Itâs not just the name of our new indie bandâ¦
[The Hustle]( Tues, Sep 19
A pile of trash the size of France
AKA, how we feel when we miss garbage day -- and the current state of the Pacific Ocean. This, plus other climate news, cominâ at you faster than you can say âAn Inconvenient Truth.â
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch: Population, Al Gore
Also known as the â[Pacific trash vortex]( the Garbage Patch is a massive island of trash and debris in the North Pacific Ocean -- and itâs now [the size of France](.
As such, the charity Plastic Oceans Foundation has submitted an application to the UN for it to be recognized as an official country, based on the âdeclarative theory of statehood,â which states that a stateâs existence is âindependent of recognition by others.â
Its first citizen? Former US vice prez and climate change warrior, Al Gore. Classic.
The foundation has created a âTrash Islesâ [flag, stamps, and currency]( and whether or not it achieves statehood, itâs a pretty powerful marketing stunt to draw attention to the problem of marine plastic, which is on track to outweigh the oceanâs fish by 2050.
Dark days call for dark nights
Idaho wants to create the first [International Dark Sky Reserve]( in the US to protect a region of its sky that is currently so pristine that you can see interstellar dust clouds in the Milky Way.
Light pollution currently blots out the sky above 80% of North Americans, and the mountain town of Stanley, ID is one of only 11 places in the world deemed large and dark enough to achieve âreserve statusâ
Stanley residents are now be required install shields on outdoor light fixtures and keep their holiday cheer to a minimum (re: turn off all holiday lights at night) to preserve their skies.
Mars candy has pledged $1B to invest in renewable energy
Fun fact: a wind turbine produces enough energy in 1 second to make 8 packs of peanut M&Ms.
The chocolate makers just launched a campaign called â[Fans of Wind]( to promote being the âfirst major food business to source all of its electricity for US operations from renewable resources.â
They currently operate two wind farms, with the goal of cutting their greenhouse gas [emissions 27% by 2025](. Because, according to Mars, M&Ms represent all of us -- and if a tiny piece of chocolate can make a difference⦠imagine what we can accomplish.
Woah, heady
Like a rolling mag
Yesterday, Jann Wenner, the founder and owner of Rolling Stone magazine, announced heâs looking to sell off his [51% stake]( in the music publication.
The announcement comes just a year after Wenner offed a 49% interest in Rolling Stone to Singapore-based music tech company, BandLab Technologies Ltd. for $40m. This latest offering is expected to fetch double that.
And it will also mark the end of an era
Wenner founded Rolling Stone back in [1967]( after borrowing $7.5k from his wifeâs parents. From a tiny San Francisco office, the magazine published its first issue -- a spotlight on the Monterey Pop Festival -- later that year.
It quickly gained a reputation as the voice of the nationâs growing hippie counterculture and launched the careers of folks like famed gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson, screenwriter Cameron Crowe, and photographer Annie Leibovitz.
So⦠whatâs happening now?
Rolling Stone has faced declining readership and revenue for some time, and Wenner hopes that a sale will usher in a new digital-focus for the publication, (a hope he also had back in â13 when he hired his 22-year-old son, [Gus]( as head of digital. People didnât love the move, to say the least.)
Potential suitors include modern powerhouses Vox Media and Vice Media, as well as German magazine publisher Bauer Media Group.
We can see the headline now: â25 hedgehogs who literally look like Mick Jagger.â
[Any takers?](
Billionairesâ first jobs
Every billionaire had to start somewhere -- and while some were born on a golden throne, others actually had to earn their fortunes.
[Aaron Wallis]( analyzed [Forbesâ billionaires list]( looking specifically at the 100 richest entrantsâ first recorded career moves. Hereâs how they break down:
About a third of the worldâs wealthiest folks either inherited or worked for a family business, and 17 immediately struck out to form their own businesses. The other 53 toiled in various entry level roles before making it big.
Of those 53, most worked sales or engineering-related roles -- but a few actually cut their teeth in low-paying roles. Amancio Ortega, the worldâs 3rd-richest man, was a shirtmaking apprentice before founding Zara. Oil tycoon Harold Hamm was a mechanic, and Jack Ma (founder of Alibaba) was a translator.
As [MLK once said]( âIf a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets as Michelangelo painted.â In other words, whatever youâre doing, get really, really good at it.
[No shortcut to easy street](
From dumb jersey to smart jersey
Move over smart phones/cars/toilets, because starting September 29th -- you can be the proud owner of a $200 NBA replica âsmartâ jersey.
Made by Nike (and [Goodyear]( if youâre a Cavs fan), the jersey will connect to your phone with the [NikeConnect app]( via a scannable tag.
The owner will then be showered (for better or worse) with highlights, stats, and exclusive info on the player whose name dons the back -- plus a treasure trove of NBA marketing.
Oh, yeah, and Edward Snowdenâs tears
Because once the jersey is activated -- theyâre watching you. Yep, Nike will know who bought it, where the specific buyer lives, and where and when the jersey was scanned.
After all, the smart jersey is mainly to provide marketers with a [mecca of advertising opportunities]( weâre talkinâ licensed products, game tickets, even personalized Spotify playlists made by the athletes.
[Gamers]( will also be lured to buy the jerseys with the promise of a âboostâ code to use in the NBA2K18 video game.
And this is only the beginning
Back in June, Nike signed an 8-year deal with the NBA, making them basketballâs new exclusive apparel maker.
The partnership is [valued at around $1B]( -- a huge leap from what Adidas paid back in â06 ([$400m]( but a small price to pay for amounts to a âfind my customersâ phone app.
[NBA? More like NSA (nailed it)](
a few good reads
Meet the guy who photographs planes for the super rich ([VICE](
For a tiny fraction of the world's elite, a billion dollars isn't much, and they use the chump change to buy up large commercial jets and adorn them with handwoven carpets, wood paneling, and all gold everything (Note: sweeeet photos).
Youâre probably letting a lot of hackers into your phone ([WIRED](
In the age of Equifax hacks and two-step authentication, one giant entry point into your data often goes unnoticed: your Bluetooth connection.
The big bank explainer on how cryptocurrency could change our world ([Quartz](
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) is considered the âbank for central banks.â So when they speak on cryptocurrency, their opinion is heard around the world, not some random message board. Their take? Cryptocurrencies have the power to potentially upend commercial banks.
Chinaâs camel milk mogul ([Roads and Kingdoms](
Camelâs milk is purportedly such an effective antidote to the effects of alcohol that it turns salesmen into superhuman drinkers -- and one merchant in China is making a fortune selling almost all of it.
What happened in 2016, in 7 charts ([Vox](
Pictures are worth a thousand words, and when youâre getting into stats explaining the tumultuous year that was 2016 politics, they can be straight-up illuminating.
This edition of The Hustle was brought to you by
âFish oil keeps your brain from meltingâ
Reads the headline in a health magazine one week -- next itâs âLysine will save your knees,â and âVitamin C is essential for your immune system.â
The point is, itâs impossible to keep with the latest supplement trend. How are you supposed to know if you need to be taking turmeric or rhodiola?
Thatâs why, [when it comes to vitamins]( most of us are either taking the same âadult daily multivitamin,â or popping 50 pills that we donât even know if we need every day.
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Plus, itâs really easy: you answer Care/Ofâs quiz about your diet and lifestyle, then theyâll [tell you what you need]( to feel great. Simple. It normally costs about $20 a month for all of your vitamins, so youâll save a bit, too.
And because they want to help you kick things off the right way, Care/Of is giving ours readers [50% off]( their first 2 weeks using the code HUSTLE.
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