See NCLH stock analysis on TipRanks)Carnival Corporation (CCL)Last up, Carnival, is the worlds largest cruise line, with a market cap of $23.25 billion, more than 100 ships across its brands, and over 700 destination ports. In normal times, this giant footprint gave the company an advantage; now, however, it has become an expensive liability. This is clear from the companys fiscal Q3 cash burn, which approached $770 million.Like the other big cruise companies, Carnival has extended its voyage cancellations, or, in the companys terms, the pause in operations. The Cunard line, one of Carnivals brands, has cancelled voyages on the Queen Mary 2 and the Queen Elizabeth through early June of next year. Carnival has also cancelled operations in February from the ports of Miami, Galveston, and Port Canaveral, and pushed back the inaugural voyage of the new ship Mardi Gras to the end of April 2021. These measures were taken in compliance with coronavirus restrictions.Carnivals shares and revenues are suffering deep losses this year. The stock is down 60% year-to-date, despite some recent price rallies since the end of October. Revenues fell to just $31 million in the fiscal third quarter, reported in September. Carnival reported a loss of nearly $3 billion in that quarter. The company did end the third quarter with over $8 billion in available cash, an impressive resource to face the difficult situation.This combination of strength and weakness led Montour to put a Neutral (i.e. Hold) rating on CCL shares. However, his $25 price target suggests a possible upside of 23%.In comments on Carnival, Montour wrote, [We] believe that some of the same relative net yield drags it saw in 2018-2019 due to its sheer size will likely become top of mind on the other side of this crisis However, given CCLs relative share discount, less pricing growth ahead of the crisis, and geographical diversification, we see it as the company with the least downside over the next few months and are not surprised by its recent outperformance. We believe this will reverse in the 2H21. Overall, Carnival has a Hold rating from the analyst consensus. This rating is based on 10 reviews, breaking down to 1 Buy, 8 Holds, and 1 Sell. The stock is selling for $20.28 and its $18.86 average price target implies a downside potential of ~7%. (See CCL stock analysis on TipRanks)To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks equity insights.Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.

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GHB was awarded new technology at the 2020 Blockchain Awards Ceremony - Yahoo Finance

Every Single Redheaded Comic Book Character That Has Been Race Swapped – Bounding Into Comics

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Film studios have made it a habit of race swapping red headed comic book characters and we are going to list all of them out for you today.

So lets get into it.

The upcoming Black Adam film featuring The Rock recently announced that Maxine Hunkel aka Cyclone, who first appeared in Geoff Johns and Dale Eagleshams Justice Society of America #1, will be played by Quintessa Swindel.

Maxine Hunkel is the granddaughter of the original Red Tornado Ma Hunkel and would be recruited into the new Justice Society by Power Girl and and Mr. Terrific.

Shes extremely intelligent with an IQ of 145. Shes also a book worm having a GPA of 4.0 at Harvard.

When she was a child she was kidnapped by the villain T.O. Morrow and injected with Red Tornado nanobyte technology. While the technology did not affect Maxine right away it would manifest by the time she was in college and give her significant wind powers.

In fact, just one of her sneezes destroyed her grandmothers garage and she also was able to summon a tornado five hundred feet tall.

The CW race-swapped Hawkgirl on both Arrow and The Legends of Tomorrow. The character was played by actress Ciara Rene.

Hawkgirls alter ego Shiera Sanders was first introduced back in Flash Comics #1 by Gardner Fox and Dennis Neville. At the time of her introduction she originally had black hair.

A new Hawkgirl from the planet of Thanagar would be introduced in the Brave and the Bold #34. This new Hawkgirl was named Shayera Hol and was a Thanagarian police officer like her husband Katar Hol, the new Hawkman.

She would have red hair as seen below.

The CW race-swapped Iris West in their Flash series and the character routinely crosses over throughout their Arrowverse shows. In The CWs version, the character is portrayed by Candice Patton.

The character was also expected to get race-swapped in Zack Snyders Justice League, but in the theatrical version the character was cut. She is expected to show up again in the upcoming Snyder Cut of Justice League. In that version she will be portrayed by Kiersey Clemons.

While Iris West is typically portrayed as a brunette, in her debut appearance in Showcase #4, her hair has an auburn appearance.

This auburn hue would be showcased throughout much of the DC Animated Movie Universe films and can be seen in the screenshot below from Flashpoint: Paradox.

CBS race-swapped Supermans pal Jimmy Olsen when they cast actor Mehcad Brooks to play the role in Supergirl.

Interestingly, in Olsens first appearance in Superman #13, hes shown with blonde hair.

However, by the debut issue of Supermans Pal Jimmy Olsen, the character had his now iconic red hair.

Like Iris West, The CW also race swapped Wally West in the Flash and its Arrowverse universe. The character was portrayed by Keiynan Lonsdale.

When Wally West was first introduced all the way back in The Flash #110, he had his trademark red hair.

Starfire was race swapped in DC Universes and now HBO Maxs Titans series. The character is currently portrayed by actress Anna Diop.

Starfire first appeared in DC Comics Presents #26 and was created by Marv Wolfman and George Perez in 1980 as part of the New Titans.

In her first appearance she has orange skin and flaming red hair.

Batwoman was most recently race swapped in The CWs Batwoman series. Actress Javicia Leslie will take on the moniker Batwoman as she plays a brand new character named Ryan Wilder.

In her first appearance in 52 #11 she has her iconic red hair both as Batwoman and as Kate Kane.

It wouldnt be until Detective Comics #854 where they retconned her long red hair into a wig. Although even in that issue her hair is still red underneath the wig.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles character April ONeil would be race swapped in the 2018 animated series Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. She was voiced by Kat Graham.

The character originally appeared in the second issue of Kevin Eastman and Peter Lairds black and white Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles series.

When the comic was reprinted with colors it showed that April was a white woman with brown hair.

While April originally had brown hair, the character has also been depicted with red hair as seen in the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated series as well as comic book series like the TMNT Presents April ONeil series.

Electro would be race-swapped in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. The character would be played by Jamie Foxx. Foxx also claimed he would be playing Electro again in the upcoming Spider-Man 3.

In Electros first appearance in The Amazing Spider-Man #9 hes shown having dark red hair.

Commissioner James Gordon is getting the race-swap treatment in the upcoming Batman film from director Matt Reeves. The character will be played by Jeffrey Wright.

Gordon was introduced in the same issue as Batman in Detective Comics #27. In that issue hes older and his hair has greyed.

However, when Gordon was a young beat cop and even as his early days as Commissioner hes been shown to have red hair.

Heimdall was race swapped in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, where he was portrayed by actor Idris Elba.

In Heimdalls original appearance in Marvel Comics Journey Into Mystery, his facial hair and eyebrows were most definitely black as seen below.

However, by Thor #156 when he confronts The Recorder, his facial hair had most definitely been changed to a red hue.

Bow was race swapped in the recent Netflix animated series She-Ra and The Princesses of Power. The character was voiced by Marcus Scribner.

While Bow was originally introduced in the She-Ra animated series from Filmation, the character did appear in a She-Ra comic book series published in the UK.

Interestingly, while the character had red hair in the animated series, in the comic he has black hair.

Ariel from Disneys The Little Mermaid will be race swapped in the upcoming live action version of the film. The character will be played by Halle Bailey.

Now, you might be thinking why is Ariel on this list. Well, the character has appeared in a number of comics and even in the graphic novel Ariel and the Sea Wolf.

Dark Horse Comics even published a three issue adaptation of the original Disney film.

Josie from Josie and the Pussycats was race swapped in The CWs Riverdale series. She was played by actress Ashleigh Murray.

The character first appeared in Shes Josie #1 from Archie Comics. She was created by Frank Doyle and Dan DeCarlo.

She had her fiery red hair on the front cover of the issue.

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Every Single Redheaded Comic Book Character That Has Been Race Swapped - Bounding Into Comics

These Are The Biggest Hair Colour Trends Taking Over In 2021 – Glamour UK

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Fact, our hair colour preferences have shifted through whats been an unpredictable year. Already, top hair colourists have started to see this change play out in even their most conservative clients. Were ready to come out of our comfort zone, or at the very least switch things up in order to feel refreshed. This could be through a bold colour (which by the way, has boomed during 2020), or through teensy hair glow-ups, such as cleverly updated highlighting techniques. Either way, were ready to feel liberated, shiny as we roll into a new year of possibilities.

Before we get cracking with the emerging trends that the pros have predicted will take off big-style next year, its important to remember that each and every option should be tailored specifically to you. Colour should always be completely personalised based on skin tone and hair texture, explains top hair stylist and UK Editorial Ambassador for LOreal Professionnel, Adam Reed. Colour should be applied in a way that looks multidimensional to make facial features pop. You can also apply colour in clever ways that give the illusion of thickness if your hair is finer or play with light to help illuminate and define curls. So make sure you really maximise your consultation time with your colourist to get the most beautiful, bespoke colour experience.

Here are the hair colour trends to watch out for

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To complement the return of heavy seventies fringes and loose bohemian texture, seventies golden blonde will be big, reckons Bryony Cairns, colourist at Larry King. Sharon Tate is a huge influence. Bleach Londons creative director, Alex Brownsell seconds this strawberry blonde and golden honey tones will be popular, she says. As will butter blonde. Its very easy to maintain at home because bleached hair naturally has yellow undertones, so this look will soften into a honey effect, adds Alex. For more dimension, Bryony recommends opting for lots of fine babylights throughout the whole hair to give the illusion of an all-over HD colour.

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Brunettes often suffer from too much warmth running through their hair, explains Bryony. Adding slices of cooler tones mutes the warmth without taking away the depth of the colour, and this helps to even out the tone, she explains.

Adam Reed Londons Cool Down colour menu is specifically geared toward dialling up or down your colour, and neutralising brassiness (which is on the up since weve been spacing out salon appointments). You can still maintain the richness of brunette but with a cooler base, he says. Have a conversation with your colourist who will be able to advise the best palette to suit you.

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Sales of red hair colour were off the charts during 2020 as Kim Kardashian, Dua Lipa, Lizzo, Kylie Jenner and even Ricky Martin gave the shade a spin. Heading into next year, red will live on in all its glory with bold cherry red but also more natural blonde copper shades, predicts Josh. People are finding ways to express themselves through all different shades of red, he says, More so, since one application of the shade can take you through multiple different tones as it fades. Semi Permanent glosses are the way forward for a statement colour. A cherry red applied on a pale bleached hair can often fade over time to a pretty pink shade and give you many statement looks from one application, adds Josh, though consult with your hairdresser wholl be able to give you an indication of your hairs porosity, how intense the shade will be and how it will react and evolve on your hair.

Particularly popular, will be renaissance reds think beautiful, deep, rich reds which give you those stunning copper and bronze tones, says Adam. You can have this as deep or as subtle as you want the key is for it to look really healthy.

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Once again, were referencing the nineties. Many clients are referencing the decade, from the chunky caramel highlights that Jennifer Aniston has, to the shaggy champagne blonde haircut for Meg Ryan, explains expert hair colourist, Josh Wood. But one nineties trend thats set to go stratospheric is money-piece hair. Millennials may not yet have heard of it, but the nineties colour technique favoured by Geri Halliwell circa peak Spice Girls, is back only toned down to make it more subtle. In fact, Queen Bey is partially responsible for its triumphant return after rocking it on her Instagram.

This is all about lighting up the front section of hair and then toning it so there is a lovely blend, explains Adam. Moving away from the rogue blonde style which was a popular Instagrammable hair trend, softer money piece highlights framing the face is an easy way to get the brightness around your face through winter while keeping really low maintenance, agrees Bryony.

Crucially, its versatile. What is lovely, is you can use any tone such as a bold rock n roll modern colour, through to something only slightly lighter than what you would normally have, still creating that chunky piece through the front, says Adam. And its democratic, too. Its malleable to all colours, confirms Bryony, from red heads having strawberry blonde to brunettes having golden sun kissed tones.

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The peekaboo hair colour trend started taking off this year. This is a deeper panel through the back of the hair, explains Adam. Imagine a half head of colour where the bottom layers are washed with a contrasting colour. Hidden under the top layer of hair, they peek through as you move. Weve seen it with vivids but this is more about adding depth and density through the back section which offers a richer, deeper result. It doesnt have to be a stark contrast either which makes it super wearable, you can go as vibrant and or as subtle as you want.

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Alongside bold new choices, beautiful minimal maintenance will never go out of fashion. "In 2021 the balayage trend will stay with us, with its ability to offer low maintenance colour and subtle regrowth," confirms Josh. "Balayaged lowlights and highlights are more forgiving as they don't create a clean cut line," explains celeb colourist, Nicola Clarke who counts Kate Moss, Dua Lipa and Charlize Theron as clients.

As well as speckling highlights throughout the lengths of our hair, ombre will be making a return says Bryony. The techniquesees hair graduate from dark at the roots to light at the ends. "It's a really low maintenance colour that's great for brunettes who dont want to commit to sitting in the salon chair every 8 weeks keeping up the blonde," she says, since your roots fade into the rest of your hair, so regrowth won't be a problem.

"Its adaptable with colours too as you can mix it up using direct dyes like pink and corals to get flashes of colour for a few days at a time," says Bryony. "Toners and semi-permanent colours in peaches, pinks, mints and blues just seem to be growing," agrees Nicola, "and the products on the market, especially for home use are getting much better," she says. Therefore you can create a hybrid system of in-salon colour, adapted yourself at home if you feel like it.

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Searches for pink hair grew by 900% last year, so its unsurprising that it was Bleach Londons most requested shade. A lot of people experimented with colour for the first time during lockdown this year and started by trying softer, pastel shades to dip their toe in colour, explains Alex. For 2021, weve already noticed a trend towards the more vivid colours as people have become more confident to try something new. I think well see a lot of brighter, bolder looks. The update to pastel pink? Bubblegum. We launched our new Super Cool Colour Gobby Pink because it was so highly requested as a custom shade in our salons, reveals Alex.

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Dirty blonde has become our spirit animal hair during a year where we've all gone feral, but we're actually really enjoying it. Pair warmer blonde tones with a smudgy natural root. Dua Lipa's brush with blonde is a great example, "or think Kurt Cobain, Courtney Love, Annie Morton and Debbie Harry," says Nicola. "Charlize [Theron] has that grungy colour look at the moment, with the dark shade underneath," she says. But Kate [Moss] will forever be the original dirty blonde."

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How to make a problem into a trend: enter root clash. If you fancy dabbling with colour and you're experience root regrowth, it's the way to go, says Alex. "Think of this as a reverse dip-dye, with the colour starting at the roots and fading out into the mid lengths or contrasting with your grown out colour like Billie Eilishs green and black hair," she says. "If you need to touch up your roots, this is a really fun way to experiment with colour without committing to an all-over tone. I love a bold colour fading into blonde like Tangerine Dream and Aubergine Dream, or if you want to try Billies colour, Slime Light is perfect."

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These Are The Biggest Hair Colour Trends Taking Over In 2021 - Glamour UK

Giving season is here: It is ‘sharing time’ in Edenton – The Daily Advance

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Over the three days of Dec. 3 through Dec. 5, 2020, Edenton Lions and friends helped the kettle krowd gather gifts.

Lions are sporting red vests showing the Salvation Army motto Doing the Most Good. The signature hand bells ring. Strangers relax when they hear the music! Friendships resurface or comfortably begin.

Known for their work with the hearing and visually impaired, Lions are now known for helping the other Army.

Members of various faith communities join in manning the buckets!

Sharing Time is even more important this year as the pandemic of COVID-19 remains among us. Nearly everyone shows up with mask on. Excellent! Nippy weather quickens some steps.

Eyes are alert and forward. Many are unglued from iPhones in their hands. Good. Since Thanksgiving many have relearned to enjoy others face to face!

We care....We wear is on one cheek of Lions face mask. We Serve on the other cheek notes 83 years of service 1937-2020.

Chilly temps today are harbingers of severe cold to come. Community needs food on the table, clothes on the back, heat in the house and a roof overhead to keep out the rain.

Familiar greetings ring out. Hows the family? Whatcha been doing lately?

Whats for lunch? Whos cooking? Whos paying? Grub with or without calories?

Shadboat Willis is among the first to be at his station. Notices new unwrinkled greenbacks. George, Thomas and Abe crowd into the red buckets. Nothing like new money without the smell of tobacco juice, snuff or fish!

Eye contacts multiply as folk approach business entrances.

Lions initiate light conversation. Yes, coins are welcome here... You seriously welcome pennies and dimes!? Yes, all day long. We appreciate all gifts and givers.

I notice a friend exiting Food Lion. Where is your good-looking lady today? Home, she gave you folks too much last year! There is mischief in his eye. I suspect he does more than his fair share of good trouble today.

Ole Tar Heel looks around and is surprised.

Recognizes nice lady approaching but who is the small one she is carrying? Is this the 4th Wise Man? No, its Grogu the baby Yoda from the Disney+ show The Mandalorian! Lady shushes me. Explains in a whisper that her hubbie is a secret admirer of the Star Wars celebrity. Gag Christmas gift. Stifle your wise-cracks! No autographs until after Christmas! Or tweets either! Lady hustles to her pick-up truck and discreetly place Grogu in a secret place! Darn.

Others arrive. People thin out then regroup. Approaching my post is a vivacious 4th-grader with a head of red hair! Followed by grandmother type. This should be interesting.

Young lass jumps for joy! Spies coins on the pavement. Bends to retrieve a new quarter and two super-new bright Lincoln pennies. While others slip their gifts into the kettle bucket I eye the youngster.

Instead of pocketing her treasure Emma heads my way. Points to the red kettle. Yes! Wants to know if we accept small coins. Yes, all gifts are welcome! Cute as a speckled puppy! Emma tells me of life in the 4th grade.

Have I ever been in the fourth grade? Before I can answer, we are talking rivers like the Amazon, the Nile, the Ganges and the Mississippi. Silently I wonder to myself, Is this the little red-haired girl that Charlie Brown has been seeking all his life?

Friday I am posted to Roses, having been assigned to Food Lion on Thursday and Saturday. After a time, I notice a young woman with two one-dollar bills in hand leaving the store. Her clothing is clean but simple. For whatever reason, I asked her why she donates.

She tells of growing up in Perquimans County. In January or February while age 14, the house she and her parents lived in burned to the ground. Completely gone. Brutally cold weather. No family or neighbors to take them in. Somehow the Salvation Army found a simple place the threesome could live in through spring. It was dry enough that she could do her homework for school. Family survived the winter.

She muses, I have never forgotten that kindness. I can never repay. But I remember. That is why I give two dollars. That is how I say, Thank You.

Folks, your gifts are a major benefit in the life of real people today. Readers who are still with me will be delighted to know that the public of December 2020 has been most generous. Significantly better than 2019 which was good too. Difficult challenges have not overwhelmed us.

Thank you for being true to the best any of us know.

Meanwhile, Lions continue to mask up. Hope you will too.

We care. We wear. We serve.

New members welcome, especially red heads!

John Mitchener is past president of the Edenton Lions Club, 2010-11.

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Giving season is here: It is 'sharing time' in Edenton - The Daily Advance

Ecchi horror game "Red Colony" heads to Switch on Jan. 7th, 2021 – GoNintendo

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The Red Colony was supposed to save the human race, not end it. . . After a crazy scientist plays God and experiments with the colonists DNA, a deadly virus infects them and turns them into blood-thirsty zombies. Maria is trapped in the turmoil and desperately searches for her daughter in this Ecchi inspired Horror Game. However, the secrets she finds in her personal life and the colony means she will have to be the Hero and rid the colony of the wicked virus.

Red Colony Features:

- Anime character design.- Twisted story.- Blood, gore and horror!- 2DTCT (2D Tear-Clothes-Technology)...(!?)- Drama inspired by 'The Bachelor' and 'High School of the Dead'.- Graphic Novel story-telling with more interactive and immersive gameplay.- Solo Developed by me, Rune Storm.

Hi! I'm Maria, CEO of LAB. LAB is one of the most exciting places to work at in the Colony. At LAB we are paving the way for the future.

I've been CEO for five years and have been leading the way on some groundbreaking projects that will help all of us in the Colony.

Even though the Red Colony follows a strict Communist Code and each individual's work is as important as the next, I do believe that LAB is the heart of the Colony and the most important thing for our future. Recently we received a big check from the Mayor, which we have put towards upgrading our equipment, expanding the LAB facility and hiring new staff (some of which come from the Blue Colony... That will be interesting...)

Plus, our most exciting and revolutionary project at the LAB is. . . Sorry, I get so carried away with work! I can't tell you all of our secrets.

I forgot to mention that I'm married to James, the Mayor of the Red Colony (Convenient, I know) and we have a beautiful daughter together called Diana. She's just as smart and beautiful as her mother. Life in the Red Colony is perfect, there's nothing that could ever spoil our wonderful commune.

The Red Colony follows a strict communist code. The inhabitants all aim towards a common goal for the betterment of the Colony and humankind as a whole. Insulting another person's work can lead to huge fines, imprisonment or in the worst case; banishment from the Colony.

In the early days, it was clear that capitalism and competition would cause more harm than good for the Colony. Thus the Founders wrote "The Communist Code" whereas the neighbouring Colony chose capitalism as a founding principle. Over time, the colonies have become rivals, leading to an arms-race. Ironically, both colonies have similar goals but very different approaches. Thus, the arms-race is to see who will succeed first.

Travel between the colonies has become more difficult than ever, especially since you have to travel by air. To do this, inhabitants must be presented with a special permit to visit the neighbouring colony. Therefore, interaction between the inhabitants of the two colonies is near impossible.

2DTCT (2D Tear-Clothes-Technology)

To get to the flesh, Zombies like to tear through peoples' clothing. When Maria's clothing reaches 0%, she can no longer fight off the zombie horde and will get bitten. Be careful!

This game contain Mature Content such as Blood, Gore, Nudity and Swearing.

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Ecchi horror game "Red Colony" heads to Switch on Jan. 7th, 2021 - GoNintendo

Christmas dinner can be festive – and thrifty – with this $60 feast for four – The Durango Herald

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One of the realities of Christmas 2020 is that many people are on tighter budgets than usual. That doesnt have to be an impediment to a sumptuous, festive holiday meal instead, let it be like a little puzzle to solve.

I set myself the goal of figuring out a dinner for four that felt 100% holiday-worthy, but cost just three Andrew Jacksons. I hope youll agree there is nothing about this menu that feels downscale.

The centerpiece is a glazed ham, and the good news is that hams are available in many sizes. A boneless ham portion of about 3 pounds is ample for four people, with leftovers so you can think about ham and biscuit sandwiches, bean soups studded with chopped ham, grilled ham and cheese, maybe a quiche Lorraine later in the week.

If this all sounds really good, you might go for a 4-pound ham.

I cannot tell you how much my family likes my Cheddar Potato Gratin. There is nothing frugal about this lush dish. If you have a few more dollars to throw into the pot, treat yourself to some top-of-the-line cheddar. Leftovers will be fought over (and in my house, I will win, because I will know where they are hidden in the fridge).

And then the humble cabbage is transformed into a silky, jewel-toned side dish. This whole side is the sum total of about $3 worth of ingredients (a fact you can keep to yourself). When cabbage is first seared and then braised, it becomes meltingly tender, with a sweetness complemented by a level of flavor you can only get with caramelization and a knob of butter.

Tie it all together with a simple lettuce salad with a mix of any of your favorite lettuces. You can go robust (endive, radicchio, escarole), mild (butter, bibb, mesclun), or somewhere in the middle. Toss it with a tangy vinaigrette to round the plate out with a little acidity and texture.

Finally, end the meal with a dessert that feels classic, merry and even elegant. Pears, poached in apple cider, lemon and brown sugar are then drizzled with a rich chocolate sauce and sprinkled with chopped crystallized ginger.

If you have leftover cream from another dish, whip a cup or so with a touch of powdered sugar and vanilla and bloop it next to the plated pears for an even grander finale.

The $60 total presumes you have some things on hand (such as peppercorns, oil, vinegar and salt), but otherwise, you should be able to stick to this budget.

Drinks are not included, but, if youre on a budget, go into your favorite wine store or grocery, share your menu with them, give them a price limit and ask for recommendations. Think about prosecco or cava as your sparkling wine cheaper than champagne, but just as effervescent and cheery. Or try sparkling apple cider!

Happy and merry and cheers to all. Heres how we recommend tackling this meal: Poach the pears first or even a day before the meal. On the day you plan to serve, make the potato gratin first. Then, lower your oven temperature and make the ham and cabbage, which cook at the same temperature. While they cook, finish preparing the dessert and make the salad.

When you remove the ham from the oven, re-cover the potatoes and slip them back in the oven to reheat for about 10 minutes before serving.

Apricot-Bourbon Glazed Ham

Time: Active: 15 minutes | Total: 2 hours 15 minutes

Servings: 4 to 6

A store-bought cooked ham doesnt need additional cooking to be safe to eat, but baking it a second time allows you to add a lacquer-like glaze that provides sweet tanginess. Basting the ham a few times during the course of the cooking allows the outside to get shiny and caramelized.If youd prefer not to use bourbon, you can swap in apple cider or pineapple juice instead. For a few dollars, you can buy one of those little bottles of bourbon like they sell on airplanes; it really gives the glaze a memorable depth of flavor.

Make Ahead: The glaze can be made up to 3 days in advance.

Storage Notes: Leftover ham can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.

INGREDIENTS: cup apricot preserves or jam2 teaspoons minced or finely grated fresh ginger2 tablespoons bourbonOne (3-pound) uncured, cooked boneless hamMethod:

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees. Line a shallow baking pan with foil and spray with nonstick spray.

In a small bowl, combine the apricot preserves, ginger and bourbon and mix until well combined.

Using a sharp paring knife, score the ham by making crosshatch cuts all over the surface about inch deep and -inch apart, creating a square or diamond pattern. Place the ham cut side down in the baking pan and brush it with about a third of the glaze.

Bake, uncovered, for 45 minutes. Brush the ham with another third of the glaze. Bake for about 45 minutes longer, then brush with the remaining glaze. Bake for an additional 30 minutes, or until the ham is nicely browned and caramelized on the outside.

Remove the ham from the oven and let sit for 10 minutes before slicing.

Nutrition: (based on 4 servings) Calories: 478; Total Fat: 12 g; Saturated Fat: 3 g; Cholesterol: 151 mg; Sodium: 2940 mg; Carbohydrates: 32 g; Dietary Fiber: 0 g; Sugar: 32 g; Protein: 72 g.

Source: Recipes from food writer Katie Workman, founder of The Mom 100 site.

Braised Red Cabbage Wedges

Time: Active: 45 minutes | Total: 1 hour 45 minutes

Servings: 4

Cabbage rocks: Its cheap, plentiful, versatile and its there in the winter when the variety of fresh vegetables is at a nadir.In this recipe, cabbage is cut into wedges, seared and then oven-braised in cider and a bit of vinegar. It becomes soft and buttery and hard to stop eating. Dont worry if some of the wedges fall apart as you are cutting or cooking them; just scoop up all the pieces and toss them into the pot. When you serve it, try to arrange it so the prettiest wedges are on top.

Storage Notes: Leftover cabbage may be tightly covered and refrigerated for up to 4 days.

INGREDIENTS:3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided1 large red onion (about 10 ounces), halved and thinly sliced1 medium head red cabbage (about 2 pounds)Kosher saltFreshly ground black pepper2 tablespoons cider vinegar (may substitute red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar) cup apple cider or juiceMETHOD:In a large, heavy, ovenproof lidded pan over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 8 minutes. Transfer the onions to a plate. Remove pan from heat.

Meanwhile, using a chefs knife, cut the cabbage in half through the stem. Place a cabbage half on the cutting board, flat side down and slice into roughly 1-inch wedges, leaving enough of the core so that the wedges hold together as much as possible. Trim away the thickest part of the core, as needed. Repeat with the remaining cabbage half.

Position the rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees.

In the same pan, melt another tablespoon of the butter over medium heat. Add half the cabbage wedges, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, without moving them, until lightly browned on the bottom, about 5 minutes, then carefully flip the wedges with a thin metal spatula, season again with salt and pepper, and brown on the other side, about 5 minutes. Toss any loose cabbage leaves in the pan so that they brown on all sides. Transfer the wedges and leaves to another plate. Repeat with the final tablespoon of butter and the remaining cabbage. Transfer the second batch of cabbage to the plate with the first batch.

In the same pan, add the vinegar and apple cider. Return half of the seared cabbage and loose leaves to the pan, sprinkle the cooked onions over, then add the rest of the seared cabbage, placing the prettiest wedges on top.

Cover the pan and place in the oven. Braise for 1 hour, or until the cabbage is tender (a sharp knife should slide in easily).

Serve directly from the pan or arrange on a platter and serve family-style.

Nutrition: Calories: 282; Total Fat: 9 g; Saturated Fat: 5 g; Cholesterol: 23 mg; Sodium: 103 mg; Carbohydrates: 50 g; Dietary Fiber: 7 g; Sugar: 40 g; Protein: 4 g.

Source: Recipe from food writer Katie Workman, founder of The Mom 100 website.

Cheddar Potato Gratin

Total time: 2 hours

Servings: 4

This budget-friendly recipe is scaled generously on purpose, because a plate of leftover gratin heated up in the microwave is truly a post-feast breakfast worth getting up early for.You can use any cheddar that fits your budget, from shredded bagged to a fine aged, hand-grated block. Youll really taste the cheese, so if you have a few extra bucks to throw into a dish, this would be a good place to do that.

Storage Notes: Leftover gratin can be refrigerated for up to 4 days.

INGREDIENTS:Butter or cooking spray, for greasing the dish1 cup low-sodium chicken broth1 cup heavy cream2 tablespoons Dijon mustard1 teaspoon kosher salt1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper1-1/2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves (or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme), plus more for optional garnish2 pounds 8 ounces russet potatoes, peeled and sliced about 1/8-inch thin8 ounces (2 cups) grated sharp cheddar cheeseMethod:Position the rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees. Lightly grease a 9-by-9-inch baking dish with butter or cooking spray.

In a medium bowl or a liquid measuring cup, combine the chicken broth, cream, mustard, salt, pepper and thyme.

Layer half the potatoes in the prepared baking dish. Then sprinkle on half the cheese and pour in half of the liquid mixture. Repeat with the remaining potatoes, cheese and liquid.

Cover the pan with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to bake for an additional 45 minutes or so, until the potatoes are tender (a knife slides should in easily) and the top is browned and crispy. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving; and sprinkle with more thyme, if using.

NOTE: You can make this dish in a 9-by-13-inch pan. Youll get more crispy potatoes on top and a thinner layer of the creaminess, but it is just as good. Bake just as directed.

Nutrition: Calories: 676; Total Fat: 41 g; Saturated Fat: 26 g; Cholesterol: mg; Sodium: mg; Carbohydrates: g; Dietary Fiber: g; Sugar: g; Protein: g.

Source: Recipe from food writer Katie Workman, founder of The Mom 100 website.

Poached Pears With Chocolate Sauce and Crystallized Ginger

Time: Active: 30 minutes | Total: 2 hours 20 minute

Servings: 4

Be sure to use pears that are just turning ripe, not hard but not soft either for this budget-friendly, festive dessert. Bosc, Bartlett and DAnjou produce delicious results. For a twist, try replacing a cup of apple cider with an equal amount of riesling.

Make Ahead: The poached pears may be refrigerated for up to 1 day before serving. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

INGREDIENTSFor the pears:2 cups apple cider2 cups water cup light or dark brown sugarZest strips from 1 washed lemon, preferably organic3 sprigs fresh rosemary (optional)6 black peppercorns4 just-ripe pears, such as DAnjou, Barlett or BoscFor the chocolate sauce: cup heavy cream cup (5 ounces) finely chopped semisweet chocolate teaspoon kosher or sea salt, or more to taste cup chopped crystallized ginger (optional)Sweetened whipped cream, for serving (optional)Method:Make the pears: In a saucepan just large enough to hold the pears, combine the apple cider, water, brown sugar, lemon zest, rosemary, if using, and peppercorns.

Using a vegetable peeler, peel the pears, leaving them as smooth and neat as possible; try to leave the stem intact. Add the pears to the pot, and cover with a circle of wax or parchment paper to prevent discoloration as the pears cook. Use a lid or a heatproof plate that will fit just inside the diameter of the pot to hold the parchment down.

Turn the heat to medium-high and bring the liquid to a simmer. Reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook until the pears are fairly tender but not super-soft, turning every 10 minutes or so, so that all parts of the pear have a chance to be submerged, for 25 to 30 minutes total. The pears are done when the tip of a sharp paring knife or a wooden skewer glides fairly easily into the outside of the pear and meets some resistance as it heads toward the middle. To test this, gently lift a pear out of the pot and insert the tester into the bottom this will keep them unblemished on the sides.

Remove the pan from the heat and let the pears cool with the parchment still on but the lid or plate removed in the poaching liquid until they reach room temperature. The pears will continue to cook in the hot poaching liquid. Either hold at room temperature for a few hours, or transfer the pears to a container and refrigerate for up to 1 day.

Make the chocolate sauce: When ready to serve, place the heavy cream in a small microwave-safe bowl and warm on HIGH until hot but not boiling, about 15 seconds. Place the chocolate chips and salt in another small bowl and pour the hot cream over. Let sit, without stirring, for about 2 minutes, then stir until smooth and the salt is dissolved.

Slice a sliver off the bottom of each pear so they stand up straight. Place each pear on a plate and drizzle each with chocolate sauce. Sprinkle the pears with the chopped crystallized ginger, add a dollop of whipped cream, if using, and serve.

Source: Recipe from food writer Katie Workman, founder of The Mom 100 website.

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Christmas dinner can be festive - and thrifty - with this $60 feast for four - The Durango Herald

8-year-old’s esports contract is turning heads – SVG

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When you were eight years old, you might have dreamed of a career that involved getting paid to play video games. While sites like Twitch and YouTube have made those aspirations possible, the dream has evolved thanks to esports teams. Instead of just making a plain old career out of video games, talented gamers can transform into celebrities and receive everything that comes with stardom. That includes legions of cheering fans, merchandise with their faces on it ... and the occasional questionable contract.

Team 33, a relative newcomer to the esports scene, just signed on Joseph Deen who will go by his nom du game of 33 Gosu as part of their exclusive player roster. If you've never heard of Deen before, that's because he's eight years old, which is younger than many of the current teenage esports players. The kid isn't even old enough to learn basic geometry and algebra, but he's already building wooden towers and floss dancing like a pro, and the internet is up in arms over a single question: Is this legal?

Even though Deen received a $33,000 signing bonus and a free gaming setup estimated at over $5000, audiences can't agree on how to react to the news. Many wish him the best; a few don't quite understand it,and some are curious about the contract and whether it flaunts child labor laws. Kotaku, curious about the latter issue, contacted Team 33 founder Tyler Gallagher, who claimed the contract is legally permissible because of one crucial detail: Gaming isn't work (according to him, anyway).

Even though Deen is now a member of an esports team, he won't participate in tournaments, and the contract lets him skip weekend practice sessions. And, Deen's mother can cancel the contract if gaming gets in the way of his schoolwork. The agreement is, as Gallagher described it, a "reverse contract." It is designed to help Team 33 mentor Deen and is essentially an investment to mold him into a future pro esports gamer, rather than an actual contract. All Team 33 asks in return is a cut of his YouTube and merchandise profits, as well as first dibs on signing him when he turns 13.

While Gallagher insisted that all things gaming aren't work, others starkly disagree. Kotaku also contacted esports attorney Ryan Fairchild, and their response was decidedly different. According to Fairchild, if a Commissioner of Labor or a Secretary of Labor were to examine Deen's contract and obligations, they would find a ton of red flags. To add to the legal conundrum, Gallagher claimed that Team 33 has been testing Deen since he was six to see if he was esports material.

This contract might end up being a case for the courts, since nobody can seem to find any common ground.

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8-year-old's esports contract is turning heads - SVG