*By Amanda Weston*
As students and teachers prepare to go back to school, Google is rolling out new features and games to improve online learning tools used in the classroom.
Among the latest offerings is The Be Internet Awesome game, which is designed to teach children healthy online habits.
"We know the importance of monitoring our online identity, taking care of our passwords, our safety and security, but we've thought about, 'how do we get this to kids in a way that is simple for them to understand?'" LaToya Drake, a Google spokesperson and media outreach lead, said Tuesday in an interview on Cheddar.
The light format shouldn't distract from the important lessons contained in the games, she said.
"It has a host of games and activities that kids can use to learn exactly the things that we as adults think about," Drake said. "But you want kids to start learning this early on because it will be something that sticks with them, and it hopefully teaches them that 'good hygiene,' I like to call it, in staying safe online."
Drake said 30 million teachers and students use Google Classroom worldwide. The program includes a "locked mode" for its testing software, which prevents students who are taking computerized pop quizzes from searching for easy answers online.
Google is also considering how to help children disengage when they need to shift their focus away from screens, Drake said.
"Internally, we call it 'the joy of missing out,' and we're starting to put these features in the devices," she said. "Example one is, if you turn over your phone, you'll start to see this in Android, it's called snooze mode. So it's as easy as just flipping the phone over. It turns off the sounds. It turns off notifications. It allows you to kind of step away."
Drake also shared Google's top back-to-school search terms for 2018. They include clothes, hairstyles, do-it-yourself locker decorations, and the best ways to bring a healthy lifestyle to campus, she said. One of the most popular searches was for glue. It's the key ingredient in homemade slime, which is popular among children.
Debt ceiling talks are underway in Washington, DC ahead of a default deadline. Michael Rosen, chief investment officer with Angeles Investments, joined Cheddar News to explain how a potential default could affect investment portfolios, among other items, for Americans.
Australia's government announced regulations for buy now, pay later services, which will be labeled as consumer credit products, which puts them under the country's Securities and Investments Commission's watch.
Walmart is reportedly teaming up with pet telehealth provider Pawp, giving subscribers unlimited access to vet services via video and text, starting on Tuesday.
Cheddar News checks in to see what's on The Day Ahead, which will include earnings from Lowe's, Dick's Sporting Goods, BJ's and AutoZone along with new home sales data. In addition, Microsoft's Build 2023 Developer Conference is slated to kick off for software engineers and web developers.
Amazon will use a new feature in its palm-scanning system to verify one's age to purchase alcohol.
Venmo will soon have accounts for teenagers ages 13-17 but they will have to follow a set of rules, with parents or guardians opening accounts on their behalf under their own accounts.
Rory Harvey, General Motors' incoming North American president, joined Cheddar News to discuss GM's foray into the rapidly-changing electric vehicle market along with what lies ahead. "It's a very dynamic time in the automotive industry," he said. "If you look to the transformation across the EVs, it's happening and it's happening at a pace."
Tesla trimmed prices by offering discounts of around $1,300 for its Model 3 vehicles, continuing price adjustments across its fleet since January.
A new oral weight-loss drug from Pfizer could be more effective than the popular Ozempic injection, based on clinical trial results.
Ford Motor laid out some financial expectations and specific growth objectives for its electric vehicle line at an investors' event on Monday. John Lawler, chief financial officer of Ford Motor Co., joined Cheddar News to explain what lies ahead for the automaker.
