German residents may soon find themselves paying more for steaks, pork chops and sausages. Across party lines, the country’s politicians have proposed raising the VAT, or value added tax, on meat to a standard rate of 19 percent. Presently, meat in Germany is taxed at a rate of 7 percent.
Germany’s lawmakers have suggested using the...
Androgyny has found its space on the toy aisle. Mattel has officially launched the world’s first line of gender-neutral dolls, marketed as Creatable World. Promising to make “doll play more inclusive,” Mattel offers a kit that lets kids make a doll that’s male, female, or neither. “In our world, dolls are as limitless as the kids who play with...
It’s back-to-school season and students could be visiting the majesty of the Grand Canyon, the convolutions of the human brain, the depths of the ocean, or even the barren landscape of Mars — all without ever leaving the classroom.
Indeed, as technology grows and becomes more readily accessible, more teachers are taking their students on...
In-step with today's sensibilities, IKEA is producing a new line of furniture dubbed Råvaror that is not only designed for small spaces, but has the added bonus of being easily dismantled, packed, moved and re-assembled. “Our starting point and creative idea was the reality of urban life,” says Viveca Olsson, Creative leader, IKEA of Sweden. “...
A team at Flinders University in South Australia has developed a new vaccine believed to be the first human drug in the world to be completely designed by artificial intelligence (AI). While drugs have been designed using computers before, this vaccine, for influenza, went one step further being independently created by an AI program. This...
After giving it a test run in a few countries earlier this year, Netflix has confirmed it will officially introduce a new plan that only lets customers stream content on a mobile device. The plan, set to launch in India during the third quarter, will be priced lower than the company’s existing subscriptions. Netflix said the mobile-only plan “...
Meatless meat is having its moment and now, The Old Spaghetti Factory, a large North American restaurant chain, has launched a vegan Beyond Meat Spaghetti and Meatballs menu item at 14 locations across Canada. To make the dish, Beyond Meat is hand-rolled daily with the restaurant’s own blend of signature spices into vegan meatballs and served...
This spring Alphabet subsidiary Wing LLC became the first drone delivery company to receive FAA certification, and the company has successfully launched drone delivery service in Australia and Helsinki. Now, with more drones in the sky, it needs a way to keep them safe. Today, Wing formally introduced its OpenSky app, which could serve as an...
EasyMile’s EZ10 self-driving shuttle buses have already been trialled in Singapore, California, Switzerland, and Finland. Now, one has also entered use in what is being called regional Australia’s first automated vehicle trial. The EZ10 is being utilized in the government of New South Wales’ BusBot program, which is taking place in that state’s...