The Daily Valet. - 5/24/23, Wednesday
✔️ Going Going Gone
Wednesday, May 24th Edition
By Cory Ohlendorf, Valet. Editor
I, for one, am glad that I didn't grow up with social media. I don't think I would've handled it well as a youngin'.
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Today’s Big Story
Hang Onto Your Catalytic Converters
The nationwide epidemic of catalytic converter thefts, explained
It's been talked about as a threat to any car owner for years now. But it turns out there have been far more incidents of catalytic converter thefts than previously reported, new Carfax data shows—as many as 153,000 in the U.S in 2022.That's a huge increase from 16,660 claims of theft in 2020, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau's latest report released last week. They found that converter theft has risen 1,215% since 2019.Why are they targeted? You might've heard that they're rich in precious metals, such as platinum palladium, and rhodium. A thief can earn a couple hundred bucks from a typical catalytic converter. (In the U.S., secondhand converters aren't reused in cars. Instead, these parts eventually end up at refineries that process the metal.) This past fall, the Department of Justice announced the arrest of nearly two dozen people in connection with a crime ring accused of making $545 million by trafficking stolen catalytic converters. That's over half a billion dollars!What do these converters convert, exactly? Simply put, the loaf-sized metal tube takes the gasses produced by your engine and makes them less harmful to the environment. And, crucially, their location on the exterior of a car's underside makes them easy to steal, David Glawe of the NCIB told NPR.And scarcity due to the supply chain means they're currently even more valuable. What's worse, they can be stolen in just 90 seconds, in broad daylight. And once they get ripped from your car, it can cost thousands of dollars (and weeks of waiting) to get a converter replaced. Like any other car part, catalytic converters are specific to the make and model of the car. According to Vox, one thing you can do is contact your insurance company and see whether upgrading or changing your coverage makes sense for your needs—several victims confirmed the amount they paid for a replacement was contingent on their policy.
Dig Deeper:
What are the most commonly targeted vehicles? Carfax has put together a list of the top 10 cars.
Social Media, Now With a Surgeon General Warning
A report by Dr. Vivek Murthy cited a “profound risk of harm” to adolescent mental health
In news that will surprise absolutely no one, the U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued a warning Tuesday that social media poses a threat to kids' mental health, escalating calls for new safeguards aimed at minors. The advisory adds to scrutiny over the effects of excessive use and harmful content, which has been blamed for consequences ranging from disrupting kids' sleep to promoting suicidal thoughts.“We're in the middle of a youth mental health crisis, and I'm concerned that social media is contributing to the harm that kids are experiencing,” Murthy told CNN. The White House is concurrently releasing plans that include creating an interagency task force on kids' online safety, establishing best practices for teaching digital literacy and habits, and supporting efforts to stymie harassment and child abuse online. The American Psychological Association called on Murthy last year to warn about the potential risks.
Warning Signs:
Does a child in your life have an unhealthy relationship to social media? Here's what to look out for, according to experts.
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We Want Real Menus for Dinner
The QR-Code Menu, which once looked like the future, Is Being Shown the Door
It was certainly a novel and ingenious idea, wasn't it? In the early days of the pandemic, when we were finally allowed back into restaurants, but we were still unsure about what to touch in between spritzes of sanitizer, the paper menu disappeared. They were replaced by QR codes for our protection. Everyone had to whip out their phones and start scanning and scrolling.But the hi-tech approach seems to have lost its appeal. We no longer require such contactless service. Which is why about 75% of one menu management company's existing QR codes are essentially dormant these days. Besides, there's something vital about an eatery's menu. According to the New York Times, restaurants are trying to coax people to eat out, and the seduction of a dining room is part of the get—dusky candlelight and uninterrupted, eye-to-eye conversation. Those little digitized squares can kill the mood: phones up, blue lights on, conviviality off.
FYI:
Amazingly, QR codes will work even if they're damaged. Most are workable with up to 30% damage.
Move Over Roomba
Dyson just announced a revamped robot vacuum that could be the most powerful on the market
Did you know that Dyson, the undisputed champ of the stand-up vacuum, actually already made a robot vacuum? I didn't. But it doesn't matter, because after taking a few years off for some serious R&D, they just announced a successor that seems to blow all others out of the water.According to The Verge, the new 360 Vis Nav is shorter and slimmer than its predecessors, and is “specifically designed to work better in our complicated American homes.” It sports the brand's signature extra-long brush and is said to have twice the suction power of any competitor,Not only that, but a top-mounted fish-eye lens is capable of spotting areas to clean while remembering where it's cleaned already. The Vis Nav is able to redirect suction through a side-actuator, allowing it to clean a room's edges and baseboards better than any other robovac—a common shortfall of the category.
In Other News
He made the comment after the Lakers were swept out of the postseason by Denver.
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Morning Motto
Why wonder what could’ve been?
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