ResidentialBusiness

Investors agree to swap controversial ‘GDP warrants’ for new bondsView the full article

The Federal Reserve faces an unusually contentious meeting this week that will test Chair Jerome Powell‘s ability to corral the necessary support from fellow policymakers for a third straight interest rate cut. The Fed’s 19-member rate-setting committee is sharply divided over whether to lower borrowing costs again. The divisions have been exacerbated by the convoluted nature of the economy: Inflation remains elevated, which would typically lead the Fed to keep its key rate unchanged, while hiring is weak and the unemployment rate has risen, which often leads to rate cuts. Some economists expect three Fed officials could vote against the quarter-point cut that Powell is likely to support at the Dec. 9-10 meeting, which would be the most dissenting votes in six years. Just 12 of the 19 members vote on rate decisions. Several of the non-voting officials have also said they oppose another rate cut. “It’s just a really tricky time. Perfectly sensible people can reach different answers,” said William English, an economist at the Yale School of Management and a former top Fed staff member. “And the committee kind of likes to work by consensus, but this is a situation where that consensus is hard to reach.” The debate, which has also been fueled by a lack of official federal data on employment and inflation during the government shutdown, could be a preview of where the Fed is headed after Powell’s term as chair ends in May. His successor will be appointed by President Donald The President and is widely expected to be Kevin Hassett, the top White House economic adviser. Hassett may push for faster cuts than other officials would be willing to support. English said the potential for greater disagreement could be seen as a sign of healthy debate between different views. The Fed’s tradition of reaching unanimous or nearly-unanimous decisions has often been criticized as evidence of “groupthink.” Yet some Fed officials warn that there are downsides to sharp splits. If the committee votes end up as 8-4 or even 7-5, then financial markets could lose confidence in where the central bank is headed next. Fed Governor Christopher Waller, for example, has said that in the case of a 7-5 vote, if just one official changed their view, it could bring about a significant shift in Fed policy. For now, however, most economists expect what’s called a “hawkish cut” — the Fed will reduce rates, while also signaling that it may stand pat for some time to assess the economy’s health. (“Hawks” refer to officials who generally support higher rates to combat inflation, while “doves” more often support lower rates to boost hiring). The president of the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank, Jeffrey Schmid, is expected to dissent for a second straight meeting in favor of keeping rates unchanged. He may be joined by St. Louis Fed president Alberto Musalem. Fed governor Stephen Miran, who was hurriedly appointed to the Fed’s board by The President in September, will likely dissent for a third straight meeting in favor of a larger, half-point reduction in the Fed’s key rate. After the Fed’s last meeting Oct. 28-29, several policymakers said they would prefer to keep rates unchanged at the December meeting, leading Wall Street investors to briefly downgrade the odds of a third rate cut to less than 30%. But then John Williams, president of the New York Fed, said that this year’s uptick in inflation appears to be a temporary blip driven by The President’s tariffs that would likely fade by the middle of 2026. As a result, “I still see room for a further adjustment” in the Fed’s short-term rate, Williams said. As president of the New York Fed and vice chair of the rate-setting committee, Williams gets to vote on every interest rate decision and is close to Powell. Analysts said it was unlikely Williams would have made such a statement without Powell’s support. Investors rapidly lifted the odds of a cut, which now are at 89%, according to CME Fedwatch. “You’re seeing the power of the chair,” said Nathan Sheets, chief global economist at Citi and also a former top Fed staffer. “Members of the committee, my instinct is, are wanting to underscore their support for Powell.” Powell has come under relentless attack from The President, who just last month said he would “love to fire his ass” and called Powell “this clown.” The Fed is required by Congress to seek low inflation and maximum employment, two goals that are potentially in conflict. For now, Powell and many other Fed officials are more concerned about hiring and unemployment rather than inflation. While the official government jobs reports have been delayed, in September the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.4%, the third straight increase and the highest in four years. Payroll provider ADP, meanwhile, reported that in November, its data showed companies shed 32,000 jobs. And many large firms have announced sweeping layoffs. Worries that the job market could get worse are a key reason a rate cut in December is likely—but not necessarily beyond that. Fed officials will have up to three months of backlogged jobs and inflation data to consider when they meet in late January. Those figures could show inflation remains stubbornly high or that hiring has rebounded, which would suggest further cuts aren’t needed. “What they may end up agreeing to do is cut rates now, but give some guidance … that signals that they’re on pause for a while after that,” Kathy Bostjancic, chief economist at Nationwide, said. —Christopher Rugaber, AP economics writer View the full article

The term 'Mac power user' is a bit vague and almost sounds exclusionary, but I'm here to tell you that if you regularly use your Mac, you absolutely are a power user. You don't need to exclusively be using command line tools or keyboard shortcuts to be a power user. Even though I use my Mac all day, every single day, I keep discovering new shortcuts, awesome apps I'd never heard of, or just general tips that I hadn't come across until now. So, if that sounds like you, you absolutely are a Mac power user, and I'm here to share some tips that have helped me optimize my workflow over the past few years. From setting up automation routines to save time, to a faster way to launch apps, there's something in this guide for everyone who uses a Mac. Spotlight Search is your best friendSpotlight Search is one of the most underrated tools on the Mac. Even though I've had a fair share of complaints with its occasional sluggishness, it's still my go-to for so many things. You can fire it up by pressing Command-Space on the keyboard, and use it for everything from launching apps to converting currencies. Just open Spotlight and type 100GBP (or any other currency), and you'll see it convert that to your local currency automatically. You can also use it to convert imperial units to metric, create calendar events, search for files, or create shortcut actions. And if it still doesn't suit your workflow, you can always replace Spotlight with a better alternative such as Alfred or Raycast. Try advanced Spotlight features Credit: Pranay Parab If you've upgraded to macOS 26 Tahoe, you'll notice that Spotlight is slightly better than before. It now allows you to do two things it didn't before—check your clipboard history, and create shortcuts to execute common actions. You can enable clipboard history by going to System Settings > Spotlight > Results from Clipboard, and access it by using the keyboard shortcut Command-Space-4. As for automation, Spotlight has a new feature that lets you add quick keys to speed up common actions. You can press Command-Space-3 to open the Actions tab in Spotlight, and you'll see a list of supported actions. Next to some, you'll see a button called Add quick keys. Press this button and you can set up a keyboard shortcut to execute it. As an example, I've set up "sm" as the keyboard shortcut to send a message. The moment I type it and select the action via Spotlight, it allows me to type a message and send it to anyone from my contacts without opening the Messages app. Feel free to set up as many quick keys as you want and use Spotlight as your gateway to different actions within apps. Use an app to control per-app volumeOne of the most common annoyances with the Mac is that it doesn't easily let you set a different volume level for each app. If you find that app notifications are too loud and getting in the way of your video viewing experience, the easiest workaround is to use an app to set a custom volume level for different apps. The free Background Music app does a decent job with this, and if you're willing to pay for a much more polished experience, you should get SoundSource ($45). Optimize your window tiling setupsmacOS didn't have any useful window management features for very long, but now it has some good basic options. You can try pressing fn-ctrl-left arrow or right arrow to move windows around, or just drag an app's window to the left or right edge of the screen to see tiling options. You also have the option of hovering your mouse pointer over the green button to the top-left of any app's window, where you'll see lots of options to arrange windows. There are some window tiling settings available under System Settings > Desktop & Dock > Windows, too, so be sure to check them out. While macOS' built-in window tiling features work just fine, the implementation isn't as polished as that on third-party apps, which also offer lots of advanced features that Apple does not. Free window management apps such as Loop and Rectangle offer many more window positioning and layout options. If you're willing to pay, apps such as Moom ($15) and Rectangle Pro ($10) are even better, as they have support for precise custom layouts, and handling multi-display setups, too. Make the most of your Mac's display notch Credit: Pranay Parab Newer MacBooks have a notch in the display, which is a design choice Apple made to give you a larger screen without increasing the size of the MacBook. The notch looks like dead space on your MacBook, but some apps add a ton of useful features to this space. You can have things like music controls, calendars, battery status indicators, AirPods connectivity indicators, and more sitting right in your Mac's display notch. Alcove ($15) is my favorite app for this, as it brings the iPhone's Dynamic Island to your Mac. It shows you when your Mac enters a Focus mode, highlights volume and brightness changes, and when AirPods are connected. It also has gesture-based music playback controls, and much more. But if you just want music controls, you can get Tuneful ($5), which does that job quite well and costs a lot less. The Option key hides a treasure trove of featuresThe humble Option key on your Mac's keyboard holds the secret to many hidden features. Hold the Option key and click the clock icon in your Mac's menu bar. You'll notice that this toggles Do Not Disturb mode on your Mac. It also reveals advanced wifi network information, shows more export formats in Preview, and has several more tricks that only appear when you press the Option key while opening menus from the menu bar. You can customize the dockYour Mac's dock is a great place to keep the apps that you use the most, so that you can launch them quickly. However, there are lots of fun ways to customize the Mac's dock to make it even more useful. Once you've cleaned up the dock by removing apps you don't use and replacing them with ones you do, you can also add spacers to organize the dock and use folders to group multiple apps in one icon. All these options are built into macOS, but third-party apps let you access even more options. The free TinkerTool app makes it easier to add spacers and has extra dock customization options, while uBar ($30) gives you the freedom to completely change the look and feel of the dock. If you're really missing Windows, uBar lets you replace the dock with something that looks like the Windows 11 taskbar, too. The screenshot tools are great Credit: Pranay Parab Your Mac has some amazing built-in screenshot tools, and you should absolutely make the most of these. Press Command-Shift-5 to see the breadth of the screenshot and screen recording tools you get for free. These tools are great, and have been designed with a lot of thought and care, but for some people, they aren't going to be enough. If you want some neat features like taking scrolling screenshots of entire webpages, repeatedly capturing a specific part of the screen, or showing the keyboard buttons you're pressing during a screen recording, then you should consider replacing your Mac's screenshot tool with something better. My favorite app is CleanShot X ($29) and I've used it for over six years now. It has every screenshot feature you could ask for, and its screen recording tools are quite good, too. There are easy ways to free up your Mac's storageIf your Mac's storage is full, it'll slow down a lot, and eventually you may experience a system crash. That's why it's important to keep some free space at all times. Your Mac has an easy built-in way to free up storage space now. Go to System Settings > General > Storage to get started. If you just pay attention to the recommendations on this page, you'll find it easy to clear out lots of storage space in just a few clicks. Beyond that, don't hesitate to enable automatically deleting files in Trash on your Mac. These tools are all really good, but I highly recommend DaisyDisk ($10) for those who want to free up even more space. This app is faster than macOS' built-in methods, has a prettier interface, and lets you see exactly which apps or folders are taking up too much space. Cleaning up also takes just a couple of clicks. Back up your photos to local storageEveryone knows about iCloud and uses it to back up photos to the cloud. My only issue with this approach is that iCloud is a sync service and not a true backup option. If you delete iCloud photos from your iPhone, they'll be deleted from all other Apple devices, too. To safeguard against accidental photo deletion or losing your precious memories, I recommend backing up your photos to a second location. Parachute Backup ($5) is an excellent Mac app that backs up your iCloud photos to an external drive . I recently used Parachute Backup to back up over 12,000 photos to a hard drive on my home network, and it did the job flawlessly in around 2 hours. View the full article

Democratic senators are calling for Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott to compel the acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to testify. View the full article

An influx of adjustable-rate and cash-out refinance mortgage programs during the month pushed the Mortgage Credit Availability Index 0.7% higher in November. View the full article

Ukrainian president pressed by US envoys for a swift response with an aim to agree ceasefire with Russia ‘by Christmas’View the full article

Deputy governor stresses ‘upside risks’ to inflation and argues for cautious approach to further interest rate cutsView the full article

Home Depot Inc. is offering cautious preliminary guidance for next year, a sign that the home-improvement retailer doesn't anticipate the housing market to rebound in the short term. View the full article

President Donald The President just announced that he plans to issue an executive order this week to set federal rules around artificial intelligence—and prevent states from setting their own. “I will be doing a ONE RULE Executive Order this week. You can’t expect a company to get 50 Approvals every time they want to do something,” The President wrote in a Truth Social post on Monday. “We are beating ALL COUNTRIES at this point in the race, but that won’t last long if we are going to have 50 States, many of them bad actors, involved in RULES and the APPROVAL PROCESS.” The executive order is just the latest dramatic act of deregulation from The President, who, since taking office, has slashed rules from banking regulations to environmental protections. Under The President’s plan, the federal government’s framework on AI would override any rules that individual states might put in place to shape the technology’s use or development. The President’s AI executive order isn’t out yet, but a draft version that circulated last month proposed an aggressive framework that would go as far as creating a federal legal task force designed to punish states with AI regulations. Under the order, which would likely attract its own legal challenges, states with AI laws could be denied federal funds. The White House’s interest in preempting AI regulations is a huge windfall for AI companies and investors who have lobbied against state protections. In a hearing on Capitol Hill in May, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman stressed that any rules slowing AI down in the U.S. would allow China to speed ahead. The proposed executive order is the The President administration’s latest effort to end-run state AI laws, but it isn’t the first. This summer, Congress rejected a moratorium on state AI laws slipped into The President’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Similar language that appeared in the year-end defense budget also looks unlikely to make it through, Politico reports, because Republicans don’t agree on the issue. States step in on AI Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis slammed the idea of limiting states’ ability to regulate AI as “federal overreach” in a post on X last month, a position he shares with many other red state governors. “Stripping states of jurisdiction to regulate AI is a subsidy to Big Tech and will prevent states from protecting against online censorship of political speech, predatory applications that target children, violations of intellectual property rights, and data center intrusions on power/water resources,” DeSantis wrote. AI technology has exploded over the last few years with little to stand in its way. The technology is the latest example of how the tech world’s breakneck speed easily outstrips the U.S. government’s ability to craft meaningful regulations. Congress in particular is slow, often gridlocked and ineffective at regulating new industries, which leaves states to work quickly to put their own protections in place. A scenario in which states actually place the most stringent limits on AI wouldn’t be unprecedented. In the absence of federal protections, an Illinois law known as the Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) shields state residents from companies that would use their facial recognition data without permission. While BIPA only applies to Illinois residents, the law has proven strong enough to trip up Meta, which paid out $650 million to settle a related lawsuit before backing away from the technology altogether. For AI companies like OpenAI, navigating a vast patchwork of varying state laws is anathema to the pace of progress—and to their skyrocketing valuations. But states are increasingly wary of the technology: In 2025, all 50 states introduced legislation on AI, and 38 states put new rules in place. In Oregon, a new state law prevents AI agents from using medical titles when dispensing advice. In Arkansas, an amendment to an existing law now restricts how AI can imitate someone’s voice or appearance. In November, dozens of state attorneys general sent a letter to lawmakers urging Congress to reject any limits on states’ abilities to regulate AI. “New applications for AI are regularly being found for healthcare, hiring, housing markets, customer service, law enforcement and public safety, transportation, banking, education, and social media,” they wrote. “Federal inaction paired with a rushed, broad federal preemption of state regulations risks disastrous consequences for our communities.” View the full article

In a new interpretive letter, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency will allow banks to serve as middlemen for "riskless" crypto trades, extending existing brokerage authority for securities to digital assets. View the full article

Google is rolling out a new Data Manager API designed to help advertisers more easily connect their first-party data to Google’s AI-powered ad tools — aiming to boost measurement, targeting and performance without the complexity of juggling multiple systems. Why we care. The Data Manager API makes it easier to feed high-quality first-party data into Google’s AI, which directly improves targeting, measurement, and bidding performance. By replacing multiple APIs with one streamlined connection, it reduces engineering work and speeds up how quickly insights flow back into campaigns. As cookies fade, this becomes a key tool for getting better results from the data advertisers already have. Driving the news. The Data Manager API unifies what previously required multiple Google platform APIs, creating one centralized integration point for advertisers, agencies and developers. Marketers can use it to: Upload and refresh audience lists Send offline conversions to improve measurement Enhance bidding performance by feeding Google AI richer signals It extends Google’s existing codeless Data Manager tool, which tens of thousands of advertisers already use to activate first-party data. Partnership push. To speed adoption, Google is launching with integrations from AdSwerve, Customerlabs, Data Hash, Fifty Five, Hightouch, Jellyfish, Lytics, Tealium, Treasure Data, Zapier and others. State of play. The API is available starting today across Google Ads, Google Analytics and Display & Video 360, with more product integrations on the way. The bottom line. Advertisers who adopt the Data Manager API will give Google’s AI better fuel, improve measurement, reduce engineering complexity, and unlock stronger performance — all while preparing for a privacy-first future. View the full article

Price of metal has more than doubled this year amid booming demand from investors and industrial usersView the full article

You have a desired outcome, but what steps will you take to get there? Goal setting and tracking are important for both personal and professional success. Goals provide direction, purpose and motivation, while tracking helps with accountability and identifying roadblocks. Using goal-setting templates and goal-tracking templates will help deliver projects successfully and likely keep you much more organized along the way. There are over 100 free project management templates for Excel and Word available to download right now on our site. They cover every phase of managing a project and can be used across industries. We’ve cherry-picked the best free goal-setting templates and goal-tracking templates and listed them below to help deliver successful projects. 1. SMART Goals Template Not all goals are created equal. If you set unrealistic goals for yourself or a project, you’re setting yourself up for failure. Instead, be smart. Using a free SMART goals template for Word is the first step to achieving your goals because this goal-setting template ensures that the goals are grounded in reality. Once the goals are set, use this goal-tracking template to ensure you’re meeting your goals. /wp-content/uploads/2023/08/smart-goals-template-image.jpg This is achieved through the simple process of vetting goals. That’s where the SMART part comes into play. This acronym stands for specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound. The goal-setting template is divided into three columns. The first column is for what each letter in SMART stands for. The second column asks a series of questions to help define that goal as related to a specific SMART goal. Finally, there’s a space for answers. When this process is complete, the goals collected will be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound. 2. Strategic Roadmap Template Setting goals is only the start. Now, those goals must be communicated to the team responsible for executing the individual tasks that will lead to achieving those goals. Using this free strategic roadmap template for Excel is a great visual aid for achieving the goal of disseminating the goal across the organization. This goal-setting template is a powerful tool to deliver long-term strategy, key goals, objectives and outcomes. /wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Strategic-Roadmap-Template-for-Excel-ProjectManager-2.webp Using this free goal-setting template helps lay out all the strategy elements to prepare an organization for moving from where it currently stands to where it wants to be at a future date. Having a strategy and executing it are two points that are very distant from one another. The strategic roadmap template helps fill that gap. The trouble with this goal-setting template is that it’s not very collaborative. Project management software is more conducive to sharing strategic plans. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that has robust roadmaps that can be shared with teams. More than that, we have resource management, time tracking and task management features that help teams reach those goals. Our robust roadmaps view all projects related to the strategic goal in one place where projects can be filtered to view which are open. The roadmap highlights key metrics for stakeholders, links dependencies, filters for the critical path and sets a baseline to track variance to stay on schedule. Get started with ProjectManager today for free. /wp-content/uploads/2024/02/light-mode-CTA.jpgLearn more 3. SWOT Analysis Template You can’t set goals blindly. Before setting goals, it’s important to understand where an organization stands. Knowing the competitive landscape and how the company fits into it is essential to developing a strategic plan. That’s where a free SWOT analysis template for Word comes in. It’s another acronym, this one standing for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Filling out the goal-setting template helps to gather the data necessary to make the next, right move. /wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Swot-analysis-template-screenshot.jpg This goal-setting template is divided into four quadrants, one for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The left-hand vertical axis is divided into two parts, one for external and the other for internal. Across the top axis is a column for positive and another for negative. Then it’s just a matter of placing the information about the company and its competitors into the proper quadrants. This will guide the development of a more impactful strategic plan. 4. Gap Analysis Template A gap analysis is a tool to gather information that will help build an action plan. The free gap analysis template for Excel is designed to show how an organization can move from its current state to the desired future state. Use this goal-setting template to understand how to hit a strategic or business goal by determining the actions that must take place. Use it for project management, business process improvement and product management. /wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Gap-Analysis-Screenshot.jpg To use this goal-setting template, first list the focus areas, such as business processes to improve or an HR skill gap. Next, determine the current and future state of that focus area. Then, estimate the gap percentage and list the action items to close that gap (including priority, start and end dates as well as required resources). These action items will be assigned to someone and a status column helps track their progress. 5. To-Do List Template Once goals are set, then comes the real work. Using this free to-do list for Excel is a task management tool that organizes and prioritizes work to make executing that work more efficient and effective. This goal-setting template collects all the tasks a team member is responsible for and keeps them in one place, which makes it easier to manage. It’s also a goal-tracking template in that it provides a sense of progress as each task on the list is completed. /wp-content/uploads/2018/06/To-Do-List-Screenshot.jpg It’s easy to get started with this goal-setting template. Just list all the tasks assigned to a team member and estimate the duration of each task, which includes the start date and due date. As tasks are being worked on, set the percentage complete with the drop-down menu, which goes in 25 percent increments from zero to 100. Then note the progress and add any notes that don’t fall into the previous columns. 6. Milestones Template One of the easiest ways to track progress toward your goals is by using milestones. A milestones template maps out the key checkpoints in a project’s lifecycle; major events such as the end of a phase, delivery of a major deliverable or critical approvals. This structure makes it easy to track when important dates are approaching or overdue, coordinate handoffs or phase completions, and communicate critical deadlines with your team or stakeholders. /wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Milestones-Template-Screenshot.png These milestones mark progress in a clear, visible way, helping teams and stakeholders stay aligned on what’s important and when. By focusing on major achievements instead of every small task, a milestone plan simplifies scheduling, highlights priorities and helps avoid surprises. 7. Progress Report Template Setting goals without tracking their progress is a loser’s game. One way to make sure that the actual progress is aligned with the planned progress is with this free progress report template for Word. A progress report documents how far a project has progressed against where the project plan says it should be at this point. This goal-tracking template captures a snapshot of the project’s progress within a specific time frame to show if things are moving forward as planned. /wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Progress-Report-Screenshot.jpg This goal-tracking template begins with a summary to show the big picture before diving into the details that follow. Those details include all the tasks that were executed over the period covered in the progress report, any issues that came up and the money spent over that time. There’s also room to list any accomplishments and expected accomplishments that will show up in the next progress report. 8. 5-Year Plan Template It’s never too early to start setting long-term goals. This 5-year plan template is designed to define your long-term objective and break it down year by year, noting annual end-goals, strategies or processes to get there, required resources and measurable success metrics. /wp-content/uploads/2025/01/5-Year-Plan-template.png It gives long-term direction, helps prioritize resources and provides a framework for decision‑making over time. With a clear 5‑year plan, everyone understands the vision and can align their efforts to support sustainable growth, avoid chaos, and measure progress against shared objectives. 9. Status Report Template Another goal-setting template is the free status report template for Excel. A status report is different from a progress report. The former is a broad overview of a project’s current state, while the latter focuses on the project’s progress over time. Regardless, both are important goal-tracking tools. /wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Status-Report-Screenshot.jpg This goal-setting template opens with a summary of the project, such as its name, date, project manager as well as the reporting period. There follows a summary of key accomplishments, completed work, planned work, milestones, deliverables and action items. Then there’s a rundown of the project’s health, such as the budget, schedule, quality and scope. There is also a risk management overview and recommendations for going forward. 10. Project Deliverables Template A project deliverables list defines the concrete outputs a project is expected to produce, including the reports, features, products, or services that must be delivered when the project ends. With this project deliverables template, you capture each deliverable’s name, description, who’s responsible, and its due date, all in one organized sheet. You can monitor status (e.g., not started, in progress, complete), add notes or comments and adjust deadlines or ownership as needed. /wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Project-deliverables-template.png By specifying deliverables early, it ensures everyone understands what “done” means, aligns expectations among stakeholders and reduces the risk of scope creep or missing outcomes. This clarity helps guide planning, coordinate work, and validate project success. 11. Requirements Gathering Template Knowing the requirements necessary to execute a plan is a key part of achieving one’s goals. Using this free requirements gathering template for Word collects what’s required and communicates that information between the user and developer. The user will show what they require and the developer ensures that it’s all accounted for in the requirements-gathering process. /wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Requirements-Gathering-Screenshot.jpg The free goal-setting template has a cover page that not only names the project but also has a box that tracks the versions and why changes were made to the requirements gathering template. Next, there’s a section for the project plan, its purpose, scope and timeframe, with milestones, goals and dependencies. Constraints and restrictions are outlined. Then the requirements are broken down into seven subsections to capture everything from user requirements to risk management. 12. Project Overview Template A project overview is a high-level description of the project and one of the documents used to get a new project started. Use this free project overview template for Word to convince senior management of the project’s viability and to get the project team on the same page in terms of the goals and objectives of the project. /wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Project-Overview-Screenshot.jpg This goal-setting template captures everything from the business case, which summarizes the project and its value, to the project deliverables. There’s also a section to capture opportunities and problems, goals and objectives and what’s in and out of scope for the project. 13. Annual Work Plan Template An annual work plan is a strategic document that lays out what a team or organization aims to accomplish over the course of a year. Use our free annual work plan template to turn broad goals into concrete objectives, define the initiatives needed and assign responsibilities, timelines and resources. /wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Annual-Work-Plan-Template-Screenshot-1.png The template offers a central place to organize objectives, giving your team a shared roadmap and helping everyone stay focused on what matters most during the year. 14. Project Summary Template A project summary is part of a project proposal, which is used to convince stakeholders or clients that the potential project is worth funding. To achieve this goal use our free project summary template for Word. This project goal-setting template can also be a standalone document or part of a project proposal. Either way, it’s a comprehensive overview of the project, briefly stated, but including key details. /wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Project-Summary-Template-Image.png This goal-setting template captures important information, such as the project schedule, including durations, milestones and deliverables. There’s space for the project budget, which includes financial projections to show costs and return on investment (ROI). The resource plan is outlined and there’s a risk management overview to show how roadblocks and other challenges will be dealt with. 15. Eisenhower Matrix Template The Eisenhower matrix is a simple yet powerful prioritization method that helps you decide which tasks to tackle first by evaluating two criteria: urgency and importance. Use our free Eisenhower matrix template to divide tasks into four categories: “urgent & important,” “important but not urgent,” “urgent but not important” and “neither urgent nor important.” /wp-content/uploads/2025/02/eisenhower-matrix-screenshot.png You can quickly see which tasks deserve your immediate attention, which should be scheduled later, which can be delegated and which can be dropped. By doing so, the template helps you convert a chaotic to‑do list into a prioritized, actionable plan ProjectManager Helps With Goal-Setting and Tracking Using these goal-setting templates is helpful, but only to a point. That’s because all templates, whether for Excel or Word, are static documents. That means that each must be manually updated, taking teams away from their tasks and giving managers data that is already outdated once added to the template. To leverage an advantage that templates can’t provide, use project management software. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that delivers real-time data and has workflow automation with approval settings to ensure quality deliverables while streamlining processes. Monitor Goals With Real-Time Dashboards There are goal-setting templates that can monitor progress and help make sure the actual effort is aligned with the planned effort. But those templates are always a day late and a dollar short. Get a high-level overview of the project’s key performance indicators (KPIs) with our real-time dashboards for individual projects, a program or a portfolio of projects. Easy-to-read graphs and charts capture time, cost, workload and more, automatically updating as teams log their statuses. Best of all, there’s no lengthy and complicated setup needed as with lightweight alternatives. /wp-content/uploads/2024/05/portfolio-dashboard-screenshot-lightmode.png Get More Details With Customizable Reports When more detail is required, toggle over to the reporting feature. Reports can be generated in minutes and show project or portfolio status, variance, timesheets, workload and more. Filter the reports to go deep into detail for managers and their teams or create a more general overview that can then be shared with stakeholders to keep them up to date. /wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Reports-Light-2554x1372-1.png Related Template Content Looking for more free templates. Other template roundups collect free templates around a theme, whether that’s change management, construction or project management. Below are links to those posts. 14 Free Change Management Templates for Excel and Word 18 Free Excel Construction Templates 25 Must-Have Project Management Excel Templates and Spreadsheets ProjectManager is online project and portfolio management software that connects teams whether they’re in the office, out in the field or anywhere else. They can share files, comment at the task level and stay updated with email and in-app notifications. Get started with ProjectManager today for free. The post 15 Free Goal-Setting and Tracking Templates for Excel and Word appeared first on ProjectManager. View the full article

Dollar-based digital currencies offer benefits for the US, but Britain and the EU are better off resisting themView the full article

More and more people are turning to GoFundMe for help covering the cost of housing, food, and other basic needs. The for-profit crowdfunding platform’s annual “Year in Help” report, released Tuesday, underscored ongoing concerns around affordability. The number of fundraisers started to help cover essential expenses such as rent, utilities, and groceries jumped 20%, according to the company’s 2025 review, after already quadrupling last year. “Monthly bills” were the second fastest-growing category behind individual support for nonprofits. The number of “essentials” fundraisers has increased over the last three years in all of the company’s major English-speaking markets, according to GoFundMe CEO Tim Cadogan. That includes the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Australia. In the United States, the self-published report comes at the end of a year that has seen weakened wage growth for lower-income workers, sluggish hiring, a rise in the unemployment rate and low consumer confidence in the economy. Cadogan said GoFundMe can see that people are struggling to keep up with the rising cost of living. “Someone may be behind on rent or needs a little bit of extra help to get through the next month,” Cadogan said. “That’s a function of what’s going on in these economies. And what is interesting is that people do step up and support folks in those situations.” Among campaigns aimed at addressing broader community needs, food banks were the most common recipient on GoFundMe this year. The platform experienced a nearly sixfold spike in food-related fundraisers between the end of October and first weeks of November, according to Cadogan, as many Americans’ monthly SNAP benefits got suddenly cut off during the government shutdown. These uses suggest that online crowdfunding has come a long way from its roots as a way for entrepreneurs to raise money for their artistic or business endeavors, according to University of Toronto postdoctoral researcher Martin Lukk. Lukk, who studies economic inequality and co-authored a book about the “unfulfilled promise of digital crowdfunding,” said the findings act somewhat as a “barometer of where things are at in terms of desperation.” “When there’s no other net to catch people, I think GoFundMe is where they often end up,” Lukk said. Lukk cautioned that GoFundMe data doesn’t show the “full extent of the desperation” because not everyone in need participates and many users don’t end up reaching their goals. Organizers must have internet access and technological know-how, he said, and a successful campaign often requires savvy storytelling and strong social networks. Iesha Shepard, 34, was initially embarrassed to ask for help. The New Orleans native said she’s dealt with chronic heart failure ever since she was shot multiple times four years ago. A single mother of two daughters, she said she fell sick last month and hasn’t been able to work her part-time hotel job for the past three weeks. Then came the eviction notice. As someone who “barely can make a living,” Shepard said she has struggled to keep up with the rising cost of rent and groceries. When her social security application got denied for the second time, she said she felt especially discouraged. She turned to crowdfunding because, as she said, “I don’t want to be homeless with my children around the holiday time.” “That was my last option,” Shepard said. “I prayed and I did a GoFundMe.” She never expected the response she’s gotten. Her fundraiser has collected more than $1,000 of her $1,800 goal. Setting up the campaign was easy, she said, and the donations really ramped up after she uploaded TikTok videos about her situation. A Nov. 29 post has been viewed more than 10,000 times. Cadogan said his team always hopes that countries have strong government programs around health, housing or seniors’ well-being, for example. But GoFundMe recognizes that no country’s systems address everything, he added. At the end of a year that began with the Los Angeles wildfires that struck Cadogan’s community of Altadena, the GoFundMe CEO said he is “blown away” by the power of help. While asking for help can be a “difficult step,” he said, it is a “courageous act” that is worth taking. “Taking that action opens the door to what can be incredible goodness,” Cadogan said. ___ Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of AP’s philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy. —James Pollard, Associated Press View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. The new Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 lineup was just released this summer, with the Galaxy Watch 8 and the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic offering two different design options. Surprisingly, Amazon is already offering a discount on both watches. The Galaxy Watch 8 is $249.99 (originally $349.99) for the Bluetooth version and $299.99 (originally $399.99) for the LTE version. Meanwhile, the Galaxy Watch 8 Classic is $399.99 (originally $499.99) for the Bluetooth version and $449.99 (originally $549.99) for the LTE version. Bluetooth version Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 (2025) $249.99 at Amazon $349.99 Save $100.00 Get Deal Get Deal $249.99 at Amazon $349.99 Save $100.00 LTE version Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 (2025) $299.99 at Amazon $399.99 Save $100.00 Get Deal Get Deal $299.99 at Amazon $399.99 Save $100.00 Bluetooth version Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Classic $449.99 at Amazon $549.99 Save $100.00 Get Deal Get Deal $449.99 at Amazon $549.99 Save $100.00 LTE version Galaxy Watch 8 Classic $449.99 at Amazon $549.99 Save $100.00 Get Deal Get Deal $449.99 at Amazon $549.99 Save $100.00 SEE 1 MORE If you're coming from the Galaxy Watch 7, there are a few improvements to warrant the $50 list price increase for the base model. You get a brighter display, a bigger battery, a thinner design, a redesigned exterior, new health sensors, an AI-powered running coach, more sleep insights, dual-band GPS, one-handed gesture controls, and Google's Gemini voice assistant directly on the watch. Not bad—but if that doesn't inspire you, the Galaxy Watch 7 now starts at a crisp $129.99 (originally $249.99), and it too is getting the Gemini and sleep updates. If you're not sure whether to get the regular Galaxy 8 or the Classic, the biggest difference is that the Classic comes with a rotating bezel that helps you navigate the menus. (You can read Lifehacker Senior Health Editor Beth Skwarecki's first impressions here.) Also of note, the Classic only comes in the bigger 46mm screen size, while the regular Galaxy 8 comes in 40 and 44mm sizes. For either, you can expect about 30 hours of use from a single charge. If you're planning on keeping your phone with you when using the watch, get the Bluetooth version. But if you want to go on runs and leave your phone behind while still listening to music or taking calls, $50 extra for the LTE is worth it. (Read more about the Galaxy 8 Watch in CNET's review.) View the full article

A reader writes: I work in a 15-person team within a larger organization. We have a hybrid work scheme, with mandatory in-office Mondays and at least one other day on-site per week. We’re a fairly close team, and we all get along despite differences in age, life experience, etc. One of my colleagues, Emma, is a bit of a health nut. Every few months, she tries out a different diet or fad to try and make herself “skinny.” I think she’s already a healthy weight, but she’s very focused on it and on top of that she’s health-conscious and seems to enjoy reading about diet and nutrition. Emma never parades her new diets around or tries to shame anyone about what they’re eating, but she’ll usually explain why she’s not partaking in team lunches, office snacks, and so on. It’s never meant as anything but idle small talk, but it often sparks long conversations among the team about everyone’s different eating habits, etc., often including descriptions of some foods as “bad” and some as “good” and how eating high-caloric foods is “being bad.” With such a large team in an open-plan office, these conversations can get quite loud and distracting. I used to join in with these conversations and discuss my own weight loss woes. However, I’ve recently started getting therapy for disordered eating. I don’t have a diagnosed eating disorder, but I do have issues that mean my relationship with food, diet, and body image are highly negative at the moment. I used to enjoy the occasional chat about health fads, but I now find them extremely uncomfortable and stressful to listen to. Is there a way that I can avoid these unpleasant and sometimes triggering topics of conversation without coming across as rude? Nobody at work knows about my situation because there’s no need for them to, and I don’t want my medical problems becoming office gossip. I also don’t want others to feel like they have to monitor what they say around me. Is there a way to explain my sudden loss of appetite (ha ha) for this topic that won’t get me into awkward conversations? You can read my answer to this letter at New York Magazine today. Head over there to read it. The post how can I shut down diet talk at work? appeared first on Ask a Manager. View the full article

Google cites retailers only 4% of the time, while ChatGPT does it 36% of the time. That 9x gap means shoppers on each platform get steered in very different ways, according to new BrightEdge data. Why we care. Millions of shoppers now turn to AI for deals and gift ideas, but product discovery works differently on the two leading AI search platforms. Google leans on what people say, while ChatGPT focuses more on where you can buy it. What each AI prioritizes. Google AI Overviews cite YouTube reviews, Reddit threads, and editorial sites, while ChatGPT cite retail giants like Amazon, Walmart, Target, and Best Buy. Google AI Overviews prioritize: YouTube reviewers and unboxings. Reddit threads and community consensus. Editorial reviews and category experts. ChatGPT prioritizes: Major retailer listings. Brand and manufacturer product pages. Editorial sources (secondary). The citation divide. On Google, retailers appear only about 4% of the time. Its citations lean toward user-generated content and expert reviews. Google AI Overviews serve more as a research tool than a purchase assistant. Top sources included: YouTube Reddit Quora Editorial sites like CNET, The Spruce Eats, and Wirecutter On ChatGPT, retailers appear about 36% of the time. ChatGPT acts as both the explainer and the shopping assistant, so retailer links show up far more often. Its top sources included: Amazon Target Walmart Home Depot Best Buy About the data. BrightEdge analyzed tens of thousands of ecommerce prompts across Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT during the 2025 holiday shopping season, then extracted and categorized citation sources. Domains were classified by type (retailer, UGC/social, editorial, brand) and compared across identical prompts. The report. Who Does AI Trust When You Search for Deals? Google vs. ChatGPT Citation Patterns Reveal Different Shopping Philosophies View the full article

Tory leader’s comments come amid debate on whether Britain should rejoin EU customs unionView the full article

In an era where digital transformation shapes consumer expectations, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Visa have made a significant leap forward. Their recent collaboration aims to establish what they call “agentic commerce,” which could redefine payment experiences and streamline workflows for small businesses across various sectors. This partnership enables small business owners to leverage the Visa Intelligent Commerce platform, now available in the AWS Marketplace. This platform is designed to simplify and enhance payment processes, offering developers and companies access to critical tools necessary for building sophisticated agentic commerce capabilities. Key features include authentication, data personalization, agentic tokenization, and user intent capture—all essential for creating seamless, secure payment solutions. Rubail Birwadker, SVP of Global Head of Growth at Visa, emphasized the importance of trust in commerce, stating, “Agentic commerce needs trust to move from intent to action; Visa Intelligent Commerce is designed to be the trust layer for the agent economy.” This focus on establishing a secure environment can potentially bolster customer confidence, a critical aspect for small businesses that thrive on building relationships with their customer base. For small businesses looking to innovate, the publication of blueprints by Visa and AWS could be a game changer. These blueprints, available in the Amazon Bedrock AgentCore public repository, offer step-by-step guidelines for creating “work-agnostic” agentic commerce workflows. This means business owners, developers, and financial technology builders can more easily design systems that integrate various operations—from booking travel to managing payments—through intelligent, automated agents. The implications are clear: a small business in retail could efficiently set up an end-to-end shopping experience encompassing product discovery, price comparison, and ultimately, streamlined checkout processes. Similarly, a travel agency could utilize these tools to provide clients with a more integrated booking experience, simplifying everything from planning trips to making secure payments. However, along with these benefits, small business owners should be aware of potential challenges. Implementing such advanced systems may require a foundational understanding of technology and development processes that not all businesses currently possess. The learning curve associated with adopting new platforms can initially strain resources, which is a crucial consideration for small operations with limited budgets. Moreover, while the promise of automation through AI agents is enticing, small businesses need to be cautious about over-reliance on technology. Balancing the benefits of automation with the human touch that many customers still crave will be essential. For instance, using AI to monitor price drops on ticket sales is revolutionary, but having the ability to provide personal customer service checks will enhance overall consumer satisfaction. Quotes from industry leaders further shed light on the potential this partnership holds. David Richardson, VP of AgentCore at AWS, noted that “Visa Intelligent Commerce and Amazon Bedrock AgentCore simplify this by allowing agents to communicate securely and autonomously.” This means a business could efficiently manage customer transactions and data without extensive manual intervention. Karen Bolda, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Expedia Group, adds, “Through Amazon Bedrock AgentCore and Visa Intelligent Commerce, we can deliver next-generation travel experiences.” This reaffirms that small businesses within the travel sector could greatly benefit from these innovations, enhancing their service offerings significantly. The technology could also support strong financial automation for small businesses. As Saurav Sharma, Vice President of Product Management at Intuit, explained, “We’re at the beginning of a powerful new collaboration that will allow us to build done-for-you experiences.” This could translate to better, data-driven decisions regarding budgeting and planning—vital for small enterprises trying to navigate market fluctuations. As small business owners consider integrating AWS and Visa’s agentic commerce solutions into their operations, understanding both the transformative benefits and inherent challenges will be paramount. Embracing these advancements could empower businesses to not only adapt but also flourish in an increasingly interconnected digital landscape. For further details on this innovative collaboration, you can visit the full press release here. Image via Google Gemini This article, "Visa and AWS Team Up to Revolutionize Agentic Commerce for Developers" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

In an era where digital transformation shapes consumer expectations, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Visa have made a significant leap forward. Their recent collaboration aims to establish what they call “agentic commerce,” which could redefine payment experiences and streamline workflows for small businesses across various sectors. This partnership enables small business owners to leverage the Visa Intelligent Commerce platform, now available in the AWS Marketplace. This platform is designed to simplify and enhance payment processes, offering developers and companies access to critical tools necessary for building sophisticated agentic commerce capabilities. Key features include authentication, data personalization, agentic tokenization, and user intent capture—all essential for creating seamless, secure payment solutions. Rubail Birwadker, SVP of Global Head of Growth at Visa, emphasized the importance of trust in commerce, stating, “Agentic commerce needs trust to move from intent to action; Visa Intelligent Commerce is designed to be the trust layer for the agent economy.” This focus on establishing a secure environment can potentially bolster customer confidence, a critical aspect for small businesses that thrive on building relationships with their customer base. For small businesses looking to innovate, the publication of blueprints by Visa and AWS could be a game changer. These blueprints, available in the Amazon Bedrock AgentCore public repository, offer step-by-step guidelines for creating “work-agnostic” agentic commerce workflows. This means business owners, developers, and financial technology builders can more easily design systems that integrate various operations—from booking travel to managing payments—through intelligent, automated agents. The implications are clear: a small business in retail could efficiently set up an end-to-end shopping experience encompassing product discovery, price comparison, and ultimately, streamlined checkout processes. Similarly, a travel agency could utilize these tools to provide clients with a more integrated booking experience, simplifying everything from planning trips to making secure payments. However, along with these benefits, small business owners should be aware of potential challenges. Implementing such advanced systems may require a foundational understanding of technology and development processes that not all businesses currently possess. The learning curve associated with adopting new platforms can initially strain resources, which is a crucial consideration for small operations with limited budgets. Moreover, while the promise of automation through AI agents is enticing, small businesses need to be cautious about over-reliance on technology. Balancing the benefits of automation with the human touch that many customers still crave will be essential. For instance, using AI to monitor price drops on ticket sales is revolutionary, but having the ability to provide personal customer service checks will enhance overall consumer satisfaction. Quotes from industry leaders further shed light on the potential this partnership holds. David Richardson, VP of AgentCore at AWS, noted that “Visa Intelligent Commerce and Amazon Bedrock AgentCore simplify this by allowing agents to communicate securely and autonomously.” This means a business could efficiently manage customer transactions and data without extensive manual intervention. Karen Bolda, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Expedia Group, adds, “Through Amazon Bedrock AgentCore and Visa Intelligent Commerce, we can deliver next-generation travel experiences.” This reaffirms that small businesses within the travel sector could greatly benefit from these innovations, enhancing their service offerings significantly. The technology could also support strong financial automation for small businesses. As Saurav Sharma, Vice President of Product Management at Intuit, explained, “We’re at the beginning of a powerful new collaboration that will allow us to build done-for-you experiences.” This could translate to better, data-driven decisions regarding budgeting and planning—vital for small enterprises trying to navigate market fluctuations. As small business owners consider integrating AWS and Visa’s agentic commerce solutions into their operations, understanding both the transformative benefits and inherent challenges will be paramount. Embracing these advancements could empower businesses to not only adapt but also flourish in an increasingly interconnected digital landscape. For further details on this innovative collaboration, you can visit the full press release here. Image via Google Gemini This article, "Visa and AWS Team Up to Revolutionize Agentic Commerce for Developers" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

For some, independence is a strategic choice. By Gary Thomson The Rosenberg Survey Go PRO for members-only access to more CPA Trendlines Research. View the full article

For some, independence is a strategic choice. By Gary Thomson The Rosenberg Survey Go PRO for members-only access to more CPA Trendlines Research. View the full article

For an architect whose name and work have become known all over the world by laypeople and architecture fans alike, Frank Gehry’s buildings are about as far from the mainstream as one can get. Bent, curved, and clad in shiny metal, the most famous buildings by Gehry, who died last week at 96, are also the most improbable. Coming up with the flamboyant designs for landmark buildings like the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles was only part of what made Gehry one of the most successful and celebrated architects in American history. Just as impressive are the ways Gehry helped explore and expand the architecture technologies used to actually build those swooping designs—revolutionizing the practice of architecture in the process. Frank Gehry Gehry worked for decades to advance new technologies and project management approaches that radically changed how architects work and the inventiveness they’ve been able to bring to modern buildings. “On the technology front he was really a pioneer,” says Aviad Almagor, vice president of innovation at the construction technology company Trimble. A visionary luddite Despite claiming a near-incomprehension of computers, Gehry and his Los Angeles-based firm, Gehry Partners, have been at the forefront of applying high-end technology solutions to architectural design, engineering, project management, and construction since the 1980s. Gehry was one of the earliest architects to experiment with and embrace computer-aided design approaches like optimizing outcomes through parametric design and digitizing designs from concept to construction through building information modeling. These are now standard practices in the world of architecture, but when Gehry and his firm started applying these approaches it was uncharted territory for the field. The breakthrough for Gehry came after his firm won a commission to design a large pavilion for the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. Gehry, a sculptor at heart, designed a massive abstract fish to be built using stainless steel mesh panels. Translating the design concept into a buildable set of two-dimensional blueprints proved complicated. According to an article on the project from Priceonomics, a contractor tried to build a mockup of the project six times, but couldn’t get it right. So Gehry’s team found a solution in a software tool developed by an aerospace manufacturer. Creating an advanced 3D model of the project allowed Gehry and his firm to more clearly communicate the precise shapes and curves of his design to the builders and contractors on the construction site. The project was completed on time and on budget. It was a transformative change for Gehry and his firm, which then used the approach to bring 3D models of its projects past the design phase and use them all the way through construction. This streamlined the designs of his most complicated buildings, while also minimizing the change orders that could have hampered their fidelity during construction. Gehry used this approach on his next major project, his breakthrough masterpiece design for the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, which opened in 1997. With a highly complex physical form and an exterior designed to be made form thousands of intricately bent and curved sheets of titanium, the design was anything but straightforward. An advanced 3D model of the project became an early version of building information modeling, or BIM, creating a single source of information about the design that could be used by the architects as well as the trades people and contractors who built the project. It made a seemingly impossible project possible, according to Samuel Omans, head of AI growth strategy at Autodesk, the architecture, engineering, and construction software company behind industry standard design tools like AutoCAD and Revit. “There was no way at that time that he could communicate the cut sheets and fabrication requirements necessary for that external cladding to the manufacturers and to the folks in the field using 2D drawings,” Omans says. “It just wasn’t possible.” During an interview for Wallpaper magazine at his L.A. studio in 2011, Gehry told me this BIM approach reinvented his practice. “That gave us more of a measure of control. It gave us the tools to control our process,” he said. “And I thought that was only valuable to my kind of work because I do very special shapes, but we’ve found over the years that it’s valuable to everyone.” Technology as a service That realization led Gehry’s firm to turn its expertise into a service. In 2002, the firm spun off a subsidiary called Gehry Technologies, which created an architecture-specific 3D modeling tool based off its experience designing with software built for the aerospace industry, as well as a cloud-based collaboration platform to take those 3D models from design concept to built project. Outside clients, including architecture firms ostensibly in competition with Gehry’s for big projects, streamed in to take advantage of the new toolset. In 2014, Trimble acquired Gehry Technologies for an undisclosed sum. “Bilbao is obviously one very famous project, but there were many others where this kind of technology was needed,” says Trimble’s Almagor, who was involved in the acquisition. “They provided services to support those complex projects and help create a much more efficient project without cost overruns, without schedule delays. It really dramatically changed the way a project can be delivered, and this industry is really challenged by cost and schedule.” Gehry’s architecture technology is now the basis of cloud-based design collaboration tools used by more than a million Trimble customers, and has influenced the shape of 3D design software produced by Autodesk, which had a partnership with Gehry Technologies in 2011. “They were a big part in helping to bring some of our software to the wider market,” says Omans, who is also on the faculty of Yale’s architecture school. He says as contemporary architects have embraced a wider range of inventive forms, this kind of technology has made it more feasible to turn inventive ideas into physical buildings. “The technology was able to drive more and more aesthetic experimentation . . . That approach to the model as the deliverable was absolutely fundamental in delivering some of the most complex projects of the last 25 years.” As an architect, Omans collaborated with Gehry’s firm several times over the years, and says this emphasis on technology stood in contrast to the analog design style of Gehry himself. “He would sit down with you and he’d be ripping paper apart and he’d be crunching up paper and he’d be drawing and sketching,” he says. “The technology kind of allowed him to become an orchestrator of these data-rich prototype models, not just not just the maker of drawings,” Omans adds. “For Frank, this was technology supporting creativity.” Without that technology, it’s hard to imagine many of Gehry’s best known works ever moving past the stage of one of those hand-made models. Even so, Gehry, who was born in 1929, kept his distance from the computers that enabled so much of his creative success. “I don’t know how to turn it on, or how to use it,” Gehry told me back in 2011. “It complicates my life.” View the full article

The Northern Lights, also known as aurora borealis, may be visible in more than a dozen U.S. states Tuesday, December 9, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center (NOAA). A full-halo coronal mass ejection (CME) is expected to reach Earth early to midday on Tuesday, potentially causing periods of “strong” G3 geomagnetic storms (on a scale of G1 to G5). The aurora borealis is the result of a geomagnetic storm that occurs when a coronal mass ejection (CME), an eruption of solar material, reaches Earth and causes swaths of purple, blue, and green in the night sky. This year’s increased solar activity (and thus, more frequent northern lights activity) is likely the result of an 11-year sun cycle peak. Here’s what to know about how to see the spectacular view. Where will the northern lights be visible? The aurora “may be visible over a number of northern U.S. states and lower Midwest to Oregon” on Tuesday, per the NOAA’s alert. According to the NOAA’s map, a total of 15 states are in the line of view for the aurora tonight. Those states include: Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, New York, Vermont, and Maine. When is the best time to see the aurora borealis? For the best viewing, the NOAA recommends facing north, in a spot away from light pollution, between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time. You can track the aurora on the NOAA’s website, where the agency is providing updates and visibility in real time, with a 30-minute aurora forecast. View the full article