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Listen to this AI chat up a frustrated telemarketer for 15 minutes

Jul25
by on July 25, 2019 at 5:15 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Shareables


Telemarketers are the bane of our existence. With the rise of robocalls and automated bots meant to call hundreds of numbers per hour, The Jolly Roger Telephone Company — a nod to the traditional skull and crossbones — is fighting fire with fire, using automation to keep these scammers on the line in an attempt to waste as much of their time as possible. In its latest example, a vacation scammer attempts to secure an upfront payment from a customer by warning of expiring “vacation credits” with a travel agent they’ve never contacted. From the YouTube description: Here’s our newest…

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Hate Twitter’s new design? Here’s how to get the old look back

Jul25
by on July 25, 2019 at 3:11 pm
Posted In: Apps, Around the Web, Basics


Welcome to TNW Basics, a collection of tips, guides, and advice on how to easily get the most out of your gadgets, apps, and other stuff. You’ve probably heard about it: Twitter redesigned its platform to make it snappier and give you more color themes. But there’s a problem: a lot of people absolutely hate its new look. Don’t despair, though, there’s still a way to bring the old design back – and it’s actually pretty simple. Developer Tobias Messner has built GoodTwitter, a simple add-on for Chrome and Firefox that resumes the Twitter‘s old design. All you need to do…

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Or just read more coverage about: Twitter

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Ripple dumps more XRP than ever before, exceeding $250M last quarter

Jul25
by on July 25, 2019 at 2:45 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, cryptocurrency, Hard Fork


Ripple sold $106.87 million XRP in institutional direct sales and $144.64 million in programmatic sales during Q2 this year. According to Ripple’s latest report, the company sold $251.51 million XRP during that time. Since Q4 2016 to date, Ripple has cumulatively sold $1.14 billion of XRP, the Block’s research has shown. Some 36 percent of this was sold on exchanges, while the remaining 64 percent was sold to institutions. Daily volume XRP’s daily volume increased in the second quarter of 2019, according to CryptoCompare’s Top Tier (CCTT) list of exchanges. Ripple‘s report also says that 12 new exchanges listed XRP in Q2,…

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Study: People behave better when they think they’re being watched

Jul25
by on July 25, 2019 at 2:32 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, syndication


If there exists one moral code that can be shared and agreed by almost all cultures and religions, then it must be the concept of “never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself”. This has come to be known as “the golden rule”. But do people in modern societies really follow the teaching of this principle, especially when there are financial consequences to their actions? Our research brought this question into the laboratory and set out to answer it with a simple game of bargaining. We invited 300 people to the laboratory at the Center for Experimental…

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It’s bloody hot. Be kind to your Deliveroo courier

Jul25
by on July 25, 2019 at 2:03 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Opinion


In case you’ve been living in a refrigerator that’s also located under a rock, you’re probably aware that Europe is currently racked with an unprecedented heatwave. Here in London, where I’m in town for some meetings, the mercury has reached 39 degrees Celsius. That’s 102.2 degrees Fahrenheit, for our American readers. In Paris, it’s even hotter, at over 40 degrees Celsius. Insanity. Given the oppressive heat, you could be forgiven for not wanting to step outside of your climate-controlled houses or offices. That said, please keep in mind those gig economy workers who are working in these arduous conditions for…

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