The following is a rundown of the day’s news drawn from other media sources with topics curated just for Money and Markets readers: personal security and freedom, the Grammys, and technology and business.
Personal security and freedom
Angry Birds and ‘Leaky’ Phone Apps Targeted by NSA
The National Security Agency and its UK counterpart GCHQ have been developing capabilities to take advantage of “leaky” smartphone apps, such as the wildly popular Angry Birds game, that transmit users’ private information across the Internet, according to top secret documents.
U.S. Looks at Ways to Prevent Spying on Its Spying
The U.S. government is looking at ways to prevent anyone from spying on its own surveillance of Americans’ phone records. Under the research, U.S. data mining would be shielded by secret coding that could conceal identifying details from outsiders and even the owners of the targeted databases.
Obama Documentary Producer: ‘I Never Feared my Government Until Now’
According to an indictment made public Thursday, the producer is accused of contributing $20,000 to a political campaign in 2012, even though the legal limit is $5,000. Some believe the indictment is political payback for his film, which was critical of President Barack Obama.
Cops of the Future: Smart Bullets, Crowd-Stun Cannons, Crime Prediction
Police departments around the country are already testing technologies like Google Glass, lapel cameras and tracking devices that allow safer pursuit of fleeing suspects. But this is merely a glimpse of what’s to come, according to experts contacted by FoxNews.com.
Manhattan Man, 84, Ticketed for Jaywalking to File $5 Million Lawsuit Against City
The victim’s head, arm and ribs are still sore from the violent confrontation with cops, during which he was knocked unconscious on the street, handcuffed in a hospital emergency room and slapped with a litany of criminal charges.
The Grammys decadence
Katy Perry Performs ‘Satanic Ritual’ at the Grammys
Perry was surrounded by demons as she danced around an upside-down broomstick before being encircled by fire during a performance of her song “Dark Horse.” She wore clothing bearing an illuminated Knights Templar cross. Even E! Online tweeted that Perry’s performance resembled “actual witchcraft.”
Beyoncé Slammed by Parents for Her Explicit Grammy Performance
The singer’s often overtly sexual performances haven’t put off President Obama praising Beyoncé as an important role model for children — including his own. He said recently: ‘Beyoncé could not be a better role model for my girls because she carries herself with such class and poise and has so much talent.’
College Football Star Calls Grammys Demonic
Former Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron, who is preparing for the NFL Draft, was watching the Grammys on Sunday and felt that the “really demonic” performances showed that “there is a lot of evil in the world.”
Technology and business
Apple Shares Tumble on ‘Weak’ iPhone Sales
Apple posted quarterly results that beat estimates Monday, but reported weak iPhone sales and handed in a current-quarter revenue forecast that underwhelmed, sending shares lower in extended-hours trading.
A Ban on Autos? Major Cities Consider Going Carless
Many urban planners accuse automobiles of killing street life, with roadways often dividing once-connected neighborhoods, and creating endemic air and noise pollution. They also cite them as being a major factor in pedestrian deaths and injuries.
China’s ‘Jade Rabbit’ Lunar Buggy Disappoints
The Jade Rabbit, named after a mythical lunar bunny who mixes elixirs of immortality, has experienced a mechanical abnormality resulting from the “complicated lunar surface environment,” the official Xinhua news agency reported over the weekend, citing China’s state space agency.
Earth’s Magnetic Field Is Collapsing and ‘It’s Serious Business’
The Earth’s climate would change drastically. In fact, a recent Danish study believes global warming is directly related to the magnetic field rather than CO2 emissions. The study claimed that the planet is experiencing a natural period of low cloud cover due to fewer cosmic rays entering the atmosphere.
Food in the Sky? High-Rise Farming Idea Gains Ground
With food, water and energy sources dwindling, the city of the future will have to be a self-sufficient “living organism,” said the 36-year-old designer of avant-garde buildings some critics have dismissed as ridiculous or a blight on the landscape.
Best wishes,
The Money and Markets Team
