Agoracom Blog

American Creek $AMK.ca Announces Metallurgical Test Work and Preliminary Baseline Studies for Its JV Treaty Creek Property in the Golden Triangle $TUD.ca $SII.ca $GTT.ca $AFF.ca $SEA.ca $SA $PVG.ca $AOT.ca $ESK.ca

Posted by AGORACOM at 9:20 AM on Thursday, April 23rd, 2020
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  • JV partner Tudor Gold Corp has initiated metallurgical studies
  • Study will focus on the mineral characteristics and the prospects of developing Treaty Creek as a bulk tonnage mining target
  • Metallurgical test results will be used as part of the initial economic assessment for the project.

Cardston, Alberta–(Newsfile Corp. – April 23, 2020) –  American Creek Resources Ltd. (TSXV: AMK) (“the Corporation”) is pleased to report that its JV partner Tudor Gold Corp has initiated metallurgical studies for the JV flagship project, Treaty Creek, located in the Golden Triangle of north-west British Columbia. This study will focus on the mineral characteristics and the prospects of developing Treaty Creek as a bulk tonnage mining target using conventional processing techniques. The test work will be conducted on material selected from the extensive continuously mineralized drill core intervals encountered in the 2019 exploration program. The metallurgical test results will be used as part of the initial economic assessment for the project.

The metallurgical study will be managed under the direction of Frank Wright, P.Eng., of F. Wright Consulting Inc, of Delta BC. The related laboratory test program will be conducted at Bureau Veritas Minerals – Metallurgical Division of Richmond, BC (BV). BV is a globally recognized and certified testing facility with customers ranging from small independent operators to large multi-national mining firms and consultants. Mr. Wright has over 30 years of experience consisting of both operations and consulting in the fields of mineral processing and hydrometallurgy. His career has included the last 20 years as a qualified independent professional engineer managing process advancement for projects worldwide, although primarily focused in BC. His work includes oversight of test programs leading to the selected process flowsheet and design criteria, related technical reporting, supervision of detailed engineering, and assisting in project commissioning.

Tudor Gold also announced an agreement with RTEC (a joint venture partnership between ERM Consultants Canada Ltd. (ERM) and the Tahltan Nation Development Corporation (TNDC)), to begin preliminary baseline studies that will be required for provincial permitting of the Treaty Creek project. These baseline studies will focus on surface water quality, hydrology, atmospherics, wildlife and archaeology.

Tudor Gold’s Vice President of Project Development, Ken Konkin, P.Geo., states: “The metallurgical test work and baseline studies will provide crucial data to further our project development plans. These studies will serve as templates for on-going studies aimed to carry the project forward to more advanced stages. Both studies will begin in conjunction with the 2020 diamond drill hole exploration program that is planned to start this spring. In addition, our geologists will select representative composite samples from last year’s drill holes as the basis for our preliminary metallurgical studies.”

The safety and wellbeing of Tudor Gold employees, contractors, and communities they work in is of upmost importance. Tudor Gold has developed new operational guidelines to reduce the chance of spread of the COVID-19 virus while conducting our work, which has been deemed as essential service by the Provincial Government.

Tudor Gold’s Covid-19 policy and guidelines are available on their website at:

https://tudor-gold.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Tudor-Gold—COVID-19-Policy-Response-Plan-April-2020.pdf

Walter Storm, President and CEO of Tudor Gold stated: “2020 is poised to be a transformative year for our company. The agreement with RTEC to begin preliminary baseline studies, necessary for potential future mine permitting, together with the initiation of the metallurgical studies, demonstrates our commitment to further advance the Treaty Creek project. These studies as well as the upcoming drill program are fully funded. We are particularly pleased that we were able to further strengthen our partnership with the Tahltan First Nations through the RTEC agreement.”

About the RTEC Joint-Venture partnership

RTEC is a joint venture partnership between ERM Consultants Canada Ltd. (ERM) and the Tahltan Nation Development Corporation (TNDC). With more than 5,500 people, ERM is a leading global provider of environmental, health, safety, risk, social consulting services and sustainability related services. The Tahltan Nation Development Corporation (TNDC) is the business arm of the Tahltan Nation. TNDC pursues sustainable and responsible business and economic development opportunities in the region that lead to employment, training and business opportunities for Tahltan members.

Qualified Person

The Qualified Person for this news release for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101 is the Companys Vice President of Project Development, Ken Konkin, P.Geo. He has read and approved the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for the disclosure contained in this news release.

Treaty Creek JV Partnership

The Treaty Creek Project is a Joint Venture with Tudor Gold owning 3/5th and acting as operator. American Creek and Teuton Resources each have a 1/5th interest in the project creating a 3:1 ownership relationship between Tudor Gold and American Creek. American Creek and Teuton are both fully carried until such time as a Production Notice is issued, at which time they are required to contribute their respective 20% share of development costs. Until such time, Tudor is required to fund all exploration and development costs while both American Creek and Teuton have “free rides”.

Treaty Creek Background

The Treaty Creek Project lies in the same hydrothermal system as Pretium’s Brucejack mine and Seabridge’s KSM deposits with far better logistics.

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About American Creek

American Creek is a Canadian junior mineral exploration company with a strong portfolio of gold and silver properties in British Columbia. Three of those properties are located in the prolific “Golden Triangle”; the Treaty Creek and Electrum joint venture projects with Tudor Gold/Walter Storm as well as the 100% owned past producing Dunwell Mine.

More information about the Treaty Creek Project can be found here: https://americancreek.com/index.php/projects/treaty-creek/home

The Corporation also holds the Gold Hill, Austruck-Bonanza, Ample Goldmax, Silver Side, and Glitter King properties located in other prospective areas of the province.

For further information please contact Kelvin Burton at: Phone: 403 752-4040 or Email: [email protected]. Information relating to the Corporation is available on its website at www.americancreek.com

Hollister Biosciences $HOLL.ca Enters Into Definitive Agreement to Acquire AlphaMind Brands Inc. $WEED.ca $CGC $ACB $APH $CRON.ca $OGI.ca $FAF.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 8:20 AM on Thursday, April 23rd, 2020
  • Entered into a share exchange agreement dated April 22nd, 2020 among the Company, AlphaMind Brands Inc. and the shareholders of TargetCo
  • Alphamind Brands is developing a portfolio of certified legal mushroom based natural health products
  • The company’s “ready to ship” product SKU’s include Cordyceps, Lion’s Mane, Shiitake, Oyster and Reishi Mushroom based: liquid tinctures, concentrated mushroom powder(s), teas, and chocolate.

VANCOUVER, April 23, 2020 – Hollister Biosciences Inc. (CSE: HOLL, FRANKFURT: HOB, OTC: HSTRF) (the “Company” or “Hollister“) – a diversified cannabis branding company with products in over 220 dispensaries throughout California, is pleased to announce that it has entered into a share exchange agreement dated April 22nd, 2020 among the Company, AlphaMind Brands Inc. (“TargetCo“) and the shareholders of TargetCo (the “Definitive Agreement“), pursuant to which, the Company will acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of TargetCo (the “Proposed Transaction“).  

Alphamind Brands is a Canada and US based growth stage company, that is developing a portfolio of certified legal mushroom based natural health products. It is also actively conducting R&D initiatives, led by Dr. Nikos C. Apostolopoulos, who is exploring psilocybin based pharmaceutical treatments.  The company’s “ready to ship” product SKU’s include Cordyceps, Lion’s Mane, Shiitake, Oyster and Reishi Mushroom based: liquid tinctures, concentrated mushroom powder(s), teas, and chocolate. 

“We are very pleased to have completed the next step in consummating this very exciting acquisition”, shared Carl Saling, Founder and CEO of Hollister Biosciences, Inc.  “It is a fundamental value of our company to improve the overall health and performance of our customers through our high-quality products and the health benefits associated with medicinal mushrooms are tremendous.  Not to mention, it is our continual objective to broaden our product scope and Alphamind, with its experienced management team, is a perfect foothold for us in the fast-growing market for medicinal mushrooms and complements our existing cannabis and hemp-based product offering.”

“I think we have found a great partner in Hollister”, shared Robert Birmingham, CEO of Alphamind Brands.  “We have medicinal mushroom based product SKU’s ready to ship and R&D is underway to develop an exciting IP portfolio surrounding psilocybin based pharmaceutical treatments. Being under the Hollister umbrella will allow us to access additional markets and leverage their existing manufacturing and distribution infrastructure and will be a fundamental part of the future growth of our business.”

The Proposed Transaction

Pursuant to the terms of the Definitive Agreement, Hollister will acquire all of the issued and outstanding securities of TargetCo in consideration for the issuance of 6,000,000 common shares of the Company (the “Payment Shares“) pro rata to shareholders of TargetCo at a deemed price of $0.20 per Payment Share upon closing of the Proposed Transaction (the “Closing Date“).

The Proposed Transaction remains subject to certain closing conditions including, without limitation, (a) the receipt by Hollister of any necessary corporate and regulatory approval; and (b) each party’s representations and warranties in the Definitive Agreement being true and correct in all aspects as of the Closing Date, and each party meeting its terms and conditions and completing its covenants and obligations as contained therein. There can be no guarantees that the Proposed Transaction will be completed as contemplated or at all.

Hollister will not be assuming any long-term debt; no new control position will be created and there is no change in management or the Board of Directors of Hollister in connection with the Proposed Transaction.

In addition, the Company also reports that it will issue 500,000 common shares at a deemed price of $0.12 per share to an arm’s length consultant pursuant to a consulting agreement in which services were provided from December 1, 2019 to the date hereof.  In addition, the Company will issue 90,400 shares to an arm’s length consultant pursuant to a consulting agreement in which services have been rendered since February 17, 2020 (See press release dated February 25th, 2020).  All shares issued pursuant to the consulting agreements will be subject to a four month and a day hold period from the date of issuance.

About Hollister Biosciences Inc.

Hollister Biosciences Inc. is a multi-state cannabis company with a vision to be the sought-after premium brand portfolio of innovative, high-quality cannabis & hemp products. Hollister uses a high margin model, controlling the whole process from manufacture to sales to distribution or seed to shelf. Products from Hollister Biosciences Inc. include HashBone, the brand’s premier artisanal hash-infused pre-roll, along with concentrates (shatter, budder, crumble), distillates, solvent-free bubble hash, pre-packaged flower, pre-rolls, tinctures, vape products, and full-spectrum high CBD pet tinctures. Hollister Cannabis Co. additionally offers white-labeling manufacturing of cannabis products.  Our wholly-owned California subsidiary Hollister Cannabis Co is the 1st state and locally licensed cannabis company in the city of Hollister, CA birthplace of the “American Biker”.

Website: www.hollistercannabisco.com

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

“Carl Saling”

CEO and Director

The CSE does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

The CSE has not in any way passed upon the merits of the Proposed Transaction and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release.

The securities to be issued in connection with the Proposed Transaction have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act“), or under any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold, directly or indirectly, or delivered within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons (as defined in Regulation S under the 1933 Act) absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy such securities in the United States.

This news release may include forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties. All statements within, other than statements of historical fact, are to be considered forward looking. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, exploitation and exploration successes, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. There can be no assurances that such statements will prove accurate and, therefore, readers are advised to rely on their own evaluation of such uncertainties. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements except as required under the applicable laws.

#Esports Is Filling The Programming Void – SPONSOR Esports Entertainment Group $GMBL $TECHF $ATVI $TTWO $GAME $EPY.ca $FDM.ca $TNA.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 6:31 PM on Wednesday, April 22nd, 2020

SPONSOR: Esports Entertainment Group (GMBL:NASDAQ) – Millions of people from around the world tune in to watch teams of video game players compete with each other. In first quarter 2020, YouTube reported 1.1 billion hours watched, an increase of 13% when compared to fourth quarter 2019. Wagering on Esports is projected to hit $23 BILLION this year although that number will likely be eclipsed due to the recent pandemic. Esports Entertainment Group is the next generation online gambling company designed for the purpose of facilitating as much of this wagering as possible.  LEARN MORE.


Esports Is Filling The Programming Void

By: Brad Adgate

  • In first quarter 2020, YouTube reported 1.1 billion hours watched, an increase of 13% when compared to fourth quarter 2019.
  • YouTube also reported a record high 500,000 concurrent viewers during the quarter.
  • Facebook Gaming also had a strong quarter, reaching 554 million hours.
  • This growth in gaming was validated by Verizon, which reported that, since the quarantine, video game usage in the U.S during peak hours grew by 75%.

The coronavirus has wreaked havoc with live sports programming and sports fans everywhere. Television networks are scrambling to fill the programming void without basketball, baseball, hockey, soccer and other live sports. To fill the void, ESPN, Fox Sports and other networks have been airing replays, sports-themed movies, documentaries and esports. Esports is competitive video gaming, usually played by professional gamers and watched by spectators.

Esports on TV: Although esports is primarily available for viewing online, televising live esports is not new. Over the past five years, a number of cable and broadcast networks have televised esports, including ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN Deportes, DisneyXD. The NFL Network, TBS, CW and even CBS. In July 2017, CBS televised Candy Crush Saga in prime time and averaged four million viewers.

In recent weeks, more esports contests have been appearing on television. ESPN created a branded ESPN Esports Day which included 12 hours of programming on April 5. Included in the programming were televised virtual games from Madden NFL20, Formula 1 Esports Virtual Grand Prix, Rocket League (which combines soccer with rocket-powered cars) and the opening round of a 16-team NBA 2K20 tournament event. For the NBA 2K20 tournament, players included NBA stars (and video game aficionados) Kevin Durant, Donovan Mitchell (both recovering from the coronavirus), Trae Young and the tournament winner, Devin Booker. Booker won $100,000 to be donated to coronavirus relief efforts.

Fox Sports has also been televising esports on their networks, including a Madden 20 tournament featuring former quarterback Michael Vick and other NFL players. Derwin James, a safety on the Los Angeles Chargers, won the eight-player tournament, defeating Vick in the championship game. FS1 also televised an eNASCAR pro Invitational iRacing Series that averaged an impressive 903,000 viewers. Up next on Fox Sports is the inaugural eMLS Tournament.

Esports Online: With the coronavirus and persons quarantined, esports has been flourishing online. As reported by StreamLabs and Stream Hatchet, Twitch, YouTube and Facebook all reported significant increases with online viewing in first quarter 2020. As an example, Amazon’s Twitch reached a record high 3.1 billion hours watched, up 17% from the previous quarter. Twitch also reported a 33% growth in unique channels and record high in average concurrent viewing with 1.4 million.

In first quarter 2020, YouTube reported 1.1 billion hours watched, an increase of 13% when compared to fourth quarter 2019. YouTube also reported a record high 500,000 concurrent viewers during the quarter. Facebook Gaming also had a strong quarter, reaching 554 million hours. This growth in gaming was validated by Verizon, which reported that, since the quarantine, video game usage in the U.S during peak hours grew by 75%. By comparison, overall web traffic was up by 20%, video streaming usage increased by 12% and social media usage was flat. Twitter said conversations about esports grew by 71% during the second half of March (when the coronavirus pandemic impacted live TV sports), compared to the first two weeks of the month.

Revenue: Esports’ popularity has been on the upswing for years. According to NewZoo’s latest Global esports Market Report from February 2020, global revenue will reach $1.1 billion in 2020 with China the largest market ($385 million). This is an increase of 15.7% from 2019 and more than double the revenue of 2016. NewZoo projects revenue to surpass $1.5 billion in 2023. Sponsorship is the largest revenue source, contributing 58% to the total, followed by media rights at 17% and merchandise/ticket sales at 11%.

Audience: Globally, the awareness of esports has also grown substantially. In 2020, 1.955 billion people were aware of esports, compare to 1.1 billion in 2016. The esports audience will reach 495 million worldwide in 2020, with 223 million defined as frequent viewers/enthusiasts and 272 million occasional viewers. This is a sizeable increase from 2016, when there were 121 million frequent viewers/enthusiasts and 160 million occasional viewers. Its projected by 2022 there will be close to 300 million frequent viewers/enthusiasts to esports.  

A McKinsey report said in the U.S., there are over 20 million esports fans, 83% are male and 84% are younger than 35. Among U.S. men under age 25, 38% are esports fans and on average watch nearly one hour of esports each day. Furthermore, 10% of esports fans report watching over 20 hours per week, although only 13% responded that esports is the only sport they watch. Among 18-34 viewers, the League of Legends is now the third most popular professional sports league after the NBA and NFL.

Video gamers between the ages of 18-25 spend 77% more time watching other players online than watching broadcast sports. A Nielsen analysis found over 60% of esports fans on Twitch do not watch linear TV on a weekly basis at all and half don’t have a paid TV subscription. The people in this age group are among the lightest viewers of television, are heavy users of streaming content, grew up playing video games and are a popular demographic to target among advertisers.

Advertisers: Since esports has a desirable viewing demographic and is growing in popularity, more “blue-chip” advertisers are sponsoring events. There are many opportunities and strategies for esports sponsorships. Nielsen reports sponsorships can range from on-air signage and branded content to digital overlays and apparel. Esports has evolved from experiential marketing for numerous advertisers. Many product categories targeting young males sponsor esports. The list includes soft drinks, quick service restaurants, consumer electronics, automotive, apparel, financial services, telecom and insurance companies. eMarketer projects ad revenue for eSports will reach $214 million in 2020, a 20% increase from $178 million in 2019.

Gambling: With live sports on hold, casinos, which would have booked hundreds of millions of dollars with live sporting events are looking at esports to recapture some of the lost revenue. In April,  Nevada Gaming Control permitted wagering on multiple esports events. This could popularize esports even more. Sports gambling has now been legalized in 17 states.

The coronavirus is expected to quicken trends already happening in the entertainment and sports industry. For example, consumers could subscribe to more streaming video content bolstered by several new launches. Cash-strapped consumers could accelerate cord-cutting. Studios could release movies in theaters and for at-home viewing simultaneously. Some newspapers may entirely forego printed editions and produce only online content. To this list you can also add broadcasters, who may add more esports to their programming lineups in order to reach a coveted younger audience.

Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/bradadgate/2020/04/21/esports-is-filling-the-programming-void/#4e6db323533b

VIDEO: Lomiko $LMR.ca Discusses High Grade #Graphite, #Tesla and Recent #Oil Shock $CJC.ca $SRG.ca $NGC.ca $LLG.ca $GPH.ca $NOU.ca $TSLA

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 5:53 PM on Wednesday, April 22nd, 2020

Paul Gill, CEO of Lomiko Metals (LMR:TSX:V) (LMRMF:OTCQB) (DH8C:FRANK) is in the midst of proving up a very high grade Graphite deposit.

The La Loutre Flake Graphite property is a high-grade (10+ % Cg) deposit located 117 kilometres northwest of Montreal. It has an indicated + inferred resource of 10 M Tonnes of 6% at the Graphene-Battery Zone.

Lomiko recently completed drilling at the “REFRACTORY Zone” of La loutre.
A second resource that includes recent high grade intercepts of 28.5 Metres of 16.53% Cg and 21.5 Metres of 11.53% Cg reported January 6, 2016 and 9% over 90.75 metres reported September 24th 2015 from the Refractory Zone.

The company reported multiple 100M+ intercepts and multiple 10% CG zones.

On the demand side, Paul provides a compelling argument for the future of graphite and more specifically EV’s (Tesla). Paul’s thesis further suggests that the recent oil shock will do little to curb the long term lifestyle demand of the future Tesla consumer.

Grab your favourite beverage and check it out!

Ronald Peter Stöferle: Black Swans, Grey Rhinos and Golden Bulls – World Gold Forum 2020 – SPONSOR: Labrador Gold $LAB.ca $RIO.ca $WHM.ca $SIC.ca $NXS.ca

Posted by AGORACOM at 3:11 PM on Wednesday, April 22nd, 2020

SPONSOR: Labrador Gold – Two successful gold explorers lead the way in the Labrador gold rush targeting the under-explored gold potential of the province. Exploration has already outlined district scale gold on two projects, including a 40km strike length of the Florence Lake greenstone belt, one of two greenstone belts covered by the Hopedale Project. Recently acquired 14km of the potential extension of the new discovery by New Found Gold’s Queensway project to the south. Click Here for More Info

Ronald Peter Stöferle’s keynote speech at this year’s virtual World Gold Forum 2020.

Unlimited quantitative easing and fiscal stimulation. Central banks and governments are on the test bench. Learn why this is the perfect breeding ground for gold, commodities and mining stocks.

A golden future lies ahead!

Topics: Black Swan or Grey Rhino?

In recent weeks, the news filled with Corona, experts and governments have been throwing around the term Black Swan. The Black Swan is a metaphor that describes an unpredictable, rare event that causes great harm. Ronald Stöferle, on the other hand, is of the opinion that the corona virus is more like a grey rhinoceros. A rare but highly probable but neglected event.

Central banks and governments under scrutiny We are in the process of making history. Never before has there been a crisis in which so many monetary and fiscal interventions by central banks and governments have been made in such a short time. Ronald postulates that the central banks, as they have already announced, will do everything possible to prevent deflation. The markets and the population should therefore be prepared for anything. From unlimited quantitative easing, to ideas like the universal basic income.

Gold on the rise again. There is a general change on the markets. Gold has reappeared on the scene. Ronald shows how gold has done exactly what it is supposed to do. Stabilize your portfolio and protect your assets from a drastic decline in stock values. He also postulates that the gold price has already reached its lowest point. Inflation or Stagflation Even if it was in fashion to declare inflation dead, it seems to be returning. Ronald explains that our in-house inflation indicator shows that inflation could be about to make a comeback. The markets are unlikely to feel this until the curfew is lifted and there is suddenly much more money in the system.

Gold stocks back in the bull market The comparison between the Great Depression and now does not seem to limp. Ronald postulates a good environment for gold mining stocks, as was the case during the Great Depression. The Golden Future Gold has returned to the public eye. We are currently in the public participation phase.

As Ronald explains that current climate, both by the massive interventions and the general crisis, are the perfect breeding ground for gold and commodities in general.

Time stamp: 2:40

Agenda 3:30

The black swan, which is none 8:54

(When) Will confidence in central banks begin to erode 15:26

Gold: What the 7th sense of the financial market has to tell us 20:55

Inflation and Stagflation – The Ultimate Craft of Pain 27:08

Gold mining shares 29:31

The golden future 36:45

Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/IGWTreport

Homepage link: https://www.incrementum.li/en/

How Geopolitics Are Influencing The #Edtech Market – SPONSOR: BetterU Education Corp. $BTRU.ca $ARCL $CPLA $BPI $FC.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 2:30 PM on Wednesday, April 22nd, 2020

SPONSOR:  BetterU Education Corp. aims to provide access to quality education from around the world. The company plans to bridge the prevailing gap in the education and job industry and enhance the lives of its prospective learners by developing an integrated ecosystem. betterU / Ottolearn launch FREE COVID-19 mobile resource toolkit to fight the global crisis – Click here for more information.

How Geopolitics Are Influencing The Edtech Market

  • EdTech market is already quite robust and healthy from a fiscal standpoint, and its foothold in the educational world is only going to increase as the years go on
  • With EdTech booming all over the world, and exponentially in growing powers such as China and India, there is a wave of geopolitical maneuvering which is cresting alongside the increased proliferation of educational technology

By Matthew Lynch

The EdTech market is already quite robust and healthy from a fiscal standpoint, and its foothold in the educational world is only going to increase as the years go on. With EdTech booming all over the world, and exponentially in growing powers such as China and India, there is a wave of geopolitical maneuvering which is cresting alongside the increased proliferation of educational technology.

The global demand for the newest educational technology is shifting the balance of power in interesting ways. With a noted entrenchment and stagnation in enrollment numbers and EdTech investment in the United States, companies are looking globally to expand their footprints and build their clientele. 

With that, the specter of geopolitical power struggles looms large as emerging markets look to take the lead in the EdTech sector.

The United States Is In Danger Of Falling Behind 

While the United States educational technology market isn’t flagging in the slightest, it’s reached a plateau when it comes to spending and demand for enrollment. Projections for American enrollment numbers in online learning courses are remarkably conservative considering the rapid rise of EdTech. 

In addition, spending by United States companies on educational technology seems to be stuck in neutral. Spending has capped in the $1.0 billion to $1.6 billion range over the past five years. It’s not expected to exceed that anytime soon.

This noted stagnation has opened the door for the aforementioned emerging markets, such as India and China, to take the reins of the Ed Tech boom. And seeing that educational technology is only going to grow exponentially by all measures over the next couple of decades, this gives those markets a unique geopolitical upper hand that they may not have had prior.

Is The Balance Of Geopolitical Influence Set To Shift?

Per a report by the folks over at HolonIQ, 70% of the global investment in education technology over the past 12 months has come from just two markets – India and China.

Furthermore, four of the five biggest educational technology deals over the past 12 months happened in China. There are no signs of an impending slowdown, either.

According to the HolonIQ report, “the US and Europe will steadily lose ground to China and India” over the course of the next two decades in regards to control of the educational technology market.

This falls in line with a number of other promising fiscal trends in China and India. There’s an influx of new money in both of these markets and a solid chunk of it is going into educational technology.

With that influx, China and India are bound to gain key geopolitical influence when it comes to both the quality of education of their citizens and the undeniable link between fiscal strength and geopolitical power.

Concluding Thoughts

The rise of emerging markets, such as China and India, is extremely apparent in the shift of power with the educational technology sector. The healthier these markets become, the more likely they will be to increase their dominance in the EdTech sector.

And with EdTech becoming an integral sector to the health of the global economy and the citizens contributing to that, the link between EdTech influence and geopolitical power is only set to strengthen.

Source: https://www.thetechedvocate.org/how-geopolitics-are-influencing-the-edtech-market/

Graphene Shields Metal Pipes From Corrosive Bacteria SPONSOR: Gratomic $GRAT.ca $SRG.ca $NGC.ca $LLG.ca $GPH.ca $NOU.ca #TODAQ

Posted by AGORACOM at 2:04 PM on Wednesday, April 22nd, 2020
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SPONSOR: Gratomic Inc. (TSX-V: GRAT) Advanced materials company focused on mine to market commercialization of graphite products, most notably high value graphene based components for a range of mass market products. Collaborating with Perpetuus, Gratomic will use Aukam graphite to manufacture graphene products for commercialization on an industrial scale. For More Info Click Here

Graphene, a dynamic material made of a one-atom-thick sheet of linked carbon atoms, was previously shown to stop steel from rusting. But soon it will also see use stopping bacteria from corroding metal pipes, according to a study published in the journal ACS Nano.

Graphene can stop bacterial corrosion of metal pipes

Within wastewater-processing facilities like sewage treatment plants, microbes called sulfate-reducing bacteria often colonize the inside surfaces of pipes and other equipment, reports New Atlas. Bacterial colonies take the form of what scientists call “biofilms,” and can develop in just 10 days after the pipes have been cleaned — after which they degrade metal pipes into primary ways.

First, the bacterial microbes remove electrons from the surface of the metal while they respire (or breathe). Second, while the bacteria consume organic matter from the water, they produce hydrogen sulfide, a corrosive chemical to metal pipes.

Overcoming limits of bacteria in metal tube coating

While protective polymer coatings may be applied to the interiors of metal pipes, the coatings themselves can become degraded as the bacteria consume their internal plasticizers. Additionally, such protective coatings may become brittle over time, cracking and flaking right off of the pipe surface, after which it enters the water stream.

Because of these limitations, South Dakota School of Mines & Technology research scientist Govind Chilkoor is considering the use of graphene as an alternative primary coating. During lab testing, Chilkoor found that even a single graphene layer — measuring less than 1 nanometer thick — was highly effective at preventing sulfate-reducing bacteria from latching on to the interior surface of metal pipes.

“Graphene can be very antimicrobial,” said Chilkoor, reports New Atlas. “It can induce oxidative stress and the bacteria will die.”

SOURCE: https://interestingengineering.com/graphene-shields-metal-pipes-from-corrosive-bacteria

Tiredness could be ‘human signature’ used to detect bots on Twitter – SPONSOR: Datametrex AI Limited $DM.ca

Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 1:21 PM on Wednesday, April 22nd, 2020

SPONSOR: Datametrex AI Limited (TSX-V: DM) A revenue generating small cap A.I. company that NATO and Canadian Defence are using to fight fake news & social media threats. The company is working with US Government agencies on Covid19 and Coronavirus fake news and disinformation. The company also obtained the rights to import and sell COVID-19 test kits from South Korea – Click here for more info.

Tiredness could be ‘human signature’ used to detect bots on Twitter

  • Concerns about the impact of deceptive bot networks spreading disinformation in order to influence democratic events, such as the 2016 US presidential election, had lead to calls from lawmakers, academics and campaigners for social media companies to detect and take down these networks
  • These efforts will include human moderators and machine learning algorithms trained to detect suspicious behaviour

By E&T editorial staff

A study has identified short-term behavioural differences between humans and bots – reflecting what is likely to be increasing tiredness towards the end of a social media session – which could be used to detect and take down networks of bots on social media.

Bots – which are controlled by computers, rather than by humans – serve a wide variety of purposes, including news aggregation and customer service. Despite their benefits, bots have come under scrutiny recently in the context of being used manipulatively as part of large-scale, state-backed projects to spread disinformation on social media platforms.

Concerns about the impact of deceptive bot networks spreading disinformation in order to influence democratic events, such as the 2016 US presidential election, had lead to calls from lawmakers, academics and campaigners for social media companies to detect and take down these networks. These efforts will include human moderators and machine learning algorithms trained to detect suspicious behaviour.

Now, a first-of-its-kind study published in Frontiers in Physics has identified some short-term behavioural trends seen in human-run accounts which are absent in bot accounts. This could provide a “human signature” to detect fake accounts, which are constantly adapting to fool detectors.

“Remarkably, bots continuously improve to mimic more and more of the behaviour humans typically exhibit on social media,” said Professor Emilio Ferrara, a University of Southern California computer science expert and co-author of the study. “Every time we identify a characteristic we think is prerogative of human behaviour, such as sentiment of topics of interest, we soon discover that newly developed open-source bots can now capture those aspects.

Ferrara and his colleagues studied how the behaviour of humans and bots changed over the course of single sessions using a large Twitter dataset associated with recent political discussion. They monitored factors such as propensity to engage in various social interactions and volume and type of tweets they wrote, then compared the results between humans and bots.

They found that humans showed an increase in the amount of social interaction over the course of a session (an increase in the fraction of retweets, replies and mentions in a tweet) and a decrease in the amount of content they produce (a decrease in average tweet length). The researchers suggested that this could reflect humans becoming tired towards the end of the session and being less able or willing to produce original content. This behavioural change was not seen in bots.

The researchers used these results to inform a classification system for bot detection. They found that their model significantly outperformed a baseline model in its bot-detection accuracy, indicating that searching for short-term behavioural patterns like this could be valuable in the implementation and improvement of detection systems.

“Bots are constantly evolving: with fast-paced advances in AI, it’s possible to create ever-increasingly realistic bots that can mimic more and more how we talk and interact in online platforms,” said Ferrara. “We are continuously trying to identify dimensions that are particular to the behaviour of humans on social media that can in turn be used to develop more sophisticated toolkits to detect bots.”

Source: https://eandt.theiet.org/content/articles/2020/04/tiredness-could-be-human-signature-used-to-detect-bots-on-twitter/

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Bank of America Calling for $3,000 Gold in 18 Months SPONSOR: Loncor Resources $LN.ca $ABX.ca $TECK.ca $RSG $NGT.to $GOLD $NEM

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  • The analysts noted that the Federal Reserve: “Can’t print gold.”

(Kitco News) – Bank of America commodity analysts just keep getting more bullish on gold as the weeks go by.

The bank said in a report last week that gold ’s technical momentum could drive prices to an all-time high this year; in a new report published Tuesday, analysts have officially increased their bullish outlook, saying that gold prices could hit $3,000 within 18 months, a 50% increase from its previous forecast

Along with increasing its 18-month target, the bank said that it sees gold prices averaging $2,063 an ounce in 2021.

“As economic output contracts sharply, fiscal outlays surge, and central bank balance sheets double, fiat currencies could come under pressure. And investors will aim for gold,” the analysts said.

Although a strong U.S. dollar and weak physical jewelry demand in Asia could be headwinds for the gold market, the analysts said that the Federal Reserve has provided enough momentum to propel investment demand and prices higher.

Economists at Bank of America have warned that the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet as a percentage of GDP could rise 20% to 40% this year. According to reports last week, the Federal Reserve’s balance sheet hit a record high of $6.42 trillion, up more than 50% from levels reported during the first week of March.

The analysts noted that the Federal Reserve: “Can’t print gold.”

“Beyond traditional gold supply and demand fundamentals, financial repression is back on an extraordinary scale. Rates in the US and most G-10 economies will likely be at or below zero for a very long period of time as central banks attempt to push inflation back above their targets,” the analysts said.

Although investor sentiment has improved slightly during the last few weeks, the bank’s analysts said that there is still more bad news ahead. They noted that economists are forecasting a 30% decline in the U.S. GDP in the second quarter as the economy was grounded after all non-essential businesses were closed and citizens were requested to stay at home.

“As central banks rush to expand their balance sheets and backstop the economy, a lot of risks could effectively be socialized, boosting the appeal of gold,” the analysts said.

Weak economic growth does not bode well for equity markets, the analysts said, adding that this will be another factor supporting higher gold prices.

“The positive equity/gold correlations are a possible sign that equity markets may not have fully bottomed and that the gold market has further room to run, in our view. The trigger here could be an extension of lockdown restrictions over the next few weeks,” the analysts said.

Despite the strong bullish sentiment, Bank of America does see some risks in the marketplace. Along with weak physical demand, the analysts said that central bank gold purchases are expected to slow this year.

They also noted that lower market volatility could also weigh on gold prices.

Source:https://www.kitco.com/news/2020-04-21/Bank-of-America-calling-for-3-000-gold-in-18-months.html