The U.S. labor market continues its hot streak, adding 303,000 jobs last month — more than expected. Many of these jobs will require a four-year degree despite a push among some employers to eliminate these requirements. On today's show, we look at the state of the job market for people without a four-year college degree.
Last month, Japan's central bank raised interest rates for the first time in 17 years. That is a really big deal, because it means that one of the spookiest stories in modern economics might finally have an ending.
Back in the 1980s, Japan performed something of an economic miracle. It transformed itself into the number two economy in the world. From Walkmans to Toyotas, the U.S. was awash in Japanese imports. And Japanese companies went on a spending spree. Sony bought up Columbia Pictures. Mitsubishi became the new majority owners of Rockefeller Center.
But in the early 1990s, it all came to a sudden halt. Japan went from being one of the fastest growing countries in the world to one of the slowest. And this economic stagnation went on and on and on. For decades.
On this episode, the unnerving story of Japan's Lost Decades: How did one of the most advanced economies in the world just fall down one day — and not be able to get up? Japan's predicament changed our understanding of what can go wrong in a modern economy. And gave us some new tools to try and deal with it.
This episode was hosted by Jeff Guo. It was produced by Emma Peaslee and engineered by Cena Loffredo. It was edited by Molly Messick. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money's executive producer.
In this installment of "The Protocol," hosts Brad Keoun, the founding editor of The Protocol Newsletter, and tech journalists Sam Kessler and Margaux Nijkerk, dive into
the strategy and vision behind the Ag layer, which aims to solve the problem of L2 fragmentation on Ethereum with Brendan Farmer Co-Founder of Polygon.
Polygon is focused on building a unified environment for value, liquidity, and state in the Ethereum ecosystem. The Ag layer connects different mini-ecosystems within Polygon and allows chains to plug into the liquidity and value that already exists.
Takeaways
Polygon's strategy is to build a unified environment for value, liquidity, and state in the Ethereum ecosystem.
The Ag layer connects different mini-ecosystems within Polygon and allows chains to plug into existing liquidity and value.
The Ag layer includes a builder marketplace where builders can simultaneously build blocks across multiple chains, providing users with a seamless experience.
The goal is to create a positive-sum outcome for all chains involved and avoid fragmentation in the ecosystem.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Guest Introduction
01:19 Polygon's Strategy and Tech Shift
06:50 Analogies for Understanding the Ag Layer
07:26 Adoption and Benefits of the Ag Layer
09:36 Overview of Polygon's Ecosystem
10:54 Polygon Today: POS Chain and ZKVM Chain
12:28 Polygon's Technological Innovations
14:35 POS Chain and the Future of Polygon
19:42 The Ag Layer as a Connector
22:02 Competition and Collaboration in the Industry
The Stellar Community Fund (SCF) is an open-application awards program that draws on community input to support developers and startups building on Stellar and Soroban. Accelerate your web3 project today.
The Protocol has been produced and edited by senior producer Michele Musso and our executive producer is Jared Schwartz. Our theme song is “Take Me Back” by Strength To Last.
Jena Martin is a pathologist by day who has produced a six-part podcast series looking back at the recovered memory movement of the late 1980s and early 90s. Everyone was having them, were any real? Plus, a partial traipsing down the path of totality in advance of Monday's eclipse.
Chinese-funded marijuana farms are popping up across the United States. Many of them exploit workers from China. We go to New Mexico, which has seen the rise of such farms and explore the reasons why this is happening.
Host Jennifer Sanasie breaks down the latest news in the crypto industry from a potential spot bitcoin ETF in Australia to Franklin Templeton's new report on bitcoin NFTs.
To get the show every day, follow the podcast here.
"CoinDesk Daily" host Jennifer Sanasie breaks down the biggest headlines impacting the crypto industry today, as Australia-based Monochrome Asset Management announced their application for a spot bitcoin (BTC) exchange traded fund. Plus, the state of bitcoin miner Hut 8 (HUT) after its merger with US Bitcoin Corp. (USBTC) And a new report from Franklin Templeton on Bitcoin NFTs.
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Consensus is where experts convene to talk about the ideas shaping our digital future. Join developers, investors, founders, brands, policymakers and more in Austin, Texas from May 29-31. The tenth annual Consensus is curated by CoinDesk to feature the industry’s most sought-after speakers, unparalleled networking opportunities and unforgettable experiences. Register now at consensus.coindesk.com.
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This episode was hosted by Jennifer Sanasie. “First Mover” is produced by Jennifer Sanasie and Melissa Montañez and edited by Victor Chen.