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Cryptocurrencies have now evolved past simple digital currencies, offering solutions to meet the complex needs of modern financial markets. Today’s graphic from Abra visualizes the complex, ever-evolving cryptocurrency ecosystem and its real-world applications. Characteristics of Cryptocurrencies Why are cryptocurrencies important for the future of digital finance? Borderless Drastically reduces fees and processing times due to a lack of cross-border restrictions Censorship-free Prevents governments or major institutions from blocking financial activities at whim Greater financial control Individuals can have total control of their funds Greater security Prevents fraudulent alterations from third parties Lower costs Lower transaction fees thanks to fewer third parties Greater Accessibility Reduces or eliminates traditional barriers to capital markets...

The European member states are countries mainly in Europe, and three outside, that are part of one or more of the four major treaty groups, namely the European Union (EU), NATO, Schengen, and eurozone. Each of these institutions governs a different aspect of the region’s infrastructure. Let’s take a look at each of them. European Union The European Union (EU) is a unique economic and political union between 27 European countries....

Abenomics: Japan’s Dangerous Experiment Shinzō Abe, Japan’s prime minister, set out in early 2013 to rejuvenate Japan’s struggling economy with a $116 billion stimulus package, structural reforms, and $1.4 trillion of very loose monetary easing. In anticipation of the effects, Japan’s stock market surged. By May 2013, the stock market had risen by 55%, but these early indications turned out to be premature. Up until this point, it seems that Abenomics has not done much for the real growth of Japan’s economy, despite temporary boosts that were a consequence of optimism....

Because no candidate received a majority of votes, there will be a run-off vote on May 7 in which French voters decide between Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen. While the two candidates are each considered outsiders for different reasons, their key platform differences could not be more stark. The major fundamental issue they disagree on is EU membership – and as a result, French voters potentially hold the fate of the entire EU in their hands....

The rate of digital disruption is escalating in almost every industry. However, despite being one of the fastest-growing industries globally—construction has been one of the last to get hit. Today’s infographic from Raconteur ranks the adoption of emerging technologies that will have a major impact on the industry’s processes and bottom line. The technologies help solve four major challenge areas that the construction industry struggles with: productivity, safety and training, labor shortages, and collaboration....

In this map, the startups are plotted plotted based on their country of origin, and not their physical geographic location (such as a specific city or state). Further, companies are organized also based on color, which represents the spectrum of sectors that these startups span across. The Most Valuable Startups Today, there are 214 unicorns worth a collective $744 billion – but that dollar value is distributed very unequally. According to research firm CB Insights, the top 10 unicorns alone are worth $303....

Interestingly, of the 44 presidents sworn to office since 1789, there is quite a range in the starting points of presidencies, going from 42 years (Teddy Roosevelt) to 70 years (Donald Trump). The average age for inauguration, however, is at the center of this bell curve at 55 years old: Today’s data visualization, which comes from Reddit, shows a timeline of the life of each president, highlighting when they were inaugurated, when they left office, and when they eventually passed away (or their current age, if still alive)....

While forces like interest rates, demographics, and the economy help drive the housing market as a whole, the strength of your local market depends on other factors closer to home. When you zoom out to look at U.S. real estate from a bird’s eye view, you’ll see this regional variance in full effect. Some markets are booming while others are tanking, and the contrast between the winners and losers is a stark one....

Silver’s Role in the New Energy Era (Part 3 of 3) Silver is one of the first metals that humans discovered and used. Its extensive use throughout history has linked its name to its monetary value. However, as we have advanced technologically, so have our uses for silver. In the future, silver will see a surge in demand from solar and electric vehicle (EV) technologies. Part 1 and Part 2 of the Silver Series showcased its monetary legacy as a safe haven asset as a precious metal and why now is its time to shine....

Presented by: Nevada Energy Metals, eCobalt Solutions Inc., and Great Lakes Graphite Our Energy Problem: Putting the Battery in Context In Part 1, we examined the evolution of battery technology. In this part, we examine what batteries can and cannot do, and the energy problem that humans hope that batteries can help solve. Batteries enable many important aspects of modern life. They are portable, quiet, compact, and can start-up with the flick of a switch....

Millions of Americans rely on polls and the media to gauge the direction of political elections. Politics are sometimes unpredictable though, and on occasion, election outcomes can defy conventional wisdom. These surprises, known as political longshots, are scattered throughout American political history. As time winds down to the 59th U.S. presidential election in November, today’s visual article from PredictIt goes back in time to showcase moments when polls, media outlets, and the American public were left stunned....

This map ranks America’s best states to do business in based on a study from CNBC which measured 88 factors across 10 broad categories. Methodology Here is a further breakdown of the weight given to each of the 10 categories: The Most Business Friendly States North Carolina—coming in first place in the ranking—attracts an extremely talented and innovative workforce, largely thanks to the state’s investment in its Research Triangle Regional Partnership (RTRP)....

Despite a brand’s intangibility, it’s hard to deny just how effective a strong one can be at boosting a company’s bottom line. With this in mind, Brand Finance takes on the challenge of identifying the world’s most valuable brands in the world in its annual Global 500 Report. The graphic above, using data from the latest edition of the report, highlights the top 100 most valuable brands in 2022. Editor’s note: This ranking measures the value of brands, which can be thought of as marketing-related intangible assets that create a brand identity and reputation in the minds of consumers....

The Earth formed 4.6 billion years ago, and single-celled organisms have existed for about 4 billion of them. Yet, modern humans have only been around 50,000 to 200,000 years, depending on how you define “modern”. About 30,000 years ago, we domesticated the first animals. Thousands of years later, we used metal for the first time. If the Earth was only 24 hours old, modern humans have been around since 11:59:59pm – for just one second of time....

While cities are the main drivers for improving the lives of people and entire nations, they also tend to be the main contributors of pollution and CO2 emissions. How can we encourage this growth, while also making city energy use sustainable? Resolving the Paradox Today’s infographic comes to us from the Canadian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association and it outlines hydrogen technology as a sustainable fuel for keeping urban economic engines running effectively for the future....

The Industrial Internet and How It Is Revolutionizing Mining Today’s infographic was done in conjunction with GE Digital The Industrial Internet is the convergence of the global industrial sector with big data and the internet of things. Big Data: New insight to make decisions in real-time is made possible by combining the ability to process and make sense of large amounts of data with a universally standard industrial platform. Internet of Things: By 2020, 50 billion devices will be connected to the web....

The Myth of the Successful Money Manager It seems logical to conclude that having an experienced fund manager handle your money would be the best choice for a good return on investment. However, much data shows that especially after fees and other deductions, that these types of funds often fail to beat the market. This is one of the myths that Tony Robbins, the famed life coach, has identified in his latest book called “Money Master the Game” and has helped shed light on....

The most seismic shift has been to the media landscape as platforms like Facebook overtake traditional channels of news, distribution, and advertising. Not only does this put incumbent news conglomerates in an unenviable position, but it has also thrust tech companies into the reluctant role of the gatekeeper for society’s most important news and information. While people may be divided on whether this is good or bad, there is another major change stemming from technology that is more clean cut in having a positive effect on consumers....

In the U.S., the Fed hiked interest rates seven times. Globally, central banks raised interest rates for the first time in years in order to combat surging inflation. The Russian invasion of Ukraine and China’s COVID Zero ambitions threw markets and supply chains into further disarray. To recap the past 12 months, we’ve created an augmented version of the classic FinViz treemap, showing the final numbers posted for major U....

The Wealth Inequality Problem in One Chart It’s clear that America’s financial and political systems are broken The Chart of the Week is a weekly Visual Capitalist feature on Fridays. It seems that people don’t agree on much these days, but there is one growing exception to that rule. Across the board, Americans are finding that the “system” isn’t working for most people in its current state. Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders have locked into this sentiment to garner unprecedented support as outsider candidates, and there is an undeniable feeling in the air that something has got to give....