Tuesday, September 20, 2022

Books are physically changing because of inflation

 DataProt: What’s On the Other Side of Your Inbox: “Did you check your spam folder lately? It’s like walking into a giant shopping mall where everyone wants you to buy their products, hire their services, or marry a Nigerian prince. Thousands upon thousands of emails, all encompassed under a common denominator. Spam. We’ve compiled 20 spam statistics to show just how big this phenomenon has become over the years. SPAM Statistics – Key Findings:

  • Spam campaigns exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic have become rampant. The most common techique, according to Symantec, is snowshoe – using multiple IPs and domains for spam campaigns in an effort to avoid detection.
  • Nearly 85% of all emails are spam.
  • Email spam costs businesses $20.5 billion every year.
  • Scams and fraud comprise only 2.5% of all spam email; however, phishing statistics indicate that identity theft makes up 73% of this figure.
  • Americans admit to losing more than $70,000 to Nigerian Prince scams in 2019.
  • As many as 85% of all organizations have been targeted by phishing scams in 2021.
  • Microsoft accounts are the most popular targets of phishing emails, accounting for 43% of all phishing attempts…”


 Books are physically changing because of inflation - The Economist: “…Publishing can, then, find the paper for the things it wants to print, even in times of scarcity. The industry is currently experiencing another period of shortage, and war is once again a cause (along with the pandemic). In the past 12 months the cost of paper used by British book publishers has risen by 70%. Supplies are erratic as well as expensive: paper mills have taken to switching off on days when electricity is too pricey. The card used in hardback covers has at times been all but unobtainable. The entire trade is in trouble…

Pick up a new release in a bookshop and if it is from a smaller publisher (for they are more affected by price rises) you may find yourself holding a product that, as wartime books did, bears the mark of its time. Blow on its pages and they might lift and fall differently: cheaper, lighter paper is being used in some books. Peer closely at its print and you might notice that the letters jostle more closely together: some cost-conscious publishers are starting to shrink the white space between characters. The text might run closer to the edges of pages, too: the margins of publishing are shrinking, in every sense…”



 ZDNET – “Google Keep is an overlooked gem that keeps track of your seemingly never-ending grocery list, work tasks, or travel agenda. Here’s how to make it your master to-do list that always goes with you. Whether you’re a student, a working professional, a parent, a combination of the three, or just a busy person, you more than likely have a to-do list — or multiple. That to-do list, either mental or physical, can get overwhelming.  As someone who likes to compartmentalize my tasks, I’ve recently found that Google’s hidden gem of an app — Google Keep — is the best tool for dividing, conquering, and transferring the chaos in my brain into action. Here’s a rundown of Google Keep’s features and how you can use them as your virtual to-do list..”


Chess player denies using sex toy to help him beat grand champion Evening Standard 


Making an Enemy of Luxury Lapham’s Quarterly 


Gallup book: Global rise of unhappiness preceded COVID Axios 



Sydney Shoemaker (1931-2022)

Sydney Shoemaker, professor emeritus of philosophy at Cornell University, has died. (more…)