Today’s newsletter covers zero-emission buildings, smartphone addiction in Italy, the Irish lottery, and more.
European Commission wants zero-emission buildings and no more natural gas heating
The European Commission proposes that all new buildings must be zero-emission by 2030, and by 2027 for new public buildings. In Europe, buildings account for 40% of energy consumption. As of 2027, financial incentives for installing household heaters powered by fossil fuels, including natural gas, should be stopped. In a country like the Czech Republic, more than 30% of households use natural gas as their main source of heating.
Italian teenagers with smartphone addictions and risks of revenge porn
More than a thousand high school students of Roma answered a questionnaire about their smartphone habits. They found out that 82% of Italian teenagers have a smartphone addiction. They are also aware smartphone addiction is an issue for their generation. One in 10 of those who answered questions about sexting admitted to having shared intimate images of themselves. But 20% of them said they did because they were not able to say no, and 8% later found the images on the Internet against their will.
Who wants to be a winner at the Irish lottery?
In Ireland, the national lottery is looking for a way to have a winner of the jackpot for the next draw. The jackpot hasn’t been won since June. It is highly unusual in the country’s lottery system and similar to rolling a die 37 times without getting the number 6, the lottery chief executive explained. The jackpot has been capped at 19 million euros (US$21.5m) since June.
Somewhere else in the world…
- A microscope owned by Charles Darwin has been sold for £598.5 million ($797m) at an auction conducted by Christie’s. About twice its estimated value.
- In Australia, 5 children fell and died and several were in hospital after wind lifted up a bouncy castle in the air in a Tasmanian primary school.
- The German insurance company Allianz is considering reducing investment significantly for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports. It is one of the main sponsors of the event.
- On December 14, Malta agreed to legalize the use and growing of marijuana for recreational purposes. It becomes the first European Union country to do so. Morocco forecasts the E.U. market of cannabis for therapeutic use could bring them €58 billion ($66bn) in exports and increase farmers’ revenue by 46% in 2028.