Worldwide spillover from US-China trade wars, block by block road emissions in LA, and America’s history of wanting to nuke hurricanes. Here’s the news you need to know, in two minutes or less.
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Today’s Headlines
Trump’s trade war isn’t just a US-China problem
The US and China aren’t the only countries affected by the escalating trade wars. On Sunday, President Trump said he would use emergency powers to force private companies to relocate out of China. While Trump has made no movement to follow through on his threat, many companies are independently looking for alternatives to China. “Companies are diversifying outside of China,” says Brian Keare, a former CIO of manufacturing company NorTek. “The era of putting all your eggs in one basket is over.”
See how LA belches emissions, block by block
Here’s the bad news: LA saw a 10 percent rise in deaths from ozone pollution between 2010 and 2017. Sources that exhale a large amount of CO2 are to blame, and that includes cars, power plants, and airports. But here’s the better news: A group of researchers dug through mountains of data to calculate the emissions from not just every road, but every building in Los Angeles. Ultimately the goal is to create a block-by-block forecasting system for cities around the US that will help them be smarter about directing mitigation efforts.
Fast Fact: 80
That’s the number of nukes the US would need to deploy per year to combat hurricanes in the Atlantic. On Sunday, as part of a hurricane preparedness briefing, President Trump suggested launching nuclear explosions on any suspicious coastal activity. Trump’s suggestion, however impractical, continues a long American history of considering using nuclear weapons against storms. But don’t worry: The sheer amount of energy contained in a storm means it wouldn’t work anyway.
WIRED Recommends: RadRunner eBike
Tread softly, but pedal efficiently: The new RadRunner electric cargo bike has a 750-watt motor and 45 mile range.
News You Can Use
Learn how to code for free—until you get a job. The Lambda School, a coding bootcamp created by tech entrepreneur Austen Allred, is considered a market-based solution to student debt. The main selling point, writes WIRED staff writer Gregory Barber, is that “everyone is on the same page about the goal: finding a good-paying job.”
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