Bruce Hawsking, Author at Equicoli

NHL player poll: Why 78 percent say there should be no neck-guard mandate

5Feb

By Bruce HawskingNo Comments

Sports

NHL player poll: Why 78 percent say there should be no neck-guard mandate

Mandatory neck guards are coming to youth hockey in the United States.Already required in Canada and many other countries, USA Hockey, which governs the sport at the amateur level in the U.S., has long held its line at “recommending” laceration protection — namely neck guards, but also cut-resistant socks, sleeves and undergarments.The decision was announced Sunday and will go into effect on Aug. 1, about nine months after the issue was thrust into the spotlight when former NHL player Adam Johnson died of a skate cut to the neck during a game in England.More NHLers have begun to wear neck protection in the months since, either regularly or to try to find something comfortable.“You’re seeing more and more of it,” one player told The Athletic. “I wear the shirt for my wrists. I think you’re ...

Amazon Introduces Rufus, an AI Shopping Tool, and Reports Earnings

5Feb

By Bruce HawskingNo Comments

Technology

Amazon Introduces Rufus, an AI Shopping Tool, and Reports Earnings

Amazon entered the consumer chatbot fray on Thursday, announcing a new artificial intelligence personal shopping assistant as the company races to catch up with other tech giants.Customers can ask the tool, Rufus, product questions directly in the search bar of the company’s mobile app, Amazon said in a blog post. The A.I. will then provide answers in a conversational tone. The examples provided in the announcement included comparing different kinds of coffee makers, recommendations for gifts and a follow-up question about the durability of running shoes.Rufus will be available starting on Thursday to a “small subset of customers,” according to the post, and it will be rolled out to additional customers in the coming weeks. Amazon declined to provide more details about how many people will...

Fed Chair Powell Says Officials Need More ‘Good’ Data Before Cutting Rates

5Feb

By Bruce HawskingNo Comments

Business

Fed Chair Powell Says Officials Need More ‘Good’ Data Before Cutting Rates

Jerome H. Powell, the chair of the Federal Reserve, made clear during a “60 Minutes” interview aired on Sunday night that the central bank is moving toward cutting interest rates as inflation recedes, but that policymakers need to see continued progress toward cooler price increases to make the first move.Mr. Powell was interviewed on Thursday, after the Fed’s meeting last week but before Friday’s blockbuster jobs report. He reiterated his message that lower borrowing costs are coming. But he also said that the Fed’s next meeting in March is probably too early for policymakers to feel sure enough that inflation is coming under control to reduce rates.“We think we can be careful in approaching this decision just because of the strength that we’re seeing in the economy,” Mr. Powell said duri...

El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele Wins Re-Election

5Feb

By Bruce HawskingNo Comments

World

El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele Wins Re-Election

Nayib Bukele, the millennial president who reshaped El Salvador by cracking down on both gangs and civil liberties, looked poised to win another five years in office after polls closed on Sunday.The electoral authorities had not released official results by Sunday night, but Mr. Bukele claimed victory in a post on X, saying he had won more than 85 percent of the vote. Legal scholars say Mr. Bukele violated the Constitution of El Salvador by seeking a second consecutive term, but most Salvadorans don’t seem to care. Surveys showed that voters overwhelmingly supported his candidacy and were likely to maintain the ruling party’s supermajority, extending Mr. Bukele’s control over every lever of government for years.Since imposing a state of emergency in the spring of 2022. the Bukele governmen...

Socionaut: the perfect strategic ally to improve companies’ social performance

4Feb

By Bruce HawskingNo Comments

Empresas

Socionaut: the perfect strategic ally to improve companies’ social performance

In today's interconnected global world, the success of companies and organizations heavily relies on social performance. Socionaut, a prominent international consulting firm, specializes in various aspects of social performance, aiming to forge a more just, sustainable, and equitable future in line with the 2030 agenda.The firm deeply acknowledges the significance of comprehending and considering the needs and concerns of all parties involved in a project. Consequently, they make it their mission to grasp the perspectives of all stakeholders, recognizing the role it plays in formulating effective and permanent solutions. Addiotionally, innovation is a core value upheld by the company, as they ardently apply innovative thinking and methodologies to tackle the evolving needs of the comm...

3Feb

By Bruce HawskingNo Comments

Health

When a Spouse Goes to the Nursing Home

Even as the signals of approaching dementia became impossible to ignore, Joseph Drolet dreaded the prospect of moving his partner into a long-term care facility.Mr. Drolet, 79, and his beloved Rebecca, 71, both retired lawyers and prosecutors in Atlanta, had been a couple for 33 years, though they retained separate homes. In 2019, she began getting lost while driving, mishandling her finances and struggling with the television remote. The diagnosis — Alzheimer’s disease — came in 2021.Over time, Mr. Drolet moved Rebecca (whose surname he asked to withhold to protect her privacy) into his home. But serving as her round-the-clock caregiver, as she needed help with every daily task, became exhausting and untenable. Rebecca began wandering their neighborhood and “getting dressed in the middle ...