Wednesday, November 20th, 2019

Impeachment Hearings, Dem Debate & Solar Breakthrough

All the news you need in 10 min:

Today's episode is brought to you by GenoPalate (use code 'newsworthy') and the Meditation Minis podcast.

Story Summaries

All the news stories mentioned in today's episode are listed with links below, so you can spend as much -- or as little -- time as you want perusing the latest happenings...

Impeachment Hearing Highlights:
Lawmakers questioned four witnesses yesterday, and three of them have firsthand knowledge of the July phone call between President Trump and Ukraine's president. We're breaking down a few of the key takeaways in today's podcast, or see the links below. Coming up today: more testimony, including a major witness who has had direct contact with President Trump about Ukraine. It starts up again at 9 a.m. EST.
Read more: The Washington Post, AP, NYT, WSJ, The Hill, ABC News

Dem Debate #5:
Ten candidates will take the stage during the fifth Democratic presidential debate tonight. The top three candidates in the national polls are still Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, though Pete Buttigieg is gaining ground, especially in Iowa. The debate starts at 9 p.m. EST. Both The Washington Post and MSNBC will be hosting and will stream it live.
Read more: NPR, Vox, Washington Post

Doctors' Group Wants Vaping Ban:
The American Medical Association called for a total ban on all vaping products that haven’t been approved by the FDA. The nation's largest association of physicians points to a surge in the number of young people using e-cigarettes and the recent outbreak of a deadly lung illness. The vaping association pushed back. Meanwhile, President Trump was calling for a nationwide ban on e-cigarette flavors, but reports say he may be backing off that now.
Read more: CNBC, TIME, AMA

Smartphone Vulnerability:
A security research team uncovered a vulnerability with the camera app on Google and Samsung smartphones, meaning hackers could potentially get remote access to take videos and photos. That said, as long as you’ve downloaded the latest updates for your phone and camera app, the issue should be fixed.
Read more: Forbes, Ars Technica

Bill Gates Richest Man:
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is back on top as the richest man in the world with a fortune of $110 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has been at the top of the list for the last two years, but he’s lost some money recently (mostly in his divorce). Gates was first named the richest person in the world in 1995.
Read more: MarketWatch, Bloomberg

Solar Energy Breakthrough:
Speaking of Bill Gates, he backs a newly-revealed startup, Heliogen, that has announced a solar energy 'breakthrough.' The company uses a field of mirrors and artificial intelligence to reflect so much sunlight that it generates heat up to 1,832°F. That means carbon-free sunlight could be used to make cement, steel, glass and other materials.
Read more: CNET, CNN, TechCrunch

First Net-Zero Carbon Flights:
European budget airline EasyJet is going carbon neutral and plans to be the first major airline in the world to operate net-zero carbon flights. The company will start offsetting emissions through programs, such as planting trees. That's the temporary plan while it works on making hybrid and electric planes and researches other ways to reduce emissions.
Read more: CNN, USA Today, AP

Helmets & Free Scooter Rides:
The e-scooter company Bird is trying to promote safety by offering credits and free rides. All you have to do: submit a selfie in the app. The selfie must show you wearing a helmet at the end of your ride. The company hopes this will get riders to actually wear helmets (studies show most scooter injuries happen when people are helmet-free).
Read more: Engadget, The Verge

Work Wednesday - Older Workers Hide Age:

The number of employees who are 50 and older is going up, but many hide their age. A report says they're often afraid of being rejected by younger managers and colleagues, even though it’s illegal for employers to discriminate. That said, by 2030, employees who are 65 or older will outnumber those 18 and younger.
Read more: WSJ