Nutritix

Category: Culture

  • Government promises robust crypto regulation

    Government promises robust crypto regulation

    The government has published proposals for crypto-asset regulation it hopes will “manage” the risks of the “turbulent industry”. 

    The sector has had a calamitous year, with assets collapsing in value by an estimated 75% from their peak of about $3 trillion in November 2021.

    Ministers estimate up to 10% of UK adults now own some form of crypto.

    They plan to use existing regulations for the industry, rather than creating a bespoke regime.

    The Treasury says that will allow crypto to benefit from the “confidence, credibility and regulatory clarity” of the existing system for financial services, as set out in the UK’s Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (FSMA).

    It wants to create a level playing field between traditional and emerging financial services, where the principle is “same risk, same regulatory outcome”.

    But it also acknowledges some crypto businesses may simply choose to continue operating in offshore jurisdictions that “do not impose equivalent market-abuse rules”.

    The Treasury says its proposals – which it’s now consulting on – will:

    • lay down rules on crypto-asset promotions which are fair, clear and not misleading
    • enhance data-reporting requirements, including with regulators
    • implement new regulations to prevent so-called pump and dump, where an individual artificially inflates the value of a crypto asset before selling it

    Ministers say the measures will “mitigate the most significant risks” of crypto technologies, while “harnessing their advantages”. 

    Economic Secretary to the Treasury Andrew Griffith said the government remained “steadfast in our commitment to grow the economy and enable technological change and innovation – and this includes crypto-asset technology”.

    “But we must also protect consumers who are embracing this new technology – ensuring robust, transparent and fair standards,” he added.

  • The Secret Behind Babbel: Our Language Learning Approach Is Built On 3 Pillars

    The Secret Behind Babbel: Our Language Learning Approach Is Built On 3 Pillars

    Berlin is an international city where you’ll hear snippets of conversations in dozens of different languages on a daily. This is one reason why it’s the perfect city for Babbel’s headquarters — we are 600 language enthusiasts piling into one five-story building in the heart of Berlin. Babbel has employees from over 60 countries, speaking more languages than you can imagine, all working on one popular product in this space.

    Working here, I’m often asked how Babbel is so good at teaching people new languages. To answer this question, I decided to sit down with our own multilingual Belen Caeiro. She leads our Product Marketing team here at Babbel and knows the app inside and out. Here’s what she said about why learning a language with Babbel is so effective.

    Belen explained that she was lucky because her parents helped her get an international education. She lived in Spain, Singapore, the Philippines, the United States, and the Netherlands before coming to Berlin. Her life experience confirmed that Babbel is the right place for her:

    “I know that all the good things that have happened to me in life were possible thanks to a new language.”

    For Belen, there’s absolutely no doubt that today, probably more than ever, we must learn new languages in order to understand each other and integrate new perspectives into our way of thinking. Making this possible is the first pillar that Babbel’s learning is based on.

    “We learn a new language in order to speak it with other people. To make that possible, our product has a few special features,” explains Belen. She opened the Babbel app on her laptop and pointed to the overview of the available courses. “We categorize language learning content in Babbel into relevant topics.” Depending on the language, you’ll find cultural traits and the most common conversation topics right at the beginning. Using public transportation, ordering food, and expressing what you want —are all at the top of the list. 

    Belen points out that the learning content builds on itself, so it’s easy to stay oriented. But if you just want to refresh a few topics, you can also jump right in! Belen clicks “next” on a lesson and then on the microphone symbol: “We use our users’ feedback to continually optimize our product. Thanks to our customer service team, but also the feedback we collect in meetups, we know that our users want to practice their pronunciation. Our speech recognition feature in the product supports them in that.”

  • Dr Phil: daytime television talkshow to end after 21 seasons

    Dr Phil: daytime television talkshow to end after 21 seasons

    Dr. Phil, the US talkshow that saw Dr Phil McGraw divvy out life advice to individuals and which became a regular on daytime television around the world, is set to end later this year after 21 seasons.

    Hosted by McGraw since 2002, the show saw him advise guests who were troubled by problems, often to do with their finances, weight, families, addictions and marriages.

    “I have been blessed with over 25 wonderful years in daytime television,” McGraw said in a statement. “With this show, we have helped thousands of guests and millions of viewers through everything from addiction and marriage to mental wellness and raising children. This has been an incredible chapter of my life and career, but while I’m moving on from daytime, there is so much more I wish to do.”

    CBS sources told Variety that McGraw made the call to end production on the show, which airs five days a week in the US.

    McGraw, 72, first became known after appearing as a guest speaker on Oprah Winfrey’s talkshow in the 1990s and was soon famous for his folksy, straight-shooting advice. Dr Phil was initially produced by Winfrey’s Harpo Productions.

    While McGraw holds a doctorate in clinical psychology, he stopped renewing his licence to practise in 2006.

    The show’s use of psychology as entertainment was often controversial, with some criticising its treatment of mentally ill and vulnerable guests. In 2004, when McGraw likened a nine-year-old boy to a serial killer, the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill wrote to CBS saying “Dr. Phil’s conduct is serious enough to warrant investigation by a relevant board of licensure.” A spokesperson for McGraw said the letter was “based on lack of information and inaccurate, inappropriate assumptions”.

  • Netanyahu says don’t get ‘hung up’ on peace with Palestinians first

    Netanyahu says don’t get ‘hung up’ on peace with Palestinians first

    Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said people can get “hung up” on peace negotiations with the Palestinians, saying he has opted for a different approach in an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper on Tuesday.

    “When effectively the Arab-Israeli conflict (comes) to an end, I think we’ll circle back to the Palestinians and get a workable peace with the Palestinians,” he said.

    Asked by Tapper about the Biden administration’s concerns that settlements in the occupied West Bank could exacerbate tensions, Netanyahu pointed to the success of the Trump-era Abraham Accords that normalized relations between Israel and several Arab countries.

    “I went around them (Palestinians), I went directly to the Arab states and forged with a new concept of peace… I forged four historic peace agreements, the Abraham Accords, which is twice the number of peace agreements that all my predecessors in 70 years got combined.”

    His comments come at a tense moment for Israel. Palestinians and Israelis have suffered terrible bloodshed in the past week, and fears are growing that the situation will spiral out of control. Last Thursday was the deadliest day for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank in nearly two years, followed by a shooting near a Jerusalem synagogue Friday night – which Israel has deemed one of its worst terror attacks in recent years.

    The Biden administration has advocated for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but there has been very little movement and seemingly few active efforts toward that goal by Netanyahu or Palestinian leaders.

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