Virgin Green Fund, the investment firm of Richard Branson, has recently been looking to invest $220 million in companies that use natural resources efficiently or develop renewable energy. Called “green tech grown up,” this strategy is a departure from usual early venture capital investments in new start-ups. As The New York Times reports, Branson looks…
Virgin Green Fund, the investment firm of Richard Branson, has recently been looking to invest $220 million in companies that use natural resources efficiently or develop renewable energy. Called “green tech grown up,” this strategy is a departure from usual early venture capital investments in new start-ups. As The New York Times reports, Branson looks to finance green tech companies that are past the cash-flush of their early years. Instead, Virgin Green Fund wants to nurture those companies that need extra time, money and attention.
It used to be common practice for clean tech start-ups to raise money through project finance loans or tax equity. This allowed banks or corporations to receive tax credits. But these sources of money have dried up, causing a lot of start-ups to sell their technology to bigger companies. Consequently, new investors have been discouraged from reinvesting in other start ups.
To keep green companies alive, Richard Branson via his Virgin Green Fund has switched strategies and is now considering older companies that have withstood the early financial storm. Branson is considering 3,700 companies and has already invested in 10, putting about $100 million into the $220 million fund. These are companies already bringing in millions in capital, but need that extra push to become $100 million companies.
The New York Times cites the example of Quench, a start-up water filtration company that rents systems to offices that clean water from the tap. This is eco-friendly because it eliminates the carbon footprint of water transport. It also removes the worry of plastic contamination of water bottles. Quench has yearly revenue of $10 million, and much of that was spent on sales. And so, the Virgin Green Fund has invested $13 million in this company.
Toby Coppel is a Virgin partner and a former chief strategy officer at Yahoo. As he told The New York Times, “Easily, half their business could come from e-commerce. …That’s transformational.”
The Virgin Green Fund is also focused on investing in companies that cross between energy and information technology. It is the biggest investor in a company called GreenRoad. This company makes a vehicle device that gives real-time safety feedback and driver coaching. It saves fuel because drivers slam on their breaks less often.
Hopes are that investments such as these will prove more profitable in the long run. Michael Kanellos is editor in chief at Greentech Media, a research and publishing firm. As he told The New York Times, “Silicon Valley, in the green world, is mostly going to act as a farm team. They’re going to find great ideas in the lab, but the really successful thing will be selling it to General Electric. There’s not going to be many independent companies becoming the next Google.”
Katherine Butler is a TV writer who writes for the Mother Nature Network.
Reddit user Girlfriendhatesmefor’s three-year-old pitbull, Otis, had recently become overprotective of his wife. So he asked the online community if they knew what might be wrong with the dog.
“A week or two ago, my wife got some sort of stomach bug,” the Reddit user wrote under the subreddit /r/dogs. “She was really nauseous and ill for about a week. Otis is very in tune with her emotions (we once got in a fight and she was upset, I swear he was staring daggers at me lol) and during this time didn’t even want to leave her to go on walks. We thought it was adorable!”
His wife soon felt better, butthe dog’s behavior didn’t change.
Girlfriendhatesmefor began to fear that Otis’ behavior may be an early sign of an aggression issue or an indication that the dog was hurt or sick.
So he threw a question out to fellow Reddit users: “Has anyone else’s dog suddenly developed attachment/aggression issues? Any and all advice appreciated, even if it’s that we’re being paranoid!”
The most popular response to his thread was by ZZBC.
Any chance your wife is pregnant?
ZZBC | Reddit
The potential news hit Girlfriendhatesmefor like a ton of bricks. A few days later, Girlfriendhatesmefor posted an update and ZZBC was right!
“The wifey is pregnant!” the father-to-be wrote. “Otis is still being overprotective but it all makes sense now! Thanks for all the advice and kind words! Sorry for the delayed reply, I didn’t check back until just now!”
Redditors responded with similar experiences.
Anecdotal I know but I swear my dog knew I was pregnant before I was. He was super clingy (more than normal) and was always resting his head on my belly.
realityisworse | Reddit
So why do dogs get overprotective when someone is pregnant?
Jeff Werber, PhD, president and chief veterinarian of the Century Veterinary Group in Los Angeles, told Health.com that “dogs can also smell the hormonal changes going on in a woman’s body at that time.” He added the dog may “not understand that this new scent of your skin and breath is caused by a developing baby, but they will know that something is different with you—which might cause them to be more curious or attentive.”
The big lesson here is to listen to your pets and to ask questions when their behavior abruptly changes. They may be trying to tell you something, and the news may be life-changing.
Throughout history, women have stood up and fought to break down barriers imposed on them from stereotypes and societal expectations. The trailblazers in these photos made history and redefined what a woman could be. In doing so, they paved the way for future generations to stand up and continue to fight for equality.
While conspiracy theories are not limited to any topic, there is one type of event that seems particularly likely to spark them: mass shootings, typically defined as attacks in which a shooter kills at least four other people.
When one person kills many others in a single incident, particularly when it seems random, people naturally seek out answers for why the tragedy happened. After all, if a mass shooting is random, anyone can be a target.
