ECONOMIC IMPACT

Dec 31 2024HEALTH

What Americans Think About Future Pandemic Policies

Recently, bird flu (H5N1) has made headlines, reminding us all about the importance of understanding how Americans feel about future pandemic policies. To figure this out, a national survey was conducted in 2024 with 1017 adults from across the U. S. The results showed that most people are likely to

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Dec 28 2024BUSINESS

How Digital Changes Can Curb Insider Trading

Ever wondered how digital transformations in businesses can change how markets work? Well, it turns out that it's a big deal, especially for something called "informed trading. " This is when people use inside info to trade and it can really mix things up. It can make prices weird, make it hard for

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Dec 27 2024BUSINESS

Is Going Green Good for Business? China's Tax on Pollution

Imagine you're a business leader in China. Would you believe that paying taxes on pollution could actually boost your exports? Well, that's what happened with the Environmental Protection Tax Law (EPTL) introduced in 2018. This law charged companies for the pollution they produced, and the result? A

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Dec 22 2024POLITICS

Iran's Energy Woes: A Perfect Storm of Problems

Iran, rich in natural gas and crude oil, is ironically facing a severe energy crisis. Schools and offices are now mostly online, highways and malls are dark, and factories are shutting down due to power cuts. Years of sanctions, poor management, outdated infrastructure, and wasteful energy use have

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Dec 21 2024POLITICS

What to Expect from Trump’s Energy Shifts

President-elect Donald Trump’s energy policy, often summarized as “drill, baby, drill, ” is expected to get more complex. His cabinet picks, including Doug Burgum for Interior Secretary and Chris Wright, a natural gas fracking CEO, hint that fossil fuels will be the focus. Both have experience with

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Dec 21 2024POLITICS

Why Trump Wants to Ax the Debt Ceiling

You might have heard about a thing called the debt ceiling. It's like a limit the U. S. government sets for itself on how much money it can borrow. Recently, former President Donald Trump suggested scrapping this limit entirely. This is a big deal, especially because Republicans used to use this lim

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Dec 19 2024BUSINESS

Power Outage: Nantucket Businesses Face $1. 5M Loss

A significant power outage struck Nantucket during its annual Christmas Stroll, leaving more than 1, 400 businesses in the dark for about 27 hours. The island's Chamber of Commerce estimated that affected businesses lost around $1. 5 million. Shops struggled with credit card payments and were forced

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Dec 19 2024BUSINESS

Hollywood's Home Team: New Group Fights to Keep Productions in California

You might think Hollywood is all glamour, but there's a lot that happens behind the scenes. Recently, a new group called the California Production Coalition has formed to keep things in California. Why? Because other states and countries are offering crazy good tax breaks to lure in TV and film prod

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Dec 18 2024ENVIRONMENT

The True Price of CO2: What Experts Say

Estimating how much a ton of CO2 costs society, called the social cost of carbon (SCC), is tough. It needs to consider the whole climate and economic system, and how changes spread in time and space. Scientists have looked at the models used to calculate SCC but in bits and pieces. No one has put it

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Dec 11 2024POLITICS

Trudeau: Trump's Tariffs Could Hit U. S. Pocketbooks Hard

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently warned that President Trump's proposed tariffs on products from Canada and Mexico could make life more expensive for Americans. Speaking at a business event in Halifax, Trudeau said that Trump's 25% tax plan on imports would increase costs for many eve

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