The US economy grew faster than previously estimated during the third quarter of this year, according to new data released yesterday. The country\'s gross domestic product, which measures the value of goods and services produced (see 101), grew at a 2.9% annualized rate from July to September, up from an earlier estimate of 2.6%. Economists had predicted 2.7%.
The latest figure marks a rebound from 0.6% and 1.6% decreases in the first two quarters of the year. The upward revision is due to growth in consumer spending and business investments as well as declines in imports, though low private investment inventories offset some of the growth. See data here.
While the report shows signs of a strengthening economy, analysts say ongoing high inflation and interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve may slow growth in the fourth quarter, highlighting investments in housing, which shrank at a 26.8% annualized rate. |
At least two people were killed and several more injured after severe storms swept across the southeast late Tuesday into Wednesday, with reports of two-inch chunks of hail (see video). At least 11,000 homes were left without power in Alabama, and one county saw at least 30 homes damaged by the high winds.
Over 40 million people were under tornado and severe weather warnings Tuesday as humid air from the Gulf moved northeast across several states. At least 37 tornadoes reportedly tore across Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi, with initial reports claiming tornado wind speeds of 115 mph in some places—a reading of EF-2 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale (see overview). One community in Mississippi saw a steeple blown off a church and a grocery store destroyed, and damage to trees was also recorded in Tennessee and Georgia.
The severe weather had cleared up by mid-Wednesday. See drone footage of the damage here. |
Neuralink\'s Show and Tell |
Elon Musk\'s Neuralink revealed last night an updated version of its prototype brain-computer interface technology, including showing a monkey controlling a prompt via thoughts and sending out a short message. The company says the technology may be tested in humans as early as next year.
Establishing an interface between the brain and a computer is not novel itself. Other companies have demonstrated both surgically implanted connections and noninvasive links by recording brain waves, while an ALS patient recently used a prototype from a separate company to control his iPhone and send text messages. Neuralink\'s advantage reportedly lies in a device with more than 16,000 electrodes on a quarter of an inch-sized chip that allows direct connections with groups of neurons (see overview).
Neuralink\'s stated vision is to cure neurological disorders and allow seamless two-way communication between human brains and computers. Watch a video of the demo here. |
|
|
|
|
