Plans announced by Facebook to launch a new digital currency called Libra next year have been called exciting and innovative by some, but megalomaniacal by others
The social media giant claims the product will give billions of people more freedom with money and will ‘ right the many wrongs of the present system’.
There may be concerns as to security of identity and data (warnings about Cambridge Analytical) but Facebook say they will keep financial and social data strictly separate. Users will not be targeted with adverts based on spending habits.
The concept of putting Libra money on your phone, storing it in your Calibra wallet and spending it by text or WhatsApp has support from Über, PayPal, eBay, Spotify, Visa and Lyft. It is certainly consistent with our increasingly contactless world.
FB plan to peg Libra to well-known currencies to avoid wild swings in value, as with crypto currencies like Bitcoin with concerns at money laundering. Calibra are even promising to refund any Libra which is stolen.
US regulators have threatened to step in and have asked that Congress closely examine the project (if they can understand it).
I can not resist mention of Sintons’ successes at the recent Northern Law Awards. Winning in 5 of the 6 categories nominated was quite an achievement, particularly Law Firm of the Year (6+ partners). It was an excellent dinner, with compère Alfie Joey being far more tactful than James Corden.
There are some must-see sights for every traveller. These include the Parthenon in Athens, Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Rembrandt’s Night Watch in Amsterdam, the Rialto in Venice and Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa in the Louvre in Paris. Some 20,000 people a day visit da Vinci’s most famous painting. However a recent poll found it to be the biggest sight-seeing letdown in Europe.
This may be due to the disappointing dimensions of the portrait, as well as it being protected by its gilded and bullet-proof glass case and the forest of flailing arms brandishing smartphones.
A new and more intimate view of the enigmatic smile will now be available as part of the 500th anniversary of the artist’s death. In autumn the Louvre will allow audiences a close-up view by donning a virtual reality headset. This will reveal details hidden to the naked eye. It may make the viewing more special but it will also be available across the world via the HTC digital service Viveport.
Will this encourage more visitors ‘in the flesh’ or be yet another progression of the universal use of VT and the 4D environment.
Among the countless promises being cascaded during the Tory leadership debates was the BJ suggestion that HS2 be delayed and more money ploughed into the current rail system particularly in the north?
Definitely an attractive idea compared with catching an HS2 train from London arriving in Newcastle after stopping at Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds – arriving eventually in about 2045!
The Women’s World Cup France 2019 continues to gather pace and attract large audiences. The fact that the Football Association banned female footballers from 1921 until 1971 now casts a shadow over our suggestion of having been modern, enlightened and equal. Quite why it has taken so long for women’s football to be encouraged and appreciated (compared, for example with tennis) is difficult to understand.
The commentators and pundits concentrate on the game. No space for cheap jibes about not understanding the off-side rule or of not being a ‘looker’. The comments about sartorial elegance are limited to England Coach Phil Neville’s Southgate waistcoat. And no further mention of three Irons on the shirt!
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Comment With Barry Speker
Plans announced by Facebook to launch a new digital currency called Libra next year have been called exciting and innovative by some, but megalomaniacal by others
The social media giant claims the product will give billions of people more freedom with money and will ‘ right the many wrongs of the present system’.
There may be concerns as to security of identity and data (warnings about Cambridge Analytical) but Facebook say they will keep financial and social data strictly separate. Users will not be targeted with adverts based on spending habits.
The concept of putting Libra money on your phone, storing it in your Calibra wallet and spending it by text or WhatsApp has support from Über, PayPal, eBay, Spotify, Visa and Lyft. It is certainly consistent with our increasingly contactless world.
FB plan to peg Libra to well-known currencies to avoid wild swings in value, as with crypto currencies like Bitcoin with concerns at money laundering. Calibra are even promising to refund any Libra which is stolen.
US regulators have threatened to step in and have asked that Congress closely examine the project (if they can understand it).
I can not resist mention of Sintons’ successes at the recent Northern Law Awards. Winning in 5 of the 6 categories nominated was quite an achievement, particularly Law Firm of the Year (6+ partners). It was an excellent dinner, with compère Alfie Joey being far more tactful than James Corden.
There are some must-see sights for every traveller. These include the Parthenon in Athens, Ponte Vecchio in Florence, Rembrandt’s Night Watch in Amsterdam, the Rialto in Venice and Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa in the Louvre in Paris. Some 20,000 people a day visit da Vinci’s most famous painting. However a recent poll found it to be the biggest sight-seeing letdown in Europe.
This may be due to the disappointing dimensions of the portrait, as well as it being protected by its gilded and bullet-proof glass case and the forest of flailing arms brandishing smartphones.
A new and more intimate view of the enigmatic smile will now be available as part of the 500th anniversary of the artist’s death. In autumn the Louvre will allow audiences a close-up view by donning a virtual reality headset. This will reveal details hidden to the naked eye. It may make the viewing more special but it will also be available across the world via the HTC digital service Viveport.
Will this encourage more visitors ‘in the flesh’ or be yet another progression of the universal use of VT and the 4D environment.
Among the countless promises being cascaded during the Tory leadership debates was the BJ suggestion that HS2 be delayed and more money ploughed into the current rail system particularly in the north?
Definitely an attractive idea compared with catching an HS2 train from London arriving in Newcastle after stopping at Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds – arriving eventually in about 2045!
The Women’s World Cup France 2019 continues to gather pace and attract large audiences. The fact that the Football Association banned female footballers from 1921 until 1971 now casts a shadow over our suggestion of having been modern, enlightened and equal. Quite why it has taken so long for women’s football to be encouraged and appreciated (compared, for example with tennis) is difficult to understand.
The commentators and pundits concentrate on the game. No space for cheap jibes about not understanding the off-side rule or of not being a ‘looker’. The comments about sartorial elegance are limited to England Coach Phil Neville’s Southgate waistcoat. And no further mention of three Irons on the shirt!
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