Electric motoring is, in theory, a subject about which I should know something. My first university degree was in electrical and electronic engineering, with a subsequent master’s in control systems.
I never knew that Mr. Bean is an engineer.
Category: Economics (Page 6 of 7)
WSJ: Automakers get into mining.
WSJ: Automakers get into mining.
When General Motors began outlining plans in 2020 to fully switch to electric vehicles, it didn’t account for one critical factor: Many of the battery minerals needed to fulfill its plans were still in the ground.
“I remember seeing a report from our raw-materials team at the time saying, ‘There is plenty of lithium out there. There is plenty of nickel’,” said Sham Kunjur, an industrial engineer now in charge of securing the raw materials for GM’s batteries. “We will buy them from the open market.”
GM executives soon came to discover how off the mark those projections were, and now Mr. Kunjur’s 40-person team is scouring the globe for these minerals.
“Why Magical Thinking isn’t Whimsical” or “No Shit, Sherlock” would also have been serviceable titles for this article.
WSJ: Tipping for Self Checkout
WSJ: Tipping for Self Checkout
People seem to be baffled and rankled by the simplest things.
Prompts to leave 20% at self-checkout machines at airports, stadiums, cookie shops and cafes across the country are rankling consumers already inundated by the proliferation of tip screens. Business owners say the automated cues can significantly increase gratuities and boost staff pay. But the unmanned prompts are leading more customers to question what, exactly, the tips are for.
Washington Post: Dylan Mulvaney should be a role model
Washington Post: Dylan Mulvaney should be a role model
I’ve been a fan of Megan McArdle’s writing since she was with The Atlantic. She can be very good on economics, but her privilege starts to show when writing about middle America and flyover country. She is missing the point on Dylan Mulvaney.
I’m not eating any God damn crickets.
Everybody says you should buy a house. Paying rent is just throwing your money away. Whenever everybody says something, that should be a signal to really think it through. Buying a house is the biggest financial decision most people will ever make.
Housing affordability hits historic low, and I’m not sure that’s a problem.
If you aren’t skeptical of the authorities, experts and the commercial media after the disastrous handing of Covid-19, then I can’t help you.