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Daily Archives: August 27, 2020

Here’s how to make sure your mail-in ballot actually counts

Fast Company – “Millions of Americans, far more than ever before, will cast their ballots by mail in the November election. For many it’ll be a first. Given that, and the huge stakes of this election, there’s plenty of worry to go around over whether all those mail-in ballots will find their way to being counted. Those fears were stoked anew last week when NPR’s Pam Fessler and Elena Moore reported that more than 550,000 ballots were rejected during this year’s primary elections—far more than the 318,728 mail-in ballots rejected in 2016’s general election, which had far more turnout. The rules around requesting and casting an absentee ballot vary somewhat between counties and states. (You can find instructions and rules for your state here.) These relate to whether or not the voter needs an “excuse” to vote absentee, how an absentee ballot can be requested, and the windows in which ballots can be requested and submitted…”

How to Guide to Consumer Complaints by Product Type

USA.gov: Learn how to submit a complaint about problems with specific products and services. Banks and Lender Complaints – Learn how to complain about a problem with a bank or a lending company, such as a mortgage provider. Car Complaints – Find out what to do when you want to complain about a defective car.… Continue Reading

Resources on Deep Fakes and National Security

Deep Fakes and National Security, August 26, 2020. “Deep fakes”—a term that first emerged in 2017 to describe realistic photo, audio, video, and other forgeries generated with artificial intelligence (AI) technologies—could present a variety of national security challenges in the years to come.As these technologies continue to mature, they could hold significant implications for congressional… Continue Reading

Use These Apps to Identify Outside Air Quality Index in Your Location

Lifehacker – “…You have plenty of options for finding the Air Quality Index for any particular location. Established weather services like Weather.com should have that number for any location you want. I’ve always been a fan of the Environmental Protection Agency’s PurpleAir, specifically, which gives you a lovely, large map full of dots to show… Continue Reading

CRS – The Federal Reserve’s Main Street Lending Program

The Federal Reserve’s Main Street Lending Program, August 27, 2020. IF11632, Marc Labonte, Lida R. Weinstock. “In response to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), the Federal Reserve (Fed) created a series of emergency lending programs, including the Main Street Lending Program (MSLP). The MSLP supports lending to eligible businesses and nonprofits and marks the first time… Continue Reading

Semantic Scholar Search Engine

“Semantic Scholar is a free, AI-powered search and discovery tool that helps researchers discover and understand scientific literature that’s most relevant to their work. Semantic Scholar uses machine learning techniques to extract meaning and identify connections from within papers, then surfaces these insights to help scholars gain an in-depth understanding quickly. Our mission is to… Continue Reading