12.27.2017

Pennsylvania Town Sees Record-Setting Snow.
A Christmas storm brought a record amount of snow to Erie, PA, dumping over 60 inches of white powder on the town between Sunday and Tuesday evenings. The storm shattered the previous two-day record for the state of 44 inches set in 1958, and surpassed the town's 13-day record of 52.8 inches set in 1950. The storm was largely due to a slow moving snow band combined with the so-called "lake effect snow" - where very cold air moves over the warmer waters in the Great Lakes, causing moisture to rise and turn into snow before being dumped on lakeshore towns like Erie. Forecasters expect up to 10 more inches by this evening. See photos here and here.

Holiday Retail Hits 6-Year Peak.
Driven by high consumer confidence, low unemployment, and increased disposable income, brick-and-mortar retailers recorded their strongest holiday sales season since 2011. Sales during November and up to December 24th - excluding automobiles - rose 4.9%, compared with 3.7% during the same time last year, hitting nearly $598B. The numbers are welcome news for retailers struggling in the face of stiff competition from online shopping - though online sales also increased by over 18%. Unlike past years, sales were driven by more than just high-income earners, with shoppers from the middle income brackets opening their wallets. The numbers also coincide with rebounding consumer credit card debt - which hit its highest level since Q3 2008 at $757B.

FBI Software May Contain Russian-Linked Code.
Fingerprint software used by the FBI and nearly 18,000 other US law enforcement agencies contains code developed by a Kremlin-linked company, potentially providing a backdoor into thousands of government systems. The reports surfaced yesterday after two whistleblowers told Buzzfeed News that a subsidiary of the French conglomerate Safran - who won the contract to overhaul the FBI's fingerprint software system - secretly purchased and inserted code from Russian cybersecurity company Papillon Systems. The French company then deliberately concealed the addition from the FBI, reportedly due to the significant ties between Papillon and the Kremlin's spy agency, the Federal Security Service (FSB). Officials are still assessing the risk associated with the code. 
 

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Nursing is viewed as the most honest, ethical profession (via Gallup). 
Sam Adams' founder shares how to drink all night without getting drunk. 

The year in pictures from the New York Times and from CNN. 

The most expensive home in the US goes on sale for $500M. 

Doctors to attempt a risky surgery to remove a basketball-sized tumor from young boy. 

GoalieUp - Uber for hockey goaltenders - is the most Canadian app ever.

Speaking of apps, Edward Snowden created an app to catch hackers.

Archaeologists in Turkey believe they found the original Santa Claus.  

Historybook: HBD Louis Pasteur (1822); HBD to today's Google icon Marlene Dietrich (1901); Soviet Union invades Afghanistan (1979); Benazir Bhutto assassinated (2007); RIP Carrie Fisher (2016).

"I DON'T WANT LIFE TO IMITATE ART. I WANT LIFE TO BE ART."
-Carrie Fisher
 

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