US Affairs

Bridge collapse in Baltimore will impede trade

A major bridge collapse in Baltimore will disrupt trade in the region. A 1.6 mile-long bridge which crosses Baltimore's harbor collapsed early Tuesday after a shipping container lost power and destroyed one of its support pillars.

Given the bridge’s location along the path of a major maritime trade route, the disaster could have a vast impact on the local economy and international supply chains.

What happened?

As federal investigators began putting a comprehensive timeline of the incident together, they found the Dali container ship's data recorder, giving more insight into the crash.

• Early analysis shows the 100,000-ton freighter lost power (likely due to clogged engine filters from bad fuel) and rammed into the bridge's support column, collapsing the bridge.

• For those who want video analysis, click here.

The latest inspection of the ship in September didn’t find any issues, though one during June in Chile discovered issues with its propulsive machinery.

• In 2016, the vessel was repaired after hitting a wall in a Belgium port.

Unfortunately, there were people on the bridge when it collapsed. The crash threw eight construction workers into the water: two people were rescued, two bodies were recovered, and the other four are presumed dead.

How big will the disruption be?

The Port of Baltimore (which was closed indefinitely Tuesday) is one of the 15th largest ports in America, per the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, and an important trade conduit for specific industries.

• Baltimore has been one of the biggest ports for car imports and exports in the US; almost 850,000 vehicles passed through it last year.

• Some car companies aren’t wasting time, saying they’ll use different ports to help get their shipments through.

  • However, delayed parts deliveries could threaten the auto industry’s time-sensitive supply chains.

Cargo sent to Baltimore will instead head to ports in Virginia and New York while the wreck is cleaned from the shipping channel, which will take months. Actual replacement of the bridge will take years.

It’s not just about trade: The port’s closure puts the 140,000 jobs in the area indirectly supported by the port at risk, although, Maryland lawmakers announced legislation to provide income support to the port's 15,000 workers.

AI data centers are putting America’s power grid at risk

America has seen few trends flourish as fast as AI data centers… at least since Silly Bands in the early 2010’s. As they rapidly spread across the country, many are becoming worried that the power grid doesn’t have the capacity to absorb them without breaking.

Last week, a major energy conference was dominated almost entirely by one topic: artificial intelligence. Tech leaders and executives ranging from Amazon to Microsoft warned that the main limitation of AI development was finding enough power sources to supply data centers.

Why don’t we have enough power?

US demand for electricity has taken a nosedive the past few decades. However, that changed as the AI frenzy took hold. Companies became set on building data centers, which are colossal buildings that hold the computing infrastructure that trains large-language models (like ChatGPT).

They just keep coming: Earlier this month, Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison claimed that he’s building an AI data center that could fit eight Boeing 747s stacked in front of one another.

We need more power

According to the Washington Post, these gigantic data centers that train AI systems need “exponentially more power” than traditional data centers, causing utilities to dramatically upgrade their demand projections.

• Oregon’s Portland General Electric recently doubled its forecast for new electricity demand within the next half decade.

• Georgia now predicts almost 20 times more demand for industrial power than was previously estimated.

The grid is already strained: The US is putting record amounts of energy into factory investments, which is limiting supplies. The aging power grid is also being taxed by crypto mining, which could potentially blow out the already strained grid.

Disgraced airline CEO steps down from position

Everyone’s (least) favorite airline CEO will be stepping down by the end of the year. Boeing CEO David Calhoun announced earlier this week that he would leave his role at the airline by the end of 2024. Boeing has been in dire straits ever since a door blew out on a 737 Max 9 during an Alaska Airlines flight in January (plus a million other incidents that have happened this year).

Change in direction

However, he won’t be alone in his walk of shame:

• Boeing’s commercial aviation chief, Stan Deal, left the company immediately after this week’s announcement.

• Board Chairman Larry Kellner will be replaced by former Qualcomm CEO Steve Mollenkopf.

Boeing hired Calhoun after two fatal 737 Max crashes led to his predecessor getting the boot, and were hoping Calhoun could turn things around. The company even removed the mandatory retirement age so he could stay as president for longer.

Damage control

Calhoun called the Alaska Airlines incident a “watershed moment” for the company in a memorandum to employees. Now, Boeing feels the need to entirely restructure its safety processes (for some reason) as the airline has gotten completely bashed for the last four months.

Meanwhile, its executives are dealing with regulatory scrutiny and prepare to meet with other airlines concerned with Boeing’s production issues. Production delays have put the company on track to lose up to $4.5 billion this quarter alone.

Looking ahead: Incoming Chairman Mollenkopf will try to fill the shoes of Calhoun (although there isn’t much to fill) and bring the airline back to its predominant status as the world’s biggest airline.

Hey everyone,

We recently put together a FREE E-book to help you navigate the complex media landscape. Step by step, we outline how you can take control of your consumption of information in an objective and rational manner.

If this sounds like something you may like, click the link below for no cost.

We also offer a 75-page full version of the E-book that offers an even more comprehensive look into how you can take advantage of the information around us, for only $2.50.

Grab Bag

AI nurses could be the future of healthcare

While they may not be physically taking care of you (like you see in the image above) for awhile, AI nurses are already being rolled out. Earlier this month, Nvidia announced a partnership with Hippocratic AI, a startup that offers AI nurses.

What can the AI nurses actually do?

Real nurses don’t have to worry about robots taking their jobs just yet: Hippocratic’s AI nurses are only designed to provide non-diagnostic care, such as preop or post-discharge instructions through video chat.

In a promo video, the startup demonstrates how the technology works. An AI nurse offers a “patient” advice about how to take her prescriptions and optimize recovery following an appendectomy.

Why is this even a thing?

Hippocratic claims its AI nurses (which are $9 an hour) are much cheaper than human nurses, who can charge around $90 an hour, and may possibly help with nursing shortage across the country.

However:

• The average RN’s salary in $38.74 an hour in 2022, not $90, according to The US Bureau of Labor Statistics occupational employment statistics survey.

• It also takes a lot of power to run an H100 GPU, the Nvidia chip Hippocratic uses, which cost $30,000-$40,000 each, per Popular Science.

In addition, National Nurses United (a nurses union) says that the shortage is about understaffing, not pay, which has in turn led to nurses leaving their jobs and nationwide strikes.

Should AI even be used in healthcare?

Thats a good question, and there isn’t a definitive answer.

• While hospitals already use algorithms and machine-learning tools, regulations must ensure that humans are calling the final shots, health experts told Stateline.

• Research professor Maura Grossman told MedPage Today that the algorithms must be comprehensively checked for misinformation and bias, although, AI can act as a “second pair of eyes” for a human nurse and do lower stakes tasks, like admin work.

Fun Fact: A Pew Research Center survey found that 60% of Americans would be uncomfortable with medical professionals using AI, and 79% said they don’t want AI in their mental health care.

3D-printed houses might be the new big deal

At a time where housing prices are through the roof, I could deal with a plastic house. Or any living space. At all. I’m sure some of you feel the same way, and now that this 988-square-foot 3D-printed home in Detroit is a thing, maybe we could just print our own. Emphasis on the maybe.

How does one print a house?

Well, that’s what Citizen Robotics, a nonprofit seeking to make affordable housing with the help of robots, wanted to find out.

They printed the pieces at a facility in southwest Detroit, then assembled them on site. According to The Detroit Free Press, a robotic arm (the ones usually used in auto manufacturing, the industry Detroit is known for) layers cement material to build walls.

• Here’s a video demonstration if you want to see it in action.

Constructing the house this way is much less time consuming and (obviously) needs fewer people to help go through the process. The nonprofit also claimed it’s strong and affordable, plus, it might just reduce your heating and cooling bill by around $120 a month.

But, it might not be as cheap as you think

The 3D-printed home costs $224,500, a price that is still pretty steep for a two-bed, one-bath home. Especially in Detroit.

• If the home were in New York or California, butter my butt and call me a biscuit. However, it’s in Detroit, where most homes sell for less than $100,000.

The architect of the home, Bryan Cook, says the issue is the development process. For the homes to actually be affordable (which is the whole point), they’d need to be mass-produced and not one time things.

• A neighborhood of 100 3D-printed homes in Georgetown, Texas are selling for $475,000-$599,000 each. Georgetown’s median home price is $440,000, which doesn’t bring relief to the 3D printed home enthusiasts.

• Plus, some areas (including in Michigan) require homes to reinforce walls with concrete columns, which also increases costs.

Fun fact: Speaking of 3D printed homes, NASA plans to build some on the moon.

Fast Facts

Donut Deal: McDonald’s is expanding its partnership with Krispy Kreme to all US locations by the end of 2026. The donut chain, whose stock was up 28% on Tuesday, will more than double its distribution to meet the new demand.

Pricey Pill: Novo Nordisk sells its diabetes/weight loss drug Ozempic for around $968 a month. A new study, however, found it could be produced for less than $5 a month.

Craft Crash: The 81-year-old fabric store chain Joann has filed for bankruptcy as customers spend less on crafting.

Sleep Slurs: Waking up on the wrong side of the bed actually does make you curse more, according to new research linking sleep quality to profanity.

Fancy Finance: Rolex sold 1.24 million watches and generated a record $11.5 billion in sales in 2023, up 11% from 2022 and more than the combined sales of the next three biggest brands.