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Pixel users will soon get an extra layer of protection against malicious calls and texts, as Google's AI-powered, real-time scam detection is rolling out widely next month. The Gemini Nano feature, which is coming to both Google Messages and Phone by Google, runs in the background and will alert you mid-call if it identifies "conversation patterns commonly associated with scammers." You'll hear a beep at the beginning of possible scam calls to indicate that the conversation is being monitored, with subsequent beeps sounding every few minutes. You'll also see an on-screen prompt when suspicious activity has been detected, with options to "End call" or mark "Not a scam." For messages, possible scam texts will be automatically moved to your Spam & blocked folder. Google says that the feature works on-device only and will not save or record any call or message content. Google rolled out live threat detection for spotting malicious apps on your Pixel late last year (the same time that Scam Detection launched in a public beta). That feature alerts you to suspicious apps—specifically, "stalkerware" that scrapes your personal data—in real time so you can evaluate and delete them if needed. How to enable scam detection on your PixelOnce scam detection is widely available in March, you can activate the feature for calls in your settings. Open Phone by Google Settings > Scam Detection and toggle scam detection on. To enable detection and filtering for spam texts in Google Messages, go to Messages Settings > Spam protection. Of course, threat and scam detection features don't absolve users of the responsibility to follow basic security best practices when it comes to calls, messages, and apps. Be wary of calls and texts from numbers you don't know, and don't engage with anyone requesting urgent action, such as providing sensitive information, sending money, or downloading software or apps to your devices. Don't click links in suspicious texts or emails, and always go directly to the website for the bank or institution to locate contact information. View the full article

Research suggests that Google doesn't index over 50% of pages, though indexing rates are improving The post Data Suggests Google Indexing Rates Are Improving appeared first on Search Engine Journal. View the full article

Do you remember a time when the internet was a more chaotically personal place? When the experience of using social media wasn't so uniform? SkySpace seeks to recapture those days. The site transforms your Bluesky profile into a Myspace-esque page, complete with backgrounds, music, and a section for your top eight friends. I kind of love it. "I miss when social media was more about being social and less about media," wrote Ste Curran, who built the site, in the project's FAQ. "I miss the personality, the ugliness, the chaos, the feeling of planting a flag in tiny part of the internet and saying 'this is mine'." And SkySpace certainly delivers there, allowing you to customize basically every aspect of your profile page. Choose any image on the web as your background—including animated GIFs—and tweak the fonts, color scheme, and borders. Add a song to your profile using a Spotify, Soundcloud, or Apple Music link. List your interests. There's even a version of MySpace "friends"—complete with an optional top eight. You can view the SkySpace version of any Bluesky profile, but most of them are boring. To make yours interesting you need to sign in—head to the Skyspace homepage, type your Bluesky handle in the top-right corner, then click "Log In". You will be asked by Bluesky to authorize SkySpace; do that, and you're in. You can now click the various edit buttons to really tweak your profile. Credit: Justin Pot You can link to any image on the web to add it to the background, then choose how the image will be positioned. You can choose the color of each panel, and its transparency. You can choose the thickness and style of the line around each panel. You can even change the text font and color. Hit Submit, and the change will stick. (The way this happens is pretty interesting. Your options are actually turned into a Bluesky post as a reply. SkySpace doesn't store any of your settings on its own servers—the service just scans profiles for relevant posts and renders the page using them. As the FAQ explains it: "When you edit a section the site creates a new post tagged with #skyspace and sends it as a reply to a dead account, @skyspacenull. That effectively hides each post from your followers but SkySpace can see them, parse them and turn them into something beautiful/horrific/beautiful to you.") Explore the rest of your page and tweak everything you can. You can add a quote, a location, blurbs, a song, and even a list of interests. All of this will feel vary familiar to MySpace veterans, as will the friends section at the bottom: Credit: Justin Pot This is populated entirely from your mutuals on Bluesky—people you follow who also follow you back. You can optionally choose which eight people show up here, bringing back the most important decisions one could make on the internet in 2005: Who deserves a spot in your top eight? This site doesn't really return us to the friendlier, simpler internet of two decades ago—if only!—but it's a nice reminder of the chaos and customization we once took for granted. I recommend checking it out. View the full article

The Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing rule, first introduced during the Obama administration and brought back by Biden, was unworkable, opponents said. View the full article

Treasuries gained for a sixth straight session. Morgan Stanley say the 10-year has scope to fall back below 4% if the prevailing view on the Fed shifts. View the full article

Suzy Levian, founder of Suzy Levian New York, has announced the launch of EmpowerHer, a new initiative designed to provide financial and mentorship support to female entrepreneurs. Timed to coincide with Women’s History Month, the program aims to remove financial barriers and help women grow their businesses through grants, scholarships, and networking opportunities. Breaking Barriers for Women in Business Levian, a self-made entrepreneur in the jewelry industry, created EmpowerHer to give back to women facing the same challenges she once overcame. “Amidst the hardships of founding my own business while raising my six children, I found strength in the confidence of all the women who supported me and had faith in my success,” said Suzy Levian. “Now, I want to do the same for others.” The initiative goes beyond financial assistance, offering mentorship programs, business development resources, and networking support to women across various industries. Whether launching a startup, expanding a business, or pursuing financial independence, EmpowerHer seeks to equip women with the resources they need to succeed. A Commitment to Lasting Change EmpowerHer reflects Levian’s broader mission of empowering women to embrace their strength, pursue their goals, and overcome industry barriers. By fostering a network of female entrepreneurs, the program aims to encourage collaboration, create business growth, and inspire the next generation of women leaders. For more information on EmpowerHer, including application details, visit www.suzylevian.com. About Suzy Levian Levian, the first woman in her family’s 500-year-old jewelry legacy to establish her own business, has built a brand centered on empowerment and resilience. Known for her designs featuring The Secret Diamond, a hidden gem symbolizing inner beauty and strength, Levian’s work extends beyond jewelry into home décor and fashion. Her brand, Suzy Levian New York, is available in major department stores and top retailers nationwide. This article, "Suzy Levian Launches EmpowerHer to Support Women Entrepreneurs" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

Suzy Levian, founder of Suzy Levian New York, has announced the launch of EmpowerHer, a new initiative designed to provide financial and mentorship support to female entrepreneurs. Timed to coincide with Women’s History Month, the program aims to remove financial barriers and help women grow their businesses through grants, scholarships, and networking opportunities. Breaking Barriers for Women in Business Levian, a self-made entrepreneur in the jewelry industry, created EmpowerHer to give back to women facing the same challenges she once overcame. “Amidst the hardships of founding my own business while raising my six children, I found strength in the confidence of all the women who supported me and had faith in my success,” said Suzy Levian. “Now, I want to do the same for others.” The initiative goes beyond financial assistance, offering mentorship programs, business development resources, and networking support to women across various industries. Whether launching a startup, expanding a business, or pursuing financial independence, EmpowerHer seeks to equip women with the resources they need to succeed. A Commitment to Lasting Change EmpowerHer reflects Levian’s broader mission of empowering women to embrace their strength, pursue their goals, and overcome industry barriers. By fostering a network of female entrepreneurs, the program aims to encourage collaboration, create business growth, and inspire the next generation of women leaders. For more information on EmpowerHer, including application details, visit www.suzylevian.com. About Suzy Levian Levian, the first woman in her family’s 500-year-old jewelry legacy to establish her own business, has built a brand centered on empowerment and resilience. Known for her designs featuring The Secret Diamond, a hidden gem symbolizing inner beauty and strength, Levian’s work extends beyond jewelry into home décor and fashion. Her brand, Suzy Levian New York, is available in major department stores and top retailers nationwide. This article, "Suzy Levian Launches EmpowerHer to Support Women Entrepreneurs" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Google just announced that its “loss of pulse dectection” feature for the Pixel Watch 3 has received FDA clearance and will be available to U.S. users by the end of March. Read on for more on what this feature does, how well it works (according to one early study), and how you’ll be able to enable it. The feature has been available in several European countries since late 2024. According to a Google help page on the feature, it’s currently available in “Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.” Google - Pixel Watch 3 (41mm) Smartwatch with Porcelain Band - LTE - Polished Silver $449.99 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg Get Deal Get Deal $449.99 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg What is “loss of pulse detection”? According to documents from Google, the feature is meant to sound an alarm and contact emergency services whenever the person wearing the watch loses their pulse. This could be from a heart attack, poisoning, overdose, or other cause of respiratory or circulatory failure, according to Google’s documents on what they had in mind when developing the feature. When the watch detects a “loss of pulse event” (it thinks you are wearing the watch but cannot detect a pulse with the regular heart rate sensor), the watch is programmed to do the following, in order: Perform additional checks (taking about 20 seconds) to be sure that it’s not detecting movement or a pulse. For example, it can use brighter lights in the optical heart rate sensor, and check for movement from accelerometers. Buzz your wrist and ask if you are OK. You can tap an “I’m OK” button to clear the alert. This phase lasts for 15 seconds. Play an audible alarm while displaying a 20-second countdown stating that it will place an emergency call (“No pulse detected / Calling 911 in…”) Call 911 through the watch’s LTE connection, or through a connected phone, and play a recorded message to them (not audible to you or to bystanders). The message states that your watch detected a loss of pulse and that you are unresponsive, and it gives your approximate location. While the call is ongoing, there is a “talk to 911” button displayed on the watch. You (or a bystander) can tap that button to interrupt the recorded message and speak to emergency services as a regular phone call. What is (and isn’t) loss of pulse detection good for? The loss of pulse detection feature is promising for what are sometimes called “unwitnessed” cardiac arrests, as a group of Italian healthcare professionals wrote in the journal Resuscitation. I wasn’t able to find any real-world accounts of this feature saving someone’s life, but to be fair it’s only been available for a few months. Google emphasizes that the feature is not intended to provide any treatment or be expected to save your life, and definitely cannot replace medical monitoring devices that may have been prescribed or recommended to you by your provider. It can’t prevent a loss of pulse, or determine the cause of a loss of pulse, and it can’t even be sure that its emergency calls will go through. Importantly, the loss of pulse detection process has not been tested in a variety of real-world situations that may increase the risk of false alarms, or of missing a real event. These are some of the people who might be most interested in this feature, so it’s worth noting that the feature has not been tested for people identified as high risk for sudden cardiac death, or for people who are pregnant, under 22 years of age, who have chronic pain, poor blood flow to the wrist, peripheral nerve conditions, cognitive impairment, sickle cell disease, or who have a tattoo on their wrist that may interfere with the sensor. How well does loss of pulse detection work on the Pixel Watch 3?Google has published a brief summary of the results of their testing from the watch, as part of this document that gives instructions for use. They tested the feature on 135 volunteers, including—according to a press release—stunt actors who simulated falls while wearing a tourniquet. The sensitivity in a clinical trial was 69.3%, meaning that the feature was activated 69.3% of the time that a person had an actual loss of pulse. The other 30.7% of the time, it didn’t activate. That’s not great, but the idea seems to be that it’s a lot better than nothing. The other metric of accuracy, specificity, Google described as amounting to “1 false positive call over 7.75 user-years” with 131 of their users. (That would be compatible with 131 users wearing the watch for about three weeks each, resulting in one person getting a false positive, but Google didn’t release the full results so we can’t say whether that’s exactly how the study went, or how their use compared to what you might be doing with your watch over the next 7.75 years.) If you do get a false positive, you’ll have a few chances to cancel the alert before it gets as far as calling emergency services. If you tap that “I’m OK” button, the watch will ask if you were doing anything innocuous that may have triggered it. Sleeping on your arm is one of the options; so are a loose fit on the watch band, and not wearing the watch at all. Google also notes that other factors like ambient light, or pressure on the skin, may sometimes result in false positives. How to enable (or disable) loss of pulse detection on the Pixel Watch 3Once the feature is available here, it will be an option when you're setting up a new watch. (So far it hasn't been announced for any Fitbit models or older Pixel watches, just the Pixel Watch 3 in both sizes.) To turn on loss of pulse detection for the Pixel Watch 3 that you already have, go into the Pixel Watch app, tap Safety & Emergency, and look for Loss of Pulse Detection. There is a switch that allows you to turn the feature on or off. View the full article

UK prime minister heads for Washington as president reiterates need for Europe to provide the security for KyivView the full article

A child who wasn’t vaccinated died in a measles outbreak in rural West Texas, officials there said Wednesday, the first U.S. death from the highly contagious respiratory disease since 2015. The school-aged child had been hospitalized and died Tuesday night, state officials said, amid the widespread outbreak, Texas’ largest in nearly 30 years. Since it began last month, a rash of 124 cases has erupted across nine counties. The Texas Department of State Health Services and Lubbock health officials confirmed the death to The Associated Press. The Lubbock hospital where the child had been treated didn’t respond to a request for comment. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nation’s top health official and a vaccine critic, said Wednesday that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is “watching” cases, though he did not provide specifics on how the federal agency is assisting. He dismissed Texas’ outbreak as “not unusual” during a Wednesday meeting of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet members. “We’re following the measles epidemic every day,” Kennedy said. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control has told the AP it is providing vaccines as well as technical and laboratory support in West Texas, but the state health department is leading the response. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said through a spokesman that his office is in regular communication with the state health department and epidemiologists, and that vaccination teams are in the “affected area.” “The state will deploy all necessary resources to ensure the safety and health of Texans,” said spokesman Andrew Mahaleris, calling the child’s death a tragedy. The CDC has said it will only provide weekly updates on the measles outbreak, and has not yet updated its public webpage to reflect the child’s death. Texas health department data shows that a majority of the reported measles cases are in children. The virus has largely spread among rural, oil rig-dotted towns in West Texas, with cases concentrated in a “close-knit, undervaccinated” Mennonite community, health department spokesperson Lara Anton said. Gaines County, which has reported 80 cases so far, has a strong homeschooling and private school community. It is also home to one of the highest rates of school-aged children in Texas who have opted out of at least one required vaccine, with nearly 14% skipping a required dose last school year. The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine — which is safe and highly effective at preventing infection and severe cases — is recommended for children between 12 and 15 months old for the first shot, with the second coming between 4 and 6 years old. Vaccination rates have declined nationwide since the COVID-19 pandemic, and most states are below the 95% vaccination threshold for kindergartners — the level needed to protect communities against measles outbreaks. The vaccine series is required for kids before entering kindergarten in public schools nationwide. Last week, Secretary Kennedy vowed to investigate the childhood vaccine schedule that prevents measles, polio and other dangerous diseases, despite promises not to change it during his confirmation hearings. Measles is a respiratory virus that can survive in the air for up to two hours. Up to 9 out of 10 people who are susceptible will get the virus if exposed, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Most kids will recover from the measles if they get it, but infection can lead to dangerous complications like pneumonia, blindness, brain swelling and death. Measles cases rose in 2024, including a Chicago outbreak that sickened more than 60. —Devi Shastri, AP health writer AP writers Amanda Seitz, Jim Vertuno, and JoNel Aleccia contributed to this report. 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 market for earbuds can be hectic if you're not on top of it, with many brands and new models coming out regularly. I do keep up with them, though, and can tell you which ones are worth your money. The Sennheiser Accentum earbuds are a great value right now, after a 50% discount that lowers their price to $99.95 (originally $199.95), the lowest price they've ever been, according to price-tracking tools. Sennheiser Accentum Earbuds ANC: Yes, Battery Life: 28 hours, Interface: Touch, Microphone: Dual, IP Rating: IP54. $99.95 at Amazon $199.95 Save $100.00 Get Deal Get Deal $99.95 at Amazon $199.95 Save $100.00 The Sennheiser Accentum earbuds came out in the summer of 2024 with an "excellent" review from PCMag. They stand out in their bass frequency and sound quality as well as their ANC performance, and they use tap controls that are fully customizable in their companion app. There is also a customizable EQ in case you like your sound signature to sound a certain way. If you're not sure how to choose your EQ, there is a feature that lets you choose while you listen to different media or genres of music so you can have a set EQ profile for every scenario (like a preset for podcasts, the gym, running outdoors, etc). Combine that with the Sound Zone feature, which automatically chooses an EQ preset depending on your location, and you have yourself a sound set just for you no matter where you go (picture walking into your office and automatically blocking out noise with ANC and setting your preferred EQ automatically). The earbuds have an IP54 rating for water- and dust-resistance, so you can take them outdoors. Just be aware that these earbuds are bigger than most (some people might find that uncomfortable). The earbuds automatically pause when you take them out of your ears, which is always a nice feature. They have Bluetooth 5.3 with Appex, AAC, and SBC codecs and you can expect about six hours of battery life and 20 hours from the carrying case. For $100, these earbuds are a great value, and perfect for people who value ANC and like bass. View the full article

Nvidia forecast first-quarter revenue above market estimates on Wednesday, expecting robust demand for its leading AI chips to persist as businesses spend heavily to expand generative artificial intelligence infrastructure. Its shares rose about 1% in choppy extended trading, after closing up 3.7% in regular trading. Nvidia is the biggest beneficiary of a rally in AI-linked stocks, with its shares up more than 400% over the last two years. The company expects revenue of $43 billion, plus or minus 2% for the first quarter, compared with analysts’ average estimate of $41.78 billion according to data compiled by LSEG. Demand has grown unabated for Nvidia’s advanced chips that can speedily process the large amounts of data used by generative AI applications, as companies race each other to emerge as leaders of the new technology. Generative AI is a type of artificial intelligence that can learn from data and improve over time. Nvidia’s optimistic forecast also helps allay doubts around a slowdown in spending on its hardware that emerged last month, following Chinese AI startup DeepSeek’s claims that it had developed AI models rivaling Western counterparts at a fraction of their cost. This could add fuel to the sputtering AI rally after the Magnificent Seven stocks’ tumultuous retreat from their late-2024 peaks as Wall Street’s optimism waned under the shadow of DeepSeek’s innovations. Nvidia’s revenue for the fourth quarter grew 78% to $39.3 billion, beating estimates of $38.04 billion. —Arsheeya Bajwa, Reuters View the full article

He’s not a movie buff, so New York musician Larry Saltzman doesn’t always watch the Oscars. This year, however, he’s got a rooting interest. Saltzman taught actor Timothée Chalamet how to play guitar for the role of Bob Dylan in “A Complete Unknown.” In turn, Chalamet earned a best actor nomination and the film is also up for best picture at the Academy Awards on Sunday. A guitarist who’s performed with Simon & Garfunkel, Bette Midler and David Johansen, as well as in the pit at Broadway productions “Hairspray” and “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,” Saltzman has developed a specialty in teaching actors how to play music for their roles. Besides Chalamet, recent pupils have included Adam Driver and Sadie Sink of “Stranger Things.” On a fellow musician’s recommendation, Saltzman first got a call from a movie studio about a decade ago. He admits to being cranky as discussions dragged on. “I almost did everything to talk them out of hiring me,” he said. Not until the fifth phone call did the studio identify the client: Meryl Streep. She needed to learn the electric guitar for her starring role in the 2015 film “Ricki and the Flash,” where she portrayed an aging rocker trying to keep her career and life together in the wake of a series of disappointments. Working with Streep is a little like a political consultant’s first client being elected president. If she likes you and word gets around, other students will follow. Teaching actors now represents about 40% of his business, the 69-year-old said. “My time spent with her was excellent,” he said of Streep. “She’s smart. She knows how to learn things. There was a steady progress over three or four months. She did very well.” Faking it just won’t do for serious actors and film directors. It’s like lip-syncing — the audience is going to tell the difference, and the characters will be less believable. That was especially true with Chalamet, who needed to sing and play at the same time for a character whose artistry is the centerpiece of the film. “When the actors come to you, they’re kind of vulnerable,” Saltzman said. “They want to do a great job.” Saltzman had more than 50 sessions with Chalamet, starting in person and retreating to Zoom during the pandemic. It wasn’t easy. Chalamet had to learn some 25 songs in the script. “Sometime in 2018 I had my first lesson with this great guitar teacher named Larry Saltzman who at some point became less of a teacher and more a co-sanity artist through COVID,” Chalamet recalled during a recent interview with The Associated Press. “I think we were keeping each other sane. We would Zoom three, four times a week and doing songs that never made it into the movie.” It helped that Saltzman is a Dylan buff. Focusing on imparting “the guitar playing of ‘pre-electric Bob,’” he taught his charge so well that Chalamet was a musical guest as well as host on “Saturday Night Live,” performing obscure Dylan cuts last month. Saltzman says, in the course of their sessions, Chalamet “went the extra mile” and unearthed “very early, obscure” Dylan songs that weren’t even in the script. Saltzman generally likes teaching actors more than common folk, in part because there’s a specific goal: They need to learn certain songs to inhabit a particular character. When it’s open-ended — someone just wants to learn the guitar — it can be more of a challenge, he said. Saltzman also believes that it’s an advantage to not be a regular teacher, someone who may approach clients with a more rigid style. Actor Johnny Cannizzaro said he appreciated Saltzman’s calming “bedside manner” and felt welcome in an apartment filled with guitars. Cannizzaro has the role of E Street Band member “Little Steven” Van Zandt in the upcoming Bruce Springsteen biopic, “Deliver Me From Nowhere.” “There was never really a moment where he expressed any sort of frustration or impatience with me during a session,” said Cannizzaro, who has background playing keyboards but not guitar. “If anything, he would express some excitement when you grasped something he was teaching. That put me at ease.” Saltzman also studied films of Van Zandt so he wasn’t just teaching Cannizzaro guitar — he was showing specifics of how Van Zandt plays, the actor said. Beyond teaching, Saltzman’s time is divided between studio work, playing in New York clubs accompanying different artists and Broadway — he’s just about to begin “Smash.” It’s an eye-opening experience for him to later see his students on screen. That was particularly the case when he saw “A Complete Unknown” and marveled at Chalamet’s ability as an actor. All the more reason to watch the Oscars, and to take some pride in his own work. “In my own humble way, I’m a small gear in that machinery,” he said. “What is rewarding is knowing that in some small way I’m contributing to making a better film.” —David Bauder, AP entertainment writer View the full article

Results slightly exceed Wall Street expectations View the full article

"Don't Google yourself" is terrible advice. If there's personal information about you floating around on the web, you should be aware of it—because, despite common misconceptions, the internet is not written in ink. If your info is popping up on Google Search, you might be able to get rid of it. On Wednesday, Google announced its redesigned "Results about you" tool. This feature, first rolled out in 2023, looks out for your personal information on Google Search, including your name, phone number, email addresses, and home addresses. The tool then tries to remove any information it does find. Note that this doesn't necessarily delete that information from the website in question; rather, it affects outdated info that appears in Search. For example, you requested a site take down your address, or you edited a webpage to reflect your new phone number, but that deleted data still shows up when people search your name. Using Google's "Results about you" toolHere's how the tool works. First, head to the "Results about you" website. If this is your initial experience with Results about you, click Get started. You'll be presented with a series of pop-ups, walking you through what to expect: You share your personal info, and Google scans the web looking for that info. If Google finds that info, you can ask the company to remove it. Click Next through each pop-up, then punch in your personal information, which includes your full name, nicknames, home address, phone number, and email. For example, I included my full name, a nickname, two recent addresses, my phone number, and three email addresses. Confirm you are indeed the person who this contact info belongs to, then hit Continue. From here, you'll have the option to choose how you want to receive alerts if Google finds your information on the web. You can have Google email you, send you push notifications through the Google app, or both. Once these settings are confirmed, you're done! Google says the process usually takes a few hours, and the company will notify you when it is finished—presumably via the alert method you previously chose. Heading back to the Results about you dashboard, you'll find a "Results found" section, which will list any personal information Google happened to find in its search. There are two categories: "Results to review," which lists any data Google returns, and "Reviewed," which stores any results you've already checked out. Under Settings, you can change how Google notifies you with its results, as well as any of the data you want Google looking for. When you do ask Google to remove a piece of personal information from Search, you'll find that inquiry is added to a section beneath "Results found" called "Removal requests." Here, you'll see whether your requests are in progress, approved, denied, or undone (if you decide to undo a request). You can also send a request to remove a result from the search page itself. Just click the three dots next to any given search result, and choose "Remove this result." Then, select the reason why—likely, "It shows my personal info and I don't want it there." View the full article

All the recent aviation disasters and close calls have people worried about the safety of flying. The midair collision that killed 67 near Washington, D.C., last month was the worst disaster. But there was also the plane that crashed and flipped over upon landing in Toronto, the fiery plane crash in Philadelphia and a plane crash in Alaska that killed 10, as well as two small planes that collided in Arizona. Those all came before the scary moment this week in Chicago when a Southwest Airlines plane had to abort its landing to avoid crashing into another plane crossing the runway. A plane landing at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport also had to perform a go-around maneuver Tuesday to avoid getting too close to another aircraft departing from the same runway. That’s not to mention the time earlier this month when a Japan Airlines plane clipped a parked Delta plane while it was taxiing at the Seattle airport, or the security concerns that arose after stowaways were found dead inside the wheel wells of two planes and aboard two other flights. In addition, a United Airlines plane caught fire during takeoff at the Houston airport and a passenger opened an emergency exit door on a plane while it was taxiing for takeoff in Boston. So of course people are wondering whether their flight is safe? What happened in the worst cases? The Jan. 29 collision between an American Airlines passenger jet and an Army helicopter killed everyone aboard both aircraft. It was the deadliest plane crash in the U.S. since Nov. 12, 2001, when a jet slammed into a New York City neighborhood just after takeoff, killing all 260 people on board and five on the ground. After that, there hadn’t been a deadly crash of any kind involving a U.S. airliner since February 2009. crasd Everyone survived that crash. Crashes are more common involving smaller planes, like the single-engine Cessna that crashed in Alaska on Feb. 6, or the two small planes that collided in Arizona on Feb. 19. Ten people including the pilot were killed in the Alaska crash, and two died in the Arizona one. A medical transportation plane crashed in Philadelphia on Jan. 31, killing the six people onboard and another person on the ground. That Learjet generated a massive fireball when it smashed into the ground in a neighborhood not long after taking off from a small airport nearby. How worried should I be? Fatal crashes attract extraordinary attention partly because they are rare. The track record of U.S. airlines is remarkably safe, as demonstrated by the long stretch between fatal crashes. But deadly crashes have happened more recently elsewhere around the world, including one in South Korea that killed all 179 people aboard in December. There were also two fatal crashes involving Boeing’s troubled 737 Max jetliner in 2018 and 2019. And last January, a door plug blew off a 737 Max while it was in flight, raising more questions about the plane. Federal officials have been raising concerns about an overtaxed and understaffed air traffic control system for years, especially after a series of close calls between planes at U.S. airports. Among the reasons they have cited for staffing shortages are uncompetitive pay, long shifts, intensive training and mandatory retirements. President Donald Trump added to those concerns when he blamed the midair collision over Washington D.C. on the “obsolete” air traffic control system that airports rely on and promised to replace it. Even with all that, officials have tried to reassure travelers that flying is the safest mode of transportation. And statistics back that up. The National Safety Council estimates that Americans have a 1-in-93 chance of dying in a motor vehicle crash, while deaths on airplanes are too rare to calculate the odds. Figures from the U.S. Department of Transportation tell a similar story. What is being done? The National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration are investigating these recent crashes and close calls to determine what caused them and look for ways to prevent recurrences. There have already been troubling revelations about the midair collision, but it will take more than a year to get the full report on what happened. The NTSB always recommends steps that could be taken to prevent crashes from happening again, but the agency has a long list of hundreds of previous recommendations that have been ignored by other government agencies and the industries it investigates. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has said the public is right to say that crashes like the recent ones are unacceptable. That is why he plans to make sure “safety is paramount” as he leads the agency that regulates all modes of transportation. “I feel really good about where we’re at and where we’re going and the plans we have in place to make sure we even make the system safer and more efficient than it is today,” Duffy said in a Fox News interview. —Josh Funk, Associated Press View the full article

Shoppers expect fast, accurate, and personalized search results—but many retailers still struggle with product discovery. The State of Product Discovery in Digital Commerce 2025 report, based on insights from 200+ retailers, reveals how AI-driven search is transforming ecommerce. Conducted by London Research in partnership with Crownpeak, this report reveals how leading brands are: Optimizing site search with AI to improve relevance and reduce friction Personalizing results in real-time to increase conversions Investing in smarter product discovery tools to stay ahead in 2025 Download the full report to discover the product discovery strategies driving retail success. View the full article

If you’ve tried to buy or sell a house, you probably worked with a licensed real estate professional—there are more than 3 million of them in the U.S., and their advice and assistance are often invaluable. Real estate agents know the properties in their area and can help you locate them (and weed out deceptive listings) and guide you through every step of the process. A good real estate agent who has your best interests at heart is worth their commission and then some. But not everyone who has a real estate license is a good agent—or an ethical one. Sometimes the red flags around an agent are big and obvious, but sometimes real estate pros engage in subtle little scams that aren’t obvious at all. These down-low tricks aren’t always illegal, but they’re unethical—and they can cost you big time when it comes to what’s likely the biggest financial purchase in your life. If you’re looking for a real estate pro to help you with your house hunt or sale, watch out for these subtle scams. Sketchy referralsOne of the most subtly unethical things a real estate agent can do is push sketchy referrals on you. It’s normal for an agent to help you find a mortgage broker, a home inspector, or even a contractor to help you figure out if a house is a good fit for you. It crosses into unethical territory, though, if they try to insist you use their referrals or even push you to use them. You can defend yourself from this simply by getting other referrals for any services you need, especially when it comes to mortgage brokers. Real estate agents sometimes have what are called “preferred lenders,” and there can be benefits to using them (like a smoother process)—but you never have to use them. Getting a few other quotes will help you figure out if the person your agent suggests is doing right by you. Buying a listingIf you’re selling a house, you know that one of the trickiest aspects is choosing which real estate agent to work with. Agents know there’s competition for that commission, so there’s always a sales pitch. One subtle little scam some agents pull is simply telling you what you want to hear: That your house will sell for a higher price than what other property experts are telling you. It’s called “buying a listing.” They know that if they confidently assure you that your house will sell for significantly more, you’ll be enticed to sign with them. And they know that when offers come in lower than they promised they can blame the shifting market or some aspect of the property for the discrepancy—and you will probably not be willing to walk away from an offer even if it’s not as high as you were led to expect. A good way to avoid this trap is to do your own research. Get several estimates on what your property could sell for, and look for comparable properties in your area that have recently sold. If an agent comes back with a suggested listing price that is way out of line with the rest, be suspicious. SteeringIf you’re working with a real estate agent and you notice that they never show you homes in specific areas, or ignore your preferences and only show you homes in certain areas, you might be the victim of “steering.” Steering is the practice of trying to steer you into a certain neighborhood or area based entirely on some attribute like race, religion, or gender. It can be very subtle—the homes you’re seeing are in your price range and match your list of must-haves, they’re just always in the same area. Steering isn’t always obvious, either—if you’re single and your agent never seems to show you a large house in a family-oriented neighborhood despite your stated preference for just that, they might be steering you toward what they think of as a more “appropriate” property, your desires be damned. Some signs that you’re being steered include a lot of personal opinions from your agent on who should live in certain properties and a pattern of ignoring your preferences in terms of property size, type, and location. Personal propertyIf your agent sweetens a deal by helping you reduce your future tax burden with a lower official price on the home, you might think you’ve found the brilliant real estate hustler of your dreams. This is usually done by suggesting that a portion of the sales price be listed as payment for “personal property” and not the house itself. This reduces the actual price of the house, which in turn will reduce future tax payments. It’s true that it’s not uncommon to buy stuff like furniture or appliances from a seller, and these items are usually considered personal property and a separate sale. But lying about this is, of course, illegal, and opens you up to a long list of potential consequences. Lax marketingWhen you hire an agent to help sell your house, they’re not just someone to rubber-stamp paperwork and be there for open houses. They’re supposed to market your home to prospective buyers. When you sign with a real estate agent, they should detail what they’re going to do in that department—from advertising to web listings, staging, and even video brochures or virtual tours. Some agents will promise the moon when closing you as a client, then actually do very little in terms of marketing, which saves them time and money. They might still sell your home, of course, but they won’t work as hard for that commission as you expected. Your best practice is to make the marketing plan part of the contract—and then follow up to make sure the plan is being followed. Bait listingsIf you landed with your current real estate agent because you spied a listing for a house that was absolutely perfect and much cheaper than you expected—only to be told that the house had already sold—you may have been the victim of a bait listing. Bait listings are sometimes old listings that saw a lot of interest, so the agent leaves them up in order to attract latecomers, but they can also be deceptive listings designed to lure interest. Once the agent has you in their office or on the phone, they admit the listing is gone—but assure you they can find the right property for you regardless. Off-marketIf your real estate agent tells you that your house isn’t in prime condition and suggests you sell it off-market—without listing it publicly on the multiple listing service (MLS)—they might be setting you up for a subtle scam involving a property investor they already have a relationship with. Once you agree to sell off-market (because the agent has convinced you that sprucing the place up properly is prohibitively expensive), the investor magically appears, offering to buy the place as-is. You wind up selling at a discount, the investor does the sprucing up you could have done, and sells it for a profit—a profit that could have been yours. Meanwhile, the agent may have gotten away with a triple commission: From you and the investor on your home’s sale, then later when the investor sells the house again. Always be skeptical of an off-market suggestion and drill down into how it helps you to have fewer potential buyers—and get your own estimates on repairs and improvements that will make your home more marketable. The ghost buyerSketchy real estate agents sometimes invent phantom buyers when it serves them. There are usually two basic scenarios: When you’re selling your house and looking for an agent, they contact you and tell you they have an interested buyer, or your property fits the bill for someone they know of. Then they push for you to hire them as your agent. That interest buyer probably vanishes—they were just a way to get the agent’s foot in your door. When you’re buying a house and you’ve found a property you want to make an offer on, suddenly there’s another interested buyer, and you’re advised to improve your offer on the house to ensure you get the property. It’s entirely possible there is another buyer, of course, but it’s also an effective (if unethical) way of getting you to pay a higher price, with a higher commission. The best way to defend against ghost buyers is to choose your listing agent according to your needs, and not just because they rang you up out of the blue, and to know at the outset how much you’re willing to pay for a house—and commit to sticking to that. View the full article

Amazon on Wednesday unveiled a generative-AI infused Alexa that it says will allow the popular voice assistant to have more personality, check a user’s tone and even plan romantic dates. But unlike before, when Alexa was offered for free on any Alexa-enabled devices, customers will have to pay Amazon a monthly fee of $19.99 for the revamped voice assistant, which it calls “Alexa+”. However, the generative-AI powered Alexa will be free for Prime members, who pay the company a monthly or annual fee for free delivery and other perks. At a media event held in New York City, Amazon executives showed off the update to the ten-year old digital assistant with the new features aimed at boosting sales and interactions with Alexa-enabled devices. The company says Alexa+ is able to have conversations with a more natural, humanlike flow and can learn more about a user — such as dietary preferences or allergies — the more it’s used. “I’m not just an assistant, I’m your new best friend in the digital world,” Alexa+ said during an onstage demo on Wednesday. At the event, Panos Panay, Amazon’s vice president of devices & services, listed off the other things the voice assistant can now do, such as create study plans, text a babysitter and call an Uber ride for a friend. He and other company executives also said Alexa can fetch videos from Ring cameras — such as checking whether a user’s dog was walked that day — and is able to remember handwritten recipes, emails and other documents shared with it. “She’s smarter than she’s ever been before, but she’s also approachable,” Panay said. Alexa is built into products such as smart speakers, Amazon’s Fire TVs and earbuds. The Seattle-based tech giant launched its popular voice assistant in 2014 alongside its first Echo device, which responds to voice commands. Panay said Amazon has sold more than 600 million Alexa-enabled devices and that user engagement grew 20% last year compared to 2023. Some market estimates have shown Alexa holds the largest market share among voice assistants. The revamped Alexa uses large language models, including some developed by Amazon and others by Anthropic, the generative AI startup the tech giant has poured billions into. Alexa+ has a “model-agnostic system,” allowing it to select the best AI model for the tasks it wants to complete, said Daniel Rausch, Amazon’s vice president for Alexa and Echo. Amazon says it will start rolling out “early access” to Alexa+ in the U.S. next month. It will then roll it out “in waves” internationally, starting with certain Echo devices. The upgraded assistant will be available across Alexa-supported devices, but some features are only built for products with screens. Amazon’s announcement came more than a year after the company teased an early version of an AI-infused Alexa at a media event held to show off new devices. At the time, Amazon had said it was working on a “speech-to-speech” model that would allow Alexa to exhibit humanlike attributes, such as laughter and phrases like “uh-huh” during conversations. During the demo on Wednesday, Amazon highlighted features it had previously kept under lid. In one exchange, Panay showed the new Alexa a video of the crowd in the room to test a feature that apparently allows it to sense the surrounding mood. Panay asked Alexa+ if the crowed “looked pumped” to which it responded the room full of journalists were “paying attention to you and excited.” Like its predecessor, Alexa+ is enabled when users say the voice assistant’s name — but executives on Wednesday said users now only have to say that wake word once before having a prolonged, back and forth exchange. Still, demonstrators would occasionally say “Alexa” again if it seemed like the voice assistant didn’t catch something. Amazon competes in the smart speaker market with other tech giants, including Apple and Google. Though it has had success in selling devices, the company’s other goal — driving Amazon purchases through Alexa — has been more challenging to pull off. Amazon has said Alexa customers have used their device to shop. However, many rely on it mostly for menial tasks, such as playing music, asking questions or checking the weather. A subscription fee for the revamped Alexa will allow the company to offset costs related to AI development and help its devices operations become more profitable. —Haleluya Hadero and Wyatte Grantham-Philips, Associated Press View the full article

Deere investors voted overwhelmingly against a resolution aimed at its diversity, equity and inclusion efforts on Wednesday, continuing a pattern of shareholder distaste for anti-DEI measures despite Republican political pressure on executives. During a webcast of its annual meeting, executives with the farm equipment maker said only 1.3% of votes cast were in support of a resolution calling on the company to report on racial and gender hiring statistics “to prove it does not practice discrimination.” The resolution was filed by the National Legal and Policy Center, a conservative-leaning Washington think tank that has opposed many corporate diversity efforts. Two other resolutions aimed at restricting social action by Deere won similarly low levels of support. Deere’s meeting was closely watched because in July it became one of the first major U.S. companies to back away from supporting programs such as LGBTQ+ pride events. Numerous other U.S. companies have retreated from DEI in recent months, particularly as the Trump administration has stepped up threats to companies and institutions that engage in those efforts. But many investors and executives see DEI efforts as necessary to address underrepresentation of certain populations in management roles. On Tuesday, Apple investors voted in defense of the company’s DEI policies, as did Costco investors in January. —Ross Kerber and Utkarsh Shetti, Reuters View the full article

Google announced the release of version 19 of its Google Ads API, introducing several new features and improvements for developers. What’s new. Google published the highlights of what is new and those include: Added support automatically generating enhanced video assets for Performance Max campaigns. Removed all feed-related entities from the Google Ads API like Feed, FeedMapping, FeedService, AdGroupFeed, feed_placeholder_view. Users should now use assets to achieve the same purpose. Demand Gen ads now support 9:16 portrait image assets. Use DemandGenMultiAssetAdInfo.tall_portrait_marketing_images to include these assets in your ads. Added more methods to DataLinkService for updating and removing previously created DataLink for YouTube. ValueRuleItineraryAdvanceBookingWindow now supports targeting for travel searches that take place today. Removed support for VIDEO_OUTSTREAM. (For allowlisted accounts only) Updates to brand guidelines Brand guidelines can now be enabled for Performance Max campaigns during campaign creation. We also added a new CampaignService.EnablePMaxBrandGuidelines which allows you to enable brand guidelines for existing Performance Max campaigns. You can set the brand guidelines’ details such as font family and colors using Campaign.brand_guidelines. (For allowlisted accounts only) Added support for message assets through Asset.business_message_asset. You can see the full list of release notes over here. Why we care. These API updates enhance tools for optimizing campaigns and analyzing performance across different campaign types. For those of you who use the Google Ads API for your own internal software, you should go through the changes to see how these updates can benefit your internal software. For those that use third-party tools, those tools may be able to add new and improved features based on the new API functionality. View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Making homemade bread and pizza can be greatly improved with the use of a pizza stone. I’ve used one for years, and it’s the best way to get a well-browned bottom crust. I thought I had it all figured out, until the pizza steel arrived. If you’re getting serious about cooking (and reheating) pizza at home, one of these tools should be in your oven. What’s a baking (or pizza) stone?A pizza stone is a plank or circle of ceramic or cordierite (a type of thermal shock-resistant ceramic). They’re typically between a half-inch to three-quarters of an inch thick and can range in size from nine to 20 inches across. Compared to a pizza steel, ceramic stones are relatively lightweight, which makes them easy to move around and store when they’re not in use. They can stain (especially if you’ve flubbed a few pizzas like I have), but cleaning them requires little more than a good scraping once the food bits have burnt to a crisp. I use a metal bench scraper to dislodge big chunks, and then simply wipe off the smaller particles with a damp cloth. Unfortunately, they are susceptible to cracking or breaking. The material is very brittle, so if you drop the stone or knock it with something hard it could crack. The ceramic material is also porous, which means moisture can get absorbed (that’s why I recommend a dry scrape or damp towel only after you’re finished using it). If the stone has moisture trapped inside, when it goes into a 475°F oven it can crack as the liquid rapidly evaporates. Amzdeal Pizza Stone $19.36 at Walmart $39.99 Save $20.63 Shop Now Shop Now $19.36 at Walmart $39.99 Save $20.63 Pros: Lightweight Thermal shock resistant Easy to store Easy to clean Cons: Susceptible to cracking or breaking Porous and can absorb moisture What’s a pizza steel?Pizza steels aren’t quite as widespread in popularity, but maybe you’ve seen one before. They look like the sexier version of a pizza stone; they have the same shapes, rectangular or circular, but they begin to diverge from there. A pizza steel is made of carbon steel. It’s better at conducting heat and, since it’s more dense, better at heat retention. Which means pizza steels can be effective even when relatively thin. They can range from 3/16-inch to a half-inch thick. But don’t let the thinness fool you—they’re damn heavy. Like a cast iron pan or a heavy Dutch oven, this trade off can be worth it, but it undoubtedly makes it harder to lift, carry, or situate in a low cabinet for storage when it’s not in use. Unlike the fussy pizza stone, a pizza steel is robust and relatively indestructible. Water doesn’t get trapped inside, as it’s not porous, and it doesn’t give a damn about temperature shifts. Your pizza steel can last you a lifetime of pizzas if properly cared for. That is, unless it rusts. That’s right: If you don’t ensure your pizza steel is completely dry before storing it, or if you store it with other wet things, you might be greeted with a rusty mess the next time you take it out of the cabinet. Although this sucks, it’s not the end. You can scrub off the rust with something abrasive, like steel wool, but you’ll need to re-season it with some oil. Here are other tips on getting rust off of your pizza steel. Otherwise, you can clean the pizza steel by scraping off the burnt bits with a strong spatula and washing off any grease with warm soapy water—just be sure to dry it completely. I usually dab off excess water with a paper towel (don’t scrub or bits of paper can get stuck) and toss it back into a warm oven to quickly evaporate any residual moisture. I'm a fan of the original Baking Steel. Baking Steel - The Original Ultra Conductive Pizza Stone $129.00 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg Shop Now Shop Now $129.00 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg Pros: Durable Thermal shock resistant Easy to clean Cons: Heavy Susceptible to rusting Larger sizes can be expensive If you’re a person who has a small kitchen, makes pizza or bread only occasionally, or has limited mobility and strength for heavy, cumbersome objects, then you might opt for a small pizza stone. If you’re okay with lifting something heavy and you know that baking pizza, bread, or burgers is something you’ll be doing weekly, then a pizza steel might be the better option for you. View the full article

Project management is a complex discipline requiring structured methodologies to ensure success. The Project Management Institute (PMI) has developed the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) as a global standard, providing a comprehensive framework for managing projects effectively. The PMBOK outlines essential concepts, best practices and industry standards that help project managers streamline their processes. Additionally, it serves as the foundation for PMI certifications, ensuring professionals acquire the skills needed to navigate diverse project challenges. What Is the PMBOK? The PMBOK is a globally recognized standard that provides best practices and guidelines for managing projects effectively. Developed by PMI, it serves as a reference for project managers by outlining methodologies, processes and terminologies used across industries. The guide is structured around knowledge areas, process groups and project management processes that ensure consistency and efficiency in project execution. It is widely used for training, certification preparation and establishing a common project management language. Once knowledge of project management is acquired, the right tools must be applied. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that has multiple project views that allows project managers and their teams to work how they want across different methodologies and processes. Project managers planning traditional projects as construction can schedule tasks, resources and costs on our robust Gantt charts. They can also link all four types of task dependencies to avoid delays and cost overruns. It’s easy to filter for the critical path to identify essential tasks. Then, set the project cost, scope and schedule baseline to track progress. If projects are managed in an agile or hybrid environment, kanban boards allow teams to manage their backlog and collaborate on planning sprints. Managers can use the board to spot potential bottlenecks and reallocate resources to clear them before they become a problem. Teams can also use task lists and stakeholders can stay updated with the calendar view. Get started with ProjectManager today for free. /wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Manufacturing-gantt-chart-light-mode-costs-exposed-cta-e1712005286389.jpgProjectManager’s Gantt charts help plan, manage and track work in real time. Learn more Who Should Use the PMBOK? The PMBOK is essential for project managers seeking to enhance their knowledge and improve project execution. It is a valuable resource for professionals across industries, including construction, IT, healthcare and finance who need a structured approach to project management. Additionally, organizations that aim to standardize their project management processes benefit from the guide’s framework. It’s also a critical resource for individuals preparing for PMI certifications such as the Project Management Professional (PMP), ensuring they understand industry best practices and methodologies. What are the Contents of the PMBOK? The PMBOK is structured into knowledge areas, process groups and project management processes. The knowledge areas cover key disciplines required to manage projects, while the process groups define the stages of a project life cycle. Within each process group, various project management processes describe specific activities, tools and techniques needed for effective project execution. These components provide a structured approach to managing projects, ensuring alignment with industry standards and best practices. The 10 PMBOK Knowledge Areas PMBOK knowledge areas categorize different aspects of project management that are essential for success. Each knowledge area encompasses a set of processes that contribute to the overall management of a project. These knowledge areas ensure a holistic approach, addressing integration, scope, schedule, cost, quality, resources, communication, risk, procurement and stakeholders. 1. Integration Management Integration management focuses on coordinating all project elements to ensure smooth execution. It involves developing a project charter, managing change and ensuring that different components work together effectively. Key processes include project plan development, directing and managing project work, monitoring and controlling project execution and performing integrated change control to align objectives, scope and resources. 2. Scope Management Scope management ensures that all project requirements are defined and controlled. It includes processes for scope planning, defining deliverables, managing changes and preventing scope creep. Work breakdown structure (WBS) creation, requirements traceability matrix, scope validation, and scope baseline maintenance ensure alignment with project objectives while balancing stakeholder expectations. 3. Schedule Management Schedule management involves creating and maintaining a project schedule. It includes defining activities, sequencing tasks, estimating durations and developing and controlling the schedule. Critical path method (CPM), schedule compression techniques like crashing and fast-tracking, resource leveling, milestone tracking and earned value management (EVM) ensure schedule adherence while managing dependencies and optimizing task sequencing. 4. Cost Management Cost management is one of the most critical project management areas in the PMBOK as it allows project management teams to ensure that a project remains within budget. It includes estimating costs, determining budgets and monitoring expenditures to prevent overspending. Cost aggregation, funding limit reconciliation, reserve analysis, lifecycle costing, cost-benefit analysis and earned value analysis (EVA) provide financial oversight, ensuring cost performance index (CPI) and budget adherence throughout the project lifecycle. 5. Quality Management Quality management focuses on meeting project requirements and customer expectations. It includes quality planning, assurance and control to ensure deliverables meet specified standards. Key elements include quality metrics, Six Sigma methodologies, statistical sampling, cause-and-effect diagrams, process improvement plans, continuous improvement (Kaizen) and cost of quality (CoQ) to prevent defects. 6. Resource Management Resource management involves acquiring, developing and managing project resources, including team members, equipment and materials, to ensure efficient execution. Resource allocation, capacity planning, skills assessment, RACI matrix, team performance assessments, conflict resolution, virtual teams and resource smoothing strategies optimize workforce utilization while ensuring task accountability and efficiency. 7. Communications Management Communications management ensures effective information exchange among stakeholders. It includes planning communications, managing stakeholder expectations and ensuring timely project updates. Key aspects include communication models, sender-receiver feedback loops, information distribution, communication channels, status reporting, stakeholder engagement matrix, escalation procedures and collaboration tools for transparency and alignment. 8. Risk Management Risk management involves identifying, analyzing and responding to project risks. It includes risk planning, mitigation strategies and monitoring to minimize negative impacts. The PMBOK covers this knowledge area in detail, as it includes a variety of risk management tools and techniques such as risk register maintenance, qualitative and quantitative risk analysis, risk response strategies (avoid, transfer, mitigate, accept), contingency planning and periodic risk reviews. 9. Procurement Management Procurement management handles the acquisition of goods and services from external vendors. It includes procurement planning, contract negotiation and supplier management. Key components include make-or-buy analysis, request for proposal (RFP) processes, contract types (fixed-price, cost-reimbursable, time and materials), vendor selection criteria, procurement performance audits and dispute-resolution strategies. 10. Stakeholder Management Stakeholder management ensures that project stakeholders are engaged and their expectations are managed effectively. It includes stakeholder identification, analysis, communication and involvement strategies. Stakeholder engagement assessments, influence-impact grids, power-interest matrices, change management strategies, conflict resolution techniques, proactive stakeholder feedback loops and adaptive engagement models facilitate collaboration and stakeholder satisfaction. PMBOK Process Groups PMBOK process groups represent the five stages of a project’s lifecycle. These process groups structure project management activities to ensure organized execution from initiation to completion. Initiating: The initiating process group involves defining a project and obtaining necessary approvals. It includes developing a project charter and identifying stakeholders to establish a foundation for success. Planning: The planning process group focuses on outlining the project’s scope, objectives, schedule, budget and risks. It involves creating detailed plans to guide project execution and ensure alignment with stakeholder expectations. Executing: The executing process group involves carrying out the project plan by managing teams, coordinating resources and ensuring deliverables meet requirements. It focuses on achieving project objectives efficiently. Monitoring & Controlling: Monitoring & controlling ensures project performance aligns with the plan. It involves tracking progress, managing changes and mitigating risks to keep the project on course. Closing: The closing process group finalizes all project activities, ensuring deliverables meet expectations and documentation is completed. It includes obtaining stakeholder approvals and conducting post-project evaluations. PMBOK Project Management Tools and Techniques The PMBOK mentions a variety of project management tools and techniques that can be used to manage the knowledge areas throughout the process groups. Earned Value Management: A technique for measuring project performance using cost and schedule variances. Project Network Diagrams: Visual representations of project tasks and dependencies that help sequence tasks and estimate the duration of projects. Critical Path Method (CPM): CPM is a project scheduling method that identifies the longest sequence of tasks and helps project managers identify critical tasks that can’t be delayed or else they will affect the project’s overall duration. Gantt Charts: Bar charts that illustrate a project schedule, show task dependencies and allow to track the percentage of completion of tasks. Cost Estimating Techniques: Methods for predicting project costs, including analog and parametric estimating. Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT): PERT is a method for analyzing task durations under uncertainty. It helps accurately estimate the duration of tasks by using three time estimates, a pessimistic, optimistic and most likely scenario. Schedule Compression Techniques: These include methods like crashing and fast-tracking to shorten project duration without reducing the project scope. Rolling Wave Planning: A progressive elaboration technique for planning in stages. Near-term work is planned in detail while future work is planned at a higher level. Cost-Benefit Analysis: A decision-making technique comparing the total expected costs of a project or decision to its total expected benefits to determine if it’s worthwhile. Work Breakdown Structure: A hierarchical breakdown of project deliverables to be carried out by the project team to accomplish objectives and create the required deliverables. PMBOK Project Management Documentation The PMBOK mentions a variety of project management documents that can be used to manage the knowledge areas throughout the process groups. Project Charter: A document that formally authorizes a project, outlining objectives, constraints, assumptions and key stakeholders. It defines project scope, high-level deliverables and success criteria and assigns a project manager. It also integrates enterprise environmental factors (EEFs) and organizational process assets (OPAs) to align strategic goals and governance frameworks. Team Charter: Outlines the purpose, goals, roles and guidelines of how a project team operates. It helps establish expectations and promotes effective collaboration through a RACI matrix, communication protocols, performance evaluation metrics and collaboration tools. Project Management Plan: A comprehensive document that outlines project execution, monitoring, control and closure. It’s the most important document in the PMBOK because it integrates subsidiary plans related to all project management knowledge areas, including scope, schedule, cost, quality, resource, communication, risk, procurement and stakeholder management. These plans ensure alignment with baselines, work performance data, earned value analysis (EVA) and project lifecycle methodologies like agile or waterfall models. Business Case: Justifies the need for a project by outlining cost-benefit analysis, feasibility study, return on investment (ROI), net present value (NPV) and payback period. A business case includes problem statements, risk assessments, funding requirements and strategic alignment with organizational objectives. Scope Statement: Defines the project scope, deliverables, acceptance criteria, constraints, assumptions and exclusions. It establishes the scope baseline, work breakdown structure (WBS), decomposition methods, requirements traceability matrix, product scope vs. project scope differentiation and control mechanisms to prevent scope creep. Risk Register: A log of identified project risks, mitigation plans, contingency responses, risk categories, probability and impact assessments and qualitative and quantitative risk analysis. It should also include risk triggers, secondary risks, risk response owners, SWOT analysis and risk audits to ensure risk management is proactive. Change Log: Tracks changes to project scope, schedule or budget to document change requests, change control board (CCB) decisions, integrated change control processes, impact assessments and root cause analysis. Change logs also focus on corrective and preventive actions, variance analysis, configuration management, change approvals, rejection rationales, lessons learned documentation and baseline adjustments for effective change governance. Stakeholder Register: A document listing project stakeholders and their interests, influence, engagement levels, expectations, concerns and preferred communication channels. It should include an influence-impact analysis, stakeholder feedback mechanisms, stakeholder prioritization strategies and adaptive communication approaches to ensure project buy-in and collaboration. The PMBOK covers other similar stakeholder management methods and documentation such as stakeholder maps, analysis and engagement plans. Issue Log: A record of project issues including resolutions, priority levels, impact assessments, assigned owners, escalation procedures, resolution timelines, issue dependencies and decision logs. Include any lessons learned from issue resolution, knowledge transfer strategies and integration with project governance frameworks for structured issue management. Free Project Management Templates With the PMBOK under one’s belt, project managers and their teams can use these free templates if they’re not ready to upgrade to project management software. We have over 100 free project management templates for Excel and Word that cover every aspect of a project across multiple industries. Here are just a few. Project Plan Template Make sure that all the guidelines and procedures of a project are planned with this free project plan template for Word. It covers everything from goals and success criteria to resources, procurement and budget. Project Budget Template Speaking about budget, such an important part of the project plan needs its own template. Use this free project budget template for Excel to accurately estimate labor and material costs, and then have the means to track them to stay on budget. Project Dashboard Template The project dashboard is an essential tool in project management. It provides a high-level overview of the project’s costs, workload and more. Use this free project dashboard template for Excel to track key project metrics and stay on schedule. How ProjectManager Helps Implement the PMBOK The PMBOK sets the rules and defines the terms, but it takes more power than an Excel spreadsheet to plan, manage and track a project. These free templates give one a taste of project management, but it’s mostly a tease that doesn’t deliver on the promise of project management software. ProjectManager is award-winning project and portfolio management software that has multiple project views to plan and execute projects in whatever methodology is being applied. But it goes further to help with resource management and tracking in real time. Robust Resource Management Keeps Teams Productive After human and nonhuman resources are scheduled on the Gantt chart, before assigning the team tasks, set the team’s availability. This includes any PTO, vacation, global holidays, pay rates and skill sets. It makes it easier to assign the right person to the right task at the right time. Then, check resource allocation by opening the color-coded workload chart. It shows who’s overallocated or underutilized. The team’s workload can then be balanced to keep everyone working at capacity without risking burnout. /wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Gantt-chart-resource-allocation-features.webp Real-time Project Management Dashboards and Reports Monitoring and controlling projects is a big part of the PMBOK. That’s covered in our software in multiple ways. For a high-level project overview, toggle to the real-time project or portfolio dashboards that collect live data and display it on easy-to-read graphs and charts that monitor key metrics such as time, cost, workload and more. Customizable reports go deeper into the data and can be filtered to focus on key data points or summarize progress and share with stakeholders. Even our secure timesheets help manage the budget by tracking labor costs. /wp-content/uploads/2024/05/portfolio-dashboard-screenshot-lightmode.png PMBOK FAQs These are some of the most frequently asked questions about the PMBOK that can be found online. Is the PMBOK Free? No, the PMBOK is not free. However, if you acquire a PMI membership for an annual fee, you may access the PMBOK at no additional cost. This is also true for students or employees from organizations with a PMI partnership. And finally, another way to get access to the PMBOK at no cost is to find a public library that has a physical or digital copy of it. Where Can I Buy the PMBOK? The most common methods to purchase the PMBOK are to buy it directly from the PMI website or online vendors like eBay, Amazon, Google Play or Apple Books. On the other hand, some buyers might prefer brick-and-mortar bookstores such as Barnes & Noble, books-a-million or local independent bookstores. What Is the Latest Edition of the PMBOK? ​The latest edition of the PMBOK is the seventh edition, published by the PMI in August 2021. This edition introduces significant changes, including a shift from the traditional process-based approach to a principle-based approach, structured around eight project performance domains and twelve key project management principles.​ The previous edition, the sixth edition, was published in September 2017. The PMI typically updates the PMBOK every four to five years to reflect evolving practices in project management. As of February 2025, there is no official announcement regarding the release of an eighth edition.​ PMBOK Related Content For those interested in learning more about project management, below are links to some of the more recent posts we’ve published on our blog that cover the basics. Project Management Basics: Definitions, Methods and Tools Project Management Skills: Soft, Hard & Technical Skills Best Project Management Certifications Project Management Tools & Techniques Best Project Management Charts for Project Planning ProjectManager is online project and portfolio management software that allows project management teams to implement PMBOK concepts. They can share files, comment at the task level and stay updated with email and in-app notifications. Join teams at Avis, Nestle and Siemens who use our software to deliver successful projects. Get started with ProjectManager today for free. The post PMBOK: The Project Management Body of Knowledge Explained appeared first on ProjectManager. View the full article

As a big fan of background music, I was intrigued by iOS 18.4's Control Center changes. It adds a new tab called Ambient Music to Control Center's list of customizable controls. You can use this to add one of four pre-selected Apple Music playlists (or your own) to the Control Center, your lock screen, or the Action Button (provided your iPhone has one). Up until now, you could play music via the Now Playing widget in the Control Center, but dedicated controls to launch playlists were missing. This feature is different from Background Sounds, which lets you play nature sounds on your iPhone in order to help you focus better. Even though Background Sounds is useful for everyone, it was designed as an accessibility feature first, and hence it can be found in your iPhone's accessibility settings. The new iOS 18.4 Ambient Music feature, meanwhile, is linked to Apple Music. With this feature, you can choose one of four playlists that Apple's picked out for you, or pick any of your own Apple Music playlists. How to add Apple Music playlists to the Control Center Credit: Pranay Parab To check out these ambient music playlists, you're going to have to update to iOS 18.4. At time of writing, that's in the developer beta stage, which is the buggiest and most unstable of all available Apple OS releases. Be sure to back up your data before you attempt to upgrade, and ensure that you aren't trying this on your primary iPhone. Crucial apps and services may stop working at any point on beta software, so it's important to know about the risks. Once you've installed iOS 18.4, you can open the Control Center, tap and hold an empty part of the screen, and hit the Add a Control button near the bottom of the display. Scroll down until you see the Ambient Music tab and select one of the controls. Apple lets you pick one of four moods: Sleep, Chill, Productivity, and Wellbeing. In the Control Center, tap and hold any of these playlists to reveal more options. You can tap From Library to add your own playlists to any of these controls, too. You can also add these controls to your iPhone's lock screen. To do that, lock your iPhone and then use Touch ID or Face ID to unlock the device. Tap and hold the lock screen, select Customize, and tap the lock screen on the left. You can now remove either of the two controls in the bottom-left and bottom-right corners, and replace them with your playlists. View the full article

TJX Companies, parent company of TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods, among other retail brands, reported strong sales and operating results on Wednesday for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended February 1. For Q4, TJX exceeded Wall Street’s revenue expectations, with sales of $16.35 billion. However, its revenue and earnings guidance for the coming fiscal year were below analyst expectations, according to a consensus estimate cited by CNBC. Key takeaways Here are the main points from the announcement: Q4 fiscal 2025 (13-week period): Net sales: $16.4 billion (flat compared to the prior year’s 14-week period). Consolidated comparable store sales: increased by 5%. Net income: $1.4 billion. Diluted earnings per share (EPS): $1.23, a 1% increase from the prior year’s adjusted EPS of $1.12. Growing retail footprint and store count In contrast to other retail giants that have faced recent bankruptcies and sweeping store closures or have gone out of business altogether, TJX has continued its expansion efforts, hitting a major milestone last year by opening its 5,000th store. The company increased its global store count by 131 stores during fiscal 2025, bringing its total to 5,085 stores. TJX also grew its total retail square footage by 2% year-over-year. In the United States, store counts and gross square footage increased as follows: TJ Maxx: 1,319 to 1,333 stores, square footage from 35.7M to 36.0M Marshalls: 1,197 to 1,230 stores, square footage from 33.7M to 34.4M HomeGoods: 919 to 943 stores, square footage from 21.4M to 22.1M Sierra: 95 to 117 stores, square footage from 2.0M to 2.4M Homesense: 55 to 72 stores, square footage from 1.5M “I am very proud of the performance of our hardworking Associates in 2024," CEO and president Ernie Herrman said in a statement. "We exceeded our expectations with over $56 billion in annual sales, a 4% comparable store sales increase, and a significant boost in profitability." Shares of TJX Companies (NYSE: TJX) were up around 3% in late-day trading on Wednesday after the report. View the full article