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Smart cities have existed since the 1960s, evolving through the decades. These cities utilize technology and data to improve overall quality of life and ultimately increase the urban area's efficiency.
As of 2024, New York City was the top ranked smart city scoring a motion index score of 100.
At the end of August 2014, the Coolest Cooler finished its Kickstarter campaign with more than 13.28 million U.S. dollars in project funding. Until then, the Pebble e-paper watch had held the title for the highest-funded project on the crowdfunding website, with 10.27 million U.S. dollars. In March 2015, Pebble's second smartwatch project completed its crowdfunding and publicity run with 20.34 million dollars raised in Kickstarter pre-order funding, becoming the most successful Kickstarter project as of July 2021. However, in 2022, the crowdfunding project Surprise! Four Secret Novels by Brandon Sanderson raised nearly 42 million U.S. dollars—more than twice as much as Pebble Time—making it the most funded Kickstarter project of all time as of September 2024.
Kickstarter and crowdfunding
Founded in 2009, Kickstarter has become one of the most prolific crowdfunding platforms worldwide. The site enables creators to generate funding for their projects, bypassing traditional avenues of investment and opening the market for niche productions. Each project has a deadline, and if the pre-set funding goal is not met, no funds are collected. Until October 2012, the website required projects to be based in the United States, before expanding to the United Kingdom and later Canada in September 2013. Project backers do not have to reside in the United States.
Most popular categories
Kickstarter offers a diverse range of project categories, enticing creative ventures from all walks of life. With an approximate success rate of 40 percent, the platform empowers innovators to transform their dreams into reality. Among these categories, games reign supreme as the most popular, with more than 2 billion U.S. dollars pledged in 2023. Design and technology were also among the more popular categories on the platform.
The global fuel energy price index stood at 178.8 index points in August 2024, up from 100 in the base year 2016. Figures decreased that month due to lower oil and natural gas demand outlooks. The fuel energy index includes prices for crude oil, natural gas, coal, and propane.
The global natural gas price index surged nearly 11-fold, and the global coal price index rose almost seven-fold from summer 2020 to summer 2022. This notable escalation was largely attributed to the Russia-Ukraine war, exerting increased pressure on the global supply chain.
The invasion of Ukraine by Russia played a role in the surge of global inflation rates. Notably, Argentina bore the brunt, experiencing a hyperinflation rate of 92 percent in 2022. The war also exerted a significant impact on global gross domestic product (GDP) growth. Saudi Arabia emerged with a notable increase of nearly three percent, as several Western nations shifted their exports from Russia to Middle Eastern countries due to the sanctions imposed on the former.
The inflation rate in the United States declined significantly between June 2022 and July 2024, reaching 2.9 percent in July 2024. The peak inflation rate was recorded in June 2022, at 9.1 percent. In August 2023, the Federal Reserve's interest rate hit its highest level during the observed period, at 5.33 percent, and remained unchanged through July 2024. The Federal Reserve began a series of regular rate hikes in early 2022, with the August increase marking the 18th consecutive rise.
What is the Federal Reserve interest rate?The Federal Reserve interest rate, or the federal funds rate, is the rate at which banks and credit unions lend to and borrow from each other. It is one of the Federal Reserve's key tools for maintaining strong employment rates, stable prices, and reasonable interest rates. The rate is determined by the Federal Reserve and adjusted eight times a year, though it can be changed through emergency meetings during times of crisis. The Fed doesn't directly control the interest rate but sets a target rate. It then uses open market operations to influence rates toward this target.
Ways of measuring inflationInflation is typically measured using several methods, with the most common being the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The CPI tracks the price of a fixed basket of goods and services over time, providing a measure of the price changes consumers face. At the end of 2023, the CPI in the United States was 158.11 percent, up from 153.12 a year earlier. A more business-focused measure is the producer price index (PPI), which represents the costs of firms.
In 2023, subscription-based ABCmouse was the most downloaded learning app for children in the United States market, generating approximately 2.5 million downloads across iOS and Android devices. Epic, a reading app for kids, ranked second, with over 1.9 million downloads, while interactive app Kiddopia ranked third with around 1.8 million downloads in 2023.
China's mobile game market is vibrant. In August 2024, Tencent's Dungeon & Fighter: Origins ranked the second-grossing game app in the country, earning almost 117 million U.S. dollars in revenue. The first placeholder Honor of Kings from Tencent was far beyond the second. The much anticipated PUBG Mobile stood at the third spot with nearly 59 million U.S. dollars.
For many years, Tencent and NetEase have been the most successful Chinese game developers, holding the lion’s share of mobile gaming revenue. The former owns the super app WeChat and an extensive network of entertainment offerings. The mobile gaming business has been one of the profit pillars of Tencent, contributing nearly 30 percent of its annual revenue (555 billion yuan) in 2022. In comparison, NetEase was half the size of Tencent - 75 billion yuan in online game revenue in 2022.
Having arrived at the gaming scene relatively late in 2011, the Chinese studio miHoYo took eight years to catch global attention. In September 2020, the company grabbed the right timing to launch Genshin Impact during the pandemic. The role-playing game achieved two billion U.S. dollars of revenue within a year of release and continues to be a lucrative title in various markets. The company announced another blockbuster game Honkai: Star Rail in April 2023.
In July of 2024, spending on online video advertising on YouTube's platform in South Korea amounted to around 88.4 billion South Korean won. YouTube was the leading media platform for online video ads in the country, far ahead of its main competitors, Instagram and Facebook.
The rising share of national income taken by the top one percent of earners is a common thread amongst almost all European countries over the past half century. As economic globalization took hold throughout the 1980s and 1990s, European countries experienced de-industrialization due to the emergence of international competitors, mostly in East Asia. At the same time, information technology and finance became much more important for most European economies, while growth in these sectors tends to favor high earners. This rise in inequality is also often also attributed to the ascendence of 'neoliberal' economic and political ideas which prioritized free markets and the privatization of government-owned businesses.
Russia: the explosion of inequality after the fall of communism
Among the largest European economies, the Russian Federation stands out as the country which experienced the sharpest increase in inequality, as a small number of 'oligarchs' took control of the major industries after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of communist rule in 1991. The top one percent in Russia increased their share of national income five-fold over the 20 years from 1987 to 2007, when inequality in the country reached its peak as the oligarchs took home over a quarter of the country's income.
Turkey: falling share of national income taken by top earners
Turkey has bucked the trend of the rising income share for the richest over this period, as its extremely concentrated income distribution has in fact become somewhat more equitable. The highest earners in Turkey saw their share of national income drop from almost 28 percent in the early 1980s, to a low of 17 percent in 2007, after which it has stabilized between 19 and 21 percent.
Western Europe: gradually rising share of national income for the rich
The five western European democracies, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom, have all seen increases in their top earners' shares of national income over this period. The United Kingdom, Italy, and Germany have in particular seen their shares increase sharply, while Spain and France have experienced a more gradual increase.
The Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) of the United Kingdom was 100.75 in August 2024, compared with 100.4 in the previous month. Consumer confidence in the UK fell sharply from Summer 2021 onwards but has started to recover since September 2022.
In 2024,Mexico led the ranking of countries with the largest number of active military personnel in Latin America and the Caribbean, with 412,000 soldiers. It was followed by Brazil with 360,000 military personnel.
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