🐤 Wrapped around your finger

Markets: Thursday was pretty uneventful on Thursday, with all three major indexes finishing a fraction of a percent lower. Investors were in something of a holding pattern as they waited to see what today’s new employment report has to offer. In the crypto market, Bitcoin surged once again to top $103,000 before retreating back down below the six-figure mark by late afternoon.

Special recognition: One of the highest honors NFL players can strive to achieve is the Walter Payton Man of the Year award. It was first presented to Johnny Unitas in 1970 and Payton’s name was added after his death in 1999. As in the past, one player from each team is nominated, meaning 32 players in all are being considered. Some of the prominent names on the list are Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx Crosby. The award recognizes performance on the field and public service off the field.

Social experiment: As many former X users look for a new social media home amid frustrations with that platform, one alternative is gaining a lot of attention. Bluesky stands out from the crowd based on its emphasis on decentralization, which allows for more customization by users. Another popular feature is the ad-free experience, but CEO Jay Graber admitted that might not be around forever. While the site isn’t too worried about profits during its growing phase, Graber isn’t ruling out “user intent-driven” ads in the future.

Going to Miami: Automated taxis are becoming an increasingly common sight on the streets of several U.S. cities, with companies like Cruise and Waymo now operating on a limited basis in multiple markets. Now, the Waymo One service has officially added another city to its roster. Beginning next year, the company will begin testing and programming its fleet of Jaguar I-Pace EVs on the streets of Miami. By 2026, Waymo anticipates riders will be able to cruise around the Florida hotspot without a human in the driver’s seat.

Back in black: It’s an opportunity for retailers to end the year with a profit — or “in the black” — and this year’s Black Friday haul proved a successful one across several key industries. In total, Americans spent more than $41 billion during the holiday shopping weekend. Specifically, e-commerce saw massive year-over-year growth of 14.6%. But even in-store sales saw slight gains and foot traffic was up by about 3.7%. Wealthier consumers are spending a lot on vacations and other experiences while the working class shops for sales.

After emerging from a global pandemic that left people around the world afraid of getting sick, tech companies have been working on devices that can provide important health-related feedback to consumers. And now, a company called Oura says it has made some serious progress.

A nice ring to it

According to the company, its smart ring now has a feature called Symptom Radar that is designed to signal any signs of a developing respiratory illness. It’s worth noting that you won’t receive any specific diagnosis from the ring, but Oura’s head of science Shyamal Patel says it’s enough to give wearers a heads up that something might be amiss.

“What we saw through all of the research and science that we’ve done is that your physiology actually starts changing a day or two before you start feeling symptoms,” Patel explained.

Oura, therefore, aims to provide an earlier warning to allow people to get a head start on tackling any looming ailment.

What it actually does

If you’re wondering how a ring can tell what’s going on in your body, Oura has provided some details. Symptom Radar, which will be available on the companies third- and fourth-generation rings by Wednesday, operates by evaluating a number of factors, including:

• Resting heart rate
• Breath rate
• Body temperature
• Heart rate changes

Each morning, users can check their results to find whether there are any signs of respiratory illness … and if there are, whether they’re minor or major.

Oura hopes the new feature will do even more than just give people a little advanced health-related notice.

“It will also be interesting to see how [people] recover from [illness],” Patel added. “That’s where I see some interesting things that we could kind of evolve toward.”

It might be fun to head out to a Christmas tree farm to cut down your own spruce — but if your schedule is too hectic or your vehicle is too small, there’s a more convenient option available.

Delivering the whole experience

This year, Uber is not only bringing back its tree-delivery service, which has been offered on a limited basis for nearly a decade. The ride-sharing app will also deliver a host of other holiday staples, from wreaths to real live carolers who will sing classic seasonal songs outside your home.

Before you get ready to place your order, however, make sure that whichever feature you’re interested in will be available in your neck of the woods.

Tree deliveries are being offered nationwide for the first time this year, but some of the other options are still limited to select markets. Carolers, for example, will start being sent to homes tomorrow but only in these cities:

• New York
• Miami
• Washington, D.C.
• Dallas
• Los Angeles

If you’re in one of those places, your delivery can be filled with even more holiday cheer. Thanks to a collaboration between Uber and Diageo, delivery of adult beverages is also included in the equation.

Standing out from the crowd

With a number of options available to anyone who needs a ride around town or a quick meal delivery, Uber has continued to implement new features to its platform in hopes of remaining an industry leader.

Sending out trees and carolers is one way to attract attention, but some of the company’s other recent updates might have a bigger and longer-lasting impact.

Uber is updating its same-day delivery option (now called Uber Courier), and parents find it easier to travel with young kids thanks to the expanded availability of vehicles equipped with child car seats.

Medical experts around the world are focused on a troubling outbreak of bird flu, which they say could mutate into a virus that is easier to transmit between humans and/or leads to more severe illness.

And one product could become a catalyst for bird flu to directly infect humans.

Weighing the risks

Although the interstate sale of raw milk has been prohibited at the federal level for nearly four decades, many Americans continue to seek out unpasteurized moo juice for a variety of reasons.

One California-based raw milk advocate said earlier this year that concerns about its safety were “much ado about zero.”

Now that officials in the same state say they’ve found evidence of bird flu in samples of raw milk, however, there’s renewed focus on the topic. Most of the recorded cases of bird flu have involved farm workers, and now that the virus is present in unpasteurized milk some experts worry that it is only a matter of time before it evolves and becomes a bigger problem.

Another concern involves the fact that farmers aren’t being tested for bird flu very frequently, so we probably don’t have a very accurate estimate of just how widespread the outbreak is.

The debate intensifies

Even those who advise against drinking raw milk generally acknowledge that the risk of getting sick is relatively low. But with bird flu now a part of the conversation, the scientific consensus seems to be that this is one risk you simply shouldn't take.

Some skeptics point out that there hasn’t been any evidence of bird flu being spread through raw milk, but that doesn’t mean the virus won’t evolve to become more dangerous … or even spark another pandemic.

To be on the safe side, experts advise, reach for the pasteurized milk.