Innehållsförteckning för #563 från AppleMagazine

Karen Raschke, a retired attorney in New York, started getting her groceries delivered early in the pandemic. Each delivery cost $30 in fees and tips, but it was worth it to avoid the store. Then earlier this spring, Raschke learned her rent was increasing by $617 per month. Delivery was one of the first things she cut from her budget. Now, the 75-year-old walks four blocks to the grocery several times a week. She only uses delivery on rare occasions, like a recent heat wave. “To do it every week is not sustainable,” she said. Raschke isn’t alone. U.S. demand for grocery delivery is cooling as prices for food and other necessities rise. Some are shifting to pickup — a less expensive alternative where shoppers pull up curbside or go…

The Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on virtual currency mixer Tornado Cash, which has allegedly helped to launder more than $7 billion worth of virtual currency since its creation in 2019. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control says Tornado Cash’s systems were used, among other things, to launder more than $96 million drawn from the June Harmony blockchain bridge theft and August Nomad crypto firm heist. Mixing services combine various digital assets, including potentially illegally obtained funds and legitimately obtained funds, so that illegal actors can obscure the origin of the stolen funds. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that the U.S. “will continue to pursue actions against mixers laundering virtual currency for criminals and those who assist them.” The new sanctions point to the growing use…

Elon Musk has sold nearly $7 billion worth of shares in Tesla as the billionaire gets his finances in order ahead of his court battle with Twitter. Musk disclosed in series of regulatory filings that he unloaded about 8 million shares of his company Tesla Inc. in recent days. “In the (hopefully unlikely) event that Twitter forces this deal to close and some equity partners don’t come through, it is important to avoid an emergency sale of Tesla stock,” Musk tweeted late Tuesday. Musk is by far the largest individual shareholder in both Tesla and Twitter. Shares of Tesla rose almost 2% before the opening bell Wednesday. Shares of Twitter Inc., up 16% in the past month with most believing Musk faces long-shot odds of success in court, jumped another…

Prominent demographers are asking the U.S. Census Bureau to abandon a controversial method for protecting survey and census participants’ confidentiality, saying it is jeopardizing the usability of numbers that are the foundation of the nation’s data infrastructure. The Census Bureau embraced using differential privacy algorithms for the first time with the release last year of the first round of 2020 census data. Those numbers were used for determining how many congressional seats each state gets, as well as redrawing political districts in a once-a-decade process known as redistricting. The demographers and other researchers ask in a letter to Census Bureau Director Robert Santos that the agency drop future plans to use the algorithms on two other important data releases — annual population estimates and the American Community Survey figures. The…

Spider-Man fandom is in Tyler Scott Hoover’s blood — but not because he was bitten by an irradiated arachnid. His father had collected Marvel comic books featuring the character since the 1970s. “He passed down a ton of comics to me,” says Hoover, 32, of Glen Burnie, Maryland. “It kind of makes it almost like a religion. It would have been hard for me not to become a fan of Spider-Man.” There are legions of fans of Spider-Man, who this month marks 60 years in the vast, imaginative world of comic books, movies and merch. Among those fans are are devotees like Hoover, a professional Spider-Man cosplayer and model who doesn’t resemble the longtime “canon” presentation of the character. However, in the cinematic and comics universes, a Black Spider-Man is…

China criticized a U.S. law to encourage processor chip production in the United States and reduce reliance on Asian suppliers as a threat to trade and an attack on Chinese business. The law signed this week by President Joe Biden promises $52 billion in grants and other aid to investors in U.S. chip factories. It responds in part to warnings that supplies might be disrupted if China attacks Taiwan, which produces up to 90% of high-end chips. China’s ruling Communist Party claims the self-ruled island as part of its territory. The measure will “disrupt international trade and distort global semiconductor supply chains,” said a Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Wang Wenbin. “China firmly opposes that.” Parts of the law “restrict companies’ normal investment and economic and trade activities in China,” Wang said,…

Amazon announced it has agreed to acquire the vacuum cleaner maker iRobot for approximately $1.7 billion, scooping up another company to add to its collection of smart home appliances amid broader concerns from anti-monopoly and privacy advocates about Amazon’s market power and ability to gain deeper insights into consumers’ lives. iRobot sells its products worldwide and is most famous for the circular-shaped Roomba vacuum, which would join voice assistant Alexa, the Astro robot and Ring security cameras and others in the list of smart home features offered by the Seattle-based e-commerce and tech giant. The move is part of Amazon’s bid to own part of the home space through services and accelerate its growth beyond retail, said Neil Saunders, managing director at GlobalData Retail. A slew of home-cleaning robots adds…

UNLOCK THE POWER OF THE APPLE ECOSYSTEM Perhaps one of the most compelling reasons for switching from Windows to Apple is the company’s first-class operating systems and baked-in ecosystems that translate from one platform to another. Over the years, Apple has worked hard to introduce several powerful features designed to make working across your Mac, iPhone, and iPad as straightforward and convenient as possible. For example, you can use an Apple Pencil to create detailed illustrations on your iPad and insert them into a Keynote presentation on your Mac. Universal Control allows you to use the same mouse for both devices, moving your cursor fluidly between two platforms and dragging and dropping files for those with an iPad and a Mac. Universal Control does everything you wanted and hoped your…

Federal regulators said they are satisfied with changes Boeing has made in the production of its 787 Dreamliner passenger jet, clearing the way for the company to resume deliveries to airline customers “in the coming days.” The Federal Aviation Administration announcement confirmed reports late last month and came days after the agency’s acting chief met with safety inspectors who oversee Boeing. The FAA said acting Administrator Billy Nolen wanted to hear about steps Boeing has taken to fix manufacturing problems and ensure independence for Boeing employees who work with regulators. Production of the big, two-aisle 787 has been marred by several problems including gaps between panels of the carbon-composite skin, and use of unapproved titanium parts from a supplier in Italy. Those issues prevented Boeing from delivering any of the…

As concerns about social media’s harmful effects on teens continue to rise, platforms from Snapchat to TikTok to Instagram are bolting on new features they say will make their services safer and more age appropriate. But the changes rarely address the elephant in the the room — the algorithms pushing endless content that can drag anyone, not just teens, into harmful rabbit holes. The tools do offer some help, such as blocking strangers from messaging kids. But they also share some deeper flaws, starting with the fact that teenagers can get around limits if they lie about their age. The platforms also place the burden of enforcement on parents. And they do little or nothing to screen for inappropriate and harmful material served up by algorithms that can affect teens’…

Genre: Dance Number of Songs: 14 Price: $10.99 Funk Wav Bounces, Vol. 2 Calvin Harris With 2017’s Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1, Scottish DJ and producer Calvin Harris brought touches of funk and soul to a number of collaborations. He has used a similar recipe for Vol. 2 – except now with a slightly rawer and grittier, and less electronic-influenced vibe. FIVE FACTS: 1. “With this one, I was like, ‘I wanna have live drums and I wanna have guitar,’” Harris revealed to Apple Music’s Zane Lowe. 2. Harris added: “I want the layers and the grit and the dirt. And I don’t want everything to be mixed perfectly.” 3. The artists making guest appearances on Funk Wav Bounces, Vol. 2 include Dua Lipa, Snoop Dogg, Young Thug, Pharrell Williams,…

PHYSICAL OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN THE WINDOW IN THE WALL OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN & CHLOE LATTANZI A LITTLE MORE LOVE OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN BAD DECISIONS BENNY BLANCO, BTS & SNOOP DOGG MAKE A MOVE ON ME OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN I THINK YOU MIGHT LIKE IT JOHN TRAVOLTA & OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN XANADU OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE (FEAT. OLIVIA ...) DAVE AUDÉ, OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN & CHLOE LATTANZ YOU’RE THE ONE THAT I WANT OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAINBOW JOHN FARNHAM & OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN…

Japanese technology company SoftBank Group posted a $23.4 billion loss in the April-June quarter as the value of its investments sank amid global worries about inflation and interest rates. SoftBank Group Corp.’s loss of 3.16 trillion yen was a reversal from its 762 billion yen profit in the same quarter a year earlier. Quarterly sales rose 6% to 1.57 trillion yen ($11.6 billion). “I must humbly and honestly acknowledge that things are really bad,” a somber Chief Executive Masayoshi Son told reporters. “I must face up to this.” Losses for the last six months totaled about 5 trillion yen ($37 billion), and the latest red ink was the worst quarterly loss since the company’s founding, he said. For the fiscal year that ended in March, Softbank racked up losses of…

Click and gape at the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel ceiling up close. Click again and join thousands of pilgrims praying and circling around the cube-shaped Kaaba at Islam’s most sacred site. Or strap on a headset and enter the holy city of Jerusalem. There you’ll hear the murmur of Jewish prayers at the Western Wall or thousands of worshippers saying amen in unison at the Al-Aqsa Mosque. You can even light a virtual candle at the site where Christians believe Jesus rose from the grave. All without ever leaving home. Worshippers, tourists and visitors from around the world are increasingly joining virtual reality religious activities and pilgrimages to some of Earth’s most sacred sites. Such experiences are among the many evolving spaces in the metaverse, an immersive virtual world where people…

President Joe Biden’s legislative victories have aimed to position the U.S. to “win the economic competition of the 21st century,” but his investments to boost the nation’s technology, infrastructure and climate resilience over the next decade are set against a 90-odd-day clock until the midterms. From turbocharging the U.S. computer chip sector to shifting the nation to a greener economy, the achievements from Biden will take years to come to fruition -- reflecting the sheer scope of his ambitions that, taken together, put Biden among the most legislatively productive presidents in recent memory. Yet Democrats are also gambling that the rapid clip of recent accomplishments will persuade an electorate that’s downcast about the economy and the general direction of the country to vote nonetheless in their party’s favor. Particularly critical,…

A tax credit of up to $7,500 could be used to defray the cost of an electric vehicle under the Inflation Reduction Act now moving toward final approval in Congress. But the auto industry is warning that the vast majority of EV purchases won’t qualify for a tax credit that large. That’s mainly because of the bill’s requirement that, to qualify for the credit, an electric vehicle must contain a battery built in North America with minerals mined or recycled on the continent. And those rules become more stringent over time — to the point where, in a few years, it’s possible that no EVs would qualify for the tax credit, says John Bozzella, CEO of the Alliance of Automotive Innovation, a key industry trade group. As of now, the…

Throughout 2022, new-car shoppers have been paying an average of about $700 over the manufacturer’s suggested retail price. Those in the market for a new vehicle today may experience sticker shock after seeing a dealership has priced the vehicle they want well over MSRP. Dealerships have leverage to set prices by way of added accessories and price increases. These so-called market adjustments and, by extension, dealer-added accessories on new cars were once reserved for highly anticipated vehicles or limited-edition models. But now they are commonplace and part of the cost of doing business in today’s market of low inventory and inflated prices. Experts what you can expect from dealerships for the remainder of 2022 and offers tips on getting the best deal. WHAT ARE THEY? You’ll find these markups on…

by Angus MacLane Genre: Kids & Family Released: 2022 Price: $19.99 Lightyear Buzz Lightyear (Chris Evans), a Space Ranger working for Star Command, discovers a previously unexplored planet where he is subsequently stranded with his commanding officer and best friend Alisha Hawthorne (Uzo Aduba) and a robotic cat named Sox (Peter Sohn). FIVE FACTS: 1. This is the fifth feature-length film in the Toy Story franchise. 2. Lightyear introduces itself in a title card with the words: “In 1995, a boy named Andy got a toy from his favorite movie. This is that movie.” 3. Bill Hader, who voices Featheringhamstan in Lightyear, previously voiced Axel the Carnie in 2019’s Toy Story 4. 4. Lightyear is James Brolin’s first animated film. 5. Brolin revealed that, having never seen any of the…

HOPELESSLY DEVOTED TO YOU OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN MAGIC OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN BAD DECISIONS BENNY BLANCO, BTS & SNOOP DOGG YOU’RE THE ONE THAT I WANT JOHN TRAVOLTA & OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN LET ME BE THERE OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN BREAK MY SOUL (THE QUEENS REMIX) BEYONCÉ & MADONNA PHYSICAL (REMASTERED 2021) OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN HAVE YOU NEVER BEEN MELLOW OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN XANADU (FEAT. ELECTRIC LIGHT...) OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN RUNNING UP THAT HILL (A DEAL WITH GOD) KATE BUSH…

Angel Hope looked at the math test and felt lost. He had just graduated near the top of his high school class, winning scholarships from prestigious colleges. But on this test — a University of Wisconsin exam that measures what new students learned in high school — all he could do was guess. It was like the disruption of the pandemic was catching up to him all at once. Nearly a third of Hope’s high school career was spent at home, in virtual classes that were hard to follow and easy to brush aside. Some days he skipped school to work extra hours at his job. Some days he played games with his brother and sister. Other days he just stayed in bed. Algebra got little of his attention, but…