The Daily Valet. - 8/9/23, Wednesday
✔️ Night Moves
Wednesday, August 9th Edition
By Cory Ohlendorf, Valet. Editor
I hate the way my voice sounds on voicemails, so honestly, I'm in no rush to clone my voice.
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Today’s Big Story
Night Moves
As daytime temperatures soar, folks are moving their daily activities to cooler nights
What do you do when it's too hot out? Do you look out the window and see the sun beating down on the pavement and consider staying in, rather than going out? Perhaps the heat makes you so tired you just want to lay down and take a nap—there might not be anything wrong with that.According to the Wall Street Journal, people are going nocturnal as they cope with this summer's record-breaking temperatures—actively resetting their biological clocks to take advantage of the comparative cool after the sun goes down. “In the process, they are transforming ordinarily desolate night-scapes and compelling businesses to adjust their operations, creating a new after-dark economy that exists outside of clubs and partying.”Lime, an electric-scooter company, has seen a 25% uptick in ridership between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. and a 2% uptick between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m. in July compared with February in Austin and Corpus Christi, Texas, where daytime temperatures have consistently surpassed 90 degrees during the day. And hospitality businesses are adjusting their programming as well—Hyatt hotels, for example, is offering after-dark activities such as cosmic yoga and astrophotography tours in response to demand from guests. During heatwaves like this, meeting up at a happy hour at 5 p.m. just doesn't seem as appealing. But 5 a.m. jogs and dog walks? The sidewalk has never been this busy in such pre-dawn hours. Of course, those whose work is affected by the heat have had to make some of the biggest adjustments of all. And some experts wonder if most construction in the future will have to be done at night. Is that the kind of large-scale, industry-wide change that we might see coming?In the meantime, night markets—like the ones that are popular in notoriously warm Southeast Asian countries—have begun popping up around the U.S. And a new bill in California is trying to streamline the permitting process so that similar open-air food gatherings and produce stalls can easily be operated at night. Of course, if you plan to eat and shop later in the evening, that frees up your afternoons to nap. And what better way to escape the heat? As The Conversation points out, the lost art of the afternoon nap is actually a proven way to cope with uncomfortable temperatures that has worked for a myriad of cultures for centuries. And who are we to argue?
Beware:
Hotter nights are a consequence of the climate crisis. On average, nights are warming faster than days in most of the United States, the National Climate Assessment found.
A Revolt Against ‘Ugly’ Modern Architecture
Concerned citizens are fighting against the homogenization of design and demanding more traditional buildings
New buildings can be cool and help evolve a city's look and feel. But more and more—across the country, and around the world—new developments are starting to look the same, raising fears that certain cities are losing their unique charm. And architecture lovers aren't gonna take it anymore.A movement known as Architectural Uprising is pushing back against contemporary design trends in Scandinavia and have been successful in forcing architects back to the drawing board to rethink the watered down bland buildings or avant-garde designs that clash with a community's architecturural style. The result of this uprising are more humane buildings and a return to classically informed design.Here in the U.S., a recent survey found that Americans want their courthouses to have columns, pediments and brick, and not “glass, concrete and sharp geometric shapes.” The survey was commissioned by the National Civic Art Society, a nonprofit organization that is devoted to promoting classical architecture for Federal buildings and to banishing modern and contemporary design for lacking “traditional humanistic standards of beauty.”
FYI:
Climate change and extreme heat are influencing the ways architects are redesigning buildings for the future.
Partner
In fact, you're probably not getting enough sodium.
ESPN Gets Into Sports Gambling
Maybe we Should've Seen this coming
In a major boon to sports betting, ESPN has cut a $2 billion deal with casino owner Penn Entertainment to launch ESPN Bet, a branded sportsbook. ESPN Bet will launch this fall in the 16 states where Penn has sports betting licenses. According to Variety, the sports giant “muscled aside the upstart Barstool Sports” to secure the deal.It's being called a smart, strategic turn for both companies as they try to tap into the sports-betting sector's growth. The agreement is good for 10 years, with an option to be extended for another decade, should things go well. The ESPN Bet app will be promoted on the broadcaster's platforms and will have access to ESPN programming and talent.In connection with the deal, Penn is selling Barstool Sports, which it acquired in 2020. Barstool's founder Dave Portnoy is the buyer of the brand—taking back control for next to nothing, Insider reports. Penn's relationship with Barstool hasn't been entirely smooth sailing, “We got denied licenses because of me,” Portnoy said in a video announcement. “So the regulated industry is probably not the best place for Barstool Sports and the type of content we make.”
FYI:
Sports betting has rapidly expanded across the U.S. over the past five years, generating $7.5 billion in revenue last year alone.
Apple Lets You Clone Your Own Voice
The AI allows you to store a replica of your voice on your iPhone with the new iOS 17
AI moves fast, huh? It seems like we just started hearing about the dangers of voice cloning and now the technology is being brought right into our fingertips, thanks to a new feature within Apple's iOS 17 public beta.According to CNET, Personal Voice for the iPhone uses AI to create a replica of your voice and store it on your phone. It lets users with disabilities that affect speech use type-to-speak to communicate with others via your iPhone's speakers, FaceTime and third-party applications that will eventually support the accessibility feature when iOS 17 is released to the general public later this year.And apparently, the whole cloning process is pretty quick and then just takes your phone about an hour to build a full voice. Are the results convincing? One Sky News reporter tried it for himself and found that it depends on who hears it (and how tech-savvy they are). “But by and large, for something that takes just 15 minutes of work and a good sleep to set up, it's impressive.”
Meanwhile:
Resemble AI, a platform that uses generative AI to clone realistic-sounding voices, just announced it raised $8 million to expand their operations.
In Other News
The proposal would have made it tougher to protect abortion rights.
Biden Signs Order Protecting Grand Canyon Lands Sacred to Tribes, Vowing to Protect More of “America’s Natural Wonders”
Have you heard about ...
Partner
More Salt, For Your Health
DO YOU KNOW THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF SALT YOU NEED AFTER A WORKOUT?
If you didn't know better, you might think salt is bad for you. And sure, you could maybe have too much, but in reality, you're probably not getting enough. Especially if you're active and sweating. Sodium, despite the bad rap, is an essential electrolyte that needs to be replenished.According to the team at LMNT, the anti-salt edict was based mostly on research from the 1960s. But the latest science says that the FDA's salt restriction is ineffective for lowering blood pressure and leads to side effects you don't want. It also says the sweet spot for sodium intake is at least double what the government currently recommends. That's why LMNT's dietary scientists created the perfect sodium-rich electrolyte supplement. One with the ideal ratio of 1,000 mg sodium, 200 mg potassium and 60 mg magnesium—everything you need and nothing you don't. That means no sugar, artificial ingredients and colors. Just tasty (and effective) hydration.
Try It:
Free sample pack with any purchase. That's eight single serving packets with any order.
Shopping
What We’re Buying
A gunmetal table lamp
Based on a design from Paul McCobb's second series of lighting in 1952, the gunmetal and walnut base offer a cool, masculine contrast. And the iron shades are adjustable.
Get It:
Exposier table lamp, $249 / $174.97 by Paul McCobb
Morning Motto
Take control and design your reality.
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