INDOOR AIR QUALITY: Yes you can fix it...there is one inexpensive indoor air quality monitor can only say, not do

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Amazon’s Smart Air Quality Monitor could be a lot smarter

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The Amazon Smart Air Quality Monitor keeps track of indoor air quality.

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This inexpensive indoor air quality monitor can only say, not do

By Jennifer Pattison Tuohy@jp2e Mar 11, 2022, 10:46am EST

"5 out of 10

A smart air quality monitor can not only give you a heads up when the air quality is going down so you can do something about it (open a window, turn on a fan, fire up an air purifier), but it should also do something about it without you needing to interfere, thanks to its connected nature.

For example, when particulate matter rises, a connected air quality monitor can tell a smart plug to turn on the fan connected to it or direct a smart thermostat to kick on the HVAC system to get the air moving or even trigger a smart air purifier to start cleaning the air.

Herein lies the problem with Amazon’s cute little $70 smart air quality monitor: it can’t do any of that.

What it can do is send an alert to your phone, announce over an Echo speaker, and indicate with its LED light when your air quality inside is poor. It can also turn on your heating or AC based on temperature, which could help move some air.

The Smart Monitor has a nice, compact design and is powered by a micro-USB cable.

There’s no on-device screen to show you exactly what’s wrong (a feature on almost all the competition); instead, you need to have a nearby Echo Show to see your readings (or look in the app). The alert it sends just says the air quality is poor — no other info. Other monitors I’ve tested will send specific alerts — such as “CO2 levels are high, time to air this place out” or “Humidity is a bit high, consider running a dehumidifier.” While Amazon’s device does give you an early warning, that’s about it. But for people who don’t want to shell out a small fortune to monitor their air, this is a decent option.

Price is the biggest selling point for the Amazon Smart Air Quality Monitor. It’s a much less expensive way to monitor your indoor air, with most competing products costing between $100 and $300.

The $300 Awair Element and Airthings View Plus are the leaders here for those who want to get serious about their air. On the less expensive side of things are the $99.99 Eve Room, which is HomeKit only, the Netatmo Smart Indoor Air Quality Monitor for $119.99, and the $45 Aqara’s TVOC Air Quality Monitor (which requires a hub starting at $30), both of these also work with Alexa and can connect to HomeKit.

You can see your air quality score dashboard on an Echo Show smart display, as well as in the Alexa app on a smartphone.

The Amazon Smart AQ Monitor measures PM 2.5 (particulate matter small enough to penetrate the lungs), VOCs, carbon monoxide, humidity, and temperature. It’s missing a carbon dioxide monitor, which some competitors offer. This can help identify poor airflow in a room and potentially alert you to the risk of indoor COVID transmission. (High levels of CO2 can indicate that more of the air in a room is made up of other people’s breath — and whatever germs that breath carries.) But the Smart Monitor does offer more sensors than the similarly priced Aqara sensor, which doesn’t measure PM 2.5 or carbon monoxide.

As with most consumer IAQs, the Smart Monitor offers up an easy-to-read score of your air quality. Its onboard indicator light also turns green for good, yellow for moderate, red for poor. The score appears in the app on a scale of 100, with 0 to 35 being bad and 65 to 100 good. It’s likely based on the air quality index, developed by the EPA to help average users understand air quality (I’ve reached out to Amazon for confirmation of this). In my testing, my score hovered around 89, unless I was cooking on my gas stove when it nosedived to around 23.

You can see the score in the device’s dashboard in the Alexa app or on an Echo Show. Here you also get a breakdown of what’s contributing to it and what, if anything, is making it worse. Each of the five sensors has its own line, highlighted in green, yellow, or red, indicating its status. . .

The Smart Monitor is a nice-looking device. It has a rectangular puck-like design, with rounded corners, matte white plastic, and a small grille for the air to move through. It’s also significantly smaller than most of the competition and won’t look out of place in a living room or kitchen. It does have to be plugged in via a micro-USB cable and wall plug (included); there’s no battery backup.

The monitor is easy to set up — plug it in, open the Alexa app, and, if you are not prompted to pair the monitor, tap “Add Device.” You need to grant access to Bluetooth and your device’s camera (to scan the setup code), agree to the Alexa and Alexa Devices Terms of Use, and then scan the QR code on the back of the device. Alexa will then find the device and connect it to your Alexa account. Next, add it to a room or group.

The monitor takes seven minutes to calibrate before it shows an IAQ score, and Amazon says it can take about two days to adjust to your air. Because of the calibration time, it’s not really suited to moving around your home, as you have to unplug it, which resets the calibration. Interestingly, all the competitors have the option to just use battery power, which helps with portability, but most also need time to adjust to properly read your air. . .

You can also ask Alexa for an update on your air by saying “Alexa, what is the indoor air quality?” Responses include poor, fair, and good, along with your air quality score. (Note: if you say “Alexa, what is the air quality,” you’ll get a report from AirNow.gov of the outdoor air quality index score in your location, no monitor required.) You can also ask what the indoor temperature or humidity is, but you can’t get CO, PM, or VOC readings by voice.

Amazon tells me you can also ask for the readings in a specific room if you add the device to a Group in the app. This would be useful if you had a couple of these in various rooms around your house. But in my testing I kept getting the response “That’s not supported yet.”

. . .If the Smart Monitor could also act on humidity, VOCs, CO, and particulate matter, it would be much easier to recommend. Amazon has said it is working on adding this functionality, but until it arrives, this device is limited as a smart air quality monitor. . .

If you have an Amazon Smart Thermostat or similar, an Echo Show, and an interest in how high your particulate matter is, you may get some use out of the Amazon Smart Air Quality Monitor. Otherwise, there is no compelling reason to pick this up as it doesn’t do much — yet.

Photos by Jennifer Pattison Tuohy / The Verge

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FREEDUMB FOR ARIZONA STATE SENATOR WENDY ROGERS

Hmmm...Here's something that says it all: "Wendy, honey, typing a name on Twitter of someone notoriously not here makes me think that you wouldn't know how to use a search engine anyway.— Mrs. Betty Bowers (@BettyBowers) March 11, 2022 

GOP State Senator's Desperate Plea To Donald Trump Goes Mockingly Awry

Critics spotted some fatal flaws with Arizona Republican Wendy Rogers' request to the former president.

By Lee Moran Reporter, HuffPost

HuffPost

 

"Arizona Republican state Sen. Wendy Rogers faced a barrage of mockery on Friday after she pleaded with Donald Trump on Twitter to create a new search engine “we can TRUST.”

President Trump, please make a real Search Engine we can TRUST.

— Wendy Rogers (@WendyRogersAZ) March 11, 2022

Critics took great delight in reminding Trump apologist Rogers that the former president has not actually been on Twitter since January 2021, when he was booted from the platform for inciting the deadly U.S. Capitol riot. Others asked how his reportedly underwhelming Truth Social network was coming along.

Newsflash: Trump is permanently banned from Twitter, so he can’t see this tweet.

> He’s too busy fundraising for a new plane because he can’t afford it due to taking out a $100 million loan last week to pay off his last $100 million loan

— Snarky Blonde (@Orvieto2016) March 11, 2022 

(P.S. - He’s apparently not posting on Truth Social, so he won’t see it there either.

--- SELMa (@iamaxian) March 11, 2022

If it's anything like Truth Social, you'll type in the search, hit enter, wait 6 hours and get one wrong answer.

— Carlos Rosado (@crosado1968) March 11, 2022

Honest question: Are people like Wendy serious, or are they just trolling serious adults?

— AJ (@theAJspeaks) March 11, 2022 

 

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CURRENCY EXCHANGES SAY THAT ARE BLOCKING RUSSIAN ACCOUNTS SANCTIONED BY THE WEST

Some countries are neutral and refuse to take sides between Western allies and Moscow

Russians liquidating crypto in UAE in hunt for safe havens

Cryptocurrency exchanges say they are taking steps to ensure digital currency is not used as a vehicle to evade sanctions.

aljazeera.com |

Crypto firms in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are being deluged with requests to liquidate billions of dollars of virtual currency as Russians seek a safe haven for their fortunes, according to company executives and financial sources.

Some clients are using cryptocurrency to invest in real estate in the UAE, while others want to use firms there to turn their virtual money into hard currency and stash it elsewhere, the sources said

One crypto firm has received lots of queries in the past 10 days from Swiss brokers asking to liquidate billions of dollars of Bitcoin because their clients are afraid Switzerland will freeze their assets, one executive said, adding none of the requests had been for less than $2bn. . .

The country’s economic affairs secretariat (SECO) said in an emailed statement that crypto assets were subject to the same sanctions and measures Switzerland has imposed on “normal” Russian assets and individuals, so if a person is sanctioned their crypto assets must also be frozen in Switzerland.

Dubai, the Gulf region’s financial and business centre and a growing crypto hub, has long been a magnet for the world’s ultrarich and the UAE’s refusal to take sides between Western allies and Moscow has signalled to Russians their money is safe there.One real estate broker, whose company has partnered with a cryptocurrency service to help people buy property, said: “We’ve been seeing a lot of Russians and even Belarusians coming to Dubai and bringing whatever they can bring, even in crypto.”

Way out of sanctions?

A financial source in the UAE confirmed that Russians were buying property in Dubai, using crypto as a way of getting their money out of other jurisdictions and into the Gulf state.

Cryptocurrency exchanges have said, while giving few details, they are blocking the accounts of Russians sanctioned by the West over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, which Russia calls a “special military operation”.

Major exchanges such as Coinbase Global Inc and Binance say they are taking steps to ensure that crypto is not used as a vehicle to evade sanctions, and they collaborate with law enforcement on the issue.

Still, as crypto offers users a high degree of anonymity, European countries such as Germany and Estonia have this week called for tighter oversight to snuff out any loopholes that could allow sanctions-busting.

Three Western diplomats said they were increasingly alarmed by the number of Russians who in recent weeks were seeking refuge in the UAE for their fortunes, including in property, and were wary that some could be acting on behalf of those under sanctions.

> Two of the diplomats said they were sceptical the UAE would crack down on Russian wealth in the Gulf state, which they said was predominantly held in Dubai, citing the country’s neutral stance in the conflict.

> A third said they hoped the UAE, which is also a gold trading hub, understood the implications for its reputation and would take action.

The UAE was put on a “grey list” this month for increased monitoring by financial crime and money laundering watchdog the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). . .

Two sources familiar with the matter said UAE companies had reputational concerns about doing business with Russians, but felt the state’s abstention at the United Nations Security Council, when Russia vetoed a resolution condemning its invasion of Ukraine, was a signal they should not impose restrictions on Russians.

The UAE, which has deepened ties with Russia over the years, has not matched sanctions imposed by Western nations and its central bank has not issued any guidance regarding the measures. . .

‘Trying to protect themselves’

Apurv Trivedi of Healy Consultants, which advises on setting up businesses, including crypto companies, said they had definitely been getting more interest from Russian clients.

“They’re basically trying to protect themselves against the inflationary pressures that are happening against the Russian currency. So crypto has been a very good exit for them to manage the risks that they’re facing,” Trivedi said. “It’s a good liquidity provider for them.”

. . .“We’ve seen a lot of Russians hedging their bets against the devaluation of the rouble by moving a lot of assets into crypto. And the UAE is relatively loose in terms of its regulation and authorities over transferring crypto here.”

Read more details and more related current news >> https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/3/12/russians-liquidating-crypto-in-the-uae-as-they-seek-safe-havens 

 

RESPONSIBLE STATECRAFT: Lick it good!

The country’s efforts to undermine the legitimacy of Russia’s invasion through non-military means have drawn acclaim from around the world.

Ukraine reveals ‘Russian warship, go fuck yourself!’ postage stamp

Chris Michael

the Guardian |

"Stamp commemorates phrase uttered by border guards at Snake Island that has become a rallying cry

Ukraine has chosen the image for a new postage stamp called “Russian warship, go fuck yourself!” as the besieged country continues to try to keep morale high and win the PR battle against invading Russian forces.

The country’s first deputy foreign minister, Emine Dzheppar, announced the stamp commemorating the Snake Island incident, in which 13 border guards stationed on a roughly 16-hectare (40-acre) rocky island about 186 miles (300km) west of Crimea reportedly replied, when asked to surrender: “Russian warship, go fuck yourself.” They were then attacked, and thought killed.

The phrase has become a rallying cry for Ukraine’s defenders. Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, announced he would posthumously award all the soldiers the Hero of Ukraine award, though it was later reported that they may in fact still be alive.

The illustration by the artist Boris Groh received the most votes in a competition held by the Ukrainian postal service, Dzheppar said.

. . .

An NFT of the Ukrainian flag, backed by a member of Pussy Riot, raised $6.7m for the country’s defences, part of a wave of cryptocurrency donations encouraged by the Ukrainian government’s decision to accept digital currency.

Zelenskiy himself has been a ubiquitous presence across social media with live videos proving he has not fled and remains in Kyiv. He has also constantly worked the phones with western leaders in an effort that has been credited with helping to rally a united western front, both among governments and many large global companies.

Vladimir Putin, meanwhile, has made it a crime to call the war a war, all but banned social media and cracked down on internet access, ensuring that most Russians get their news only from state media."

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COURAGEOUS TELL-ALL: A Mom, A Mormon and A Sex Worker

As you can imagine the content is not modest. Engaging her courage, Guest Writer Holly Jane has her own real life story to tell: "A widowed mom becoming a sex worker is somewhat of a unique story, but my story is even more unusual because I am an active member of the Mormon Church," the author writes.

I'm A Mom, A Mormon And A Sex Worker. My Career Has Been A Secret ― Until Now.

"Friends have warned me that if this story receives national attention, the church will see it and I may face excommunication."

 

By Holly Jane, Guest Writer

03/11/2022 09:00am EST

HuffPost |

"I am a sex worker and a nude model. I post nude pictures of myself and sell masturbation videos for a subscription fee on my OnlyFans website. My journey in this industry began in my teenage years admiring models like Jenny McCarthy. I knew that guys found me attractive, and I was proud of the way I looked. I liked my body and was not shy about showing it off in skimpy clothes when the weather was warm. I got a lot of attention. I decided to pursue sex work after high school, but my plan to enter the industry was cut short when I married young and had my first child at 19. My priority was being a mom, and it’s still my priority today.

When I was 31, my husband became sick with an illness that eventually took his life. Caring for my husband and the stress, anxiety and intense grief that I experienced took a toll on my health and my looks. I eventually pulled myself together, quit my full-time at job as a recruiter and started nude modeling.

My first experience in the adult industry was when I made a video of myself masturbating and posted it on a popular porn site. I gained a following on social media when I began posting photos of myself in scanty clothing on sites like Instagram. I began to funnel traffic from my social media and the porn site to my OnlyFans page, which I control and run.

It was scary quitting my very lucrative job to do this sex work full time. I have a family to support, and I knew I couldn’t fail. Though I felt comfortable and even excited showing off my body, I was worried about jumping into this world with no safety net. Fortunately, I’ve been incredibly successful in my sex work career, and it’s a dream come true to get up every day and be paid to do something I truly enjoy.

A widowed mom becoming a sex worker is somewhat of a unique story, but my story is even more unusual because I am an active member of the Mormon Church. Life as a Mormon means keeping the commandments and upholding the promises that are made at baptism. This includes “choosing the right” when making decisions and living a “pure life.”

Members are taught that the body is a temple, so we don’t drink coffee or alcohol, and pornography is not allowed. Members are expected to dress modestly. We are expected to conduct ourselves in a manner that doesn’t go against the church’s teachings, especially when in public. We’re supposed be an example for other members and others in society.

Being a Mormon goes beyond attending Sunday services. The Mormon Church is a tight-knit organization, and regular check-ins with the bishop, participating in church activities, receiving visits from other members and acting as missionaries are all parts of the effort to support us and help keep us on the straight and narrow. We are encouraged to read the Scriptures daily and visit the Mormon temple.

As you might imagine, my content is anything but modest. I’m posting nude full-frontal photos and masturbation videos. My website is a sexy blog showing some of the parts of my everyday life ― including cooking and cleaning. I take these photos throughout my house while the kids are at school.

Because I embraced my sexuality from an early age, I have always felt like I was out of place with my conservative Mormon friends. As a teenager, I was sexually active and daydreamed of modeling for Playboy. I never felt like I was the problem. I thought everyone else in my community just needed to catch up with the times. I believe in God, Jesus Christ and the plan of salvation. I believe that God wants us to be proud of our bodies and comfortable with sexuality. I believe that church leaders have decided this is wrong ― not God ― and I do not believe I need to choose between doing something I love and continuing as a member of the Mormon Church.

“I am coming out to my community as a sex worker, and I will continue attending the church with my head held high. I want other women and men to know that it’s OK to explore their sexuality without shame. We shouldn’t have to hide our true selves or what we desire because we fear we’ll be disowned by the people or community we love.”

Still, while I don’t worry or care about people looking down on me for my work, I do fear excommunication from the church. . ."

Please take the time to read more >>