title
stringlengths 1
200
⌀ | text
stringlengths 10
100k
| url
stringlengths 32
829
| authors
stringlengths 2
392
| timestamp
stringlengths 19
32
| tags
stringlengths 6
263
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
A Heart Like The Sea | The day is pale, the sky gray, a mind full of thoughts. Thoughts of a town, of an ocean, of a beach, of an array of shimmering seashells. Of a boat, of waves. And in the midst of all of these thoughts, the man thinking them is conscious of every step he takes, of every street he crosses, the monotonous sound of his feet tapping against concrete, and a pale sky, and seemingly a never-ending ocean.
`He slowly reaches the ocean, the sound of waves crashing against the beach fills the air. Walking along the sand, although the motion itself is the same as walking against concrete, is soothing, far more so than the gravel that makes up the sidewalks and roads in this small town. The ocean breeze moves back what little hair he has remaining atop his head, and he smiles. Smiles as he has every other day he has lived here. Every other day that he has walked to the beach in the early morning, and watched the repetitive motions of the forming and crashing waves.
The man walks toward the ocean, where a boat is awaiting him. A humble sailboat that has gotten him through his toughest of times, and he boards the boat, as he does every other day of his life that he has lived here. I’m getting too old for this. He thinks, but he does it anyway. He does it because going on this boat is what he loves most in life. He loves sailing, he loves the ocean. He doesn’t know that this will be the last time that he will ever sail. So he walks on, and takes the paddles in his hand, ready to continue and come close to ending his life. But again, he doesn’t know that just yet.
With paddles in hand, eyes on the ocean, and a heart like the sea, he slowly rows out to the ocean, ready for a peaceful ride through ever-changing waters.
The ocean numbs his thoughts, perhaps that’s why he likes it. The only thing that he can think about is the water, and the constant and predictable movements of his paddles, his paddles, and his boat going over waves, constantly, predictably. Or perhaps, he likes the unpredictability of the ocean, waves don’t follow a timer, where they all come between the same sized intervals, a wave triple the size of a large boat could come, or a wave so small that nobody could even notice, anything could happen at any time in the ocean. Or, perhaps he likes that balance, of the unpredictability and the predictability, he’s not sure. But it doesn’t matter, he loves the ocean, love seldom has very logical reasoning. So he rows out to sea, further, further, further.
Once he has reached the point where waves stop, and the water is truly still, he lays back in his boat, and watches the sun slowly come out from behind the clouds.
— — — —
He wakes up, startled, for he had not known that he had fallen asleep. The sun is fully out, and the tide has come in. The tide has come in and waves are getting steep. How am I going to get back to shore? He thinks. The waves are choppy, the wind is going fast. He gets up and begins to row his boat in, but he is being pushed back by the wind. He stares at a wave go by, it is easily double the size of his boat. Unpredictability, the most dangerous thing in the world, yet the easiest to fall in love with. With all of his strength, he begins to row back to shore, he is sweating by the time that he has reached the point of where waves are actually forming, forming and crashing. He rows harder, harder, faster, faster. And then…a wave. A wave as big as a cruise ship, or at least it looks that way. A wave that he can’t get past, a wave of all waves, a wave to remember, one that he wishes he could forget. He doesn’t know what to do, so he paddles away from the wave, towards the shallower part of the water, the part that has rocks and coral. He didn’t know what to do, so he did exactly what he shouldn’t do. He yells and yells.
“STOP! HELP! SOMEONE! PLEASE!” But the wave doesn’t stop, and there is nobody to help him. So the wave comes, he wishes that the world would shift into slow motion as he has seen in films, but it stays at the same pace it always has been. The wave forms, bigger, and bigger, and then it crashes. It comes down far harder than he had expected, and the world turns blue, he can’t even process the pain. He slams against jagged rocks, he can see the thick maroon blood all around him, his foot gets stuck in between two long sticks of coral, so he can’t even swim. More pain, more blood. His tears are completely indifferentiable from the ocean water, but he knows that they are there. Then, his boat slams against his head, and the world goes completely black.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — -
The first people to publish this story was the Story hall, who let me republish it. | https://medium.com/scrittura/a-heart-like-the-sea-f86b2c0fc82f | ['Shaan Sood'] | 2019-06-19 22:58:38.670000+00:00 | ['Ocean', 'Short Story', 'Young Writers', 'Fiction'] |
Election Results | Election Results
What just happened? I made a chart.
This morning I woke up at 4:30 am and laid in bed for half an hour, wanting to find out about the election results and also dreading it.
Thank you Facebook feed for providing some moral support before I had to face an office full of Trump supporters. I suppose Trump did give a subdued and respectable victory speech. Maybe there’s hope?
After I came into the office, I closed my door and made a chart. | https://medium.com/human-in-a-machine-world/election-results-261953dd05b | [] | 2016-11-09 16:16:03.101000+00:00 | ['Rstats', '2016 Election', 'Code'] |
Pandemic Outbreak: | What Hinders Niger To Provide A Better Response?
The coronavirus 19 disease (COVID-19) outbreak paralyzed the global economy and became a public health emergency across the globe especially in African countries including Niger. A landlocked country, Niger is the largest country in West Africa and is perceived as one of the poorest countries. Prior to the pandemic, the country had experienced various socio-economic issues that shapes how they respond in the fight against the pandemic.
The Republic of Niger has an estimated population of 22 million as of 2020. However, with the large population that they hold does not justify the low life expectancy in the country with 54%, infant birth risk was at 25% and the mortality rate of children below 15 years of age is 45%. The economic system of the country is dependent on planning but accords an important role to private sectors. Most of their land consists of agriculture and agricultural products which is mainly the source of living of the Nigereans. The impressive self-sufficiency of the country to produce food and livestocks is mainly caused by their geographic location. Niger is also known as one of the top providers of Uranium, trading with France, Africa and China. In spite of the economic system of Niger, the poverty rate of the country was at 80% estimated that the cost of living was at 2euros per day.
Hence, this shows that NIger’s economy is at stake and their livelihood is extremely poor. In fact, Niger is the largest country in West Africa but even so they still rank atl seventh place on the poorest countries in the world. This reflects that the supposedly weak response to the eradication of covid 19 was driven by their status as a nation. The pandemic had tested the resilience and governmental strategies of each country but it can be seen that not all small and poor countries did not strive to respond well to the COVID 19 pandemic, however they are deprived of the privileges of giving a good fight in the pandemic.
Body
As the coronavirus transpired, it utterly affected the way of life of the Nigerien as all economic activities were interrupted and put into a halt due to the health and safety measures imposed by their government. The COVID-19 pandemic was declared as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern by the World Health Organization on January 30, 2020 which increased the global issues that torment the various countries in Africa. The outbreak in Niger arose in February 2020 and reached its peak in April 2020 and shortly after, the cases drastically decreased and remained at a low level.
Figure 1: Epidemic Curve of Niger
The figure above illustrates the epidemic curve of Niger during the coronavirus outbreak associated with the public health measure in the country. Panel A represents the epidemic curve along with the symptoms onset and report date of cases. Panel B reflects the estimated reproduction number (Rt) on public health control measures. Meanwhile, the central dark blue lines are the values that represent the Rt and are affiliated with 95% confidence interval by date of symptom that is represented by the light blue shade.
Moreover, the triangles at the bottom reflect the action taken by the government for public health measures. The first triangle was the implementing and practicing of social distancing in Niamey which took place on March 17, 2020. The second triangle is where the Ministry of Public Health announced the first covid-19 case in the country which lead the authorities to imposed the national COVID-19 Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan in March 19, 2020 which was supported by the World Bank as they provide $13.95 million as a support for preventing the wide transmission of the virus. The third triangle represents the health protocols imposed in the country including the closure of schools and worship and dismissing public gatherings that led people to stay at home. The fifth triangle represents the implementation of travel ban and curfew in Niger on March 28,2020 followed by the national lockdown on March 20,2020 which the sixth triangle represents. Lastly, the seventh triangle was the reopening of worship places on May 13,2020.
As it shows in the illustrations above, Niger had immediately responded to the virus through social distancing even before they had the first case in their country. Unfortunately, Niger is considered as one of the least developed countries in the world which resulted in the shortage of healthcare resources in the country. The country lacks tools and equipment needed for treating people who's infected with the disease that made such an impact on controlling the pandemic, adding the fact that Niger is a poor country explains that even though they have tried their best to regulate the pandemic, it still had a huge effect in their country.
Figure 2: Total Number of Cases in Niger as of 2021. Presently, there are 5,555 coronavirus cases in Niger with 194 deaths and 5,267 recovered from the disease. This figure above shows a drastic increase of cases from 2020.
Indeed that the COVID-19 pandemic burdens the world and focuses on fighting, treating and controlling it. We are much focused on flattening the curve, and inventing vaccines to end this pandemic; but none of us focus on the situation in the least developed countries like Niger. The healthcare service and resources was a huge pillar of a country to fight the pandemic, and lacking it may lead to disruption in the economic sector. There are only 105 hospitals in the country and the people needed to create a self-made clinic to treat people that are positive with the covid-19 disease. Furthermore, this paper shows that Niger took the pandemic as a serious health issue and even imposed health protocols even before their outbreak.
The National response and public health control in Niger revealed the slowing transmission by 2020. However, outbreaks remain unpredictable up to this date. Niger may not have the best response and control to the pandemic due to their socio-economic stability. Their situation reflects that not all developed countries handle the pandemic better than the least developed ones, in the same way that not all poor responses of least developed countries were caused by their poor economic choices. Some least developed countries like Niger did not respond well to the pandemic because prior to the pandemic, they were already deprived of the luxury to have a stable economy. Capitalism did a great job on oppressing African countries like Niger that shaped them who they are today and reflects how they fight the pandemic. | https://medium.com/@crizalynjoyce.writes/pandemic-outbreak-a28ab0fc350 | ['Crizalyn Joyce'] | 2021-08-05 03:40:56.964000+00:00 | ['Coronavirus', 'Oppression', 'Covid 19', 'Covid 19 Crisis', 'Niger'] |
Holding On | I am still holding on.
I feel it in every fiber of my muscles, in each vein that courses through my body, and in each trembling breath I manage to take.
My mind has taken on a life of its own, leaving my heart to fend for itself.
They are so disconnected. I am so disconnected.
This internal warfare has left me so puzzlingly numb.
On one hand, the logic of my brain trumps any ounce of passion or desire that my soul yearns for.
On the other hand, the dormant longing for a more creative and fulfilling existence that my spirit bleeds still manages to seep through.
Atom by atom, this latter part of me seems to have put all its kinetic energy in trying to overpower anything that stands in the way, like an ever-growing cry I can no longer silence.
In a way, I have come to terms with welcoming this new sensation. A sensation that is tiring out any voice of reason that I have fed for years.
The same voice of reason that I call my inner critic: the manifestation of all the fear, insecurity, and perfectionistic practicality that was passed down and presented to me as the sole and only truth.
The same false, fictitious truth that I continue to try and unlearn every day, which has resulted in this paralyzing mentally and emotionally charged battle.
A fight that will have one of two endings:
Either I stand stagnant and let the voice of reason incapacitate me from ever evolving, or I surrender to the uncertainty and let go of everything I ever knew to listen to a voice I have not listened to in years. An old friend I have shunned whom I call my gut, my instinct. | https://medium.com/@introspectivemaniac/holding-on-8e7794b718cd | ['Introspective Maniac'] | 2020-11-20 03:37:55.974000+00:00 | ['Writing Life', 'Poetry Writing', 'Emotions', 'Short Read', 'Spirituality'] |
Do you want to take back control of your time? Me too. | How much of your work-time is swallowed up by responding to outside factors?
Of course we all have to respond to outside factors from time to time. But I know that for me, it feels like I’m doing that MOST of my time.
It makes me feel like I’m working very very hard, but at the same time it annoys me that I don’t get to work on the projects I REALLY want to work on.
It’s feels like filling up on gas, to then waste that gas on taxying other people around all the damn time. Instead of driving towards your own destination.
You have to put a stop to your behavior once you react to too many C.S.S.’s.
Yes, I just made that up. “C.S.S.” — Control-Stealing-Signal.
In real life…
A workday where you’re ignoring C.S.S.’s ends with a fulfilled feeling. You get to do what you set out to do. You get to work on your big plans, and you make a move (or multiple moves) in the RIGHT direction.
A workday where you’re NOT ignoring C.S.S.’s feels like the exact opposite. You don’t get to do what you want to do. And you don’t get to work on your own big plans. You don’t make a clear move in the right direction. And it doesn’t give you a fulfilled feeling at the end of the day.
So…
You keep more time to work on projects that matter You become more reliable when it comes to deadlines and schedule’s You end your workdays with a more fulfilled feeling
How will I train myself to accomplish this?
Well… I think there are multiple layers to uncover here. Multiple things I have to work on in order to take back control of my time. But the thing I want to focus on most for the coming few weeks is obsessing less over outcome’s of situations.
I often feel the urge to ‘jump in and save the day’.
Sometime’s things just ‘go as they go’. And sometimes letting things happen, even though you could do something about them… Might be better in the long term. | https://medium.com/the-innovation/do-you-want-to-take-back-control-of-you-time-me-too-f82570746626 | ['Christiaan Van Eijk'] | 2020-11-13 19:55:05.037000+00:00 | ['Mindset', 'Personal Development', 'Stoicism', 'Entrepreneur', 'Personal Growth'] |
We Few, We Proud, We Lefties | We Few, We Proud, We Lefties
Being “specially handed” not only makes us unique, it makes us extraordinary
Image by Mircea Iancu on Pixabay
We’re a special tribe, we lefties. You can always tell us by the special ink smudge we have on our little finger from writing into the page. Or the spiral tattoos on our hand from using a wire-bound notebook. You can also spot us at the dinner table because we sit a bit farther away from our guests so our elbows won’t bump our neighbor as we eat.
But each of our unique struggles comes with a special set of superpowers.
Here is just a sampling of the many things that might make you proud to be “differently handed.”
Our brains are good communicators
Studies have found that the left and right sides of the brain, each known for performing certain functions, work better together in left-handers. The New Yorker’s article “Sinister Minds: Are Left-Handed People Smarter” cites studies done by neurology experts Naomi Drisen and Naftali Raz. These experts found that the corpus callosum, fibers that connect the brain’s hemispheres, were larger in lefties. This synergy between different brain hemispheres particularly strengthens information processing and language skills, which could mean we southpaws may have greater verbal skills than our right-handed friends.
Image by Gerd Altmann on Pixabay
Our brains and our struggles may make us more creative
There’s no disputing that some of the most amazing artists, musicians, and “creatives” are lefties, namely greats such as Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Pablo Picasso.
So is there a real connection between left-handedness and creativity?
Scientists argue strongly for and against this hypothesis.
For example, some studies point to the fact that left-handers may be better at what is called divergent thinking. Romper’s article “Are Left-Handed People Smarter? Lefties Have Many Bragging Rights” quotes professor of psychology Dr. Alan Searleman who states “Left-handers have a higher ‘fluid’ intelligence and better vocabulary than the majority of the population. This is perhaps why there are more of them in creative professions, such as art, music, and writing.”
Naysayers of the theory that lefties are more creative point to countless scientific studies that have negated this culturally popular belief. In a Psychology Today article entitled “Three Myths and Three Facts About Left-Handers,” the publication uses the words of psychologist Chris McManus, author of Right Hand Left Hand, to echo this viewpoint. McManus states, “Although there are recurrent claims of increased creativity in left-handers, there is very little to support the idea in the scientific literature.”
Regardless of whether lefties are genetically more creative, many lefties since birth have had to find ways to accommodate for their differences in the real-world. This skill of adapting to a world made for right-handers may still make them more flexible and creative in their thinking than others.
For example, an article by Huffpost also speculates that growing up left-handed and the feelings of alienation that may have ensued spur lefties towards a more individualistic mindset. They state that “such a mindset can predispose a person to qualities like independence and non-conformity,” qualities that undoubtedly act as the impetus for unique thought and action.
Our brains make us able to multi-task more easily
This previously mentioned synergy between brain hemispheres also allows lefties to more easily handle several activities at once. The Ladders article “5 fascinating findings to help you manage lefties” cites research that found “lefties are better able to dabble in several tasks at one time, without losing their grip on deadlines compared to their right-handed counterparts.”
They speculate that this ability may be due to the lefties' constant habits of having to adapt to a right-handed world, which may make them more able to process several pieces of information at once.
The bottom line:
We lefties have been seen for centuries in a negative light. In the Global Journal of Archaeology and Anthropology, for instance, it states that in medieval times left-handedness was believed to be a possible marker of witchcraft and evil and even cites that in some cultures today, such as Africa, “giving, receiving, eating, and drinking with the left hand [is] considered rude by virtually all members [of the society].”
However, we “southpaws” have always known the truth — genius lies in the most unexpected of places (or hands). And now science is proving that we too have special gifts. So revel in your differences. That brain of ours is extra special and may have helped us become the articulate, artistic, productive person that we are today.
I’m left-handed and that means I’m extra special. And so too are you, my left-handed friends. | https://medium.com/the-partnered-pen/we-few-we-proud-we-lefties-cf878cd0a60e | ['Dawn Bevier'] | 2019-11-13 22:43:24.399000+00:00 | ['Psychology', 'Left Handers', 'Identity', 'Self-awareness', 'Self'] |
COVID-19 Data Analysis Using Data Science in Python | STEP-3: Drop the unnecessary columns that are not required:
From the above record we will we analyzing data on the basis of 3 fields, i.e, Date, Name of States/ UT, and Total Confirmed Cases. So, drop the other columns.
d.drop(['Latitude','Longitude','Death','Total Confirmed cases (Indian National)','Total Confirmed cases ( Foreign National )','Cured/Discharged/Migrated'],axis = 1,inplace =True) d.head()
Output
STEP-4: Create a dictionary for storing Dates and Name of States/UT:
This is done in order to obtain the total confirmed cases state-wise on each and every date.
Now, let’s dive into code:
After performing the above code, the output will be as follows:
STEP-5: Finding the new cases arising everyday state-wise:
This can be done by creating a list containing the dates and total confirmed cases:
With the help of the above code, we can get the new cases as follows:
STEP-6: Constructing a Graph:
For each date, you should have the number of cases on that date stored in vector N.
After that for each date calculate the moving average from A0=0.
Final Output:
Graph showing Moving Average with date for different values of Beta
Conclusion:
In this way we can analyse the dataset using Python and can estimate other the factors as well.
I hope that now it would be easy for you to create , analyse, and monitor the consequences and effects of COVID-19. | https://medium.com/analytics-vidhya/covid-19-data-analysis-using-data-science-in-python-fafdf0b2a0d4 | ['Ashita Saxena'] | 2020-06-08 16:18:48.527000+00:00 | ['Pandas', 'Analytics', 'Data Science', 'Internity Foundation', 'Python'] |
Enjoy A Quiet Moment of Contemplation with ‘The End of the Day’ (Review) | The End of the Day is a short and sweet phone experience designed to be “found” and played at sunset. It’s located on a random set of benches scattered around New York City. On each one, a simple inscription can be read; there’s a phone number and an instruction to call precisely at sunset.
I was quite taken aback and charmed by this guerilla-style approach to immersive theatre. Are the plaques on these benches government approved? Not exactly. As benches are compromised, updates and announcements are made online, to help would-be participants in finding the new locations.
For me, this experience took place on the westernmost edge of Manhattan, looking over the Hudson River onto the New Jersey shoreline, as the sun slowly ebbed and dipped below the buildings. That “skirting on the edge of the law” attitude, a key part of the history of immersive theatre experiences, is perhaps something that is lacking somewhat in today’s more “mainstream” approach to making work. Not that I would explicitly condone such behavior, but there was something quite enchanting about finding this hidden experience, hiding in plain sight.
If you find this call to action and choose to accept it, you will be treated to a beautiful 10-minute reflection and meditation based on the theme of sunsets. You’ll be encouraged to sit and breathe while looking out at the changing sky. The voice on the other end of the phone encourages the listener to contemplate several sunsets: past, present, and future. It is simple but so effective.
So I sat, and listened, and watched. The time seemed to fly by; birds also flew by, above me, to rest. An airplane high above left a vapor trail that seemed to stretch across the entire sky. The colors shifted and melted into the evening. The End of the Day is an oasis of much-needed quietness in the middle of a crazy season, in the city that never sleeps.
In a year when in-person experiences are so few and far between, it was refreshing to have one I could take part in with my significant other, happening in realtime and happening outside. Not only that, but with the added time constraint of having to arrive precisely at sunset (or relatively close to), it was nice to have a show to look forward to, get dressed up for, and actually go to!
The ease of accessibility is a huge plus to this piece, with the only requirement being a telephone (headphones are also recommended)
Looking around, I wished that more people around me knew about this simple yet profound experience. After all, the experience was free and it was right here if only someone would choose to stop and read the plaques on a bench. Others around me were enjoying the last moments of a warm evening, but if only they knew that a beautiful audio experience was waiting for them, right in front of their eyes.
As immersive theatre continues to grow and enters more and more into the “mainstream” consciousness, there is something quite humble and special about an experience like The End of the Day. The unusual, the kooky, the not-Broadway, is still out here and very much present, even in 2020. Creators are continuing to create and are putting their work out there if only the people will engage with it. The End of the Day proves that you don’t need a huge budget, or an elaborate set, or a massive cast to create a stunning piece of immersive theatre. With the right amount of ingenuity and some cheeky avoidance of the law, you can help to engage people not only with nature but with themselves.
To think that the sunset has been there, just waiting for me to experience every single day. It is thanks to The End of the Day that I gave myself permission to sit and enjoy this most wonderful of nature’s gifts. To actively engage with the kind of spectacle that has fascinated mankind for thousands of years. All I needed was for someone to let me in on the secret. I am so glad that this show has done that for me.
So, perhaps you too should go and find the bench with a plaque that looks ever so slightly out of place.
Just make sure you’re there at sunset. | https://noproscenium.com/enjoy-a-quiet-moment-of-contemplation-with-the-end-of-the-day-review-c249cad5eb95 | ['Edward Mylechreest'] | 2020-12-23 19:38:41.831000+00:00 | ['Review', 'Podplay', 'New York City'] |
Managing security and compliance for Start Ups | Start Ups are known for their laser focus on product and customers. But running an organization also means managing risks. Time and again I have seen CEO’s struggling with areas that can be perceived as distractions.
Internet is buzzing with new breaches everyday and constantly distracting the executives from one threat to the other. The scope and complexity of security risks has grown so much that even bigger organizations are struggling to get their hands around it.
It’s not hard to imagine how lost a Start-Up would feel about where to start and draw a line for its investment on information security. Although the risk profile for every organization is different, here are a few suggestions for smaller organizations to at least get started and find a path for continuous improvement on security and compliance.
Baseline your Assets and Risks
This is the first task before you build a plan for improving your security posture. Identify what your most critical assets or processes are, where they reside and what business impact they can have.
These assets could be your customer or employee data, your company IP, or your future roadmap.Once you know your Assets, you need to quantify the risks around them by mapping threats and probability.
I strongly advice for this to be a simple enough process, so stakeholders can understand and contribute to the review process. It’s not practical to mitigate all risks, no matter what sized company you are.
Depending on heir business impact and probability, some risks can be accepted, mitigated or transferred.
The key is to have your top management involved in the review and prioritization about what risks to be addressed first
Corporate policies are your first defense
Think of the policies as your guiding principles that employees can refer to, while running their daily operations. Policies also establish an organization’s viewpoint on security related matters for external regulators and auditors.
Not having a clear policy around security not only provides an excuse for bad behavior , but may also make you look bad , should there be an investigation by a 3rd party.
A recent survey by SoftwareAdvice confirmed that 44 Percent of Employees don’t Know Company Policies
Start Ups need to pay extra attention to policy awareness, as they might not be able to afford tools and technologies to augment the gap.
Culture of security starts from the top
In a similar survey conducted by Stroz Friedberg, it was found that almost 90% of senior managers upload work files to their personal email or cloud accounts
It’s important to note that Sr management probably has most access to company IP and other Assets.
Although there is enough support from Sr executives about the need for security awareness among employees, they sometimes also have this false sense of security about their own habits and awareness.
Additionally, security programs need to be reviewed and measured on a regular basis, just like any other corporate objectives
Over privileged Users
Start Ups thrive on the principle of ‘shared responsibilities’ and ‘wearing multiple hats’. Sometimes this model gets misinterpreted for the need to have too many employees with administrative access.
Pace of work can sometimes take precedence over everything else. There is a fine balance that can to be maintained by regularly auditing the permissions and refining them.
What you need to remember is that you are making it easy for an invader , if he has plenty of targets with excessive permission set
SaaS and IaaS Sprawl
SaaS and cloud based infrastructure has turned out to be a boon for start ups, as they don’t have to worry about building large data centers or business applications.
A simple credit card swipe can instantly give you access to powerful servers , data warehouses and applications. This has led to hundreds of apps and servers that aren’t managed by a full time IT person and may not be adhering to corporate policies.
Gartner predicts that through 2025, 99% of cloud security failures will be the customer’s fault.
There is no going back from Cloud, but I encourage start-up leaders to become more aware and ask more questions about how their teams are managing risks with SaaS and IaaS sprawl. On the other hand, you also have the advantage of leveraging latest SASE and zero trust cloud native security solutions, as you aren’t carrying the baggage of traditional on-premise setup
Incident Response Plan
You are lucky if you haven’t faced a security incident yet, but you’ll have to face it some day. Although most small / mid sized companies make investments on preventing the breaches, there are few who invest in building a robust incident response process.
You need a well defined , cross functional response that’s been practiced many times before a real incident takes place.
Start by giving a few hypothetical scenarios to you your IT and Legal teams what actions they’ll take in what order.
Do they get the same level of commitment from 3rd party suppliers? Do they know how and where to report to report such incidents or what kind of evidence to preserve?
Cyber Insurance
We are used to buying insurance to cover for damages in our personal lives, but did you know that you buy insurance against cyber attacks as well.
Although its not as black and white as buying an auto insurance, you can get some protection against certain types of damages .
However, they don’t always cover you against reputational damages that may affect your future revenue. It’s still a good idea to invest in cyber insurance as long as you understand what they’ll cover or not.
Adopt an industry standard framework
Security is such a wide subject, sometimes you just don’t know where to start from.
There are a number of frameworks (e.g. CIS, ISO 27001, NIST 800–53 ) that can help you putting a method to this process. However, you need to remember that not all controls or solutions suggested by these frameworks will always apply to you.
You’ll still have to identify and prioritize your risks. There are other benefits of following these frameworks. You’ll do a favor to your sales team, as they can cut the time to sell because customers trust 3rd party certifications.
Conclusion
Security risks are evolving every day and so are the ways to manage them. We all hear about new tools that have come up to handle a specific threat, but none of these tools will be effective unless a basic security hygiene and governance model is established.
The key is to keep hardening your defenses without becoming barriers to employee productivity. You are the best judge to decide if a specific risk needs to be handled by enforcing a policy, procedure, tool or trainings.
Stay engaged and stay safe. | https://medium.com/@joharsumit/managing-security-and-compliance-for-start-ups-ebb060524514 | ['Sumit Johar'] | 2021-04-25 23:51:48.396000+00:00 | ['Cybersecurity', 'Startup Lessons', 'Compliance', 'Technology', 'Startup'] |
On Chicken Coops and Transgender Kids | This is a letter I composed, printed and mailed to my estranged father. He and I haven’t spoken since I came out as a trans woman. I sent him this in an effort to break more than one year of silence between us. To date, I haven’t gotten a response from him and have been told he has refused to read it. I hope someone else finds it helpful, relatable or meaningful in some way.
Dad,
I built a chicken coop in the backyard. The city only allows us to have three chickens on a property our size, but I wanted to be able to accommodate more. We now have six growing chicks running around in their new coop and run. I installed a small wireless security camera and I’m watching them from on my phone on the porch of a cabin overlooking Bayou Pierre just outside Natchitoches right now. I check in on them several times a day; Izzi calls the live stream “Chicken TV.” I could watch them for hours and sometimes I do. They seem content pecking and scratching in the morning light.
We decided we wanted chickens sometime in late March. We’d been isolated in our home for a couple of weeks, and I’d just started recovering from a pretty nasty unidentified respiratory illness. We’re still unclear if we were infected with COVID-19, but everyone in our house had all the symptoms in mid-March. We hadn’t left the house in weeks, and we’d been getting all of our groceries delivered. It also may or may not be worth mentioning that we have been getting most of our groceries delivered for a few years now and when we went through a couple of orders without being able to get any eggs, the bakers (Rina and Mary Ellen) in our house were not pleased.
Our chicks are still a few weeks away from laying eggs and one of them might be a rooster. The experiences of building the coop and raising newly hatched chickens (hopefully) to adulthood have left me reflecting on a lot of things in my life, and I decided I’d like to make an effort to share some of my thoughts with you. So many of the things we learn about the world, from our family of origin and those who look after us as children, shape the way we process and make sense of our experiences. I know you’ve experienced this in ways that I cannot imagine, and I know I certainly have too. Sometimes people are able to assimilate new ideas, information and perspectives into their understanding of the world; other times, they’re not. I’ve met a number of reasonably intelligent, high-functioning people in the world today who refuse to believe that chickens will lay eggs in the absence of a rooster. Despite being told otherwise by people who know better, they continue to believe something they were taught as children — that hens need a rooster around to lay eggs.
The coop is about 7 feet tall on the eastern-facing roof. It’s about 4 feet by 4 feet. The hanging floor is about two feet off the ground. It has four removable nest boxes and plenty of space to perch. It has a total of 8 doors on three sides for accessing the coop. It also has panels at the bottom that pop out so that you can shovel the droppings and bedding that fall to the ground below. It’s attached to a 5-foot-by-9-foot run that is screened in on all sides. It has four panels at the top to keep the birds in and predators out. The run is 4 feet tall and gives the birds plenty of room to move around and is tall enough for me to duck under and go in if I need to without removing the top panels. I didn’t work from existing plans, but when I was designing it, I wanted to make it as modular as possible so that I could access it for cleaning and maintenance. I’ve been pleased with the way it’s turned out.
I’ve described the coop in this level of detail for a couple of reasons. First, I thought it might be interesting to you. I remember us having chickens for a bit when I was a kid, and you didn’t seem to hate it. I remember the coop and run you built for them out of a large wooden shipping crate and other salvaged materials. I also know you’re a handy person and always seemed interested in any carpentry and outdoor projects. The second reason is that I’d like you to get some understanding of the scale of this project. I put eight 4x4s in the ground with concrete around them — four for the coop and four for the run. I used almost three whole sheets of ½ inch treated plywood. I used about 100 combined feet of chicken wire, turkey wire, welded wire and hardware wire. I went through more than 1,200 staples, countless screws, dozens of hinges, knobs, pulls, and latches, and I spent more money on treated lumber than I’m willing to admit to Mary Ellen (or even myself). I’ve built a chicken fortress.
I could spend a lot more time writing about my new hobby and how passionate I am about these six dumb birds, but as you’ve likely suspected, that’s not really why I’m writing this letter. One thing I’d like you to know is that in building that chicken fortress (mostly by myself but with the help of a few dear friends and Rina), I spent a lot of time thinking about you. This isn’t unusual for me, but this experience has helped me become aware of just how prevalent you are in my thoughts and really in everything I do.
It’s impossible for me to use a circular saw, drill or screwdriver without thinking of you. I felt like you were there with me every time I got in that old work truck I recently got rid of. The interior always smelled like sweat and grease, and I thought about riding in trucks you drove to work every time I was in it. I didn’t get rid of it because of you, by the way. It belongs to a friend now, and he still lets me borrow it when I need to pick up lumber, concrete or anything else I can’t fit in the Nissan.
I was only able to build this silly chicken coop because of things I learned from you. Things I learned while watching and working alongside you on projects around the house growing up. I’m completely aware that most of these projects were things you were doing for Krista and me just because you wanted to and because you wanted us to have things you didn’t have growing up. You built us forts and treehouses, toys, games, weapons, shelters for our pets, and even a house inside an old abandoned school bus. I grew up in awe of you and all you knew how to do. I wanted to be like you and spent much of my life trying to.
Sometime while I was building that coop, I realized I was talking to you. I haven’t gone crazy; I’m aware that I was really talking to myself. And I wasn’t talking at all, only in my head. My thoughts were about explaining to you what I was doing. I was essentially discussing with you how I’d planned on building the coop and why I was making specific decisions with its design and explaining the order of processes I would be using in its construction. This is admittedly a strange thing to talk about. I don’t know that people usually admit they have pretend conversations with other people, but that’s what I’m doing.
This is something I’ve done all my life, and in the year since I’ve last spoken with you, I’ve had just as many pretend conversations as I ever did. I’d never thought about why. I’ve never really suspected it’s all that unusual. I think the only real breakthrough here was that these fake chats with you are something I’ve done for as long as I remember.
I have memories of doing it at all phases of my life when I was a child, teen, young adult and right up to this moment. You’re not the only person I have these imaginary conversations with, but for some goddamn reason, you’re my default. You’re the person I talked to when I was trying to explain this new concept I’d just learned about in Anatomy & Physiology in college as I walked into the classroom on test day. You’re the person I explained why I thought there was a problem with a client’s financials before I was able to have that conversation with my boss. You were there to talk me through both mundane and extraordinary times. You’ve always been there, and now that I recognize that, I have to ask myself, “why?”
It’s more than just remembering the interactions that I’ve had with you and building off of them. Yes, the core of my understanding of so many things I do every day is rooted in things I’ve learned from you, either directly or indirectly. I can’t pick up a drill and not think of building cabinets for the bus with you when I was 16, but I also have you there with me when I’m trying to think of a creative way to incorporate a discussion of Judith Butler’s ideas on the performative nature of gender into a presentation I’m giving. You’d think I’d have no reason to have an internal dialogue on exotic derivatives, feminist theory, eyeshadow trends, or any of the other things that I’ve been interested in over the years with a representation of you (a person I have no reason to believe would at all be interested in these topics) conjured up in my mind, and yet here we are.
And there I was, in my backyard feeling like I needed to sit down after having just been struck with the realization that I’ve literally spent my whole life trying to explain myself to you. Trying to explain my experience and even my existence to you. That for whatever reason, I’ve needed to hear your voice and imagine your face whenever I integrate new ideas and concepts into my brain. If I hadn’t gone this last year without you in my life, I wonder if I’d ever have made this realization.
I’m still working on figuring out why, but I have some thoughts. One thought is that I’ve always wanted to please you. I don’t even know if you’re aware of that, but it’s a thing that dawned on me well before this latest realization. The most painful memories in my early life center around thinking I’d disappointed you. On more than one occasion, I know that I had, in fact, disappointed you, and I’ve spent a lot of time dwelling on those incidents.
This need to please you hasn’t always been a bad thing. During many times in my life, it’s served me well. After all, you’re not a bad person. You taught me values and principles that I stand by to this day, and earlier in my life, my aversion to displeasing you was more than enough to keep me aligned with those values.
I can’t say that I spent every moment of my life worrying about what you’d think, and I certainly made decisions that I was sure you wouldn’t approve of. Know that, but also understand that doing that came with a certain amount of guilt. That guilt accumulated over time and turned into shame. There are more than a few things I’m ashamed of, but the person I’ve grown to be understands that some of the guilt and shame that I’ve carried around for years is misplaced.
Before I go further, I want you to know why I’m writing this letter. I’ve already mentioned it’s not to talk about the chicken coop and because I wanted you to know I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about you lately. And as I’ve revealed in the last few paragraphs, I’ve always spent a lot of time thinking about you. But I’m writing this for a few reasons.
One is because I want to get it out and move on. I want to say what I need to say to you, and I hope that you will read it and think about it, but I can’t control that part. I expect the act of me getting it out of my brain and typing it out will feel like a weight has been lifted, so even if you never read this, or never mention reading it, or never even acknowledge my existence again, I will still have gotten it out. I’ll also know that I’ve at least made an effort to convey my thoughts and feelings to you.
Another is because I still think of you as a parent who loves his children. I can empathize with unconditional love for my children, even though I haven’t had the experience of seeing them grow up. I’d want to know how my children are. I’d want to know how their life was going and that they were safe and healthy even when I couldn’t be there with them, even when they were adults. Even if they grew up to be people who do things I don’t understand or approve of. I’d still want to know.
I’ve titled the file on my computer where I’m saving this document “Dad Closure Letter,” but it doesn’t have to be the end. I’m prepared for this to be the last communication I ever have with you, but I sure hope that isn’t the case. In thinking of it that way, there are a few more things I’d like you to know.
When I was 16, I watched the World Trade Center burn and collapse on a projection screen at a special emergency assembly at LSMSA. I’ll never forget seeing those images for the first time, even though I wasn’t able to process what was going on that morning because the world had already stopped for me a few days before when I found out about your heart attack. I remember at 16 feeling like I needed to be closer to you because I didn’t feel like I knew you at all, and I didn’t want to lose you without ever feeling like I knew you.
I’m 35 now, and I don’t feel like I know you any better today, but at least I know I’ve made an effort to. And maybe this letter is my last, exasperated effort to do so. Maybe by opening up to you, I hope that you’ll in some way open up to me before it’s too late. I’m not optimistic this is going to happen, but if nothing else, maybe I’ll get a “Happy Birthday” text next year or something. I’d settle for that right now.
I spent most of my life hiding who I really am for a number of reasons. Safety and social stigmatization are clearly concerns for people like me. I didn’t understand who I was when I was a kid, but I understood that I was supposed to grow up to be a man. I wanted to grow up to be like the man I admired most. The person I think about every time I see Mary Ellen or one of the kids leave the front door open. The person I know would say they’re “letting the bugs in,” and the person I hear in myself when I tell them the same.
I’ve spent my whole life thinking about the ways we’re alike and the ways we’re different. I can’t help but notice how my attitudes towards things have shifted to be more like I remember yours being. I’m eager to go home after a little time away from the house. A sound I make when I clear my throat sounds exactly like the sound you make, and I think about it every time. When I’m angry, I hear your angry voice expressing my own thoughts. Even though I don’t feel like I know you at all, I do think you’re predictable.
I managed to make it to 30 before everything fell apart for me. I had a great job, an amazing wife and stepdaughter, an adorable home, and a beautiful new daughter. Realizing I couldn’t keep up the lie anymore, but that telling people who I really am might put my beautiful life in jeopardy felt like a prison. I was miserable, and I couldn’t talk about why.
I’m really thankful for Mary Ellen. She’s the most amazing partner I could ever ask for, and I’m forever grateful to her for helping me break out of that prison. I can’t imagine ever having the ability to tell someone other than her who I really am for the first time. She was the perfect person for it, and after years of her watching me suffer, I finally told her that thing I’d known about myself since at least preschool but never been able to talk about. And thank Goddess I did! My life is so much richer and happier than it’s ever been, and I’m so much more comfortable with myself and within the most important relationships in my life. Every moment now is better than any moment before. My biggest regret in life is not being myself sooner. I understand that within the context of my life and the world around me, I would not have the same experience I’m having now if I’d come out sooner. Because people’s general understanding and acceptance of queer people like me wasn’t nearly as favorable as it is today, I would have likely experienced some shitty, painful, and traumatic moments, but I still think I would have benefited from breaking out of that prison sooner.
As hard as it was to come out to my wife and the person I love most, I knew that the hardest part in all of this would be facing how you reacted to this information. I predicted that you would have a hard time accepting that you have a transgender kid. I expected you to be in denial about it, and I expected avoidance and silence. I once told my therapist that I expected you might “literally die mad about it.” I also expected that you’d keep loving me because I believed you when you told me you’d love me no matter what as a kid. I still believe that now. I’ve experienced unconditional love for both my parents and my children in this lifetime, and I have no doubt that you have too.
What I wasn’t prepared for was not having you be a part of your grandkids’ lives. I wouldn’t have put that on my transition bingo card. I’m hoping that’s not going to be a permanent thing. Both of my girls miss you. Mary Ellen misses you, too.
I also wasn’t prepared for having to unpack why it was so important to me that I consistently spent 30 years sacrificing my happiness and wellbeing so as not to disappoint or make you uncomfortable. I wasn’t prepared for realizing that every decision in my life is tied to how I’d explain it to you. I wasn’t prepared to know that the voice that has been guiding my thoughts and narrating as I read or mentally rehearse what I’m going to say to someone for as long as I can remember is your voice. It’s me thinking about what you’d say and how you’d say it. It’s me constantly questioning whether or not I’m good enough for you.
I wasn’t prepared to learn that every serious relationship I’ve ever had was based around me trying in vain to please someone the way I’ve wanted to please you. I wasn’t prepared to know that my insecurities in those relationships stemmed from feeling vulnerable and like I was never good enough or doing enough for them either. I wasn’t prepared to learn that my attraction to the people I had those relationships with was largely based on my preference for people who guarded their feelings carefully and were as mysterious and emotionally distant as you. I never felt like I could please them, and I’ve never felt like I’ve been able to please you. I’ve never felt like I was enough the way I am, but that’s something I’m working on these days.
Last week when I was painting the coop, I thought about you. If you’ve been paying attention, this shouldn’t be surprising. I had been dreading painting for weeks because I hate painting. Rina painted a good bit of it, but then she got hot and moody and argumentative and didn’t finish. Someone once told me we get the children we deserve. I finally decided to paint what I had left alone because it made more sense to paint before putting on the remaining hardware.
While I was painting a piece of plywood that would be used for the roof, I was thinking about a conversation I had with you and John when I was a kid. Y’all were talking about painting one of the rooms of our house. I said something about it sounding like fun, and you told John and me how much you hated painting. I had been focused on painting for well over an hour and was noticing how tedious it was. I kept having to go back and cover the areas I missed and fix mistakes. I needed precise movements, patience and close attention to details. I was having a great time. I found it cathartic and soothing. It was satisfying seeing every bit of wood covered in paint. I don’t hate painting, you do. I like painting. What else have I convinced myself of in order to be like or please you?
I hope you’re also able to break out of whatever prison you’re locked away in. In breaking out of my prison, I wasn’t prepared to lose you. I don’t mean lose you in the sense that I’ve lost contact with you or that our relationship has become distant and strained. I mean that I’m having to lose you in the sense that I have to unbundle so much of who I am from my understanding and who you’d want me to be. My concept of self is so intrinsically tied to living up to your expectations that I’m having to start from scratch in figuring out who I really am. As scary as this has been, I’m now OK with it, and I’m excited about where being myself will take me next. The freedom and peace I’ve already found have made me ready to continue with the challenge of finding my own voice. I’ve already learned a lot about the real me. I’m hoping one day you’ll get to learn who I really am, too.
With all my love,
Jane | https://medium.com/@janeadoramitchell/on-chicken-coops-and-transgender-kids-ee9c8a63421d | ['Jane Adora Mitchell'] | 2020-09-11 11:25:44.417000+00:00 | ['Family', 'Coming Out', 'LGBTQ', 'Acceptance', 'Transgender'] |
Ready to break down | Ready to break down
Furious with my mind
Afraid of my feelings
Tired of thinking so much
Just want to stop feeling
Or feel less
Just want a happy medium
All I can do is cry
Just tired of feeling
Feeling or not feeling anything
Afraid of all of it
My mind doesn’t see the good feelings
Just want to think happy thoughts
I’m not who I was
I’m not who I planned to be
I’m not even sure who I am though
Holding in my confusion
Hiding from myself
Hiding from everyone around me
Loving them
Hating who I am
Hating how I am
Afraid to learn who I will be
Terrified of trying to be happy
Happy in my own skin
How do I live not knowing?
Why am I still here?
So many people deserve it more than I ever will
But I know there is a reason for everything
I just hope I figure that reason out
Hopefully I’ll understand someday | https://medium.com/@csnow0437/ready-to-break-down-b6dfae93f42b | ['Christina Snow'] | 2020-12-24 04:00:35.156000+00:00 | ['Feelings', 'Poetry', 'Love', 'Overthinking'] |
International Travel Checklist 2019. Check before you leave. | Travel Checklist to ensure a smooth International journey
Check expiry of below documents
Travel Documents
Passport
Visa
Driving license (Check if it is valid for the destination country)
Make a digital copy of your documents on your mobile phone or mail it to your personal email id (and an additional copy to someone in your family/friends). Keep a hard copy in your checked baggage
Travel tickets
Travel Medical insurance or visitors insurance copy.
Passport
Visa
Photo ID proof
Passport size photos (in your wallet)
In your wallet and mobile — 1 emergency contact number and address of your destination stay.
Buy international sim card or activate international roaming on your existing mobile plan.
Do online web-check-in for your flight
Currency
Buy destination currency.
Carry at least one international debit or credit card for emergency.
Keep your country currency for travel to and from the departure airport.
Health
Visitors insurance is must for international travel
Buy a suitable visitors travel insurance for the country you are visiting.
Get a basic health check-up done before you leave for a long trip.
Stock up on regular medication, like painkiller, antibiotics, antacids, anti-allergen. Over the counter medication availability rules are much relaxed in India than other countries. Especially in the US, you cannot get most of the medications without a doctor’s prescription.
Carry sickness bags if you or anyone traveling with you has motion sickness.
Always carry empty water bottle as you can refill it post your security check.
Do basic exercises to keep yourself active.
Toiletries
Toiletries
Carry shampoo sachets and travel soaps to save space.
Carry moisturizer, body wash in small bottles.
Pack wet wipes and tissues.
Pack a tiny shaving kit.
Pack a grooming kit for men or women.
Liquids, gels and aerosols packed in carry-on must follow the 3–1–1 liquids rule:
3 Ounces or 100 ml per container ,1 Quart size, clear, plastic, zip top bag (all liquids must fit in bag), 1 bag per passenger
Electronics
Carry international adapter
Carry a power bank (Inside checked bag)
Charge all your electric equipment before you leave for airport.
TSA Approved lock
To do list a day before Leaving for the Airport
Stop Mail or divert it to some other Address.
Plan for plant watering, bill paying, Pet care etc.
Give extra home keys to friends for any emergency.
Before leaving for the airport | https://medium.com/http-www-flybirdyblog-co/international-travel-checklist-2019-check-before-you-leave-ba0c236603c4 | ['Vivek Gupta'] | 2019-09-05 16:57:11.262000+00:00 | ['Travel Insurance', 'Travel', 'Travel Tips', 'Travel Checklist', 'Travel Writing'] |
🌀 Docker Task : | 🔅Configuring HTTPD Server on Docker Container
🔅Setting up Python Interpreter and running
Python Code on Docker Container
Lets gets insight about the tools which are to be used inside this task
What is Apache Web Server?
Apache HTTP Server is a free and open-source web server that delivers web content through the internet. It is commonly referred to as Apache and after development, it quickly became the most popular HTTP client on the web. It’s widely thought that Apache gets its name from its development history and process of improvement through applied patches and modules but that was corrected back in 2000. It was revealed that the name originated from the respect of the Native American tribe for its resiliency and durability.
What is Docker?
Docker is a Linux-based, open-source containerization platform that developers use to build, run, and package applications for deployment using containers. Unlike virtual machines, Docker containers offer:
OS-level abstraction with optimum resource utilization
Interoperability
Efficient build and test
Faster application execution
Docker mainly comes in two editions Docker Community Edition or Docker Enterprise Edition.
Docker CE is a free and open source containerization platform. It is a rebranded version of the Docker open source solution that has been freely available since the launch of Docker in 2013.
CE can run on Windows 10 and Mac, on Azure and AWS, as well as CentOS, Debian, Fedora, and Ubuntu. CE can be downloaded directly from the Docker Store.
Docker EE, on the other hand, is a premium version of CE. Docker EE is an integrated, fully supported, and certified container platform that runs on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES), Oracle Linux, Ubuntu, Windows Server 2016, as well as Azure and AWS.
First things first, it’s important to note that Docker CE is not a ‘watered down’ version of Docker EE. Both CE and EE have the same core features and functions.
Both editions offer the same core features, Docker EE comes with additional features that can help enterprises launch, manage, and secure their containers more efficiently.
Both editions are updated quarterly (although Docker CE users can expect “Edge” updates, discussed further herein), and both are available on a wide range of popular operating systems and cloud infrastructures, giving enterprises the freedom to run containerized applications on their favorite infrastructure — without lock-in.
Components of a Docker architecture
Docker comprises the following different components within its core architecture:
Images
Containers
Registries
Docker Engine
Images
Images are like blueprints containing instructions for creating a Docker container. Images define:
Application dependencies
The processes that should run when the application launches
You can get images from DockerHub or create your own images by including specific instructions within a file called Dockerfile.
Containers
Containers are live instances of images on which an application or its independent modules are run.
In an object-oriented programming analogy, an image is a class and the container is an instance of that class. This allows operational efficiency by allowing to you to multiple containers from a single image.
Registries
A Docker registry is like a repository of images.
The default registry is the Docker Hub, a public registry that stores public and official images for different languages and platforms. By default, a request for an image from Docker is searched within the Docker Hub registry.
You can also own a private registry and configure it to be the default source of images for your custom requirements.
Docker Engine
The Docker Engine is of the core components of a Docker architecture on which the application runs. You could also consider the Docker Engine as the application that’s installed on the system that manages containers, images, and builds.
A Docker Engine uses a client-server architecture and consists of the following sub-components:
The Docker Daemon is basically the server that runs on the host machine. It is responsible for building and managing Docker images.
is basically the server that runs on the host machine. It is responsible for building and managing Docker images. The Docker Client is a command-line interface (CLI) for sending instructions to the Docker Daemon using special Docker commands. Though a client can run on the host machine, it relies on Docker Engine’s REST API to connect remotely with the daemon.
is a command-line interface (CLI) for sending instructions to the Docker Daemon using special Docker commands. Though a client can run on the host machine, it relies on Docker Engine’s REST API to connect remotely with the daemon. A REST API supports interactions between the client and the daemon.
Developing with Docker
Developing apps today requires so much more than writing code. Multiple languages, frameworks, architectures, and discontinuous interfaces between tools for each lifecycle stage creates enormous complexity. Docker simplifies and accelerates your workflow, while giving developers the freedom to innovate with their choice of tools, application stacks, and deployment environments for each project.
What is Python Language?
Python is a widely used general-purpose, high level programming language. It was created by Guido van Rossum in 1991 and further developed by the Python Software Foundation. It was designed with an emphasis on code readability, and its syntax allows programmers to express their concepts in fewer lines of code.
Python is a programming language that lets you work quickly and integrate systems more efficiently.
There are two major Python versions: Python 2 and Python 3. Both are quite different.
Why Python?
Python works on different platforms (Windows, Mac, Linux, Raspberry Pi, etc).
Python has a simple syntax similar to the English language.
Python has syntax that allows developers to write programs with fewer lines than some other programming languages.
Python runs on an interpreter system, meaning that code can be executed as soon as it is written. This means that prototyping can be very quick.
Python can be treated in a procedural way, an object-oriented way or a functional way.
Lets dive into the task:
NOTE : This task is performed in Linux OS.
STEPS TO PERFORM THE TASK :
🔹 Configure Docker
🔹 Start and enable Docker services
🔹 Download the httpd server using the Yum command
🔹 Deploy some static webpage on the server
🔹 Start and enable Httpd services
🔹 Check whether webpage is running or not
🔹 Download the Python interpreter using the Yum command
🔹 Launch the interpreter and run some program file
Install Docker on the top of Linux :
Firstly you have to configure the yum to install the docker if you are doing this practical on your local VM or system, but if you are doing this practical on AWS instance then you need not to configure the yum as AWS provide the preconfigured yum to us.
Now run this command to install the docker-ce version.
yum install docker-ce --nobest
Start and enable Docker services :
Now run this command to start the docker services
systemctl start docker
Run this command to check the docker services is successfully started or not
systemctl status docker
After Installing Docker Now we are Ready to move Further.
Download the Docker Image used for the Container :
Run this command to pull the image from Docker Hub :
docker pull {image_name}:{tag}
In My Case I have Used Centos Image, You can Use any
After downloading the image is saved in your local registry and you can check your all images from the command,
docker images ls
Launch Docker Container :
The command is,
docker container run -it centos:7
Now after launching the container we have to install the HTTPD software using yum command. By default docker also gives the preconfigured yum, so you don’t need to configure it.
Deploy some static webpage on the server :
We have to deploy our code in the default Document Root of Httpd Server i.e /var/www/html/ folder and the file in which we write our code should have html extension. So I’m writing the only HELLO WORLD in my webpage file and when we access it , it only prints the HELLO WORLD which shows that our webserver is working successfully inside the Docker Container.
Start and enable Httpd services :
There are lots of ways in Linux to start the services , one of the way is “systemctl command” and one way we know, in hadoop(Big Data) we also start the Namenode and Datanode, but there we had not use systemctl command, there we use “hadoop-daemon.sh start Namenode/Datanode”. So if you ask “hadoop-daemon.sh” command what you do? they say I also start the services, which one? Masternode or Slavenode. But this command do not have the capability to make your service permanent enabled. So not all command through which you start the services have a capability to make your service permanent enabled at the boot time. So systemctl is one of the command that has a capability to use a ‘enable’ option to make your service permanent enabled.
But the problem here is when you run service respective command inside the docker container through which your service start, won’t work, why? The reason is by default the Docker doesn’t allow it. Lets try it in docker……
It doesn’t show any error with command not found like this, it means command is there but they are not supporting.
So we know that when we run the systemctl command behind the scene they run this file “/usr/lib/systemd/system/httpd.service” and this file finally run this command “/usr/sbin/httpd”. So finally this is the command which start our service, so in docker or in centos we can directly run this command to start webservices. | https://medium.com/@vibhorjain1509/docker-task-7e6b4ff27ec5 | ['Vibhor Jain'] | 2021-07-06 08:29:33.722000+00:00 | ['Python Programming', 'Docker', 'Webservices Testing', 'Apache'] |
Big Mike: An Amazing Young Life Taken Too Soon | Shortly after Michael Brown graduated from Normandy High-school, the 18-year-old graduate, affectionately known as Big Mike, made a declaration in front of his family.
“One day, the whole world will know my name.” he proclaimed confidently.
At the time, his family shrugged this off. Brown was a prolific prankster around his family, a kid with a larger-than-life sense of humor once you got to know him. They assumed this was another one of his light-hearted jokes.
However, eight days later, Brown’s prophecy would chillingly prove to be correct, when on August 9th, 2014, in Ferguson, Missouri, Brown was shot and killed by former police officer Darren Wilson, while walking home with a friend, Dorian Johnson. Johnson testified that Wilson chased Brown down the street and executed him as he held his hands up in surrender, a claim substantiated by forensic, ballistic, and physical evidence.
Brown’s death brought a national spotlight to the Black Lives Matter movement, and created a wave of civil unrest and an uprising in Ferguson, spawning the now famous rallying cry of “Hands up, don’t shoot.”
His death prompted two DOJ investigations, one of which uncovered a systemic trend in the Ferguson Police Department — the disproportionate arrest of Black citizens for traffic infractions.
When the dust settled in Ferguson, the world was left with an anticlimax. Officer Wilson would be promptly fired from the Ferguson Police Department, and the city of Ferguson would settle a 7-figure wrongful death lawsuit with Brown’s family. Wilson was cleared in two investigations, with both prosecutors concluding that Darren Wilson acted within the law. To this day, Wilson hasn’t been rehired anywhere as a police officer.
The world was left to reflect on the life and legacy of Michael Brown.
He was remembered fondly by friends, school teachers, and family members as a “gentle giant.” They lauded him as a polite, mild-mannered, and funny young man who took his studies very seriously.
Brown was known to arrive on campus early and stay late to get extra help on his courses, an effort that would ultimately pay off — Brown completed over a year of missing credits and successfully beat the odds, graduating from a school known in the education world as a “Dropout Factory.”
Brown was set to begin taking classes on heating and air conditioning repair at Vatterott College, a technical school, just two days after his death on August 9th.
Activists, Ferguson residents, Brown’s family members, and others worldwide recognized Brown as an amazing young life taken too soon — a teenager with immense promise and a bright future ahead of him.
Now, the world collectively ponders the question of what Michael Brown could’ve become had he not been killed by Darren Wilson on August 9th. He could’ve been a part of a myriad of life experiences that many take for granted, such as getting a driver’s license and celebrating a 21st birthday.
At the end of the day, nobody truly knows what happened to Michael Brown except for Brown himself — and he’s no longer here to tell it.
However, society does know how Brown carried himself while on earth.
Michael Brown will forever be known for the immense sense of joy and love he brought to the people around him, the promising future he saw on the horizon, and the catalyst for real, systemic change he became. That will never change.
His spirit and memory will live on for generations. | https://medium.com/@ethanb822/big-mike-an-amazing-young-life-taken-too-soon-92c19f3974c9 | ['Ethan Biando'] | 2021-01-10 06:47:46.711000+00:00 | ['Blm', 'Police Violence', 'Michael Brown', 'Tribute', 'Criminal Justice Reform'] |
Bermuda Triangle | Photo by Nick Karvounis on Unsplash
It’s not the sleep I want but the dreaming,
the descent to sulphur and ash
— the darkness that’s calling.
I once prayed to Apollo, watched him
ionize the sun, let his charioteers drive it
underground in Magna Graecia.
But when you wake, too often
your dream is lost, and you hope
the sun will rise again,
illuminate what’s gone forever.
rolling over mid-morning to stitch
threads, solder and knit synapses
before the world pivots in your head,
only to discover, there’s a triangle
in each of us, where words and symbols
disappear, gone forever, like Bermuda.
The compensation is what Parmenides
taught — in Reality nothing ever changes,
It’s only down here that’s fraught.
© Simon Heathcote | https://medium.com/soul-sea/bermuda-triangle-10f819005d5d | ['Simon Heathcote'] | 2020-12-25 00:03:51.940000+00:00 | ['Sleep', 'Vision', 'Dreaming', 'Poetry On Medium', 'Poetry'] |
Our Blog has Moved! | Our blog has moved! Find new financial tips, money management hacks and helpful personal stories on the Mission: Dollars and Cents Blog , now live on the FINRED website. | https://medium.com/@dodfinred/our-blog-has-moved-11f543ade0b4 | ['Financial Readiness'] | 2020-12-15 13:28:42.763000+00:00 | ['Money Tips', 'Money', 'Military', 'Financial Planning'] |
Maarten, an interesting take on some cliches that, I agree, often aren’t helpful. | Maarten, an interesting take on some cliches that, I agree, often aren’t helpful.
This is how I’ve looked at it before retiring from work and now in my most satisfying life phase:
Find out who you are first. That means discovering your inherent 10-20 core values. Your values are who you are.
Then make every decision everyday for the rest of your life consistent with one or more of those values.
The better you are at that, the better chance you’ll have for what Stephen Covey and his partner Hyrum Smith promised almost 30 years ago, fulfillment and peace of mind.
So no, a door does not open with someone greeting you with a “congratulations, you’ve made it. You will now be happy.”
It’s not an external voyage. It is an internal one. When faced with daily choices, daily goals and activities, only choose those that are consistent with one or more of your core values. Say no to everything else. The better that you can do that, the richer your fulfillment will be.
Doesn’t that make sense? Only do those things, only choose those goals that are consistent with those internal values that are nearest to your heart.
Covey, Smith and others promised that. I took it upon faith for the last 26 years. And, some time ago, found that if was true. How could it be otherwise?
So IMO the goal is fulfillment, perhaps a better word than happiness. And I only know one way to achieve it.
I’ll be laying the entire process out in a series of blogs this year and in a book that I will publish later. | https://medium.com/@roycook/maarten-an-interesting-take-on-some-cliches-that-often-arent-helpful-a71bf9a02503 | ['Roy Cook'] | 2019-03-20 06:26:05.414000+00:00 | ['Success', 'Fulfillment', 'Values'] |
API: Expect The Unexpected! | Source: unsplash.com
API, or an Application Programming Interface, is a set of functions or methods for building and integrating software. Quoted from howtogeek.com, think of it as a menu in a restaurant. A menu will consist of many dishes where you can choose what to order. When you’re done choosing, you tell the waiter/tress the dish that you want. The waiter/tress then proceed to the kitchen to prepare your dish. At this point, you don’t know what’s going on in the kitchen, and you don’t care about it; you only care about the food (of course). When they’re done preparing, they will serve the dish to you.
Similarly, as a developer, you choose what you want to request. You then send the request, then wait for the response. I think this is a perfect metaphor for describing API for common people. In that case, the request is telling the waiter/tress the dish you want, and the response is the finished dish.
Developers love APIs; it makes their life much, much easier. It helps us connect with services without knowing the implementation. For example, in my project BisaGo, we want the dashboard page to display the map. Coding the map is not that simple; it will have many lines of code. Instead of hard-coded it, we can use an API for the map that’s provided by Google.
From here, I’m going to talk based on my personal experience, and in my opinion, this is not the best practice. So you are welcomed to correct me if I’m wrong.
When creating an API, you have to consider some several things:
HTTP Method
HTTP implements several “methods” that tell which direction data is moving and what should happen. The two most common are GET, which pulls data from a server, and POST, which pushes new data to a server.
URL Endpoint
A URL describes the location of a specific resource, such as a web page. When you’re creating an API, you have to consider the endpoint or a URL where we can pull or push the data from the server.
Data Request
What data are you going to send to the server? What kind of data are you going to use to retrieve other data? Usually, we define the data request in this kind of form:
{
‘data_1’: ‘value’,
‘data_2’: ‘value’,
etc
}
Data Processing
After we get the data, what we want to do next? Do we want to save the data? Or do we want to use the data to retrieve other data? We don’t want the data gone to waste.
Response and Exception Handling
After we successfully process the data, we have to think about what we should return that indicates the process is successful. Not only that, but we also should return when there’s an exception or error occurred. We define the response in JSON format and the HTTP status code for all responses.
It’s very important to have a mindset “Expect the unexpected” when developing an API. We have to think about all of the possible cases that might happen. Consider this; we’re trying to create an API for form handling to store a record of the user’s weight. The form consists of a date, maximum weight, and minimum weight; the maximum weight value should always be more than the minimum weight value and the user can only record once per date. Here are the possible cases that could happen:
User put a valid data User didn’t fill in one of the fields User input the minimum weight value larger than the maximum weight value User already record with the same date that’s stored in the database
Creating an API to Update User’s Information
Relational Model of USER and BISAGO_USER
Method, POST since we want to push the data to the server, and we’re dealing with the user’s personal information (which is very confidential).
Endpoint, /update-user/ since the process is updating user’s information
Data Request,
{ 'email',
'name',
'phone_number',
'tanggal_lahir',
'jenis_kelamin',
'disabilitas',
'pekerjaan',
'alamat'
}
Data Processing and Response, after receiving the data:
Retrieve the User Model data using the email Retrieve the BisaGoUser Model using the User that we previously get Update the name in the User, then save Update the BisaGoUser Model, then save Return response:
{ 'response': 'User updated' }, with the status code 200 (OK)
Error Handling, here are some possible cases that I could think of when creating this API
When the user does not exist in the database, it will return:
{ 'response': 'Internal server error' }, with the status code 500 (Internal Server Error)
When the data that we send is not valid, it will return:
{ 'response': 'User not found' }, with the status code 404 (Not Found)
Usually, after I create this schema, I move on to do the code implementation, don’t forget to use TDD.
TDD? Not again
Yes TDD, or Test-Driven Development. You can see my article here to learn more about TDD. Since we’re using existing data in the database, we have to register the data first. The data that I registered:
{'name': 'Astraykai', 'email':'[email protected]', 'password':'chingchenghanji', 'phone_number':'089892218567', 'tanggal_lahir':'1990-05-05', 'jenis_kelamin':'Laki-laki', 'disabilitas':'', 'pekerjaan':'Mahasiswa', 'alamat':'Alamat Palsu'}
Test for when user exist in database and the data that’s sent is valid
Test For When User Does Not Exist in Database
Test For When User Exist in Database, but The Data That’s Sent Is Not Valid
Explanation:
Get the endpoint, in here I use the reverse() method so that I only have to fill in with the endpoint name reverse('update-user') Define the data POST the data to the previously defined endpoint Read the response in JSON format using json.loads() Do assertions
“Is unit testing enough?”
Based on my personal experience, no. Unit testing is not enough. You have to make sure that your API is reachable and return the desired response. You can use an application called Postman to do that stuff.
In conclusion, API is a very powerful ‘gadget’. It reduces the developer’s workload, and it helps them connect to other services without writing a code for it.
Source: | https://medium.com/ppl-c/api-expect-the-unexpected-67d2a8effe8a | ['Surya Nirvana'] | 2020-11-19 20:04:53.613000+00:00 | ['Api Development', 'Backend', 'Backend Development', 'API'] |
How to write an about me page that connects | Most websites have an ‘about me’ page. Why? Because we’re nosy.
Business is all about trust, and an about me page is your chance to showcase what makes you unique and build a connection with your ideal customers.
You may have a badge proudly displayed on your homepage that says you’ve been awarded gold for health and safety, and last year you raised ten thousand pounds for the blind, three-legged dogs trust. That’s great, but I want to get to know you.
Why should you spend time on your about me page?
If somebody has visited your website, chances are they have a problem that needs solving. Here’s an example:
I need a florist for my wedding. If you type ‘wedding flowers Northumberland’ into Google, there are hundreds of results. I pick five based on the design of their website, the portfolio page, and my budget.
What’s next? I head to their about me (or us) pages.
One business says that it’s the recommended florist for my chosen wedding venue — perfect, they’ll know exactly what I need.
They trained and lived in London before moving to the North East. Me too!
Their favourite thing to work with is foliage. Thank f**k for that. If I see another florist talking about peonies as their favourite flower, my eyes might bleed.
They have a side business making floral collars for dogs that are modelled by their adorable labradoodle called Patch.
Right, I don’t justwant you to be my florist, I want to come and work for you!
That’s why you need an about us page. It presents an opportunity to build a connection with a potential customer.
Spoiler alert: it’s not actually about you
Sorry to break it to you, but customers are not really visiting your about me page because they want to read about you.
But wait, what? Let me explain…
You aren’t that interesting (well, your mum probably thinks you are). All your potential customers want to know is that you’re the person who can solve their problem.
By intertwining what services or products you provide with funny or personal snippets of information, you appear more likeable, relatable, and present an opportunity for people to connect with you.
My five top tips
When creating an about me page, people often make one of two mistakes. They either:
Have a very brief, professional bio.
Or, they have written about life, the universe, and everything in-between.
It’s important to find a balance between the two, but how?
1. Tell them what you stand for
What makes you get out of bed every morning to work on your business? Tell them why you do what you do.
You might be selling the same product as your competitors, but if you explain what your motivations are and how you think, a potential customer will be more likely to trust you.
2. Create a story
It can be tempting to follow a traditional story structure with a beginning, middle, and an end, but this is usually far too long for website copy.
Instead of a page-long description of your life story, try using bullet points. For example:
“After years of working in soulless corporate jobs, I:
…Took the leap and quit my job.
…Decided to spend more time investing in myself and developing my skills.
…Switched to a career that I was incredibly passionate about.
…Realised I could help others by empowering them to do the same.”
This way, you can effectively communicate everything across to the reader while allowing them to stay focused. If you feel it’s necessary to expand on a certain point, why not write about it on your blog and link to that instead?
Not sure whether to include something in your story? Simply ask yourself: “What’s the benefit?”.
Does it inspire the reader?
Does it educate them?
If the answer is no, then don’t include it.
3. Know your customer and their pain points
This is why having a niche is important. You need to know exactly who your customer is to be able to talk to them and explain what your solution is.
Does the story back-up a claim you’re making?
As soon as they reach your site, you want them to recognise that it was created for them.
For example, if you run a coaching business for start-up female entrepreneurs, you might write something like:
Running your own business is exciting, but also kind of scary, right? Instead of concentrating on the fun stuff, you know, like being the boss, nobody told you that you would also become the all-in-one marketing expert, finance chief and customer services manager.
Don’t panic. I’ve been exactly in the same position as you, and I know that it’s hard. I’m here to tell you that with my tried and tested business plan and a positive mindset, you can take the leap from five-figure entrepreneur to six.
The beginning of this example gets straight to the point by presenting a negative situation that the reader is probably dealing with right now, while the second addresses how you can help them with that. Being this obvious allows the reader to instantly connect with what you’re saying, and understand that you’re what they need to fix their problems.
4. Include a photo
Don’t be scared to share a photo of yourself.
I come across so many about me pages that don’t include photos, but people are unlikely to build a connection with you if they don’t know what you look like.
If you’re worried you don’t have a picture that looks professional enough, see if you can find a local photographer and ask about headshot packages. If you can, it looks even better if you can get some professional pictures of yourself in appropriate locations that you can then use across your website.
5. Don’t forget your call to action
Once you’ve nailed your storytelling, it’s important to include a call to action (CTA).
This could be asking them to say “Hey” on your Instagram, or it could be inviting them to subscribe to your newsletter.
What you don’t want them to do is spend the time reading your fantastic about me page and then forget all about your website after they leave. By including a CTA, you’re ensuring that you still maintain contact with them.
(Don’t forget to sprinkle a CTA in several places on your about me page as people tend to skim read.)
Final thoughts
Be honest, be unique, and keep it simple. Don’t worry about pleasing everyone — it’s better to stay authentic than put on a front that you think your customers want to see.
And, if you’ve read this and still think it sounds like too much work, why don’t you get in touch and see how I can help? | https://medium.com/@laurabracher/how-to-write-an-about-me-page-that-connects-2e636d447c75 | ['Laura Bracher'] | 2021-01-09 15:24:41.371000+00:00 | ['Copywriter', 'Website Development', 'Business Development', 'Writing Tips', 'Copywriting'] |
Chord Lirik Pamungkas I Love You But I’m Letting Go | Intro: G C G C
Hmmm no o..
G
Sunday night after
C
A rainy day
G
I delete all your pictures
C
I walked away
G C
From you..o oo
G
Nights are the hardest
C
But I’ll be okay
G
If we are meant to be yeah
C
We’ll find our way
G C
But now.. let it be..
Am
Cause you know what they say
C
If you love somebody
D
Gotta set them free..
Chorus:
G
I love you but I’m letting go
F Em
I love you but I’m letting go
D C
I love you and I’m letting go
D G C G C
I love you but I’m letting go..hmm..
G
Little did I know love is easy
C
But why was it so hard? it was like
G
never enough i gave you all
C
Still you want more
G
Can’t you see? Can’t you see?
C
That you want someone that I’m not
G
Yes I love but I can’t so I am
C
Letting you go now
Am
And baby one day when you finally found
Bm
What you want and you’re ready to open your heart
C
To anyone dont push people away again
D
Easier, I know but it’s also very lonely..
Em C Bm Am Bm C D
Yeah.. ooo..oo ooo..oo..
Chorus:
G
I love you but I’m letting go
F Em
I love you but I’m letting go ooh
D C
I love you and I’m letting go
D C D
It is the only way, you know? ohoo
G F
And from now on I will
Em D
Hold my own hand..
C D
Until one day you’ll hold
C D
My lonely hand..
Outro:
G C G C
u u..uuu… | https://medium.com/@puttri-cittra/chord-lirik-pamungkas-i-love-you-but-im-letting-go-c6482db0c20c | ['Puttri Cittra'] | 2020-12-23 08:23:48.138000+00:00 | ['SEO', 'News', 'Music', 'Videos', 'Love'] |
The Golden Rule Revisited | The most common formulation for the Golden Rule in most religions and possibly humanist philosophy is, “Do to others what you would like others to do to you.” This is the positive version. Confucius was credited with what might have been the earliest version of the rule, albeit the negative position, “Do not desire for others what you do not desire for yourself”. Like Confucius, Hillel also presented the negative side of the coin, “That which is hateful to you, do not do to any other person.”
Do we need two versions? I will argue that there are good reasons for both sides, both perspectives. First, let’s put aside the masochists who may relish being hurt by others or the bully, who might say, “Do to others what you would have them do to you, only do it first”.
It strikes me that the difference between the positive adaptation of the Golden Rule and the negative form may be considered the distinction one could draw between being charitable and being moral. Being moral is choosing not to do something. One is moral if one does not deliberately and needlessly harm someone else. You are not immoral if you hurt someone unintentionally. You are not immoral if you hurt someone in self defence and there is no other alternative. The world, in my view, would be a better place if everybody would simply be moral, avoiding that which is hateful (harmful) to someone else.
Most people, I believe, behave morally most of the time. Most of our laws are based on the principle of morality, both restitutive and restorative laws in Emile Durkheim’s terminology. Restitutive laws are those that try and prevent criminal behaviour, acts such as assault, murder, theft, vandalism (restitutive in that one ‘pays’ the ‘debt’ to the those harmed or to the individual writ large, to society.) Restorative laws are those which aim to regulate behaviour for the smooth functioning of society. Traffic regulations, workplace safety requirements, food safety, public health are the most prevalent that come to mind. This is an over simplification as a violation of traffic laws do result in fines and can lead to criminal charges. The main point, again, is that behaving morally is the negative side of the Golden Rule and is similar to one of the tenets of a medical doctor’s code of ethics, “First do no harm”.
As an aside, it may be worth spending a moment to discuss the difference between ethical and moral behaviour. We often accuse politicians of behaving unethically although the activity might not be illegal. If an unethical behaviour leads to harm, and it often does, then it is immoral as well. Some unethical behaviour is not immoral. If a child lies about how late he returned home after a party, while it would be considered unethical, it does not harm others, and by my definition is not immoral. Lying, I might add, is not always unethical. Lying to save the life of an innocent person would be deemed commendable and fall under the category of situational ethics.
Returning to the subject at hand, would we enhance the world by simply being moral? Probably, but we do know it would improve the well being of others if we positively do good for someone. As W. H. Auden put it:
“We are here on earth to help others; why on earth the others are here I don’t know.”
That is the distinction in my mind between moral and charitable behaviour. Charitable behaviour, one might even argue altruistic behaviour, requires one to seek out the wrongs and injustices of the world and attempt to rectify them and not just sit back and observe and be acted upon. It is the principle behind the overwhelming majority of the tens of thousands of charities that are operating in Canada, not to mention international not-for-profit organizations.
One can get involved with just and compassionate causes in a variety of ways: lobby politicians, donate money (in 2018, the median donation in Canada was $310), donate time to charities, join or take a leadership role in charitable or not-for-prophit organizations that seek justice and the alleviation of suffering, or found or help found an organization with these aims. It is largely why I joined with a few others to organize a not-for-profit charity to provide affordable housing for low income families, Multifaith Housing Initiative.
Tragically, many people on this earth embrace neither the positive nor the negative versions of the Golden Rule and we are not the better for it. | https://medium.com/@tm-brian-kinsley/the-golden-rule-revisited-74480499cf69 | ['Brian Kinsley'] | 2021-04-15 02:46:11.411000+00:00 | ['Ethics', 'Morality', 'Golden Rules Of Life'] |
A New Beginning Is Waiting for Us | SPIRITUALITY | NEWSLETTER
A New Beginning Is Waiting for Us
Spiritual Secret #10
Photo by Matt Duncan on Unsplash
Dear Spiritual Souls,
It’s time to reveal some secrets…Spiritual Secrets!
Last week was a roller coaster ride for most of us, especially for the ones residing in the U.S. But I believe that it was just a testament to our temperament.
If we were worried, tensed, or had lost our week because of some external stimulus like elections, we need to work on ourselves.
We must not confine spirituality to books, preachings, and stories. If we can’t adopt it in our practical life to make it better, spiritual knowledge serves no purpose. So, I want to congratulate all those who remained unfazed by the political drama that caused a stir last week. You’re on the right track.
I don’t know what’s in store for all of us, but I hope for a new beginning. I think it’s time for us to reflect upon our past mistakes, learn from them, and move on.
A famous quote by J. P. Morgan comes to my mind:
“The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you’re not going to stay where you are.”
Things will only change for the better. At least, I would like to believe so because my thinking governs my feelings and emotions.
Putting aside everything, let me share some spiritual secrets so that we can benefit from it in our endeavors. | https://medium.com/spiritual-secrets/a-new-beginning-is-waiting-for-us-3263049a2047 | ['Darshak Rana'] | 2020-11-10 16:36:49.722000+00:00 | ['Spirituality', 'Spiritual Secrets', 'Happiness', 'Wisdom', 'Letters'] |
TRON overview | Cryptoindex is a tool for exposure to the cryptomarket and serves as a smart benchmark for all cryptocurrencies. The AI-based Cryptoindex algorithm is continuously analyzing more than 1000 coins applying over 170 factors, processing more than 1 million signals per second to provide a highly sophisticated index of the top 100 coins.
You can find our previous reviews here:
Cardano — review. Future plans.
Ripple — review. Further Perspectives
Litecoin. June’18 overview
The Dow Jones index. From where did it come to us?
Bitcoin Cash. June 2018 overview
Are cryptocurrency indices a new crypto market trend?
EOS. End of May’18 overview
Ethereum. May 2018 overview
Here on our Cryptoindex blog, we will be posting 100 articles about each of the top performing coins selected by our powerful AI algorithm #CIX100coinreview.
Today’s review: TRON and their prospects.
What is TRON? And who was created this?
First, let’s start with what the ‘Throne’ is. This platform was developed for the creation of digital content. Each person has their own “intellectual property,” be it music, a book or any other content. The platform itself is created on the Ethereum blockchain.
The TRON ecosystem was founded in September last year, by the Singapore non-profit organization Tron Foundation. The company is headed by Justin Sun. Before creating TRON (TRX), he created the social application ‘Peiwo’, which gained more than one million users.
Prior to this, Justin Sun acted as an advisor and representative for Ripple in China from December 2013 until 2016. In 2015 and 2017 he was nominated in Forbes ’30 most successful people under the age of 30’ list.
Key targets of the project
Everyone is interested in reading good quality content. The TRON project encourages individuals to become they’re own creators with protected rights, a “Paradise to combat piracy,” where there is no Torrent.
Most of the content on the Internet passes through large sites such as Yahoo, Google, Yandex, etc. Due to this, they can dictate any prices in the market, more importantly, subject it to censorship and transmit data about each user to the Special Services.
How does this platform work?
The throne synchronizes the work of original information and entertainment portals in the public network. The uniqueness of the platform is that it can be used to remove the “mediator” between the creator of the content and its consumer using blocking and peer-to-peer networking (P2P) technology. Each user, regardless of whether the individual is a blogger or journalist, can post content in their network. The audience must approach the author for access to the content and pay them directly.. For users, this is an excellent opportunity to receive unique content without advertising from the “intermediary.”
TRON[TRX] cryptocurrency
For the convenience of users, all services on the platform are paid exclusively by their cryptocurrency called Tronix [TRX]. After the successful ICO in August 2017, Tron was listed on many major exchanges such as Bitfinex, Bittrex, Binance. TRON can be used and stored on the MyEtherWallet purse.
The increased popularity of TRON was noticed and Coinmarketcap.com rated it within the TOP-15. The price of TRX changed from $ 0.0015 to $ 0.30 at the peak in January of this year.
Further perspectives of the project
The developers stated in the Roadmap project that TRON would be split into several stages, to help the project take the lead position in the world.
Exodus
A platform for peer-to-peer distribution and storage of content, through which it will be possible to free up data. The platform will be able to provide free publication and storage of user data. This stage does not provide for the use of a block but uses a network file protocol that supports a distributed file system.
Odyssey
This stage according to the Roadmap is scheduled for January 2019. With the launch of Odyssey, the platform will increase the content rights expansion, as well as complement new features, such as the introduction of locking technology and monetary incentives to host content on the platform. The system will include bonuses for a user response to content, as demonstrated at such venues as Steemit, Golos, Medium. Sample content is free, to give you a taster, full access is granted only when you pay TRX for their services.
Great Voyage and Apollo
These two steps will allow users to create their brand and generate their tokens. This should increase the attractiveness of the project and improve its economy.
Star Trek(2023 г.) and Eternity( 2025 г.)
This phase will create online gaming platforms enabling users to maximise their game process, invest in new gaming projects and offer their ideas to their developers. For game developers themselves, this is an excellent opportunity to be one step closer to your community.
The developers themselves expect that the whole process will take no more than ten years to implement all the plans fully.
Criticism and disadvantages of the project
A significant disadvantage of TRON is that it does not conform to generally accepted copyright standards. For example, the person who first places the content on the TRON blockbuster will automatically become its author, although, in fact, it may not be it.
TRON generated some controversial media over accusations of plagiarism. Vitalik Buterin (Ethereum Founder) accused Justin San of plagiarism when drafting the project documentation. First, Sun on Twitter listed seven advantages of Tron before Ethereum, and then Buterin added the eighth paragraph, which said: “The art of writing documentation (Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V is much more effective than writing by yourself).”
Many users expressed their non-transparent work with the tokens of the project themselves. The first transactions that have taken place since the launch of the project are not entirely clean for users, but only add distrust to the team. Several packages of tokens that have been sold. 41% of the tokens of 100 billion, were withdrawn on October 1, 2017, and then distributed to other purses of the “B” series. Some of them may have fallen into the hands of the state or more, be used to inflate the price artificially.
Conclusion
Despite such harsh criticism from experts and the community, the project successfully took the TOP-15 on the Coinmarketcap. With competition such as Ripple, Stellar or Cardano, TRON is unlikely to achieve its desired effect, but the project has followed its Roadmap, and for their investors that is a good sign. Also positive on the token rate is the fact that Justin San co-operates with Jack Ma and his project Alibaba. Perhaps their close merger could lead to an even greater token growth.
At the time of writing, TRON[TRX] is 0.928% of the total of CryptoIndex portfolio.
You can always check the current CIX100 composition at our MVP platform: http://cryptoindex.ai/
Stay updated on our channels:
Follow CRYPTOINDEX on Telegram
Follow CRYPTOINDEX on Medium
Follow CRYPTOINDEX on Twitter
Follow CRYPTOINDEX on Facebook
Follow CRYPTOINDEX on Linkedin
Follow CRYPTOINDEX on Reddit | https://medium.com/cryptoindex-io/tron-overview-a21b6fd4b0b9 | [] | 2018-08-02 08:48:56.970000+00:00 | ['Coin', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Bitcoin', 'Cix100coinreview', 'Blockchain'] |
BHEX Daily Crypto Watch, Perpetual Contract Strategy & BigData (Mar 10, 2020) | Bluehelix is the leading DeFi Services & Tech Provider and is dedicated to providing world-class professional financial trading and assets management services. Bluehelix has businesses of BHEX Exchange, Bluehelix Cloud, and Bluehelix Chain. The in-house developed Bluehelix decentralized blockchain-based assets custody and clearing system serves more than 140 BlueHelix Cloud Partners with 5 million end-users with custody of more than 6 billion USD worth of assets.
Join our Bluehelix Official Telegram for discussion.
What is Perpetual Contract?
Perpetual contract is a derivative product that is settled in digital tokens such as Bitcoins (BTC). Traders enter either into a long (profit from upward trend) or short (profit from downward trend) position. Available leverage ranges from 1–100x.
Find out more about BHEX Perpetual Contract
BHEX Daily Crypto Watch
According to official news, Bitcoin Core 0.19.1 version has been launched.
Vitalik Buterin, founder of Ethereum said in a podcast that Proof of Stake (PoS) is more efficient compared to Proof of Work (PoW). PoW will eventually be phased out.
According to the news from TheBlock.com, the correlation between Bitcoin and gold has declined and data indicates that institutional investors are avoiding Bitcoin.
As of March 9, the number of BTC active addresses was 690,800, an increase of 32.99%. The number of ETH active addresses was 355,100, an increase of 16.43%.
The covid19 situation has worsened. Oil prices plunged with the market in full panic. The European and American stock markets plummeted on Monday. The US stock meltdown shows S&P 500 index falling over 7.6%, the biggest decline since December 2008.
Market Situation:
The total cryptocurrency market capitalization is U.S. $ 225 billion U.S. dollars (-3.45%) and the 24h trading volume is U.S. $ 173 billion U.S. dollars (+17.80%). Bitcoin plummeted to 7638 yesterday and rebounded slightly closing at -1.4%. Bitcoin is currently trading around 8000.
Leading cryptocurrencies rebounded with ETH rising 1.7% yesterday. BCH closed at 273, BSV rose 1.1%, XRP rose 2.7%, ETC rose 7.6%, LTC fell 1.1%.
BHEX Perpetual Contract Strategy (Mar 10, 2020)
BHEX BTC Perpetual Contract Strategy (Mar 10, 2020)
Bitcoin may begin a reversal trend. The 4H MACD falling below 6500, the same value as in last year November. There are signs of an oversold. The moving averages are still in shorts formation. The market may have an oversold rebound.
Strategy: Long 7750, Stop Loss 7650, Target 8000.
BHEX ETH Perpetual Contract Strategy (Mar 10, 2020)
Ethereum rebounded slightly. The K-line falling to the lower bollinger band. There was an oversold phenomenon. The 4H MACD histogram bar decayed. An oversold rebound may occur soon.
Strategy: Long 196, Stop Loss 190, Target 207.
(The above is an opinion, not financial advice)
BHEX Perpetual Contract Big Data (Mar 10, 2020)
BHEX BIG DATA: Contract Transactions Skyrocket, Active Buys Dominate
As of 10 March, 9.30 am (UTC+8), BHEX Big Data shows the ratio of Long & Short position is at 1.62.
Perpetual Contract Funding Rate is -0.0317%;
The total number of BTC Contracts is 91,745,347;
The total number of BTC USDT Contracts transacted is 57,644,747;
53,352,435 BTC Perpetual Contract active Buy orders, and 41,453,757 of Sell orders.
<<View Previous Post | https://medium.com/hbtcofficial/bhex-daily-crypto-watch-perpetual-contract-strategy-bigdata-mar-10-2020-b2f752b4f56f | ['Hbtc Exchange'] | 2020-03-10 12:14:33.026000+00:00 | ['Bitcoin', 'Ethereum', 'Perpetual Contract', 'Bhex', 'Articles'] |
What Was Yugoslav Socialism | The Yugoslav Revolution
In his recent book, Partisan Ruptures, Gal Kirn presents an exhilarating new history of Yugoslav socialism. Rejecting typical narratives which frame the Yugoslav experiment in terms of its ultimate dissolution into nationalism and civil war, Kirn asks us to see what made revolutionary Yugoslavia a uniquely creative response to the darkest period in recent European history.
He shows that the experience of simultaneous political and military struggle against fascism is key to understanding the innovations which characterised the regime. The three partisan ruptures of the title are identified as the social revolution within the war of liberation, the Non-Aligned orientation in the Cold War, and worker self management in socialised industry.
This piece will use Kirn’s work to demonstrate how Yugoslav proves the lie of a monolithic Cold War image of European state socialism, revealing instead dynamism and diversity. It was also show how the partisan state’s self-made struggle for emancipation, against both foreign and home grown fascist opposition, imparts on us an important lesson about political struggle against impossible odds.
A Land Without Justice
The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes emerged out of the political breakdown of the multinational Austro-Hungarian Empire, which followed in the wake of the First World War. The Kingdom was also known as the land of Southern Slavs, literally ‘Yugoslavia’ in Serbo-Croat. American president Woodrow Wilson had brought a proselytising idealism to the reconstruction of Eastern Europe after the break up of the Russian, Austrian and Ottoman empires which had dominated the region for centuries. Wilson mistakenly believed that the many peoples and nations of Europe would find democratic self determination within the borders of liberal democratic national states.
The break up of the former empires into ethnic states in fact triggered a raging battle for racial and political dominance, one that had been forcibly suppressed under the old imperialisms. The first Yugoslavia was little more than a monarchal dictatorship, in which “Greater Serbia” exercised its own tinpot imperialism over a largely rural and undeveloped Balkans. Political parties existed in theory, but only to such an extent that they fulfilled the wishes of the royal house. The vast majority of the population, illiterate and ruthlessly repressed, took no part in the running of this new “democratic” nation state.
Unlike in Western Europe, were the result of the Russian Revolution was to tear the great social democratic movement in half, Yugoslavia lacked an advanced proletariat with its own mature political institutions. The Russian Revolution was met with enthusiasm, and the nascent social democratic forces dissolved themselves into a newly formed Communist Party of Yugoslavia (CPY). In Russia itself, a young soldier of the defeated Austro-Hungarian army named Jospeh Broz — the man who would be Tito — was realised from captivity in a prisoner-of-war camp to participate in the revolution.
From the very beginning the CPY wrestled with “the national question” which plagued all Eastern European political formations, especially in the Balkans. The main split in the CPY was the struggle between an “internationalist” position and a “federalist” position. The internationalists advocated the revolutionary abolishment of Yugoslavia as a state, and the creation of a pan-Balkan proletarian republic, while the federalists advocated a socialist Yugoslavia, composed of federated national states. This second camp was especially advocated by the Slovene and Croation sections of the CPY, who feared a return to Serbian hegemony without clear national self determination. The CPY was an illegal organisation. It was a vanguard party of highly trained elite cadre, who operated a large and tightly organised network of party cells throughout old Yugoslavia. Josip Broz, now known by his underground name “Tito”, survived the great Moscow purges of the mid 1930, which had taken a particularly brutal toll on the leadership-in-exile of many underground parties, including the CPY.
The Yugoslavs in Spain
An important and original contribution made by Gal Kirn is to recognise that the Yugoslav revolution belongs both historically and theoretically within a wave of partisan revolutions on the European periphery, starting in Spain in 1936 and ending in Greece in 1949. We can therefore look to the Spanish civil war for the roots of the Yugoslav revolution, and we can look to the victory of that revolution for the fulfillment of the promise of Spain.
The war in Spain was national as well as revolutionary. Although there was a clear class dimension to the struggle, the objective of the war was to defend the integrity of the republic against the fascist rebellion and invasion. Although not as acute as in the Balkans, the national question was nonetheless an important component of the war in Spain. The republic recognised the cultural, if not national, autonomy of the Basques and Catalans, whereas the fascists sought to obliterate any trace of cultural-linguistic differentiation in the regions of Spain. The war also contained an element of social revolution. However, despite the destructive and disruptive efforts of some of the political tendencies within the republican coalition, the social revolution was not intended as an insurrectionary movement in the rear of the republican war effort. The lesson learned by Tito and the Yugoslav leadership was that a war for national liberation could also be imbued with a political and social orientation, in which the great mass of the people were called upon to rise up and fight, not for the defence of the old regime as such, but for their right to take part in the formation of the new one.
The importance of the Spanish Civil War in the formation of both the political identity and strategy of the Yugoslav communists cannot be underestimated. Tito, now acting General Secretary of the party and operating out of Paris, began organising the Yugoslav contribution to the war effort. Drawing from the embedded communist networks, approximately 1600 people were illegally smuggled out of Yugoslavia to Spain in order to join the International Brigades fighting on the side of the Republic. This was proportionally one of the largest mobilisations of any country, and numerically the largest of all of the Eastern European countries (closely followed by Czechoslovakia).
The Yugoslavs of the International Brigades suffered terrible losses of up to half of their numbers. Hundreds of the survivors were rounded up into the Gurs concentration camp in France and subsequently deported. Those that survived their return to Yugoslavia were plunged into a life of underground illegality in a country aligning itself with main current of European fascism.
The Partisan War
The royal government of Yugoslavia believed that it could fend off a combined Nazi and Fascist Italian invasion by aligning itself towards both states as a satellite, much as Bulgaria and Romania were attempting to do. In 1941, when the invasion came regardless, the royal house fled to England and formed a government-in-exile, while the main body of the population divided sharply along fascist-collaborationist and partisan-resistance lines.
The army of the government-in-exile, known as the Chetniks, received international recognition as the “official” resistance movement and, as a result, were favoured with large quantities of British military aid. However the Chetniks found themselves highly sympathetic to the intense nationalism of fascist ideology and quickly turned their weapons away from the German invaders and against the communist organised partisans. The struggle quickly took on the dimensions of a civil war, with the Chetniks prioritising the extermination of the communist resistance over the liberation of the country. The partisans, led by Tito, called for international aid and pointed to the fact that the Chetniks had begun collaborating with the occupying Nazis in order to wage their struggle against his forces. British arms were being in effect supplied directly to the axis powers.
Thanks in part to the prestigious international standing of Tito, and in part to the efforts of James Klugmann, a British communist within the Special Operations Executive, the body charged with infiltrating occupied Europe and aiding the anti-Nazi resistance, the British diverted its military support to to the communist led partisans. The Chetniks were discredited and with them, the royal government-in-exile. The Chetniks became part of a coalition of ultra-nationalist and fascist organisations openly aligned in the fight against what they perceived as the primary enemy, the communists. The most infamous of this inglorious coalition were the Croatian Ustaši, a fascist organisation so brutal and so deranged that even their Nazi allies treated them with horrified amazement. The civil war was characterised by brutal one-on-one violence against civilians, many of whom were suspected of aiding and abetting the partisans, themselves amassing in ever increasing strength in the mountainous Yugoslav wilderness. Fascist forces would regularly terrorise the civilian population, torturing and murdering the families of partisan soldiers with the aim of breaking the spirit of the resistance. This murderous free-for-all also provided ample opportunity for ethnic violence, with each ultra-nationalist formation taking the opportunity to brutalise those they perceived as their racial enemies. The Ustaši in particular initiated hideous pogroms against ethnic Serbs, Jews, Gypsies, and Croats deemed sympathetic to the partisans. The Ustaši also administered the Jasenovac extermination camp, where all these groups were interned and murdered.
In response Tito’s partisans unified the resistance movement of all the Yugoslav nations under a federalised high command known as the Anti-Fascist Council for the Liberation of Yugoslavia, or AVNOJ. The political identity of the front was central to overcoming centuries old religious and racial prejudices which had driven so many other Yugoslavs into open fascism. As in Spain, and in sharp contrast to the war on the Western Front, the partisan war was framed primarily as an Anti-Fascist war, rather than a war between nations. Yugoslavia was fighting German, Italian, Bulgarian, Albanian and other Yugoslav forces, and thus drew the line of demarcation between friend and foe on political, not national grounds.
The CPY’s socialist internationalism, tempered by long engagement with the troubles of the national question, brokered an ideological peace between the different ethnic groups within the partisan coalition. Their national differences were recognised and catered for within the political structures of the organisation, but they were all sworn to fight for a project of liberation and social transformation which would apply to all Yugoslavs equally. Additionally, the equal contribution of women was recognised and their political emancipation was enacted, not as some future ideal but directly and immediately within the liberated territories controlled by partisan forces. The Women’s Anti-Fascist Front (AFŽ) took a leading role in organising the political education and cultural development of the partisan forces and the populations within the territories they controlled. In a war that could not be fought on traditional fronts, and relied completely on the political cooperation of the wider population, this work was crucial for the survival of the military operation. As well as fulfilling these vital cultural and political roles, the women of the AFŽ, alongside their comrades in the youth section of the CPY, performed some of the most dangerous work infiltrating the fascist occupied territories and building support for the resistance movement in conditions characterised by constant and arbitrary violence. At the peak of the war over two million Yugoslav women were organised by and in the AFŽ, this in a country with a total population of less than sixteen millions.
A partisan of the AFŽ
A New Yugoslavia
By 1943 the partisans controlled large swathes of territory within occupied Yugoslavia, advancing rapidly after the Battle of Sutjeska, in which the partisans finally broke the backbone of the Chetnik-Nazi alliance. They thus began turning their minds towards reconstruction and type of society that would follow. The political practice of AVNOJ, in which highly autonomous partisan units centralised decision making with a system of delegates, imprinted profoundly onto the political culture of the new state. Equally, the federal nature of the CPY, which was in fact little more than a political front for the national parties of Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia, and Montenegro; and the regional parties of Kosovo and Vojvodina, became a blueprint for the distribution of power throughout the country. A decision was taken to hold a referendum at the first possible opportunity on the constitutional arrangements of the new state. The referendum that followed in 1945 formally legitimised the abolition of the monarchy and the construction of a new socialist people’s republic with AVNOJ morphing into the government of the new state. Although Soviet forces had reached the borders of Yugoslavia by 1944, vast amounts of territory were already under Tito’s direct control. The fact that the Yugoslav revolution was self made, rather than imposed by the bayonets of the Red Army, would have important ramifications in the post-war development of the state. The transition was not entirely peaceful. Fascist collaborators retreated in their thousands in order to surrender themselves to the British forces advancing through Italy. However a deal was brokered between the Western Allies and the Partisan and Soviet forces across Eastern Europe. Under the secret terms of Operation Keelhaul, local collaborators would be repatriated to their country of origin to face the justice of the friends, relatives and comrades of those they had attempted to exterminate. In Partisan Ruptures Gal Kirn recounts the testimony of a British soldier tasked with loading a group of Ustaši prisoners into a railway wagon which they believed to be bound for the allied zone in Austria. The train was driven deep into the Yugoslav forest where the partisans were waiting to assume command. As the Ustaši, looking through the wooden slats of the carriage, saw what was taking place they began screaming and threatening to commit suicide. The soldier recounts that the partisans didn’t even wait for the British to march out of site before bodies started swinging from the trees. Although such violence was officially forbidden, and Tito’s high command issued orders that all captured war criminals should be kept safe for trial, the fact was that thousands of such acts of violent recrimination took place immediately after the war. Whether this was an understandable wave of revolutionary justice or the totalitarian “original sin” of the new Yugoslavia defies absolute judgement.
The development of Yugoslavia throughout the Cold War also defies characterisation as a violent, bureaucratic system — often levelled against the People’s Democracies of Eastern Europe. The fierce partisan independence of both the federal leadership as well as the national and regional cadres left a lasting mark on the new country. In both foreign and domestic policy, Yugoslavia would be marked by a persistent will to experiment and reform, often leaving it diplomatically isolated from its erstwhile allies in the world socialist camp but also equidistant from the global market of the capitalist system. An analysis of Yugoslavia’s particular position in the Cold War world cannot, however, be properly understood without first fully understanding the unique forces which forged the diverse Balkan nations together and set them on the path of socialist construction.
The invaluable lesson of this partisan rupture lies in the power of combining the negative politics of struggle against injustice with the positive politics of a coherent, constructive political programme. The decision to wage a three-way struggle — of national liberation, civil war and social revolution — from a position of total isolation should have meant suicide for the partisan forces. Their comprehensive victory demonstrates that, even in moments of utter hopelessness, at times when the enemy has all but won, socialist politics can ignite the spark of liberation and transformation.
Crisis in the Cominform
The socialist government of Yugoslavia emerged from the Partisan War united, emboldened and fanatically confident in the historical mission of international communism. Titoism stood as a shining example of communist heroism, a form of redemption for the once mighty parties of Eastern Europe, defeated by fascism and humiliated by Stalinism, now returned to power by the bayonets of the Red Army.
The Communist International (Comintern) had been dissolved by Stalin during the Second World War as a token of good faith towards his Western allies. Following the rapid breakdown of the alliance and the onset of the Cold War, steps were taken by Moscow to reintegrate the world communist movement; Belgrade was chosen as the location of the new Communist Information Bureau (Cominform). The Cominform was ostensibly a clearing house for the ruling socialist parties (as well as the mass parties of France and Italy) to share their experiences and coordinate an international policy. However, it quickly became clear that it was primarily a vehicle for the Soviet government to impose directives on the wider movement and to subordinate the national parties to Moscow’s geo-strategic interests, which were deemed inseparable from the interests of socialism itself. The Communist Party of Yugoslavia (CPY), which was as fanatical in its loyalty to Moscow as any of its sister parties, was dumbfounded by the lack of interest its Soviet allies showed in its unique national experience. Further, the Yugoslavs had embarked on an independent and adventurist foreign policy, which Stalin viewed as destabilising to the world system he was in the process of constructing. Belgrade’s claim on the Italian/Slovenian border city of Trieste found no support in Moscow and Yugoslav sponsorship of the Greek communist partisans, engaged in a revolutionary civil war against monarchal nationalists, was discouraged out of respect for the new boundaries of the Cold War. Additionally, Jospeh Broz Tito’s initiatives towards the creation of a Balkan Soviet Socialist Federation, in conjunction with Georgy Dimitrov’s Bulgaria and Enver Hoxha’s Albania, were absolutely forbidden. The Soviet Union would not permit a potential competitor for leadership in the socialist camp. Although reconstruction loans and technical assistance were provided to Yugoslavia by the Soviets, the terms were extremely unfavourable. The aid was delivered through the medium of “mixed companies” — joint Soviet/Yugoslav industrial combines which served to funnel wealth out of Yugoslavia and into the reconstruction of the Soviet Union. Demands for submission to both the economic and foreign policy requirements of the Soviet Union pushed the Yugoslav Party into an active opposition within the Cominform, resulting in their expulsion on June 28th, 1948, and its relocation to Bucharest. Tito, a veteran of the Moscow purges of the 1930s, must have known that submission to the Soviet line would have resulted in his eventual removal from power. In fact, his “betrayal” provided the ideological basis for a violent wave of “anti-Titoist” purges which subsequently swept through the Eastern bloc. Tito was accused of being both a reactionary nationalist and an adventurist trotskyite, and disavowal of these twin evils was used as cover for the intensification of Stalinisation throughout the rest of the Soviet sphere. “Titoist” leaders with strong national roots, such as Poland’s Władysław Gomułka, were pushed out of office as a result of direct intervention by the Soviet secret police. Many other senior communists became victims of vicious show trials, which decapitated the most independently minded sections of Eastern European leadership. The axe fell heaviest of all on those internationalists who, like many at the very top of the Yugoslav party, had earned their revolutionary stripes serving in the International Brigades in Spain.
The intense political pressure from Stalin, aimed at weakening the resolve of the Yugoslav communists, had the opposite effect. It united and strengthened the country in its isolation and hardship. The de-Stalinisation of Yugoslavia, which took place nearly nearly ten years before Nikita Khrushchev initiated a similar process in the Soviet Union itself, was nonetheless conducted with Stalinist methods. Although there was nothing comparable to the severe purges inflicted upon the rest of the bloc, the pro-Moscow hardliners in the CPY were nonetheless removed from positions of authority, and many found themselves political prisoners on the island of Goli Otok for the better part of the next decade.
Yugoslavia was now in a unique position, pursuing its own “road to socialism” between the two camps of the Cold War. Rather than becoming locked into the cycle of revisionism and neo-Stalinism which plagued the internal life of the other bloc countries, Yugoslavia would continuously develop and progress along new economic, political and international paths. Titoism as an ideology of the Cold War would be defined by a project of worker self management, decentralisation of political authority and, most strikingly, a leading role in the Non-Aligned Movement for Third World decolonisation.
Neither Washington Nor Moscow
The Balkans were unique in Europe, having had a historical experience which closely approximated the direct colonisation suffered by the peoples of the global south. Further, the Partisan War fought by the Titoist Yugoslavs had many clear parallels in the anti-colonial wars now raging across the territories of the old empires: the savage lack of regard for the rules of war, racism, and the use of guerrilla tactics. Yugoslavia’s isolated position in the Cold War, and emphatic anti-imperialism, led to the search for international allies in the rising states of the Third World.
The Non-Aligned Movement of states was a political formation which built bonds of international solidarity premised on mutual aid, respect for domestic sovereignty, and rejection of military blocs. Sometimes known as the “Third Camp” or simply the Third World, it had origins in the 1955 Afro-Asian solidarity conference held in the Indonesian city of Bandung. This new camp quickly attracted the attention of Tito, who developed strong personal and diplomatic relations with Indian premier Jawaharlal Nehru and Egyptian leader Gamal Abdel Nasser. The three of them formed a global political leadership which resulted in the formal establishment of the Non-Aligned Movement in Belgrade in 1961, a conference at which Yugoslavia was the only European nation represented.
Tito’s theoretical contribution to the practice of non-alignment can be identified in its activist component. Tito’s idea that neutralism did not have to be passive, but could be aggressively projected in the form of global solidarity politics, mapped closely onto the Indian experience of active non-violent opposition to colonialism. The Non-Aligned Movement coordinated the global anti-colonial struggle and helped forge a unified political movement out of isolated and diverse national experiences. Yugoslavia played a key economic role, supplying material aid and arms to countries engaged in active anti-colonial warfare, for example funnelling aid via Nasser’s Egypt to the Algerian Front de Libération Nationale (FLN). By the mid 1960s, Yugoslavia was providing vital support for industrial development in the non-aligned countries. This policy of mutual aid manifested in the construction of public infrastructure by Yugoslav industrial combines. This work included the building of hydro-electric power stations, cement works, slaughter houses and textile mills in countries like India, Ethiopia, Egypt, Syria, Algeria, Ghana and many more. The countries of the NAM in turn provided a vital market for Yugoslav foreign trade, which was hampered by its diplomatic isolation in Europe. The rich imprint of this revolutionary internationalism is still highly visible across the former Third World, most strikingly in the architecture but also in the politics of global south. However, in 1965 much of Yugoslavia’s interventionist overseas investment strategy suddenly ceased, as the state began a process of domestic reform weakening central planning and reintroducing market forces into the socialist economic model.
Non-aligned leaders, from left to right: Nehru (India), Nkruma (Ghana), Nasser (Egypt), Surkano (Indonesia) and Tito (Yuogoslavia)
Worker Self Management
Following the end of the Partisan War, Yugoslavia initiated a programme of relatively orthodox Stalinist development. This meant the nationalisation of land, banks and key industries, with the development of the economy and distribution of surplus being regulated according to a central plan, with priority given to investment in heavy industries and infrastructure. The period was marked by high levels of enthusiasm and volunteerism from the general population. Many contributed willingly to the post-war reconstruction of the country, and the first Yugoslav Five Year Plan resulted in high levels of growth and development, as well as skyrocketing living standards (albeit from a very low base). The split from the USSR also brought relief in the form of no-strings attached financial aid from the United States which, while accelerating the already rapid growth being generated by Stalinist planning, further aggravated Yugoslavia’s erstwhile communist allies. As in the USSR in the 1930s, rural collectivisation met with determined resistance from the peasantry, who consistently preferred to decide themselves what to produce and when to produce it. The result, after failed attempts at coercion, was a backing down of the state in the early 1950s. The policy of collectivisation was reversed and a certain amount of private property and production for market was introduced back into agriculture. Faced with a similar choice to that which confronted the other Eastern European leaders — progress with deeper Stalinisation (and all the repression that would entail) or regress back into capitalism — the Yugoslav leadership opted for a third path. The unique Yugoslav approach to overcoming the problems of capitalist exploitation and socialist state planning was ‘worker self management’, an ideological strategy born out of the highly autonomous methods of self-governance practiced by Partisan units in liberated territories during the war. Self management transferred the industries expropriated by the state to “society”, which in practice meant transferring the management of enterprises and related local administration to the employees of those industries. Self management was a variation of Lenin’s conception of the “withering away of the state”, in which the whole of the working class is, theoretically, drawn directly into the administration of the economy, thus submerging the state within society at large. In practice, self management was an ambiguous policy which varied in its implementation from collective to collective. Some collectives preferred to administer their sphere of responsibility directly, through group decision making, while others preferred to delegate the responsibility to a chosen leadership. Although central planning continued to exist at the macro level, production was regulated by the supply of credit and other fiscal measures, and enterprises were expected to respond to consumer demand rather than state directives. Thus an economy of shortages was avoided and market forces remained present in the system, if in a somewhat limited form.
With economic self management also came decentralisation of the political apparatus. The Communist Party retained its monopoly on political power, but the actual functions of state were transferred to the most local level possible. In this way the vanguard CPY, which had been the political nerve system of the Partisan high command, was reformed into a mass party, the League of Yugoslav Communists. The League was a federal body which coordinated the activity of the Communist Parties of Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, and Montenegro, as well as regional parties in Kosovo and Vojvodina. The result was a dynamic but chaotic national administration which Yugoslav ideologues like Edvard Kardelj presented as the first steps towards a mature socialist democracy. Liberal critics framed self management as being little more than an obfuscation of a fundamentally “totalitarian” system, pointing to the monopoly of the communist movement on actual political authority. Conversely, critics in the other People’s Democracies denounced the system as little better than anarchy.
Kardelj and Tito
As the initial rush of growth which followed the era of reconstruction began to slow down, demands for economic reform grew in strength. The structural decline in the ability of the planned economy to compensate workers for their political sacrifices taking place across the Eastern bloc was mirrored Yugoslavia, despite the innovation of self management. Whereas in Czechoslovakia the movement for political and economic liberalisation was crushed by Soviet tanks, Yugoslavia’s independent status allowed it to respond to changing economic circumstances with programme of intense economic reform.
Market Socialism
The 1965 reforms precipitated the decentralisation, democratisation and depoliticisation of the economy. This effectively marked the end of orthodox state socialism, which is defined by the subordination of the economy to centralised, politically determined planning.
Although private ownership of the means of production was not reinstated, the impact of market forces meant that the workers engaged in self management felt a deepening contradiction between their interests as producers and their interests as managers of production. This precipitated a split between the direct producers and those workers that rose through the system into specialised and managerial functions. A form of crypto-class struggle developed between the workers and the technocracy. This unrecognised struggle could be compared to the contradictions that developed in the Western trade union movement in the same era. As European trade unions, industry and the state grew ever more aligned in their interests, workers found themselves at odds with the full time officialdom which comprised their own leadership — particularly in Britain. On the one hand, workers in socialist Yugoslavia were not in direct antagonism with the forces of private capital and were thus shielded from the vicious excesses of capitalist class struggle (e.g. the threat of dismissal), on the other hand, the unaddressed contradiction between the party-technocracy and the worker-collectives weakened the legitimacy of the socialist state among its most important social base, the industrial proletariat. As in all state socialist systems, labour strikes were formally illegal. The theoretical justification for this practice was anchored in the idea that waging a struggle for individual gain against the collective interest of the working class as a whole was inherently reactionary. The constitutional role of trade unions within state socialism was to provide a “transmission belt” between the party and the working class, to identify and promote cadre from the shop floor to the political apparatus and to organise the provision of social security benefits. However, as economic reform exposed Yugoslav industry to ever greater market pressures, the workers began to withdraw their consent for this model of industrial relations which failed to recognise the conflict of interest they experienced. The class struggle that was emerging within the self management system erupted during the period of market reform in a wave of unofficial strike actions. While the authorities tried to play down the significance of these conflicts, attempts to “rationalise” the socialist economy within the global market came into direct conflict with the political justification for the socialist system, i.e. production for need prioritised over production for profit. Finally, as enterprises reformed themselves for a more competitive environment, the social requirement that they absorb all available labour in order to maintain full employment was replaced by the economic requirement for improved productivity, even if this meant shedding labour and sacking workers. Thus, Yugoslavia became one of the first socialist systems to experience structural unemployment, which socialism had supposedly eradicated. Despite being experienced traumatically by large sections of the working class, and causing a dramatic weakening in the social contract between the socialist state and society, the reforms also brought benefits. Yugoslav enterprises were able to access international capital markets and borrow in order to upgrade and replace outdated plant, something which other People’s Democracies found notoriously difficult to do. Yugoslavia was able to relax the autarkic border regimes which characterised the state socialist system. Once the extreme levels of protectionism and robust social security had been relaxed, the threat posed by exposure to the capitalist world economy was drastically reduced. Thus Yugoslavia was able to dramatically increase exports of manufactured goods and labour, in the form of outward migration, both of which brought in much needed revenue streams of hard currency. The country was also able to open itself up to tourism, and Yugoslavia rapidly became one of the most desirable holiday locations for tourists from Western and Eastern Europe alike. However, many of these immediate benefits created new long-term structural problems. Enterprises became increasingly burdened with debt and workers abroad were exposed to the degrading conditions imposed on migrant labour. Emigrant Yugoslavs (“Guestworkers”) consumed much of the additional income they earned. Most seriously, the carefully regulated and balanced development of the nations and regions of Yugoslavia began to break down.
A Terminal Decline
Regional inequalities rapidly increased and, by the end of the 1970s, industrialised Slovenia and Croatia were barely comparable to poverty stricken Kosovo and Montenegro. The weakening of centralised redistribution, and the substitution of solidarity for competition between regions, would have catastrophic consequences in the re-emergence of ethno-nationalism. Put simply, the stronger the integration of Yugoslavia into the global capitalist system, the weaker the integration of the component nations of Yugoslavia itself became. Further, the debt burden of large industrial enterprises which had taken advantage of the new influx of capital from foreign investors (including the IMF) forced the logic of austerity to take hold as these firms attempted to rationalise themselves in line with the expectations of their creditors. This era of unemployment, triggered by both the streamlining of profitable firms and the closure of non-profitable ones, combined with escalating regional inequality and was the precursor to a new era of industrial unrest in the 1980s. And yet, despite this, there is much value that can be drawn from the Titoist experiment. Yugoslavia progressed further down the path of democratic socialism than any other communist country. It demonstrated a capacity for independence, innovation and internationalism unmatched by its Eastern bloc neighbours. Despite — or as a result of — its position apart from both the socialist and capitalist blocs in the Cold War, Yugoslavia was beset by the contradictions inherent in both systems. Once the collapse of the world socialist system had kicked out the foundations of the Yugoslav political system, the stage was set for the tragic and violent death of the country. | https://medium.com/@maisey/what-was-yugoslav-socialism-b1f7e6f20c77 | ['Robert Maisey'] | 2020-12-21 16:06:04.875000+00:00 | ['Yugoslavia', 'Socialism', 'Communism', 'World War II', 'Eastern Europe'] |
Messages i am leaving for you on Heaven’s voicemail. | '1. You constantly obsessed about cooking for us; even when we’d want you to take a break and rest.
I am unsure if my taste buds and my heart shall ever experience satiation again.
2. It rained today.
I know you know, still - you missed the sweet corn you loved; and I missed you.
3.I am petrified that I shan't always remember your voice.
Someone told me I sounded just like you.
I have never before felt this overwhelmed and unworthy simultaneously.
4.I couldn't touch the most mundane of your possessions for a couple of days; I felt I had no authority to alter the way you had left your belongings.
Till it dawned upon me that they were mine now; bequeathed by you. I was responsible for their upkeep.
5. You knew, yet not once did you ask me to come home by your side.
You kept telling me you were fine. Did you have to be so fiercely protective till the end?
6. You had recently told someone that you were too tired and all you wanted was to place your head in your beloved deceased mother's lap.
I understand how that feels, now.
7. I desperately hope that the answer shall always be 'Always' to only one question - Do I make you proud? ‘ | https://medium.com/@kulsumsayyad/messages-i-am-leaving-for-you-on-heavens-voicemail-6e04a2908e65 | [] | 2020-07-17 17:24:17.811000+00:00 | ['Grief And Loss', 'Mothers', 'Memories', 'Grief', 'Survival'] |
How to run SBT on Apple Silicon | It is quite simple after a couple of days of fixing.
I assume that you’re using MacPorts that is working :)
First, you need something that we call bootstrap java. AdoptOpenJDK 1.8 isn’t ported and MacPorts complains about it, but we need it.
So, let install it and SBT.
---> Installing openjdk8
---> Activating openjdk8
---> Cleaning openjdk8
---> Computing dependencies for sbt
---> Fetching archive for sbt
---> Attempting to fetch sbt-0.13.18_0.darwin_20.noarch.tbz2 from
---> Attempting to fetch sbt-0.13.18_0.darwin_20.noarch.tbz2 from
---> Attempting to fetch sbt-0.13.18_0.darwin_20.noarch.tbz2 from
---> Fetching distfiles for sbt
Warning: Failed to confirm that required Java was installed; see
---> Verifying checksums for sbt
---> Extracting sbt
---> Configuring sbt
---> Building sbt
---> Staging sbt into destroot
---> Installing sbt
---> Activating sbt
---> Cleaning sbt
---> Updating database of binaries
---> Scanning binaries for linking errors
---> Found 8 broken files, matching files to ports
---> Found 1 broken port, determining rebuild order
You can always run 'port rev-upgrade' again to fix errors.
The following ports will be rebuilt: openjdk8
Continue? [Y/n]: n
---> Some of the ports you installed have notes:
openjdk8 has the following notes:
If you have more than one JDK installed you can make openjdk8 the default
by adding the following line to your shell profile:
export JAVA_HOME=/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/openjdk8/Contents/Home
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 ~ % catap@Kirills-mini-m1 ~ % sudo port install openjdk8 sbt---> Installing openjdk8 @8u275_0 ---> Activating openjdk8 @8u275_0 ---> Cleaning openjdk8---> Computing dependencies for sbt---> Fetching archive for sbt---> Attempting to fetch sbt-0.13.18_0.darwin_20.noarch.tbz2 from https://packages.macports.org/sbt ---> Attempting to fetch sbt-0.13.18_0.darwin_20.noarch.tbz2 from https://lil.fr.packages.macports.org/sbt ---> Attempting to fetch sbt-0.13.18_0.darwin_20.noarch.tbz2 from https://nue.de.packages.macports.org/sbt ---> Fetching distfiles for sbtWarning: Failed to confirm that required Java was installed; see https://trac.macports.org/ticket/61445 ---> Verifying checksums for sbt---> Extracting sbt---> Configuring sbt---> Building sbt---> Staging sbt into destroot---> Installing sbt @0 .13.18_0---> Activating sbt @0 .13.18_0---> Cleaning sbt---> Updating database of binaries---> Scanning binaries for linking errors---> Found 8 broken files, matching files to ports---> Found 1 broken port, determining rebuild orderYou can always run 'port rev-upgrade' again to fix errors.The following ports will be rebuilt: openjdk8 @8u275 Continue? [Y/n]: n---> Some of the ports you installed have notes:openjdk8 has the following notes:If you have more than one JDK installed you can make openjdk8 the defaultby adding the following line to your shell profile:export JAVA_HOME=/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/openjdk8/Contents/Homecatap@Kirills-mini-m1 ~ %
Good, we have very old SBT-0.13.8 and JDK that isn’t native and ports complaints to it. Let start to fix it.
Now we need a brand, new, unreleased (yet) SBT that we will use as boot sbt. Let build one. To do that we need unreleased upstream from SBT and one patch to switch some dependencies to the latest version that contains fixes.
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 ~ % cd ~/src
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 src % git clone
Cloning into 'sbt'...
remote: Enumerating objects: 238, done.
remote: Counting objects: 100% (238/238), done.
remote: Compressing objects: 100% (169/169), done.
remote: Total 112828 (delta 81), reused 147 (delta 44), pack-reused 112590
Receiving objects: 100% (112828/112828), 25.58 MiB | 14.42 MiB/s, done.
Resolving deltas: 100% (52326/52326), done.
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 src % cd sbt
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % curl -s
patching file build.sbt
patching file project/Dependencies.scala
patch unexpectedly ends in middle of line
Hunk #1 succeeded at 26 with fuzz 1.
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % sbt publishLocal > /dev/null
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % catap@Kirills-mini-m1 ~ % mkdir -p ~/srccatap@Kirills-mini-m1 ~ % cd ~/srccatap@Kirills-mini-m1 src % git clone https://github.com/sbt/sbt.git Cloning into 'sbt'...remote: Enumerating objects: 238, done.remote: Counting objects: 100% (238/238), done.remote: Compressing objects: 100% (169/169), done.remote: Total 112828 (delta 81), reused 147 (delta 44), pack-reused 112590Receiving objects: 100% (112828/112828), 25.58 MiB | 14.42 MiB/s, done.Resolving deltas: 100% (52326/52326), done.catap@Kirills-mini-m1 src % cd sbtcatap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % curl -s https://gist.githubusercontent.com/catap/8396d51fbb0242e800aa05e395f16366/raw/656c532757f710e07ad177a4154f59968d0c780d/sbt-dependencies.patch | patch -p1patching file build.sbtpatching file project/Dependencies.scalapatch unexpectedly ends in middle of lineHunk #1 succeeded at 26 with fuzz 1.catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % sbt publishLocal > /dev/nullcatap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt %
Good, now we should flush boot cache of sbt:
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % rm -rf ~/.sbt/boot
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt %
force SBT to use our version:
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % cat > ~/.sbtconfig
JAVA_OPTS="-Dsbt.version=1.5.0-SNAPSHOT"
^D
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt %
and switch IPC inside SBT to TCP
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % cat > ~/.sbt/1.0/global.sbt
Global / serverConnectionType := ConnectionType.Tcp
^D
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt %
Good. Now we can remove AdoptOpenJDK and install ZuluJDK8 or ZuluJDK11 that is native for this platform:
Note: It is not recommended to uninstall/deactivate a port that has dependents as it breaks the dependents.
The following ports will break:
sbt
sbt
Continue? [y/N]: y
Warning: Uninstall forced. Proceeding despite dependencies.
---> Deactivating openjdk8
---> Cleaning openjdk8
---> Uninstalling openjdk8
---> Cleaning openjdk8
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % sudo port install zulu-jdk11
---> Computing dependencies for zulu-jdk11
---> Fetching distfiles for zulu-jdk11
---> Verifying checksums for zulu-jdk11
---> Extracting zulu-jdk11
---> Configuring zulu-jdk11
---> Building zulu-jdk11
---> Staging zulu-jdk11 into destroot
Warning: zulu-jdk11 installs files outside the common directory structure.
---> Installing zulu-jdk11
---> Activating zulu-jdk11
---> Cleaning zulu-jdk11
---> Updating database of binaries
---> Scanning binaries for linking errors
---> No broken files found.
---> No broken ports found.
---> Some of the ports you installed have notes:
zulu-jdk11 has the following notes:
If you have more than one JDK installed you can make zulu-jdk11 the default
by adding the following line to your shell profile:
export JAVA_HOME=/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/zulu-jdk11/Contents/Home
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % sudo port uninstall openjdk8Note: It is not recommended to uninstall/deactivate a port that has dependents as it breaks the dependents.The following ports will break:sbt @0 .13.18_0sbt @0 .13.18_0Continue? [y/N]: yWarning: Uninstall forced. Proceeding despite dependencies.---> Deactivating openjdk8 @8u275_0 ---> Cleaning openjdk8---> Uninstalling openjdk8 @8u275_0 ---> Cleaning openjdk8catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % sudo port install zulu-jdk11---> Computing dependencies for zulu-jdk11---> Fetching distfiles for zulu-jdk11---> Verifying checksums for zulu-jdk11---> Extracting zulu-jdk11---> Configuring zulu-jdk11---> Building zulu-jdk11---> Staging zulu-jdk11 into destrootWarning: zulu-jdk11 installs files outside the common directory structure.---> Installing zulu-jdk11 @11 .43.1007_0---> Activating zulu-jdk11 @11 .43.1007_0---> Cleaning zulu-jdk11---> Updating database of binaries---> Scanning binaries for linking errors---> No broken files found.---> No broken ports found.---> Some of the ports you installed have notes:zulu-jdk11 has the following notes:If you have more than one JDK installed you can make zulu-jdk11 the defaultby adding the following line to your shell profile:export JAVA_HOME=/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/zulu-jdk11/Contents/Homecatap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt %
Congrats! You have SBT that is working fine on Apple Silicon.
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % mkdir -p /tmp/sbt-test
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt % cd /tmp/sbt-test
catap@Kirills-mini-m1 sbt-test % sbt
[info] Updated file /private/tmp/sbt-test/project/build.properties: set sbt.version to 1.5.0-SNAPSHOT
[info] welcome to sbt 1.5.0-SNAPSHOT (Azul Systems, Inc. Java 11.0.9.1)
[info] loading project definition from /private/tmp/sbt-test/project
[info] set current project to sbt-test (in build file:/private/tmp/sbt-test/)
[info] sbt server started at tcp://127.0.0.1:5715
[info] started sbt server
sbt:sbt-test>
I hope soon everything will be merged, and you will need just upgrade SBT. | https://catap.medium.com/how-to-run-sbt-on-apple-silicon-adeedf216cd5 | ['Kirill A. Korinsky'] | 2020-11-26 03:28:52.839000+00:00 | ['Sbt', 'Apple M1', 'Apple M1 Chip', 'Apple Silicon'] |
Kayla and Christopher’s Wedding Videography at Kings Mills | Congratulations to Kayla and Christopher on their beautiful wedding! They spent their magical night celebrating at Kings Mills venue. In short, our PA wedding videographer stuck around through the day to document their memories on February 1st, 2020!
Their movie-like video began by showing clips of morning preparations to the ceremony space. The bride admired her long sleeve lace dress as it hung by the window with a hanger that read, “Mrs. Hentz” in wire. Later on, Kayla’s bridesmaids dressed in their lovely pale blue dresses as they helped Kayla into her gown for the day. All bridesmaids on duty made sure she was looking like the true princess that she is! Meanwhile, Christopher put on his suit and was looking so handsome in anticipation to see his beauty for their first look!
At last, our PA wedding videographer and the couple met up at the venue to get this special moment on film. The bride also had a first look with her father. How precious! The emotions were only beginning, as it was now time for the cute couple to make their marriage official in front of their friends and family members. The indoor ceremony was so romantic and decorated with white rose arrangements throughout as well as a simplistic greenery altar. After taking each other by the hand in marriage, these two were finally pronounced Mr. and Mrs. Hentz! All that was left to do was dance the night away.
Our PA wedding videographer got clips of their cute rustic decor and, of course, everyone having so much fun. The newlyweds were caught dancing, listening to speeches and toasts, and enjoying their delicious meals and cake together as husband and wife!
Congratulations to these two cuties! Here’s to a life full of love for the both of you!
Check out the video! https://www.enchantedcelebrations.com/kayla-and-christophers-wedding-videography-at-kings-mills/ | https://medium.com/@operations-42919/kayla-and-christophers-wedding-videography-at-kings-mills-63d3121c045d | ['Enchanted Celebrations'] | 2020-03-03 14:08:30.130000+00:00 | ['Wedding Videographers', 'Wedding Photography', 'Wedding Planning', 'Weddings'] |
Krush Groovin 80s | Krush Groovin 80s
By Tamyara Brown
Dartanyawilliams and I decided to take a nostalgic ride down memory. He took over the 70s and I took over the 80s. Let me take you back to the days of Kangol hats, boom boxes, Marvin Gaye's sexual healing, being caught up in the sounds from Michael, Janet, Prince, Luther, Anita and let us not forget the rap music that stole my soul. The 80s were all about black music and culture kicking down the door to the mainstream and capture every ethnic group's sound of music. Are you ready to Krush and Groove into the 80s?
One word describes black music and our culture of the yester years and that’s innovative. Dartanya A.Williams took you on a nostalgic ride of the 70s and enlightened millennials of a time when music made you dance. Sitting in front of the television watching classics created a moment of family time. When fighting the power wasn’t for likes and social media prestige but true social change. Join me as I collaborate and expand the journey of what the 80s bought, and that is a fearless mindset to go mainstream in the music industry. The 80s opened the door for black artists to stake their claim and mark in history. From Michael Jackson becoming the King of Pop and being the first black artist to feature his video for Billie Jean on MTV.
Michael’s little sister Janet Jackson was the first to empower women to take control of their lives and bodied woman empowerment. Whitney Houston’s iconic voice blew the door open of national and international airwaves. Talent kicked open the doors and with music videos to match our favorite song there was no stopping us now. Black music was going mainstream no matter, but the black music culture created unforgettable sounds and a new era of music.
The Power of Funk equaled a Groove of music like no other. Rick James music was upbeat, raw, raunchy and the signature sound of bass guitars, percussion, keyboards, and drums to funk bought it to another level. The Buffalo native was the first to be nominated for a Grammy as best male rock vocal. Let me not forget George Clinton’s Atomic Dog is still a music staple and anthem. The Gap Band Outstanding is still one of my favorites. Cameo’s Word up took funk to another level with the signature hairdo and clothing. Each artist became innovative to open mainstream doors allowing music from black artists to have no limits. Then the legend itself
Prince brought an eclectic soul, a mixture of rock, and making his guitar cry Purple rain of hypnotic tunes and sexual innuendos. Yes, the music was excellent but going to a concert in the 80s was an absolute experience. Everything from the band to production was worth every penny. One thing for certain and two things for sure you were going to have a damn good time. George Clinton’s mothership, outrageous costumes, Ric James leather costumes, and that is where you danced your press and curl out, dripped jheri curl juice all over the floor. The experience of a concert is guaranteed that they turned this mother out.
Do you want to know what love sounds like? Put on an 80s slow jam and just let it pump through your veins. Whether it is getting caught up in the rapture of love crooned by Anita Baker, Rufus and Chaka Khan asking you to tell them something good or Luther Vandross reminding you a house is not a home. Patti LaBelle went solo and sang her face off on every record. Marvin Gaye made everyone desire to have some sexual healing. Stephanie Mills and Teddy Pendergrass made us feel the fire with their beautiful voices. Lionel Richie All night long, Stephanie Mills I never knew love like this before is still a favorite. New Edition’s Candy Girl, Cool it Now, and Mr.Telephone Man had me sweeping hallways for my landlord to buy their album.
Sade’s smooth voice brought the sounds of jazz and warmth to the soul. I could go on and on about RnB but there was another sound that brings me back to Kangol, Adidas sneakers, boom boxes, beatbox, scratching, and mixing. None other than rap music now known as the hip hop culture.
Hip hop emerged in 1979 but exploded in the eighties with Grandmaster Flash, Run DMC. Roxanne Shante, LL Cool J, Queen Latifah, Eric B & Rakim, NWA, Ice T, Salt and Pepa, McLyte, The Fat Boys, Dougie E. Fresh, and a host of rappers. Every Friday night on Hot 97 the airwaves filled with scratching, mixing, hard beats,and a sound like no other. The youth danced, rap and every teenage boy had the desire to be the next big rapper. Rap music speaks innovation and brings creativity and poetry to music. The rappers back then had to fight for a place and it wasn’t until hits like Rapper’s delight by the Sugar Hill gang kicked open the door. Also, another hit was The Wheels of Steel by GrandMaster Flash. Run DMC, NWA, and the rest gave fearless energy of making damn good music and letting the world know that rap was here to stay.
The eighties were the birth of fearless music, creativity, and everlasting trend that has been duplicated throughout music today. The musicians of today need the 70s and 80s sound because it has set the master-plan of glorious music. The music of yesterday was about being original, fighting for a place in the mainstream but also leaving a mark in history. The innovation of music and its sound opened the door to today’s music. | https://medium.com/@tamluvstowrite/krush-groovin-80s-d2545a640acc | ['Tamyara Brown'] | 2020-12-19 03:43:41.466000+00:00 | ['The Eighties', 'Music', 'Music History', 'Tamyara Brown', 'Hip Hop'] |
The House the Bricklayer Built | Image courtesy: dmagazine
A master bricklayer built a house.
It was beautiful; every line straight, every cornice perfectly angled, every floor flat and true.
He built it like a true craftsman: nothing left to chance.
One day, an old man was walking by and overheard the craftsman boasting about his great achievement. The old man approached and joined the small crowd that had started forming. The craftsman continued, espousing the quality of his work and how he had no equal in the land.
Indeed, the house was truly a marvel to behold!
As the crowd slowly dispersed, the craftsman wiped his brow… it had been a long presentation after all.
The old man approached the brick layer and after the customary compliments asked: “Sir, this wonderful creation you built, how many bricks did you use?”.
The craftsman beamed with pride, thought for a while, brow furrowing, then replied: “I wouldn’t know… I only built the house.”.
Then the old man asked: “The bricks you used, what tensile strength index did you use for the lower floors, and the upper floors? How did you allow for elastic torsion in the event of settlement and tremors? What of wind shear? What quantities of carbon did the steel used for reinforcements contain and what was the maximum force at work at each supporting beam at maximum load? How was the angle of the roof decided?”…
The questions came, one after the other and to each, the craftsman had the increasingly sad, sullen answer: “I don’t know”.
After what must have felt like an eternity of questioning, the craftsman finally conceded, begrudgingly, that he was an expert at laying bricks — unequalled yes, but bricklaying.
He explained to the old man that he did not know how to draw plans, how to design nor bake bricks, how to design the plumbing or draw up specifications for concrete and steel, how to calculate forces and counter-forces, foundation depths nor even… to design beautiful houses.
There was a long pause, an awkward silence as the two men stood in front of the masterpiece, each surveying it quietly.
The craftsman, now crest-fallen, looked, wistfully, at the beautiful house one more time, turned to the old man and, with a some embarrassment said: “You know… I didn’t build this house alone”.
The old man smiled back, encouragingly, placing his hand on the craftsman’s shoulder in a show of friendship, and replied: “I completely understand, my friend, I didn’t build it alone either; I only provided the engineering calculations that guided the architect’s designs which helped the draftsman drew up the plans and helped the quantity surveyor with costings and provisioning.”.
They both laughed out loudly… knowingly, shaking each other’s hand as old men do. The craftsman, now somewhat red in the face asked: “And who might you be then!”…
The old man replied, still recovering from the bout of laughter: “Kruger… Dunning Kruger, at your service!”.
He winked at the craftsman…
Rumour has it that they still drink together and discuss every building they build to this very day… | https://medium.com/@jameswatadza_13419/the-house-the-bricklayer-built-928898beeebd | ['James Watadza'] | 2020-03-11 05:39:14.186000+00:00 | ['Team Collaboration', 'Software Development Team', 'Respect', 'Software Development', 'Teamwork'] |
Alcohol Alternatives | Photo by Jarritos Mexican Soda on Unsplash
Hi everyone!
Welcome to the weekly newsletter for Exploring Sobriety. If you’re not already subscribed, sign up here to get these once-a-week updates delivered straight to your email.
I hope you all had a great weekend! Last week was a slow writing week for me, with just two new posts in Exploring Sobriety. The first was: A Great Day to Quit Drinking.
Even after supposedly deciding that I was going to get sober, I spent years looking for any excuse I could find to put it off. I delayed the inevitable day by day, always telling myself that I’d quit “tomorrow.” I think that there never really is a perfect day to quit drinking. Instead, we eventually have to settle on a day that’s just good enough. You can read the whole post here.
My other post from last week was a little lighter: What to Drink Instead of Alcohol. This is just a round up of the non-alcoholic drinks that I’ve turned to since quitting drinking. If you’ve just quit drinking alcohol and are looking for replacements, I hope this list will provide a good starting place. Please make sure to check the comments as well, because a couple of people have left good tips there. Read the post here.
Lastly, please check out Exploring Sobriety’s new Facebook Page. I really appreciate everyone who has already liked and followed the page. All the posts there are “friend links,” which means that they work even for people who aren’t Medium members. So, please feel free to share them with anyone who you think would enjoy or benefit!
Thank you so much for reading! Have a great week!
Benya | https://medium.com/exploring-sobriety/alcohol-alternatives-20c86a8ef617 | ['Benya Clark'] | 2021-09-13 17:04:38.581000+00:00 | ['Mental Health', 'Sobriety', 'Addiction', 'Health', 'Food And Drink'] |
Longing for God — Haiku. Spiritual Secrets Weekly Prompt | With each breathe I take
With every move I make
I search desperately for You | https://medium.com/spiritual-secrets/longing-for-god-haiku-6e12c5f46e14 | ['Sharon Brandon'] | 2020-09-19 06:06:48.676000+00:00 | ['Spirituality', 'Spiritual Tree', 'Haiku', 'Illumination', 'Spiritual Secrets'] |
Skin Color is a Sweet Spot for the Politicians | Skin Color is a Sweet Spot for the Politicians
Text and image by the author
Color is a political funnel to collect votes and win elections
Skin color is not a creation of humans. They created voting norms and election rules. The elected members of the government are playing with the color of human skin for years. Many things have changed. But color politics remained at the top of the election campaigns.
Color and allied topics revolve around human rights
I work in the field of science and technology. But I do care for societal issues. How can I be aloof about the issues connected to human life and society?
Following are the relevant titles I published on Medium.
Black-and-White, Color, and Life | https://medium.com/our-own-story/skin-color-is-a-sweet-spot-for-the-politicians-b3e346bc4b2b | ['Debesh Choudhury'] | 2020-12-04 12:17:25.978000+00:00 | ['Politics', 'Society', 'Skin Color', 'Humanity First', 'Colors'] |
TwitchCon 2018 Keynote: Everything You Need to Know | Today we celebrated the streamers and fans that make Twitch unique at Day One of our fourth TwitchCon. We kicked off the morning in San Jose recapping the incredible accomplishments we were all a part of this year and shared our battle plan for how we’re playing support for streamers with new tools designed to help them grow, connect, and thrive.
We also announced the expansion of our esports program, Twitch Rivals, that will more than double in size in 2019 and introduced Twitch Sings, a new category of game built by Twitch with streaming in mind, that will enter closed beta this year.
More people are joining Twitch every day, and once they’re here, they experience what this community has known all along — that together you’ve created something new: Multiplayer Entertainment. You’re not just here for the show; you are the show.
At Twitch, streamers aren’t a sidequest. Making sure creators and their communities are succeeding more than ever is our main goal. Here’s a summary of what we announced today, and you can catch the VOD of the live stream here.
Grow
Whatever you stream, we’re making it easier for creators to get discovered.
Squad Stream: Up to four creators will be able to stream together in a single view that viewers discover when they visit any one of their channels. Viewers can watch on desktop and mobile as well as easily follow and subscribe to all channels. Chat is linked to whichever channel a viewer selects as their main view, so they can hang out with their friends or jump over to another community with just a click or a tap. Select streamers will be testing out Squad Stream later this year.
Squad Stream
Highlight Editor updates: Highlight Editor will now allow streamers and editors to stitch together moments from across a video into a single highlight. Look for this update in January.
Highlight Editor updates
New featured sections on the Twitch homepage: Starting later this year we’re rolling out a range of new featured sections like ones highlighting up-and-coming streamers, new Partners and Affiliates, or streamers local to the viewer.
New featured sections on the Twitch homepage
Connect
We’re giving streamers more tools to build stronger communities and relationships with their viewers. Strong communities spread the word about their favorite streamers, support each other in times of need, and welcome new viewers into the fold. Those relationships are part of what makes Twitch so different.
VIP Badges: Streamers will now be able to recognize valuable members of their community without requiring them to subscribe or moderate with VIP Badges. VIP members are recognized with a badge and can also chat in slow, sub-only, or follower-only modes. Creators earn 10 badges when they complete the “Build a Community” achievement by reaching 50 followers and 5 unique chatters in a stream and can earn up to 100 badges as their community grows. Look for this in a few weeks. (Update: VIP Badges are live as of Nov. 13)
VIP Badges
New moderator tools in chat: By clicking on someone’s username, mods will be able to see how long that person has been on Twitch and details on their activity in the channel, like chats, number of timeouts, or bans. The update also includes a new comment tool that lets mods work together by leaving notes for each other. These new tools arrive in January.
New moderator tools in chat
Roles management page: Streamers will able to see and change their community members’ roles– from editors, to mods, to VIP from the new roles section on their dashboard. This is coming alongside VIP Badges in a few weeks. (Update: The Roles page is live as of Nov. 13)
Roles management page
Subscription badges now show total number of months: We heard your feedback loud and clear that subscription badges need to reward consistent supporters, even if they miss a sub one month. Sub badges will now change to show the total number of months a viewer has been subscribed. If a viewer is on an amazing streak, they can still choose to share it when they re-subscribe. This update is coming in January.
Subscription badges now show total number of months
Extensions: As Extensions continue to grow on Twitch, we’re bringing you more ways to interact by teaming up with brands like Adobe, Tiltify, Spotify, as well as our friends at Amazon.
Today at TwitchCon, we showed off Snap Camera, Snap’s brand new standalone desktop app that works with a custom Extension built just for Twitch. Snap Camera lets you use Snapchat’s best Lenses live on your stream with your webcam. With the Snap Camera Extension, viewers can use Snapchat to scan the Snapcode on screen to try on the Lens and streamers can reward subs by activating a custom Lens of the streamer’s choosing when someone subscribes.
We also created custom Lenses for the Twitch community: like a purple, Super Saiyan power-up, for when you take chat’s energy; or a rain of bits to celebrate Cheers. Snap Camera is available now, you can learn more here. To learn more about all the new Extensions that launched at TwitchCon and Developer Day visit the Developer Blog.
Thrive
To make it easier for streamers to find sponsored opportunities that feel authentic and align with their communities’ interests we’re opening Bounty Board to 30 more brands starting in November. Partners and select affiliates in the U.S. and Canada will be able to use Bounty Board to earn even more, and coming in 2019 and we’ll open it to more affiliates and more countries beginning with the UK.
Bounty Board
Twitch Sings
We’re just starting to scratch the surface of what’s possible when everyone wants to play together. There are many games and genres that are made better on Twitch, and we believe there’s an opportunity for a new category of game to emerge that’s made to be streamed, where the audience isn’t a ‘nice to have’ — they’re a crucial part of the game experience.
We knew karaoke would be the perfect place to start. It’s live. It’s always entertaining. And when it really gets going, the line between the crowd and the stage disappears completely.
With Twitch Sings, you can sing your heart out, share your performances across Twitch, or perform duets with your community. And being in the crowd is just as much fun as holding the mic — and just as important. In chat you can request songs, give your favorite streamers crazy challenges to tackle, and when you cheer you will see Bits will rain down on the crowd. We’re testing Twitch Sings on the expo floor at TwitchCon and soon with a handful of streamers live on Twitch in closed beta. We can’t wait to hear what you think and you can go here and register if you’re interested in trying it out. More of you will be invited as space opens up. | https://medium.com/twitch-news/twitchcon-2018-keynote-56be103fea21 | [] | 2018-11-20 19:57:34.578000+00:00 | ['Twitch', 'Twitchcon', 'New Features', 'Snapchat'] |
Ukrainian capital witnessed protests by the Afghan community near the Pakistani embassy | These days, the Ukrainian capital witnessed protests by the Afghan community near the Pakistani embassy, and then — near the meetings of YES .(Yalta European Strategy Forum) — the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Ordinary Afghans and those who are fully integrated into Ukrainian society and have long had Ukrainian citizenship protested . There were also tribal elders and diaspora authorities who maintained close ties with the occupied by Taliban country.
Protesters used two flags at the rally: the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the United Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan (Northern Alliance). Bright anti-Pakistani rhetoric condemning Islamabad’s rescue into Afghanistan’s internal affairs could be highlighted in slogans and posters. Many activists openly talk about military and technical support and equipping the Taliban with Pakistan, as well as holding some important positions in the Government of the Emirate by officials of the neighboring country. The protesters called for a formal condemnation of the illegal actions of a neighbor, and to deprive the support of a terrorist organization that seized power in the country.
Today, the largest accommodation centers for Afghans are in the following cities of Ukraine: Kyiv, Odesa, Kharkiv. The Ukrainian authorities are taking steps to find suitable accommodation for evacuees, including by reorganizing certain facilities.
Ukraine is an important partner and friend of the Afghan people. We belong to 10 European and 20 world countries in terms of the evacuation of ours, foreign citizens, and refugees. The recent operations of our military have made a great impression on Western partners due to the departure from the airport, which meant an extraordinary risk to the lives and health of our compatriots.
As we wrote earlier, Kyiv should not rush to recognize the Emirate, and the regime may escalate soon. At the same time, having such a great advantage as a loyal Afghan diaspora should be a priority for some state structures — together we can not only guarantee security but also act in the international arena. The fact that Russia is getting closer to terrorists is not surprising to us (because it finances terrorism in many countries, including ours), but we could unite the potential of conscious Afghans around the world for the common good.
The will of the people, the will of man! | https://medium.com/@mykolavolkivskyi/ukrainian-capital-witnessed-protests-by-the-afghan-community-near-the-pakistani-embassy-c53aa3624615 | ['Mykola Volkivskyi'] | 2021-09-12 17:19:20.487000+00:00 | ['Afghanistan', 'Ukraine', 'Kyiv', 'United Nations', 'Refugees'] |
Responsive cross browser lightbox using only html and css | There are many great lightbox plugins out there, however lots of them rely on jQuery or other libraries. Also another negative aspect is that they use JavaScript for the resizing and other parts which really isn’t needed. So how can we make our own css only efficient lightbox overlay, which works cross browser IE8+?
Firstly we need the html wrappers for the content. We have four wrappers for the background, scrollable area, centering vertically and centering horizontal.
<div class="overlay">
<div class="t">
<div class="tc">
<div class="content">
<h1>This is the lightbox overlay</h1>
<p>Check it at different sizes to see how it works</p>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
Now we add some css to the background outer wrapper, to position it on top and fill the screen with black:
.overlay {
width: 100%;
height: 100%;
position: absolute;
top: 0;
left: 0;
bottom: 0;
right: 0;
z-index: 5;
overflow: auto;
background: rgb(76, 76, 76);
background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8);
}
Then the css added to the inner wrapper allows the content to be aligned vertically and horizontally:
.overlay .t {
margin: auto;
display: table;
width: 100%;
height: 100%;
}
.overlay .tc {
display: table-cell;
vertical-align: middle;
}
And finally the content wrapper can then restrict the content width and style the lightbox background/padding depending on the content type:
.overlay .content {
max-width: 680px;
margin: 0 auto;
padding: 20px;
background-color: #fff;
}
Here’s how that looks so far:
If you want a different background, rather than a black background you can blur the content behind using the following code:
<div class="page toblur blur">
<p>Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Donec vitae quam in enim volutpat pulvinar.</p>
</div>
You then add the css to blur the background. The blur class can be added and removed to trigger the animation effect:
.toblur {
-webkit-transform: translate3d(0, 0, 0);
-webkit-filter: blur(0px);
-moz-filter: blur(0px);
-o-filter: blur(0px);
-ms-filter: blur(0px);
filter: blur(0px);
-webkit-transition: all ease-out 0.2s;
-moz-transition: all ease-out 0.2s;
-o-transition: all ease-out 0.2s;
-ms-transition: all ease-out 0.2s;
transition: all ease-out 0.2s;
}
.blur {
-webkit-filter: blur(5px);
-moz-filter: blur(5px);
-o-filter: blur(5px);
-ms-filter: blur(5px);
filter: blur(5px);
}
Here’s how that looks now: | https://medium.com/creative-technology-concepts-code/responsive-cross-browser-lightbox-using-only-html-and-css-ae2f2f0260f6 | ['Kim T'] | 2018-01-29 17:01:26.820000+00:00 | ['CSS', 'Efficient', 'Demo', 'Background', 'HTML'] |
Reading: AmoebaNet — Regularized Evolution for Image Classifier Architecture Search (Image Classification) | This favors the newer models in the population. aging evolution allows us to explore the search space more, instead of zooming in on good models too early. | https://medium.com/@sh-tsang/reading-amoebanet-regularized-evolution-for-image-classifier-architecture-search-image-278f5c077a4a | ['Sik-Ho Tsang'] | 2020-09-14 10:55:46.848000+00:00 | ['Convolutional Network', 'Evolutionary Algorithms', 'Image Classification', 'Artificial Intelligence', 'Deep Learning'] |
Distinguishing these four scenarios will help the corporate innovator decide on approach | Distinguishing these four scenarios will help the corporate innovator decide on approach
Not every disruptive innovation needs to be spun out, not every sustaining innovation can be done inside. Here is how to tell.
Photo by Hans-Peter Gauster
Corporations are building out their “innovation toolboxes” to keep up with the pace of change around them. They are supplementing classic innovation disciplines like research and development with new disciplines that are more independent of the existing core business and more outside-in, embracing and building upon the innovation efforts of others. Cisco’s five-pronged approach to innovation is an example of what the new innovation toolbox could look like. So is SAP.iO’s three-part innovation model.
The new innovation disciplines are typically a combination of new-business incubation (“create”), corporate-startup partnerships (“partner”), and corporate venturing (“invest”). (Read on to understand why startup acquisitions, often named in the same breath, are better considered advanced stages of either corporate-startup partnerships or corporate-venture investments.) But while there is wide agreement on the types of innovation disciplines that corporations should establish, when and where each of these innovation disciplines is best put to use is still poorly understood. Every innovation discipline could, in theory, be applied broadly to innovation initiatives across the board. But this does not mean it should be. Every innovation discipline has a sweet spot. The funding, risk, and time to impact of an innovation initiative can differ tremendously depending on which innovation discipline is used, and good care should be taken in matching the two.
While there is wide agreement on the types of innovation disciplines that corporations should establish, when and where each of these innovation disciplines is best put to use is still poorly understood.
This is part one of a two-part article that establishes a simple framework to help corporate innovators decide which innovation discipline a given innovation initiative fits best. To abstract from the specifics of individual innovation initiatives, this first part defines four innovation scenarios that innovation initiatives can be grouped into. These scenarios will remind the well-read corporate innovator of the seminal theory of disruptive innovation as laid out in Clayton Christensen’s book “The Innovator’s Dilemma,” but they differ in a fundamental way that this part will elaborate on. Part two of the article then proceeds to identify the innovation discipline most suitable in each scenario, including the various roles that startup acquisitions can play.
In defining the innovation scenarios, the focus will be on what is most helpful and actionable to the process of matching innovation disciplines and innovation initiatives. Numerous frameworks have been suggested to add structure to the field of corporate innovation. Some separate short-term, mid-term, and long-term innovation. Others split core-business-related innovation from adjacent innovation. Still others attempt to gauge the potential and feasibility for each initiative. But while all of these frameworks may help a corporation prioritize innovation initiatives relative to each other, they tell little about how to execute on them.
More helpful and actionable to the matching process is the two-by-two framework shown here. It defines four innovation scenarios along two dimensions. The vertical axis shows the source of innovation: Is it the corporation itself that is innovating (“inside-out”), or is the corporation building upon the innovation of someone else (“outside-in”)? Corporations should seek to benefit as broadly as possible from the innovation that is taking place within their ecosystems, independently of who comes up with it, so covering both sources of innovation is important.
The horizontal axis denotes the degree to which the innovation is compatible with the way the corporation currently does business. In other words, would this innovation prosper within the corporation’s existing structures and processes? If the answer is “yes,” the innovation is compatible. If the answer is “no,” the innovation is incompatible. For example, Apple’s iPhone was a compatible innovation in the smartphone market. Even though the product marked a new era that saw market shares shift significantly between smartphone makers, the main disciplines needed to develop, market, and sell smartphones had not changed compared to the years prior. On the other hand, Uber created a model to hire rides that is squarely incompatible with the way traditional taxi corporations work: Its platform model neither has cars on the balance sheet nor drivers on the payroll. But software development is now a core competency, and additional capabilities such as new-market development to grow supply and demand in lockstep in new geographies are required. Even user behavior has changed with features such as ride pooling, dynamic fares, or integration of other forms of mobility such as electric scooters.
The degree to which an innovation initiative is compatible with the way a corporation currently does business is key to deciding how that initiative should be executed.
It is intuitively clear why the vertical axis plays an important role in deciding which innovation discipline to match a given innovation initiative to. The processes of organically innovating inside-out versus applying others’ innovation outside-in are fundamentally different, after all. The horizontal axis, in turn, is often overlooked, even though it is key to deciding how an innovation initiative should be executed. An innovation initiative that is compatible with the current way of doing business should leverage existing corporate functions as much as possible. If the initiative is inside-out, research and development is the right place to pursue the initiative, and downstream functions like marketing, sales, servicing, and support are also well aligned with what is needed. If the initiative is outside-in, these same corporate functions can work hand in hand with the external startup that has a solution. On the other hand, if the innovation initiative is incompatible with the way the corporation does business, the existing structures and processes of the core business would get in the way. Because making exceptions on an ongoing basis is not a sustainable proposition, the innovation initiative will need to be run autonomously from the corporation. For inside-out innovation initiatives, this will require an independent operating unit or a spin-out. For outside-in innovation initiatives, it will require obtaining a stake in the startup and taking a board seat.
It is worth spending a few words on why distinguishing between compatible and incompatible innovation is not the same as distinguishing between sustaining and disruptive innovation, the framework established in the book “The Innovator’s Dilemma.” The key difference is that the framework of compatible versus incompatible innovation was defined to help corporate innovators decide when an innovation initiative can be developed inside the corporation versus when it ought to be separated from the corporation, whereas the theory of sustaining versus disruptive innovation was defined based on how an innovation is brought to market. Although in many cases the disruptiveness of an innovation initiative aligns with the need to separate it from the structures and processes of the sponsoring corporation, there are prominent counterexamples.
One counterexample is, in fact, the main case study of disruptive innovation from the book “The Innovator’s Dilemma” itself — that experienced by the hard-disk-drive industry: Generation after generation, new hard-disk-drive technologies initially failed to appeal to incumbents’ main customer segments due to a higher costs per unit of storage capacity. But because they provided a better solution for the needs of a new customer segment, who valued form factor more than cost, the new technologies were able to enter the market via a niche. The niche allowed the new technologies to mature and, thanks to their cost curves being more favorable than those of the respective prevailing technology, to eventually catch up on cost per unit of storage capacity. Because the new technologies were at that point superior to legacy technologies in terms of both form factor and cost, they were able to take the mainstream market for hard-disk drives by storm.
Although in many cases the disruptiveness of an innovation initiative aligns with the need to separate it from the structures and processes of the sponsoring corporation, there are prominent counterexamples.
Time after time, the new technologies that shook the hard-disk drive industry were disruptive innovation at its finest. Still, every new hard-disk-drive technology was also compatible innovation, in line, at least to a significant extent, with the way hard-disk drives had been developed, marketed, and sold before. The fact that the companies that prevailed during each disruption were incumbents themselves, not new entrants, supports this observation. They were the incumbents that mustered up enough foresight to understand the long-term potential of the emerging disruptive technology. Consequently, disruptiveness is not a sufficient condition for having to separate an innovation initiative from the corporation. (Flash memory, the most recent innovation in computer storage and not a hard-disk-drive technology, is an innovation that is disruptive and incompatible. As predicted by the framework of compatible versus incompatible innovation, the leading hard-disk-drive makers have followed inorganic approaches to win in this new market: They have either acquired flash memory production capabilities or set up development agreements with third-party manufacturers.)
Another counterexample is electric-car maker Tesla. Tesla’s cars were a sustaining innovation in the auto industry because they were luxury cars, the industry’s most valuable market segment, whereas a disruptive innovation would have attacked the industry from the low end of the market or a niche. But the direct-to-consumer distribution model that Tesla adopted was squarely incompatible with the way distribution of cars had been done traditionally. There was good reason for this: After-sales maintenance accounts for the largest part of car dealers’ profit. Because electric cars have longer sales cycles and require less maintenance, it was evident that dealers would be incentivized to prioritize selling combustion engine cars over selling electric cars. In addition, as the time to charge an electric vehicle exceeds the time to refill a gas tank by orders of magnitude, Tesla was unable to work with gas stations either, but had to develop new infrastructure to charge electric cars. To address these obstacles, Tesla chose to integrate three elements of the value chain that were traditionally separate — manufacturing, dealership, and charging (alias gas) stations. The fact that traditional automakers have for a long time struggled to bring fully electric vehicles to market demonstrates that the nature of being sustaining does not necessarily imply that an innovation should be pursued inside the sponsoring corporation.
And the list of counterexamples goes on. The fact that Uber’s asset-light, software-first business model is highly incompatible with that of traditional taxi companies helps explain why taxi companies have been unable to recreate Uber’s success. And the fact that Apple’s iPhone is an innovation largely compatible with the way smartphones used to be developed and brought to market helps explain why Samsung, a player in the mobile-phone market well before the advent of the iPhone, has repeatedly been able to command the highest share of the smartphone market since the launch of the iPhone.
Part two of this two-part article will identify the innovation discipline most suitable in each innovation scenario, building upon the two-by-two framework established above. Part two will also explore the different roles that startup acquisitions can play, and what this implies in terms of whether an acquired startup should be integrated into the structures and processes of the corporation or kept separate as a new business unit.
Special thanks to Peter Borchers, Managing Director at pbo.vc and former CEO of Allianz X, for being a wonderful sparring partner in discussing the ideas presented in this article. | https://medium.com/premainstream/four-innovation-scenarios-to-help-decide-on-approach-e3c96677188a | ['Christian Vogt'] | 2019-06-20 14:50:07.170000+00:00 | ['Corporate Innovation', 'Innovation', 'Startup', 'Partnerships', 'Venture Capital'] |
Beyond the Smartphone | Today’s sound technology landscape encompasses multiple methods of transmitting information between people and machines including, but not limited to — watermarking, fingerprinting, modulation/ demodulation and of course, voice recognition.
At Chirp, we pride ourselves on the work that we do with our clients and partners to ensure that we help them to harness the medium of sound only if it provides the most appropriate solution to their problem. We also pride ourselves on our understanding of when the aforementioned methods of transmitting information through sound will not meet their needs.
Just a few of our clients
In this post, we look to explain why the technology that we develop is designed with the single purpose of enabling the transmission of information between humans and machines and machines to machines only where it is best applied.
Whilst a lot of players operating in the market focus on developing data-over-sound solutions for smart devices (and more specifically, smartphones), Chirp see far more potential for this powerful communications medium and hence have developed our technology to utilise sound across a much broader range of devices and applications. Indeed, our technology is already being used to power communications between devices running on low powered chips and legacy, analogue devices without traditional networking capabilities.
Whilst most modulation/ demodulation technology providers offer just an inaudible ultrasound technology, and almost solely for smartphones or tablets, we also understand that ultrasound itself is just a small subsector of modulation/ demodulation, which itself is only a subsector of the wider data-over-sound sector as a whole, and we understand that the breadth of applications in which using ‘audible’ sound to transmit information may afford greater benefits than using just ultrasound.
As such, Chirp’s flagship data-over-sound technology solution is made available with both audible and inaudible audio protocols through Software Development Kits (SDKs) for iOS, Mac OS, Javascript, Android, Windows UWP, Web Browsers, Python, Arduino, Raspberry Pi, Linux, embedded SDKs (including a wide array of ARM Cortex chips) plus newly released Xamarin and Cordova wrappers.
This data-over-sound solution uses the modulation / demodulation method to enable the encoding of data into a series of pitches and tones on a sending device to form a ‘sonic barcode’. This data is then transmitted, over the air, to a receiving device, or group of devices where it is decoded.
It is the breadth of supported platforms and audio protocols that our technology delivers that allows Chirp to move beyond simply providing the facility to transmit information between smartphones and smart devices. In fact we must confess, it is the applications of our technology to enable low powered chips and legacy devices to enter into conversation with us, smart devices and each other, that excite us most.
So where is Chirp’s data-over-sound solution being used (amongst many others)?
Chirp is being used to monitor equipment in sensitive, safety critical nuclear environments in which traditional Radio Frequency based networking technologies including wifi, bluetooth and NFC are prohibited
Chirp is being used in Hong Kong and China to provide a low cost payment and loyalty solution to independent coffee shops by playing simple wav files from a low cost POS ‘box’, no screen required
Chirp is being used by Activision Blizzard in the largest toys-to-life video game played by tens of millions worldwide, and is used for the purpose of sharing data, securely and totally offline, from the game itself to a companion iOS and Android app
Chirp is used as the ticket authentication solution of choice for one of the largest transport ticketing companies in India
Chirp is used to perfectly synchronise real-time secure virtual reality sessions with nearby devices, regardless of network or platform, as well as through conference and telephone lines to users anywhere in the world for collaborative VR experiences
Of course, Chirp also power the transmission of information to and from smartphones but it doesn’t have to be only smartphone to smartphone.
Why do Chirp offer both audible and ultrasonic protocols?
Ultrasound is not a silver bullet.
In addition to the much wider range of devices and media that support audible protocols and the larger payloads that can be delivered using audible, we are seeing increasing demand from our clients for the very human, honest and transparent qualities that ‘hearing the data being transferred’ delivers.
Another key point of note when considering whether audible or ultrasound is most suitable is the limitations of ultrasound to be carried in media as was discovered by one of our most recent clients, creative toy company Hijinx. Hijinx came to us in search of a solution to enable interactions between the emmy-award winning Beat Bugs show running on Netflix and the official Beat Bugs toys.
Many are of the impression that overlaying ultrasound on either a terrestrial or streaming broadcast will enable the delivery of content using sound (for example, offers or promotions from ads) from the broadcast to apps running on smartphones or even low powered devices running on chips. A key consideration here is the impact that video and audio compression techniques can have on overlaid ultrasound — namely, most broadcast and streaming platforms strip this out entirely.
Hijinx approached Chirp to solve the challenge of allowing the Beat Bugs toys to sing along with the Netflix show whilst remaining completely offline. And we did just that by developing a solution that enabled the toys themselves to recognise portions of the show’s existing audio and synchronise with the characters as they sing on screen. This technology really does open the doors for brands and content producers to create immersive experiences for their viewers without concerns around the risks of overlaying ultrasound. | https://medium.com/chirp-io/beyond-the-smartphone-614f4adccc99 | [] | 2017-07-25 15:23:05.304000+00:00 | ['Internet of Things'] |
Highlights of Data + AI Summit 2020 (formerly Spark Summit) | Highlights of Data + AI Summit 2020 (formerly Spark Summit)
Source: Unsplash. Not a photo of the actual conference, which was entirely online this year.
November 20th, 2020: I just attended the first edition of the Data + AI Summit — the new name of the Spark Summit conference organized twice a year by Databricks. This was the European edition, meaning the talks took place at a European-friendly time zone. In reality it drew participants from everywhere, as the conference was virtual (and free) because of the epidemic.
The conference featured 125 pre-recorded video talks aired at a specific time (as if they were live), with the speakers available to answer questions in real time on a “Live Chat”. All the talks are available for replay for free on the summit’s website.
In this article we’ll go over the highlights of the conference, focusing on the new developments added to or coming up to for Apache Spark.
Keynotes: Focus on PySpark and COVID-19
Watch the keynotes: https://databricks.com/dataaisummit/europe-2020/keynotes
On Wednesday morning, November 18, we had a keynote introduced by Ali Ghodsi, the CEO and a co-founder of Databricks. He brought on stage quite a few people, highlighting especially the need to bolster the Python experience of Apache Spark with a discussion of Project Zen, and the new Koalas API, as well as the performance boosts enabled by the latest release of Spark 3.0.
Koalas 1.4 — Announcement & Key Performance Improvements. Source.
Apache Spark 3.0 — SQL Performance Benchmark. Source.
After about an hour and a half of technical discussion, Malcom Gladwell (a relatively famous author of The Tipping Point, and Blink) discussed COVID-19 data, and how this could have helped us to navigate the pandemic differently, if we used this data to make better decisions. He went on to apply data science to the pandemic, which he said Japan, China, and South Korea handled well, but not Europe or the USA.
He went on to give three guiding principles: Framing, Usefulness and Courage. We need to use the data to properly frame our understanding of the problem. Make sure the data you have selected is the most useful (and useful doesn’t mean perfect). Lastly, by courage, he means: “to have the courage to follow the data, to do what the data tells you to do.” As an example, he said that “10% of the American population has a risk of dying from COVID-19” based on obesity. And that we need to take special precautions to help the obese but we don’t do this because we have a social norm against shaming people. He felt those who do these three things will in fact become the proper leaders of the rest of us.
Getting Started with Apache Spark on Kubernetes
Watch the talk: https://databricks.com/session_eu20/getting-started-with-apache-spark-on-kubernetes
In this talk, the founders of Data Mechanics (ex-Databricks engineers) went over the pros and cons for running Spark on Kubernetes followed by a concrete guide on how to make Spark on k8s stable and cost-effective.
A Timeline Of Improvements To Spark On Kubernetes. Image by Author.
They revealed that Spark on Kubernetes will officially be declared Generally Available and Production-Ready with the upcoming version of Spark (3.1) to be released January 2021. One specific feature includes the ability to move shuffle files before a Spark executor is terminated (due to dynamic allocation or because of a Spot kill), which will significantly improve Spark’s robustness and performance in elastic cloud architectures.
They then illustrated the development workflow with a live demo running on the Data Mechanics platform. He used a script to build a docker image with all the required dependencies, push it to the registry, and then run it at scale on the Kubernetes cluster — all happening with a 30 second iteration cycle.
This is a big win for the developer experience, compared to my experience deploying Spark on traditional Hadoop YARN clusters.
What is New with Apache Spark Performance Monitoring in Spark 3.0
Watch the talk: https://databricks.com/session_eu20/what-is-new-with-apache-spark-performance-monitoring-in-spark-3-0
The speaker, Luca Canali, is a Data Engineer at CERN, which processes one Exabyte of data from the Large Hadron Collider using Spark (on Kubernetes). What was exciting about this talk is that it explained clearly how to write Spark 3 custom monitoring listener code by extending the new SparkListener API.
Spark Listeners in Apache Spark 3.0. Source.
Some open-source projects have started to make use of these new capabilities in Apache Spark 3.0 like Delight, a free and cross-platform Spark UI replacement with new metrics and data visualizations. You can install it in your Spark infrastructure by downloading their open-sourced Spark agent (which uses this new SparkListener interface).
From Query Plan to Query Performance: Supercharging your Spark Queries using the Spark UI SQL Tab
Watch the talk: https://databricks.com/session_eu20/from-query-plan-to-query-performance-supercharging-your-apache-spark-queries-using-the-spark-ui-sql-tab
If you love JOIN strategies, and efficiency, you will be intrigued by this use case, to JOIN a ship to a port, but only if the location of the ship made it possible for the ship to be physically at that port.
Spark UI SQL Tab Illustration with a Join Strategy example. Source.
They created clever geographical hash regions based on latitude and longitude, and don’t attempt the JOIN unless the geo-hashing strategy is satisfied, which converts to an equi-join implemented by BroadcastHashJoin. This geo-filtering technique sped up the JOIN considerably. Whew!
Interoperability Between Koalas and Apache Spark
Watch the talk: https://databricks.com/session_eu20/koalas-interoperability-between-koalas-and-apache-spark
For those who haven’t heard of Koalas and its relationship to PySpark, “the Koalas project makes data scientists more productive when interacting with big data, by implementing the pandas DataFrame API on top of Apache Spark.”
Koalas allows for a much richer experience of PySpark DataFrames, in that the Pandas functionality we know and love is exposed and yet at runtime we have a Spark Job. An example of the new features is simply generating a Koalas DataFrame using the df.to_koalas() function, which easily provides custom indexing of a Koalas DataFrame (as shown below).
Koalas implements pandas Dataframe API on top of Apache Spark. Source
Project Zen: Improving Apache Spark for Python Users
Watch the talk: https://databricks.com/session_eu20/project-zen-improving-apache-spark-for-python-users
I used to work at Databricks, in 2015, and at that time Python was not nearly as popular as it is today. Back then people still believed that Scala would take off, but it never really did. Instead, we have seen the dramatic rise in popularity of Python development worldwide, at the expense of Java (which is considered old), and Scala (which is considered obscure these days).
According to the speaker Hyukjin Kwon, PySpark applications now represent 68% of the queries run in Databricks notebook (vs 11% for Scala). This is a huge jump in only five years, when it was around 35% Python. That is simply amazing.
This is was the new documentation will look like in Spark 3.1 (January 2021). Source
This talk was about how PySpark has been found lacking in many ways and the effort to fortify it for the current needs of the PySpark dev community. The talk mentioned a clever poem called the Zen of Python:
Beautiful is better than ugly.
Explicit is better than implicit.
Simple is better than complex.
Complex is better than complicated.
Flat is better than nested.
Sparse is better than dense.
Readability counts.
Special cases aren’t special enough to break the rules.
The goal of the Apache Spark Project Zen (JIRA) is to make PySpark the first class citizen it was always marketed to be. While those of us on the inside knew from the start it was a 2nd class citizen, it is now high time to write this, and build out the PySpark API and documentation properly. As of June 2020 there are more than a million downloads of PySpark each week.
Conclusion: Spark is alive and thriving
I was at the Spark Summit in 2015 and it was extremely exciting. Back then I was just learning Spark, and started to teach and consult about Spark for Databricks. Since then I have been around the world teaching, and mentoring teams about Spark. If this current Data+AI summit we just attended is any indicator, then Apache Spark is still alive and thriving.
About the “AI” part of the event title, well, those who know will say: “If it is written in PowerPoint it is AI, and if it is written in Python it is Machine Learning.” I will stick to Python and PySpark ML, and now Koalas, thank you! | https://towardsdatascience.com/highlights-of-data-ai-summit-2020-formerly-spark-summit-4a3ee922397f | ['Jean Yves'] | 2020-12-15 23:46:44.049000+00:00 | ['Apache Spark', 'Data Science', 'Data Engineering', 'Conference', 'Towards Data Science'] |
Authentic Alfresco (APSCA) ACSCA Exam Questions Answers — Eliminate Your Fears and Doubts | Alfresco Content Services Certified Administrator Certification — ACSCA Exam is a very noticeable boost your career. but perhaps have you ever wondered why Alfresco Content Services Certified Administrator certification — ACSCA Exam aspirants keep failing? the answer is quite simple the exam is a hard nut. and to crack this hard nut, you will need efficient ACSCA Braindumps.
ALFRESCO (APSCA) ACSCA Braindumps questions answers will not only help you pass, but they are also pretty much a whole package. you can understand the complex Alfresco Content Services Certified Administrator certification — ACSCA Exam terms and practice ACSCA dumps. this will give a hint of what it would be like in the real exam. what remains is to decide on an actual and valid resource!
100% Valid ACSCA Dumps Questions and Answers for Your Exam Preparation:
Getting latest and valid ACSCA Exam Braindumps is the first step to your success. with that being said where can you find an actual set of ACSCA exam dumps?
Realbraindumps is a visible name in this regard. with so more than thousands of customers supporting ACSCA exam dumps question answers there can’t be bad. what’s more, is that they are valid all over the world. plus, the ACSCA exam questions answers are taken from the real ALFRESCO (APSCA) certification exam content. these ACSCA dumps questions are also the latest as the follow the current patterns and technologies mentioned in your exam.
Swift Victory in One Attempt with ACSCA Dumps:
Taking the time and money you will spend on ALFRESCO (APSCA) exam training; you wouldn’t want to waste it. the quicker is the success will be better. how about we say just in one attempt with 24 hours ACSCA study material?
This might seem unlikely but is possible. Realbraindumps in collaboration with ALFRESCO (APSCA) professionals came up with a perfect solution to your miseries. most students fail due to lack or utter absence of feasible ACSCA Braindumps. but don’t worry you don’t have to be one of them. because now you have got Realbraindumps on your side.
ALFRESCO (APSCA) ACSCA Dumps Pdf to Shatter All Hurdles in Your Way of Success:
No matter how many times you try you will fail if your resources are not right. Realbraindumps has done years of research and then started making these ACSCA Braindumps questions answers. with the approval of ALFRESCO (APSCA) experts as well ACSCA dumps questions and answers set are the only one with promising results.
ALFRESCO (APSCA) ACSCA exam dumps questions compatible pdf format is easy to download so you can take them anywhere with you. this is especially convenient for the student with unstable internet access. also, you can now download them in your smartphones too.
ALFRESCO (APSCA) ACSCA dumps questions online test engine helps you in building confidence. with this, you will be able to interpret questions and choose the right answer confidently. be the ALFRESCO (APSCA) specialist with ACSCA exam dumps. get more details at:
https://www.realbraindumps.com/ACSCA-braindumps.html | https://medium.com/@aliyahlucas1993/authentic-alfresco-apsca-acsca-exam-questions-answers-eliminate-your-fears-and-doubts-62a603c9ecfa | ['Aliyah Lucas'] | 2019-11-21 05:18:52.364000+00:00 | ['Acsca Exam Questions', 'Acsca Exam Braindumps', 'Certification', 'Acsca Braindumps', 'Alfresco'] |
Using Unique SSH Keys for Multiple GitHub Accounts | As a software engineer and all-around nerd, I’m pretty picky about computers. The Mac Mini provided by my company is fine, but, let’s face it, my custom-built desktop gaming rig and my Dell XPS 15 laptop (MacBook power at half the price — seriously, you should check it out!) both blow it out of the water in terms of performance.
Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) and the VS Code ecosystem have both matured to the point where I can use Windows for development (without dual-booting Linux!). Since the pandemic started, I‘ve been using my personal equipment for work, and it’s been fabulous. So I was excited to start working on some new side projects this week during my vacation.
People, IT SUCKS. Seriously. It’s painful. I have separate GitHub accounts for work and personal projects, each of which requires a unique SSH key. Since I already had my work SSH key set up on my machine, I couldn’t actually work with any of my personal repos.
GitHub doesn’t like multiple accounts. :(
Googling “how to use different ssh keys for different GitHub accounts” led to a lot of instructions for messing with my SSH config that didn’t even work, and actually broke the GitHub SSH connection on my work account.
Luckily, a random sighting in the comments of an SO thread, plus a deep dive into the git config documentation led to an epiphany: includeIf. This innocuous-looking command was the key to my GitHub conundrum.
With a single GitHub account, you have a single .gitconfig file. This is usually located in your home directory. It defines things like your name, email address, and other random git settings. However, if you’re like me and need to juggle multiple GitHub accounts, it’s not quite enough. This is where includeIf comes in. By adding it to my main .gitconfig , I was able to conditionally include other config files based on the current directory. Combined with the core.sshCommand option, this was the perfect fix for my GitHub woes. Here’s how I did it:
(Note: the commands below worked on my WSL setup powered by Ubuntu 20.04. If you’re using macOS or a different Linux distro, you might need to tweak them a bit. And if you’re using plain ol’ Windows, I’m sorry.)
Start by copying your current .gitconfig file, once for each profile you need to create. Since I have work and personal profiles, I made two.
cp ~/.gitconfig ~/.gitconfig-work
cp ~/.gitconfig ~/.gitconfig-personal
You should now have three separate files. Open them all in your editor of choice. If you’re using VS Code (and you’ve added it to your path), you can open them all in one shot like this:
code ~/.gitconfig ~/.gitconfig-work ~/.gitconfig-personal
In your main .gitconfig file, remove any account-specific settings. I left anything that would be the same across both accounts, like my pull.rebase setting. At the top of your cleaned-up file, add the following block once for each profile. Make sure to edit your paths and file names as necessary:
[includeIf "gitdir:~/work/**"]
path = ~/.gitconfig-work
In your .gitconfig-work and .gitconfig-personal files, remove any shared configuration, and edit the user name and email. Add the following snippet to each, making sure to change the key names accordingly.
[core]
sshCommand = ssh -i ~/.ssh/id_rsa -F /dev/null
My final files look like this:
My .gitconfig-work file
Now, close your terminal, open a new one, and test it out! You should be able to push and pull all your repos, as long as they are below the directory that matches your includeIf statement for the account that has access to them.
Doesn’t it feel good to solve a problem?
Have you solved any interesting problems recently? I’d love to hear about them! | https://adevcalledamanda.medium.com/using-unique-ssh-keys-for-multiple-github-accounts-be48d50aad2e | ['Amanda Reilly'] | 2020-11-30 21:48:09.942000+00:00 | ['Software Development', 'Github', 'Git', 'Ssh Keys', 'Multiple Accounts'] |
Deadlines, nightmares and how to make it less painful…. | |how to overcome the nightmare and make it an achieved dream.
When we talk about deadlines, we are talking about a full commitment not only for the IT crew but also for all the other teams in the company(marketing, business, press, etc)
So why is always so difficult to find a fit date to deliver?
When we talk about a fixed released or delivery date we are talking about a scenario where every single team involved in such project is at a confident level to be able to face any difficulties that. might come ahead.
One tiny-big problem on tech, is estimations done by mostly Business and marketing team without involving much of the development team or given second thought to the work in hand that would have to be done to be able to meet such estimations. Hence is part of the life cycle to speed up more than once to meet certain deadlines.
Let’s for instance talk from the marketing side, if we are talking about a new product they have to plan everything around it regarding exposure, newsletter, advertising, planing, consumer reach etc…
When wrong estimations are made, deadlines seem tight, I’ve seen the development Department pushing the extra mile to be able to deliver at least something so the entire marketing investment does not go in vain, just due poor Communication and involvement in the corresponding teams.
But this is something normal.
In a perfect scenario such negotiations should always included someone from the engineering team, that will be capable to give a more realistic estimation and/or more options that could even increase the value and quality of what needs to be done.
Is not witchcraft, is just simple a sharing and communicative culture will solve most of todays problem.
That’s at least how this QA sees it.
Also check out:
Getting QA back in the Game
What’s a QA Architect? | https://medium.com/@maomrtnz/deadlines-nightmare-and-how-to-make-it-less-painful-7d32ad080166 | [] | 2021-02-19 15:20:31.534000+00:00 | ['Development', 'QA', 'Software Development', 'Quality Assurance', 'Software Engineering'] |
New Framework to Keep Smart Contracts from Outsmarting Us | How smart do you need to be to use a Smart Contract? Right now, pretty damn smart; because unless you can go into reading the code in smart contracts to understand what it is they are doing, you are exposed to potential risk! It’s one thing to say ‘do your own research’, and ‘use at your own risk’, but is it reasonable to expect all end users to be able to read code and understand it? I certainly don’t believe that this is fair, or scalable as it creates a risk vector which we have seen time and again exploited in the blockchain world.
I believe Dapps need to have a universal framework that interacts with blockchain operations to more easily reflect what is happening in a way that people can understand. In other words, get the code speaking our language instead of us needing to speak code.
In my last article, Not a People Problem, a Systemic One — The Way Forward for Worker Proposal Integrity in Blockchain, I identified the systemic issues and challenges we face when it comes to managing integrity with people and how they can interact in decentralized autonomous organizations (DAO). Let us consider now the way we humans should be interacting with Dapps.
Look at any blockchain project and you will find a fragmented and dangerous variation in how end users interact with smart contracts via various user interfaces.
The Interface Medium for Advanced Blockchain Smart Contracts
Require a graphical user interface (GUI) which can provide not only a higher value user experience, but also empower people to more easily understand the smart contracts they are interacting with.
Peerplays will enable Dapp developers to utilize a common blockchain focused Dapp browser which will utilize some of the best components in the popularized Scatter multi-chain wallet. In order to facilitate a completely trustworthy ecosystem with a higher degree of security, this browser will communicate only within the Peerplays blockchain P2P encrypted layer.
Utilizing the browser all begins with first creating a Peerplays user which has all necessary objects associated with it, such as IPFS as part of the application bundle. A decentralized namebase would allow Dapps to be associated with usernames as the means of addressing. Upon visit, it’s a request call for the IPFS bundle which provides the Dapp interface for the end user. Depending on the user’s settings, they may then be able to share their bundle as part of the network as well.
Each browser bundle operates as a node within the Peerplays network which all Dapp developers are able to leverage in their deployment. The browser will include service discovery and auto connect to available APIs associated with the Dapp blockchain accounts. Depending on the user settings, they may opt-in to provide these service discovery, API, IPFS storage, and other node operating functions necessary in a decentralized application environment.
Using This Common Framework
All Peerplays services will be able to have interfaces like Explorer, wallet, BookiePro, Bookie Sportsbook, Sweeps, easy5050, RNG, and DEX features made accessible to everyone. Other Dapps and games will have a delivery and viewing mechanism which will surpass the performance and security of the current world-wide-web. This provides the added benefits of decentralized trustworthy infrastructure including such things as gamified operations and identity.
In the end, this will make publishing a ‘Hello World’ Dapp as easy as creating a Peerplays account and publishing the app through the browser in your accounts IPFS address. By lowering the technical barrier to entry and taking the browser based approach that makes the end user part of the network instead of the classic client-server method employed today even in blockchain design, we are able to expand and build a wide array of new services to create an ecosystem that can place the power of this execution environment in the hands of the very same people using it.
This effectively would be the beginnings of Peerplays becoming a new blockchain network within the Internet where gamified smart contracts live and thrive.
Through this we gain a higher level of assuredness in the interactions people make in Dapps thanks to a clear and easy to understand framework which communicates with the end user in a way they can easily visualize. I believe this will help to reduce errors in Dapps, and keep the integrity of the networks using such a framework to the highest standard.
This is the 12th in a series of articles I will be making over the next month. Be sure to subscribe to get notified of future posts to find out where this goes.
Have thoughts on what I shared? Feel free to leave a comment and share!
Originally shared at: https://peakd.com/peerplays/@jonathan.bahai/new-framework-to-keep-smart-contracts-from-outsmarting-us | https://medium.com/@jonathan.bahai/new-framework-to-keep-smart-contracts-from-outsmarting-us-e2d404463899 | ['Jonathan Baha I'] | 2020-05-27 18:53:35.545000+00:00 | ['Peerplays', 'Framework', 'Smart Contracts', 'Dapps', 'Blockchain'] |
Showing Up and Being Seen | There’s a new epidemic, but isn’t exactly what we would think. Instead of a new COVID-like novel virus or zombie apocalypse, this epidemic is a lot softer and less noticeable than the now-infamous coronavirus pandemic.
This new and mysterious epidemic? Disengagement.
As a naturally shy and introverted person, I used to hide away from the world rather than show up as my authentic self. This is a pretty common occurrence for highly sensitive youngsters; I was no different. I wanted to disappear: I couldn’t bear the pain of being seen as myself. This form of disengagement is common, a more common forms of disengagement take the form of apathy, escapism, reliance on the material world, denial of the spiritual, and the unwillingness to choose seemingly anything at all.
At some time or another in our lives we come up against a powerful feeling of wanting to go somewhere else, of wanting to disappear or become invisible. To disengage with our lives because the crush of responsibility is too powerful, the road ahead too hard and uncomfortable. We aren’t engaging in our own lives and find it unbearable to show up as the person we want to be. We would rather not be seen at all rather than risk being seen naked or vulnerable.
So we check out, disengage, and recede into our habits and daily routines rather than dare greatly, or show up at all. We prioritize our momentary distraction and pleasure rather than be uncomfortable and be seen as our authentic selves, which can be extremely difficult especially if it goes against others’ preconceived notions about us.
I recently was struck by the analogy that was used for this kind of disengagement with life in none other than Dante’s Inferno. In this famous Italian poem, there is what is called a vestibule before hell but after the famous “Abandon all hope, ye who enter here” entryway. The inhabitants of this vestibule are the uncommitted, the neutral, those who are out for themselves. In other words: the disengaged.
While these souls are not being overtly punished, they are still being held ransom in the mouth of hell and I think its a particularly interesting place. It says something about our human nature that even in the 14th century people still had issues engaging in their own lives, acting outside the limits of personal comfort or gain.
Brené Brown, shame researcher and author of a brilliant variety of self help books centered around vulnerability, describes disengagement this way:
“There is a particular sort of betrayal that is more insidious and equally corrosive to trust. In fact, this betrayal usually happens long before the other ones. I’m talking about the betrayal of disengagement. Of not caring. Of letting the connection go. Of not being willing to devote time and effort to the relationship.” Brené Brown, Daring Greatly
While she is talking about disengagement in personal relationships, I think this concept extends far past the confines of two people, but into our relationships with our own lives.
The antidote to disengagement? Showing up and being seen. Or in other words: vulnerability.
Showing up and being seen sounds like it should be pretty self-explanatory but it really isn’t. It goes way beyond just physically showing up somewhere (but that is a start). Showing Up and Being Seen is a metaphor of sorts for putting yourself out there, daring greatly, having confidence in yourself and your ideas, engaging in your own life, and actively being in charge of yourself and the choices you make. It requires awareness. It doesn’t come easy, and it takes a lot of practice. Its messy business. In essence, it it being vulnerable and having the courage to bear your soul in the act of being present.
If showing up is the act of vulnerability, being seen is the reception. This is the hardest part, because sometimes it requires accepting rejection. Allowing yourself to be seen, flaws and all, is a very hard thing. Vulnerability is one of the most difficult things to face in this modern world because everyone can voice their opinion online-oftentimes with little regard for a person’s feelings. Being seen requires a hefty serving of humility, and a strong sense of self-worth. To quote the ever-wise Brené Brown again:
“You either walk inside your story and own it or you stand outside your story and hustle for your worthiness.” Brené Brown
What happens when we have the courage to show up and be seen?
Authenticity! When we have the courage to be vulnerable, we will time and time again be rewarded with the feeling of alignment with our own truth. When we have the courage to engage in our own lives rather than stand on the bylines and watch it pass by we give ourself the gift of our own worthiness. Simply by showing up and being seen exactly as we are, we have dared greatly.
If we never engage in our own lives, we will never know the wonder and joy of the journey. If we don’t have the courage to show up and be authentic, we will never know what could have happened. We could never know the greatness, the wonderful change, the epic transformation our lives if we had engaged in our own messiness, or own faultiness, our imperfection.
To quote the brilliant Brené Brown YET again:
“I want to be in the arena. I want to be brave with my life. And when we make the choice to dare greatly, we sign up to get our asses kicked. We can choose courage or we can choose comfort, but we can’t have both. Not at the same time.” Brené Brown
Don’t be afraid of failing, shame, falling short, or what others think. In the end, they are not important. What is important is your own growth, your engagement in your life, and the relationships you make along the way.
JJC
🌝
If you enjoyed this article, consider giving it a like, following the blog and subsequent socials, and subscribing to the Imperfection Freak Newsletter. | https://medium.com/@imperfection-freak/showing-up-and-being-seen-51d4a3ee1816 | ['Imperfection Freak'] | 2020-11-16 01:36:09.603000+00:00 | ['Vulnerability', 'Authenticity', 'Disengagement', 'Engagement', 'Lifestyle'] |
Kamala Harris Just Broke an American Glass Ceiling | Photo by Gayatri Malhotra on Unsplash
On November 7, 2020, a crucial event in the course of American history occurred. The presidential and vice presidential elects were finally announced. And many of us were brought to tears of relief and hope for what it means for the future of our country. Kamala Harris just broke an American glass ceiling.
Perhaps the most inspiring event following this historical announcement was the speech given by Kamala Harris that very evening. Her speech had a message that inspired girls and women of all backgrounds, socioeconomic standing, and races.
Besides being one of the Best Female Speakers at the 2020 Democratic Convention earlier this year, Kamala Harris is going to do so much more to inspire women across the globe. And we are here for it.
When Will She Get Into Office?
Many of us wish that the second the presidential elects were selected that they could get right to work. But we still need to wait a couple of months before the transition of power occurs. By January 20th, 2021, we’re going to see them move into office.
It’s been a long time coming. But things are finally starting to look up.
Background on Kamala Harris
All Americans deserve to have access to quality, affordable health care. Tune in now to hear Joe Biden’s plan to protect and expand the Affordable Care Act in a Biden-Harris administration. https://t.co/I8b8ecZD5m
- Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) November 10, 2020
Born in Oakland, California, Kamala Harris is the daughter of Afro-Jamaican and Indian Tamil parents. So on top of being the first woman to be in office, she’s going to be the first woman of colour to have such a high rank in the US. If that isn’t progress, what is?
She is going to be the first African American, the first Asian American, the first Carribean American, the first woman to ever be vice president of the United States of America. On January 20th, 2021, she will be the most powerful a woman has ever been in America.
We’re certainly behind on the times because other countries have elected women to be in power. But with the exception of President Obama, the US has mostly stuck to electing white men as their presidents and vice presidents despite the fact that ANY American is allowed to run and win.
For many years, discrimination against the Black Female as been horrific and completely disrespectful. The sickness of racism has even reared its ugly head this year in 2020 with the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. So to see Kamala Harris reach the heights that she is at is so important for our country and so empowering to all of us in the name of progress.
Her Career in Politics
I want to speak directly to the Black women in our country. Thank you. You are too often overlooked, and yet are asked time and again to step up and be the backbone of our democracy. We could not have done this without you.
- Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) November 9, 2020
While Kamala Harris is now coming to the global stage and the VP of the US, she’s been making significant waves to empower minorities, immigrants, and females for years. For instance, in 2016 when she became the first South Asian and second African American to be elected to the senate, she advocated for the following things:
She also advocated for women’s bodies and critically questioned the actions that the president was taking for those four years. All of which made her widely recognized and adored for her empowering stance and refusal to take crap from misogynist patriarchal power.
She was also running for president but unfortunately ended her running in 2019. On the bright side, former VP to President Obama, Joe Biden, chose her as his running mate in August 2020. And we can’t wait to see how the world starts to heal and become gradually sane once she takes power.
If you’re interested in more ways women are improving the world, check out our article on how Empowered Woman Rukmini Das Bakes Cakes for BLM. | https://medium.com/lizfelifestyle/kamala-harris-just-broke-an-american-glass-ceiling-1f151ff472c1 | ['Liz Fe Lifestyle Team'] | 2020-11-12 16:43:34.336000+00:00 | ['Glass Ceiling', 'Democratic Party', 'Joe Biden', 'Kamala Harris', 'Democracy'] |
Designing for Accessibility: Shortening the Learning Curve. (part three: writing good alt-text) | Let’s continue with the example above. To ensure that all readers could benefit from my use of the image, I chose to include the following alternative text: “A seated person operates an Apple laptop computer by using the trackpad.”
To arrive at that copy, I first needed to make a few decisions. And since not all images are created equally, you’ll also need a way to determine the best copy for any given instance.
Use this simple matrix when determining how and when to use alternative text in your content
QUESTION 1: Should this particular image have alternative text?
As important as alternative text is to ensuring blind users have equal access to your content, not all images should use them.
Generally speaking, you should provide an alternative text with all non-decorative image files. These can include icons, graphics, illustrations, photographs, charts, and memes.
QUESTION 2: Is this a decorative image?
For many people, identifying decorative images seems tricky. To uncomplicate things, just ask yourself this question: “If the image were removed, would the user relying on the screen reading devise miss any important information?”
If removing the image diminishes the experience of the non-sighted user in any way, then it requires alternative text. If removing the image makes no difference to the experience, then you can skip it.
NOTE: To avoid the previously mentioned awkwardness of the screen reading devise announcing “Image” when there is no alternative text included, you should instead provide an empty alt element to all decorative images. Use this simple code snippet: (alt=’’ ”). This will ensure that the screen reading device will completely skip any mention of the image.
You can learn more about identifying decorative images by visiting the following link from the W3C: https://www.w3.org/WAI/tutorials/images/decorative/
QUESTION 3: How would I explain this image to a friend?
For optimal impact, write the alternative text copy as if you were sitting with someone and personally describing the content they can’t see. To return to our earlier example, simply describing the image as “person with computer” would technically be accurate, but it wouldn’t be very friendly, nor would it be fully descriptive. Including in the description that the person is seated, working on a laptop, and operating the trackpad, each adds context and specificity to the description.
Pro tip: Use this veriation of the golden rule. Write alternative text copy the way you’d want it read to you.
QUESTION 4: Does the image contain data?
If you’re describing a chart, a graph, or a data table, it’s imperative that you mention the important details that would otherwise only be perceived visually. This might include things like the X/Y axis labels of a graph, the titles of table headers, or the key statistics from the pie chart.
While there’s no way you can include all the details from a complex data visualization, you can highlight the main takeaways. Here, again the golden rule comes into play.
REMINDER: Alternative text is not an SEO-play
A quick word of caution. Don’t mistake alternative text as an opportunity to keyword-stuff.
It’s very common for SEO teams and marketing managers to push for this. And understandably so. Alternative text is invisible to most users but read by all search engine spiders. Many people see that as an easy way to add keywords to their content thereby upping their chances of receiving a higher page ranking in user’s search results.
If you’re asked to do this, please push back. It’s a horrible experience for your non-sighted users. | https://medium.com/moonraft-musings/designing-for-accessibility-shortening-the-learning-curve-part-three-writing-good-alt-text-c54b8d8ea097 | ['Todd Chambers'] | 2020-12-02 04:31:00.542000+00:00 | ['Design Process', 'Accessibility', 'Experience Design', 'UX', 'Product Design'] |
5 Things to Do After Open Enrollment | Most HR departments have reached the end of the annual open enrollment process; for many HR professionals, this is one of the busiest, most consequential seasons of the year. However, just because the open enrollment period has reached its end, that doesn’t mean HR’s work is through. There are a few important steps for HR departments to “debrief” following open enrollment.
What to Do After Open Enrollment Ends
1) Review the invoice for errors.
If you are using FullHR (ASO) or other full-service Administrative Services Outsourcing, the auditing will be handled for you using an automated Human Resource Information System. The automation connects the actual insurance enrollment directly with the insurance carrier using EDI on the more advanced platforms. Otherwise you will need to invest many of your or your team’s hours once the first invoice from your company’s health insurance carrier comes in; be prompt in checking it for errors. Understand that there almost certainly will be some errors that need to be addressed, unless you have absolutely no staffing or enrollment changes from the previous year. Small invoice errors are just part of the process, and the sooner you address them, the better.
Note: Your 2021 mission should be sourcing a solution to connect your payroll information with your HR and benefits information that automatically links with the insurance carrier and greatly reduces the risk of costly enrollment errors and correctly reports W-2 and 1094/1095 electronically to the IRS. This also can generate compliant forms that are mailed or sent electronically to all employees.
2) Communicate with your employees.
Hopefully, HR has kept the lines of communication open throughout the enrollment period, educating employees on how to use their benefits. Don’t stop now. Remind employees to check their first paycheck or invoice promptly and come to you if there are any questions. Also, get on the schedule of your licensed insurance partner to provide education for employees throughout the year about how they can maximize their benefits and get the most out of their insurance. This mitigates liability for your organization and insulates your job role from disseminating incorrect information in an industry where compliance and rules are certain to be quickly changing with a new federal administration.
3) Send out an employee survey.
Don’t delay in requesting that your Administrative Service Outsourced team host a survey soliciting employee feedback; ask them for their thoughts on the open enrollment process now, while it’s still fresh on their minds. Ask whether they felt like all of the options were made clear to them, whether they felt like HR was accessible to answer any questions, whether they had sufficient time to enroll, etc. Were employees able to easily schedule a one-on-one appointment with a licensed professional, were the online educational videos during enrollment up to date, and were the hours for a question-and-answer session adequate? Was the licensed professional enroller friendly and knowledgeable? This feedback can be valuable as you seek to make next year’s open enrollment run even more smoothly. And it helps employees know that their voice is valued.
4) Schedule a time to sit down with your broker.
If you work with an HR benefits broker to help you navigate the open enrollment season, it’s a great idea to touch base with them after the fact. Discuss aspects of open enrollment that you think worked well, as well as any aspect that you’d like to go better next year. Together, you and your broker may also compare enrollment in the new plans versus enrollment in previous plans.
5) Consider outsourcing HR needs.
And what about HR departments that don’t have a dedicated broker? The immediate aftermath of open enrollment is a good time to think critically about some of the time-intensive tasks that are on your plate, including the potentially laborious process of auditing your invoices. If you don’t have a trusted HR partner to help you bear some of the burden and run your department more efficiently, now’s as good a time as any to look for one.
If you’re looking for a trusted partner to help broker your benefits, or if you have any specific questions about what to do in the season following open enrollment, we welcome you to contact the team at FullHR at any time.
A great partner with access to excellent integrated administrative tools will help you save money using the EDI directly with carriers while also preventing enrollment errors and saving time during and after enrollment. Partnering with a pro could provide enhanced communication throughout the year with current employees and new hires by offering continuity of information while mitigating your organization’s liability and allowing you to focus on business during this upcoming year. | https://medium.com/@fullhr/5-things-to-do-after-open-enrollment-d6a6a27ca2b1 | ['Gregg Taylor'] | 2020-12-15 20:30:55.321000+00:00 | ['Open Enrollment', 'Business Strategy', 'Human Resources', 'Business', 'Human Resource Management'] |
© @FULL BOOK © PDF ‘’Chainsaw Man, Vol. 2 (2)’’ [pdf books free] | [pdf Read Online] Chainsaw Man, Vol. 2 (2) ®Full Book [E-pub]
================๑۩๑================
Supporting format: PDF, EPUB, Kindle, Audio, MOBI, HTML, RTF, TXT, etc.
Supporting : PC, Android, Apple, Ipad, Iphone, etc.
Product details
Publisher : VIZ Media LLC (December 1, 2020)
VIZ Media LLC (December 1, 2020) Language: : English
English Paperback : 192 pages
192 pages ISBN-10 : 1974709949
1974709949 ISBN-13 : 978–1974709946
978–1974709946 Item Weight : 6 ounces
6 ounces Dimensions : 5 x 0.6 x 7.5 inches
Broke young man + chainsaw dog demon = Chainsaw Man!
Denji’s a poor young man who’ll do anything for money, even hunting down Devils with his pet devil-dog Pochita. But his life gets turned upside down when he’s betrayed by someone he trusts. Now with the power of a Devil inside him, Denji’s become a whole new man — Chainsaw Man!
In order to achieve the greatest goal in human history — to touch a boob — Denji will risk everything in a fight against the dangerous Bat Devil. But will getting what he wants actually make him happy…
Letting go is not a process that comes naturally to us. In a world that teaches us to cling to what we love at all costs, there is an undeniable art to moving on — and it’s one that we are constantly relearning. In this series of honest and poignant essays, Heidi Priebe explores the harsh reality of what it means to let go of the people and situations we love most — often before we are ready to — and how to embrace what comes next.
You can read more books Ready Player Two: A Novel without learning how to speed read.
In this post, I’m going to show you how to read more books Ready Player Two: A Novel in less time.
We’re going to cover the following topics:
What is the average reading speed?
How do I test my reading speed?
How long does it take to read Ready Player Two: A Novel 100 pages?
How long does it take to read Ready Player Two: A Novel 200 pages?
How long does it take to read Ready Player Two: A Novel 300 pages?
What you need to know before reading Ready Player Two: A Novel a book
4 steps to reading a 240-page book Ready Player Two: A Novel in two hours
Why you should pace your reading Ready Player Two: A Novel
When not to read this Ready Player Two: A Novel way
Alright, happy reading!
>>>Happy Reading and Enjoy<<<
Categories : Arts & Photography, Business & Investing, Comics & Graphic Novels, Computers & Internet, Entertainment, Health, History, Garden, Law, Literature, Science, Sports, Action & Adventure, Bios & History, Children’s Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Horror, Literary Fiction, Mystery & Thriller, Non-Fiction, Romance, Science Fiction, Young Adult, Accounting, Career, Economics, Finance, IT, Language, Engineering, Marketing.
Tag the PDF
- Ready Player Two: A Novel Ebook PDF
- Ready Player Two: A Novel PDF Download
- Ready Player Two: A Novel EPUB
- Ready Player Two: A Novel EBOOK
- Ready Player Two: A Novel PDF Online
- Ready Player Two: A Novel E-BOOK Online
- Ready Player Two: A Novel PDF Free
- Ready Player Two: A Novel ebook library
- Ready Player Two: A Novel pdf document
- Ready Player Two: A Novel pdf reader
- Ready Player Two: A Novel ebook creator
- Ready Player Two: A Novel ebook deals
- Ready Player Two: A Novel ebook kindle
- Ebook PDF Ready Player Two: A Novel
- PDF Download Ready Player Two: A Novel
- EPUB Ready Player Two: A Novel
- EBOOK Ready Player Two: A Novel
- PDF Online Ready Player Two: A Novel
- E-BOOK Online Ready Player Two: A Novel
- PDF Free Ready Player Two: A Novel
- ebook library Ready Player Two: A Novel
- pdf document Ready Player Two: A Novel
- pdf reader Ready Player Two: A Novel
- ebook creator Ready Player Two: A Novel
- ebook deals Ready Player Two: A Novel
- ebook kindle Ready Player Two: A Novel
Download free ebooks Ready Player Two: A Novel — Ready Player Two: A Novel The best ebook collection in english — Free download Ready Player Two: A Novel — Ready Player Two: A Novel Publish books — Ready Player Two: A Novel Free ebooks for all devices — free pdf books Ready Player Two: A Novel — Ready Player Two: A Novel free pdf books bestsellers — Ready Player Two: A Novel pdf books world — Ready Player Two: A Novel free online books download — best books pdf download Ready Player Two: A Novel — google drive pdf books Ready Player Two: A Novel — Ready Player Two: A Novel many books — Ready Player Two: A Novel free ebooks — free ebook download pdf Ready Player Two: A Novel — Ready Player Two: A Novel businessman book pdf — Ready Player Two: A Novel free books — Ready Player Two: A Novel books list — google book Ready Player Two: A Novel — Ready Player Two: A Novel famous books — books to read Ready Player Two: A Novel — Ready Player Two: A Novel books online — Ready Player Two: A Novel book clipart — Ready Player Two: A Novel history of books — Ready Player Two: A Novel ebooks textbooks — ebooks library Ready Player Two: A Novel — ebook online Ready Player Two: A Novel — free ebooks pdf Ready Player Two: A Novel — ebook reader Ready Player Two: A Novel — ebook login Ready Player Two: A Novel — free ebook download Ready Player Two: A Novel — download free ebooks Ready Player Two: A Novel illegal — Ready Player Two: A Novel free novels pdf download — Ready Player Two: A Novel ebook library free download — Ready Player Two: A Novel pdf reader — Ready Player Two: A Novel pdf file — Ready Player Two: A Novel pdf download — Ready Player Two: A Novel pdf free — Ready Player Two: A Novel pdf reader download
Supporting format: Ready Player Two: A Novel PDF, Ready Player Two: A Novel EPUB, Ready Player Two: A Novel MOBI, Ready Player Two: A Novel HTML, Ready Player Two: A Novel RTF, Ready Player Two: A Novel TXT, etc.
==================================
Icame to Medium out of frustration. I had read an article in an online “prosumer” magazine that has the air of a serious scientific journal, but which fails to encompass the heart of science — the debate — by disallowing any comments or unsolicited rebuttals/responses to their articles.
Image for post
Photo by Marco Djallo on Unsplash
Image for post
Do you want to publish a book on Medium?
Unfortunately, I had already manifested, through my furiously dancing fingertips, a 2,700 word essay pointing out the ignorance I felt strongly present in the magazine article, only to find there was no way to share it — cue Medium.com.
I was impressed with the response to the article on Medium, which was my first — 26K views, 7K reads, 611 fans, and 500 euros in my pocket to date. And I was even more impressed by the tools that Medium provides an author.
While the interface is as simple as paper, knowing what passages a reader highlights, how many views turn into full reads, how many people follow you after reading something that you write, what their interests are — so that you can see how people coming from different backgrounds engage with your writing — and of course, being able to have detailed responses to your work, are just nothing short of a godsend for an author. And this led me to try publishing a book on Medium.
The book is a big one, nearly 800 pages in paperback format. It’s that big because it is a collection of related writings: a set of meditation practices which are fairly simple, but which require detailed instructions since they are being communicated via text and not one-on-one guidance. However, the practices use an unusual support in place of the breath — which is the more common, but deficient in particular ways, support today. This then necessitates an explanation of the support’s uniqueness, part of which entails detailed quotations from current and ancient writings and related explanations, on this particular meditation support. But these all come from various spiritual traditions, and none of them are framed within our modern mechanistic materialism, thus there is a necessity to explain how things differ from how they are understood today, in order that the reader understand exactly what they are using. So it’s part philosophy, part science, part practice, and part historical documentation.
Why Publish a Book on Medium
You might think this is totally inappropriate for Medium, and there are some shortcomings, but for me the biggest reason to attempt publishing this book here is the potential audience, and the availability that Medium affords me as a writer.
While there are still many physical book readers — myself among them — the option to have a book on a mobile device is just such a no-brainer. And while Ebooks are good for large publishers who can (and do) command a nice bit of change for their product, for a small writer, ebooks don’t offer much of any benefit over what Medium provides. And in fact, the tools that Medium provides, which I mentioned above, are absent from ebooks.
And of course, having an ebook still leaves you searching for an audience.
So the biggest reason for launching a book on Medium has two aspects: availability and readers. Minor writers such as myself just don’t have the ability to make their work available to a very significant audience. My first book, which was self-published, was limited to Amazon’s various country web-stores. Although it enjoyed some limited success — especially for a philosophical work, it was difficult to find outside of Amazon’s universe. With Medium it is different. Anyone can access Medium.com from anywhere on Earth, so my work is widely available — and that was my biggest checkbox. And of course, the potential audience on Medium is not limited to merely members and current readers of Medium, but can be garnered via social media, word of mouth, and friends, all of whom can be directed to the Medium site, with little effort.
There is also the cost and hassle savings of not hosting your own blog, which was another alternative I considered. I still buy the domain names and setup email addresses as appropriate, but I no longer see any reason to host a website.
For many years I have maintained a Wordpress site, and that is a chore I don’t have time for. Such small websites have the same security and hacking worries as the biggest names, and it is all on your shoulders. I never realized just how much of a problem it is until I subscribed to a service available to Wordpress sites via a plugin called Wordfence, which not only scanned my server for hacks on a daily basis, but also monitored all traffic in and out. Once that was installed I could sit and watch the dozens of daily automated login attempts by hackers around the world trying to break into my site in order to hijack it into their botnets. If you have a personal website it is very likely part of a botnet, or even part of a crypto-currency mining operation. Sheesh. For a small writer it makes little sense anymore.
How to Publish a Structured Book on MediumAs for the nuts and bolts of doing it, there are three main issues you have to deal with: Medium is structured to publish “stories” of a limited length, so your work has to be forced into that format; Medium does not provide the kind of navigational tools that are available in an ebook; and readers on Medium don’t expect an article to be part of a larger work.
I’m going to take them in reverse order. It has been my experience, so far, that many Medium users don’t notice that the “story” they are reading is actually part of a larger work, even though it is in a “publication” on medium. I frequently receive responses to a carved-out “story” that is part of a larger section of the book where my reader explains to me all the things I should have said, which I have already said in the preceding and successive “stories” to that one in the book publication. This is a bit frustrating — for both the reader and myself, but hey!, Medium rocks at bringing me readers.
A related problem is that readers will see a “story” featured in one section of Medium and jump into it, while a subsequent part of the same section of the book will not be featured at all, or in some other section of Medium. Thus for the audience, continuity is fragmented.
So it is useful that Medium provides the “follow” mechanism for a publication, but it makes it incumbent upon the writer to release material in a sequential order so that the followers, who still might not realize it is a book — especially if they haven’t read the “About” introduction to it — will follow the text in somewhat of a logical order.
And of course, that workaround is only useful as you are publishing the book. Later, when the whole book is available in Medium, the sequential releasing is no longer in effect.
Given this problem, I have started to make use of the “hidden” story attribute that you can set on and off as needed in order to make sequences of articles only accessible in order, by only allowing the first part of a book section to be publicly announced, for example. The other parts are hyperlinked to the earlier ones.
The downside to that is that such unlisted stories are unavailable for generating income through the Members program of Medium.
Medium does provide a publication header on each story, that a reader can tap to get to the homepage of the publication, but I found it useful to add a standard footer image to each article as well, that provides the same function, as it is more useful — in my opinion — for the reader, after reading an article that they enjoyed, to be able to jump up to the homepage of the publication, rather than having to scroll up to the header.
When I find that I have to break a section of the book down into smaller “stories,” I add a notification below the main image so that the reader knows the “story” is part of a “sequence” of stories. I use the word “sequence” because “series” is a Medium term for a different kind of open-ended series, and “collection” does not have the same ordered sense.
I was not happy though that the only way to add this notification was either as a title/subtitle or as standard text — even with bolding and italicization available. I wanted something that was clearly setoff from my text in a different typeface, but not overshadowing it in any way either. I realized that what I wanted was a font size and style much like that of the attribution found underneath images on Medium.
My solution was to do exactly that, only with a non-visible and diminutive image. I found a 1-pixel transparent gif and I place that where I want the notification to appear. Then I place the hyperlinked text of the notification, usually linking back to the table of contents (I’ll explain shortly) for that sequence of articles, in the attribution area of the image. Voila!
The line “Do you want to publish a book on Medium?” at the top of this story, under the main image, is an example of what it looks like, although I didn’t place a link on it.
Navigation was another problem. Each publication has a navigation bar that appears just below the header of the publication’s homepage — and only there — and this is limited to a single level of story or featured stories pages.
Thus, your menu structure is normally restricted to just a top-level list of sections or groupings, each of which can only have a single story, or a list of stories without any deeper structure — you can only have a collection of stories that share a tag, a single story, or a page of featured stories. That wasn’t going to work for me, and for a while I was stymied about how to have the kind of complex hierarchy that I needed.
The first thing I did was to reproduce the publication’s navigation bar near the top of every story page in the book. I place it just above the start of the text, underneath the title. I did this because my book has a structural flow, and not just a collection of articles. Being able to move back-and-forth between sections makes sense for the kind of book I am publishing, where the reader may want to refer to another part of the text for needed information.
As an added bonus, the navigation bar I created adds a degree of empty space between the title and the body of text which in my opinion looks nicer.
I place the navigation bar in the same way I discussed above, by placing a 1 pixel transparent gif image at the location, and adding my hyperlinked top-level menu sections in the image’s attribution line. This is what the secondary navigation menu for my book looks like.ABOUT | PROEM | PRELIMINARIES | PRACTICES | INSIGHTS | APHORISMS | BACK MATTER
The one problem I was confronted with was that the long urls of each story do not always work in the apps. (I know not why) Instead, you have to use a short url, consisting of only the unique identifier of each article, if you want to create a “table of contents” to directly link to stories. Here is how I do this:
I create a story without tags and no images that will serve as a table of contents for a subsection of the book. The title is the section name, or name of the sequence of “stories” that I have cut a long section of text into. The subtitle is just “Table of Contents.” You can then add hyperlinked titles and optional short descriptions to construct your table of contents.
Note that this “story” should be unlisted so that it doesn’t appear as a story on your profile, and untagged so that it doesn’t show up in any kind of search, in case you decide to have it listed. Of course, your needs will dictate how you decide to do this. There is nothing wrong with having a TOC discoverable in a search, and available for payment under the Medium Partner program.
For example, the “About” story of Tranquillity’s Secret is accessible with this url:
To find the identifier for a story, you look at its url in a browser and copy the identifier, which is a sequence of 12 numbers and letters (a hexadecimal number). When I do this in Safari on my laptop, the url for the “About” story looks like this:
Note the bolded identifier at the end of the url — this is the number you want to append on the short form url, as I did in my example.
A story’s url can take on different forms, so it is not always structured as in the previous example. This is what a friend’s link to the About story looks like:
Note that the story identifier appears just before the question mark “?” appearing in the link. I’ve put it in bold again in the example above. The other longer string of numbers and letters at the end of the url is the bypass token for Medium’s paywall. As an aside, I had to make the About eligible for payment under the Partners program in order for a “friend’s link” to be created.
When you are editing a story, even before publishing it, there is a slightly different url, which looks like this:
Note again that the unique identifier is there just before the “/edit.” Note also, that you can just copy this initial url and truncate that suffix off of it to obtain the short url form directly.
However, you can’t link an unlisted story into the main Navigation bar of a publication, so you first have to create the TOC story, setting it as unlisted, and publish it. This way neither your followers, nor anyone else on Medium will receive a notification/email about its publication, then list it again and tie it into the Navigation bar. Once you’ve done that you can — and probably should — unlist it a final time. It will still be accessible when clicked on the navigation bar.
The final piece of the navigation puzzle is to use another hyperlinked attribution line (as in the above examples) to the next article in sequence within the book at the end of the article. I do this before any footnotes, above the footer for the publication. Here is what it looks like:
Continue on to What is Meditation? 👉The end result of applying these methods is a good usability case for publishing a book on Medium.
In the apps, tapping on any one of these hyperlinks results in a quick overwrite of the present page. Returning to the previous page, in effect, backtracking through your browsing history, is built-in to the Medium apps. Simply tap on the left angle bracket in the top left corner of your display. This will return you to the page you came from. Continuing to tap on this icon will continue to backtrack to previous pages.
In the browser, the effect of clicking on one of the hyperlinks is different — a new browser page for each story opens. It’s not as friction-free as the mobile apps are, but I haven’t found a solution for this yet. You can set the browsers default behavior to opening a new tab, instead of a new window, but you still end up with a lot of tabs or windows, without the ability to retrace your progress through the book in an automated way. Instead, you have to click on the tab or window for the previous story or menu.
Finally, the medium apps allow readers to bookmark a story, and even archive it for later use, both of which are useful in reading your publication as a book.
Closing Thoughts
So far the results of this have been beyond anything I thought would happen. The publication has garnered 50 followers very quickly, and a significantly higher number of visitors each day. It is, in fact, now taking off, as more readers run across it.
But this brings up the last issue with publishing a book such as this on Medium: you are limited to only a certain number of stories published each day. If you exceed that limit — which I did one day trying to gain momentum in the process of publishing the book — you get an error message that your account is locked. Presumably, Medium has that as a protection for spamming.
The only solution to this is to use the scheduling function for publishing your books “stories,” so that the stories are published in an orderly fashion without exceeding the Medium imposed limit.
That’s It so far. If you have any questions, feel free to ask!. | https://medium.com/@vsdvdsbsdb1/full-book-pdf-chainsaw-man-vol-2-2-pdf-books-free-9ffe34c53d03 | [] | 2020-12-26 04:53:41.293000+00:00 | ['Books', 'Book Review'] |
Frank A. Brownell: The Father of The Modern Camera | Nowadays, it’s less common than it was twenty years ago for someone to walk into a shop and buy a dedicated camera. A device designed solely to capture images. Unless you’re a professional photographer, or at least an aspiring amateur photographer, the odds are that the camera on your mobile phone is more than enough to quench your photographic inclinations. But the digital cameras on our cell phones are based in many ways on the earlier digital cameras that are still sold separately, and those earlier digital cameras are based on the roll film, analogue cameras that our families still bought in the 80’s, 90’s, and decreasingly in the early 2000’s. But what were the roll film, analogue cameras that some of us still remember based on? I remember unto you, Frank A. Brownell. The father of the modern camera.
My Interest in Frank Brownell comes from the same place I first learnt of him. Which is to say it comes from a place of some uncertainty. Quite a while ago I had a dream about a man, in a shirt between blue and green, asking many different questions, seeking knowledge about something. Then I heard a voice mentioning a name with the word brown in it. Browning, Brown, Brownell, I’m not entirely certain. Clarity is not a consistent factor in all dreams. But the voice said that he was to the camera as Turing was to the computer.
In the modern age, people tend to dismiss their dreams more commonly than not. This is not without good reason. Many dreams are, to my eternal gratitude, meant to be dismissed. But I happen to believe that some are not. So the first thing I did upon waking up was hit the search engines. My first search was for the “Browning Camera”. I was half expecting results for the Browning firearms, but no. The results came up with Frank Brownell. A renowned camera designer and inventor, he was reportedly a major contributor to the design and invention of “The Kodak #1”, the first camera ever made by the storied Kodak company.
He designed other cameras for Kodak. The acclaimed and economic “Brownie” camera series released by Kodak began with one of his most celebrated inventions. And though it has been claimed with good reason that the “Brownie” moniker was a reference to the mythological domestic spirits of folklore, it is arguable that these cameras take their name from their inventor. Palmer Cox, the cartoonist, had illustrated some of these mythological beings as characters in his work, and his illustrations were frequently used to advertise the Brownie Camera. My favourite explanation for the camera’s name was that it was a combination of the two to some extent. Perhaps originally named for the inventor, then later associated with the popular illustrated characters to boost sales. The Brownie is remembered for being the first camera widely available to average working men. Before that, cameras’ high production costs restricted their purchase to professional photographers or wealthy amateurs.
However, Brownell’s contribution to the modern cameras we know today does not end with the very long running “Brownie series”, which reportedly only stopped in the 80’s. Brownell also invented the “Folding Pocket Kodak”. This was the first folding camera to utilise roll film. He also later designed Kodak’s first “daylight-loading” camera, allowing photographers to load films outside of darkened rooms. Believe it or not, Brownell did not begin his career as a designer or inventor of cameras, or even as a photographer. Brownell was originally a rather excellent cabinet maker. His skills in cabinet making brought him into contact with the production of box cameras, and the rest, as they say, is history. But just like this history doesn’t start with cameras, it does not end with them. After a long and successful career with Kodak, Brownell went to on to work in motor production, establishing the F. A. Brownell Motor Co. He further went on to attain the Vice Presidency of the East Side Savings Bank, before retiring at the age of 78.
Aside from being a designer, inventor, and businessman of some renown, Brownell is also described as social visionary because he offered his employees financial incentives to boost productivity. He apparently also provided them with a hospital and a library and meals on company property. In that regard, he was certainly ahead of his time. The hospital in particular is arguably a much earlier form of health insurance!
I don’t know, if Brownell is to the camera what Turing is to the computer. I don’t know if that voice I heard was a voice of authoritative truth from the beyond, or a statement of opinion someone had voiced, or even just thought in time. I don’t even know if the word I heard was “Browning” or “Brownell”. It may even have been the “Brownie Camera”, which sounds close enough for the first term in my online search. “Browning Camera”. I do not even know if the man in the blue/green shirt was meant to be Brownell, or me, or someone else.
What I do know is that photography, as we know it today, is heavily influenced by the work of Frank A. Brownell. We owe much of the modern camera to said work. I do know that looking him up online I found him mentioned, but a lot less than he should be. I do know that I had no idea who he was before I dreamt of him. These things that I know had me wondering if the dream came to me for a reason. For a purpose. Perhaps I was meant to be one of a few to help keep his memory alive. Until people remember him again and he gets his own Wikipedia page, at least. Hopefully a proper one and not a stub. Though at this point, even a stub would be a step forward, for the man described as “possibly the most influential camera designer of all time.” | https://abdallahalalfy.medium.com/frank-a-brownell-the-father-of-the-modern-camera-2ac965e63a20 | ['Abdallah Al Alfy'] | 2020-10-05 22:34:02.618000+00:00 | ['History Of Technology', 'History Of Culture', 'History', 'History Of Science', 'Photography'] |
Labour should abstain on the Brexit vote | There was much confusion over Labour’s recent abstention on the Covid tiers. As the Labour supporter, former Manchester United player and current Sky Sports pundit Garry Neville put it: “You take a position, you don’t abstain.”
And I agree, we shouldn’t have abstained as the majority of the public has a settled opinion on public health measures to tackle the pandemic. If anything, those polled want them to go further. Instead, Labour should have pursued a campaign in advance of the vote to extract something for our vote, for example on statutory sick pay, to explain it’s objections if it couldn’t vote for them.
But it is in this light that I think the best position Labour could take on the looming Brexit deal should be abstention. This might sound contradictory, but unlike the Covid regulations, Brexit is more divisive an issue. All the arguments for voting for a deal seem terrible.
The argument that voting for any deal that emerges is based on an assumption of winning back “Red Wall” voters worries me that our electoral strategy is not well focused. Although we need to of course win back voters in the North, we also need to win back voters in Scotland.
The minor gains made with Brexit supporting voters in the north of England could be nullified by the impact of SNP messaging that Labour has “voted with the Tories” on a deal that hurts Scotland. And they would be armed with an array of information to support their attacks.
Although I’m not opposed to a free vote for Labour MPs there is an obvious risk to a “New Leadership” looking like the old one by using this tactic. I am also not opposed to Labour voting against this terrible deal. But I accept that it would be politically difficult to navigate through a Shadow Cabinet that has MPs who want to vote for it as they represent areas that voted to leave the EU.
As voting down any deal that comes out of this deal does risk alienating some Brexit supporting voters it wishes to appeal to. However, I would worry more about alienating those people who will be hit hardest by either outcome of these negotiations.
Furthermore, why would we assume that those who lived in the North and Midlands in 2016 (or even 2019) and voted for Brexit will be exactly the same in 2024? Why would we further assume that those living in these locations and who risk seeing their jobs and local economies impacted by any deal thank Labour for voting for one?
Some of the youngest voters at the next election will have only been 10 years old in 2016. In fact, Polling suggests that there is no huge desire for Labour to show some act of geneflection on it’s previous Brexit position.
The next argument tends to be around framing this vote as a binary choice between Johnson’s Deal or No Deal. It’s how it’ll likely be framed by the government. However, that is not how parliament works. Abstention means you are not in support for or against a motion.
Abstaining therefore doesn’t mean we are by default voting for Johnson’s deal no more than we are voting for No Deal. Otherwise abstaining these past few months on certain votes would imply Labour is in support of no Covid restrictions at all and doesn’t want to “protect British troops”.
The alternative outcome to voting for this deal is for the 80 seat majority government to decide, not the Opposition. Starmer would be right today as he was in 2018 to say: “no government has the right to plunge this country into chaos because of its own failure”.
The government can go cap in hand back to the EU for a humiliating extension or amend it’s deal and drop it’s self imposed red lines, just as much as it can ignore them and go for a No Deal. They are the government.
Forgetting this just let’s them off the hook and if it is carried with Labour votes then it allows Tory Brexiteers voting against to permeate a “Liberal establishment stitch up” myth afterwards.
Ignoring the obvious risk of Labour just looking disingenuous. As you can’t position yourself on one side being in favour of a remain/”soft Brexit” outcome, and then reverse ferret just 12 months later being in favour of a “hard Brexit”. We could end up being the guarantor of the maintenance of Johnson’s deal if the likes of the ERG look to destabilise any compromises struck on dynamic alignment.
It doesn’t take much to imagine the likes of Farage and the ERG claiming BINO as the reason for the economic fallout from any deal. Therefore, by accepting this binary framing, Labour falls into the far greater trap, that we rubber stamp the economic consequences of whatever is brought back from Brussels. Plus continuing a constitutional debate over sovereignty. As we’ve seen in Scotland, this isn’t politically fertile ground for Labour.
In contrast, the case for abstaining is clear and honest. The government has a mandate for delivering some form of Brexit. But it doesn’t have a mandate for any form of Brexit. It lost that right when it failed to set out clearly what that future trading relationship would be prior to the election and saying there was “absolutely zero” chance of No Deal.
Labour may be opposed to a No Deal, but it hasn’t ever been in favour of a bad deal. Especially if as Keir Starmer has pointed out it’s a “very, very bad” deal and would be “terrible for working people”. And if there is a deal it’ll likely to be due to a huge u-turn dressed up as success as we saw with the Withdrawal Agreement — and Labour support just helps let the Tories off the hook again.
Whatever the outcome of these negotiations it should be clear that this is a Tory Brexit. Labour should be making the case for a Labour Brexit and how a closer relationship with the EU is better than the new status quo.
If Labour wins the next election it is unimaginable that any deal agreed this week will not be renegotiated by a future Labour government. Labour’s Brexit will be one at least closer to an EFTA position given Keir Starmer’s support for Freedom of Movement.
The benefit is that it will be a more economically credible manifesto than anything the Tories offer. Yes, there is a risk by not voting for a deal that Labour appears to still have been opposed to any Brexit outcome. However, that’s why Labour should start to frame its future narrative about an inclusive recovery and going for growth. Something that’ll be harder to do if it’s endorsed this deal.
Better to reframe this debate than accept Johnson’s likely frame of his deal versus no deal. Instead, frame it as an incompetent deal that makes Britain far more weaker, poorer and exposed than ever before. Contrasted with Labour’s priorities that any trade deal should be based on prosperity, security and strength.
Yes, some voters may view abstention on this vote as Gary Neville did. But on such a divisive issue “taking a position” on either side, like Labour did in 2019, is the worst position to be in. As sometimes, it’s better to annoy everyone a little, than just one side a lot. That way Labour can keep a wider audience to hear our offer. | https://medium.com/@mrjemills/labour-should-abstain-on-the-brexit-vote-cb7a492b6ad7 | ['James Mills'] | 2020-12-24 10:43:18.280000+00:00 | ['Brexit', 'Abstain', 'No Deal', 'Labour', 'Eu'] |
What’s Happening in South Africa | During the Plug and Play Summer Summit in Silicon Valley, we had a special guest from South Africa, Rhenier de Beer, Head of Innovation at Motus Group. Motus is one of the biggest automotive groups in South Africa with businesses in Import and Distribution, Retail and Rental, Motor-Related Financial Services, and Aftermarket Parts.
After the Summit, Karen Airola and I from Plug and Play sat down with Rhenier to discuss what’s happening on the other side of the world and why South African corporations are flying over 15 hours to Silicon Valley.
Here are some highlights and thoughts of our conversations.
1. Digitalization is key
The country can easily be updated by using all things digital, ranging from e-payment and e-commerce to digital claim processing in insurance. The successful IPO of Jumia, an e-commerce startup founded in 2012, validates how digitalization can go a long way in South Africa. More and more South Africa corporates are coming to the Silicon Valley to find digitalization models or solutions.
2. Transportation is a constant headache.
Less than 5% of the people in South Africa own a car. Uber is an expensive option. Most lower working class people go with the Minibus, which is a vehicle you literally need to jump on at a chaotic crossroad and jump out in two seconds when the car stops for your destination.
This is what a Minibus looks like in South Africa
Minibuses like this don’t follow traffic rules. This does not mean simply driving through red lights, it means going in the opposite way on a freeway! With wild violations of traffic rules, car crashes are taking place at a rate that is out of our imagination. That leaves lots of room for financial services companies to create more technology enablers to record and prevent car crashes. For example, Rhenier loves Owl Camera, a Silicon Valley startup that provides real-time video protection for people, cars & trucks. Any technology solution like Owl Camera that can provide value-added products for the local South Africa market will have strong potential to thrive.
3. Very little local innovation
Big corporations are doing innovation internally with R&D. Economic conditions are uncertain after the country’s political election, and people are afraid to invest money to build something new and unknown. Limited mentorship network is another hurdle for local startup innovation because people have very little clue about how to build a game-changing tech company. | https://medium.com/@siqi_73141/whats-happening-in-south-africa-e34468526365 | ['Siqi Lin'] | 2019-06-17 20:47:45.489000+00:00 | ['Innovation', 'Silicon Valley', 'Startups', 'Technology', 'South Africa'] |
Git Reflog | Someone I know, *wink* *wink* recently did something that I’m not sure I can fully even describe. It looked a lot like this:
She submitted a merge request (MR)to merge development into the master branch. No big deal; she’d done this a million times. In this case, her MR included commits from other authors. Because they could all be reasonably merged into master, she went forward with the MR.
Then the email notifcation came in:
Merge Request !6 can no longer be merged due to conflict.
Okay, it’s cool. She’d learned how to rebase branches and was finally feeling pretty confident in what was going on. The development branch was off by two commits; no problem.
From the development branch, she performed the following commands:
git fetch , git rebase origin/master , git push -f
So, I mean, it’s very possible she missed a warning about doing a git pull . But to her defense, there was always some kind of error for her while doing a rebase, hence the -f (which she’s decided to omit the first time from now on).
She went back to the MR and saw that there were no errors. “Yes! She thought. I’ve finally got a handle on this rebase thing.” Right before the merge, however, she noticed that the MR had gone from 4 changes to 1 and her change wasn’t even one of the ones that was in there.
“Okay,” she thought, “let’s try git log and figure out the last commit”. No dice. The commits she was looking for were nowhere to be found. So what’s a girl to do? Panic? For half a second. Then she went to her coworker and friend who practices git religiously, and confessed her sins.
The fix?
git reflog
They found the commit they were looking for and performed git checkout f33491c5
$ git checkout f33491c5
Note: checking out ' f33491c5 '. You are in 'detached HEAD' state. You can look around, make experimental changes and commit them, and you can discard any commits you make in this state without impacting any branches by performing another checkout. If you want to create a new branch to retain commits you create, you may do so (now or later) by using -b with the checkout command again. Example: git checkout -b new_branch_name HEAD is now at f33491c5 ... Merge branch 'update_release' into 'development' | https://medium.com/@emsichler/git-reflog-4c07b50b66c1 | ['Erica Sichler'] | 2020-12-16 18:21:27.392000+00:00 | ['So That Happened', 'Oops', 'Git', 'Git Reflog', 'Mr Gone Wrong'] |
Chatbots: Digital assistants for answering FAQs & so much more | Chatbots: Digital assistants for answering FAQs & so much more
What payment options do you have available? What are the different ways I can pay for your service?
Same intention, different time, same answer …
For organisations, repetitive questions like these come up a lot. It is essential to respond in order to maintain customer service standards, but often ignites frustration when asked numerous times a day for the same simple answer.
In most cases, customer service departments build a list of FAQs with answers designed to preempt these questions & provide the necessary information to the customer before it hits the inbox. Nowadays, many customer service teams automate these services by implementing chatbots & voicebots.
These applications enable users to undertake an automated conversation via text or voice to receive the right answer to their question. They are absolutely a good fit for this use case. But usually, organisations don’t take full benefit of it & leverage the communication opportunities they have.
Ok Google, what else can you do apart from answer my questions?
Use chatbots to automate your FAQs
Before explaining other chatbot use cases, let’s take some time to appreciate how FAQ automation through bots remains the primary use case.
Firstly, economic savings can be considerable when FAQs are handled by chatbots. According to Chatbots Magazine, businesses can reduce customer service costs by up to 30% by implementing conversational solutions like virtual agents and chatbots.
As a result, they can substantially improve the effectiveness & efficiency of the customer service department. By implementing bots, staff are able to focus on more complex queries & maintain elite customer service standards by responding to these quickly. In some cases, public organisations have decreased their number of texts, social media messages and emails by 70% after implementing a chatbot. Thanks to this productivity boost, team members & resources can be reallocated to improve customer service ROI.
Automation tools also make it easy to collect customer service data & optimise analytics. By configuring analytics correctly, it becomes easy to track customer service activity, common service inquiries & KPI’s so that business analysts, marketers & customer service representatives can do their jobs better.
Finally, bots can improve customer satisfaction and consequently, strengthen loyalty by integrating a creative, easy-to-use customer experience within the buying process. Questions are answered more quickly, more precisely & from anywhere at anytime. The customer service department is able to define common follow-up questions and anticipate customer needs in advance.
M ore than being active, your team is now proactive.
Yet, a bot is not only a digital tool that you feed with information but an autonomous artificial intelligence that can handle some services on its own.
Starting to regard bots as autonomous tools
Most of the time, organisations see chatbots & voicebots as tools that help them process repetitive tasks that don’t require deep skill & knowledge. They are subordinates that will support & accompany you through your workflow. But bots can be much more than that.
Robots, software, AI … all of these buzzword technologies have the potential to create enormous opportunity, but often the potential of their function can be frightening.
How can we make sure they don’t replace us? How can we find the right balance between taking full advantage of AI whilst staying independent from it?
In most cases, full automation & complete digitisation is not advisable and doesn’t make profit-sense for all stakeholders. Nonetheless, employees need to give these products a chance in order to maximise return on investment.
Autonomous doesn’t need to mean out of control.
AI is characterised by the principle of machine learning: just like any human-being, an artificially intelligent bot learns both from its successes & failures in order to progress & enhance the quality of the response. Throughout conversation, bots develop a greater capacity to understand, answer & advise the customer. At Hopstay, our bots use both specific intelligence related to the target audience as well as a collective intelligence driven by results from other bots & clients. The idea is to create a synergy between clients & ensure that our bots are sector-relevant.
As you can read, a bot is not too dissimilar to a child. You outline the basic rules, he experiences it by himself & make mistakes. But with every mistake, you provide learning & support so that his behavior changes in the future!
Our Knowledge Management platform
At Hopstay, you can keep track & train your bot through our knowledge management platform. Much more advanced than a regular database, this platform will help you organise & optimise your new digital assistant!
Modules for bots are like skills for humans
There are many more use cases for bots than simply responding to FAQs. At Hopstay, we call these ‘chatbot modules’ — let me introduce you to some examples!
Checking bin day is a constant matter for residents. Instead of searching through the city council website and landing on an outdated schedule, you can build a chatbot module. Residents ask to the bot when their bin is being collected. The bot asks them to specify their address and then returns with an up-to-date answer for every bin type. For this type of module, a bot is linked via API to a database that gathers the updated information. It fetches the correct information and delivers it in a friendly & practical way! Then, citizens can request notifications so that the bot will notify them every time their bins are being collected. Neat, huh?
As you can see, a module is a pre-templated autonomous bot function that usually connects to a live set of data. The aim is to enable self-service processes via conversational interfaces & propose new customer-centric services.
Through the lens of a customer success strategy, modules improve accessibility, add touchpoints & enhance customer experience.
There are infinite possibilities in this space based on client expectations & needs, through both chatbots & voicebots. At Hopstay, we just launched our new Smart Parking Module that helps drivers finding the nearest car park available to their location or destination.
How does it work? We connect the voice bot to live parking data, usually via an API. Many cities are collecting live parking availability data via sensors & cameras, so it’s relatively straightforward to implement. Then, we use localisation & geographic pinpointing to identify location. We then integrate this with our conversational templates & pre-existing AI modules to bring the voicebot to life. The driver then opens the Google Assistant app, invokes the relevant voicebot & tells conveys their desired location — nearest to them or nearest to another destination. The user is then guided to the best car park via Google Navigation. This technology can reduce traffic congestion and therefore carbon emissions, given that 30% of circulating cars in major urban areas are searching for a park.
If you are a smart city and want to stay in touch with our latest modules, don’t hesitate to subscribe to our newsletter here!
Content feeds getting the attention they deserve
Most organisations use content feeds to build websites & share content with users. This usually refers to list-based feeds of places or products. Via integrating your content feeds into your chatbots, you can target the user with the most relevant information based on their interests. This could be done through taking the user through different content types or simply providing this content as a response to a question from the user. | https://medium.com/hopstay/chatbots-are-not-only-about-answering-faqs-fc065cb603ab | ['Juliette Bouchut'] | 2020-10-08 07:55:06.608000+00:00 | ['FAQ', 'Chatbots', 'Knowledge Management', 'Smart Cities', 'Organization'] |
A Careful Industries update | This is not so much a weeknote as a “two-year note” — an attempt to pull together the different strands of work we’re doing at Careful Industries and our (very new) not-for-profit arm, Promising Trouble and explain why we’re doing it. Like everyone always says, we’re working on our website, but I’ve scattered links to some of our projects through this post.
How we got here
I set-up Careful Industries (by which I mean I bought the domain name and did the paperwork at Companies House) two years ago last week. And while, in some ways, pandemic life has changed the world utterly since then, the bee I had in my bonnet then, as now, was that I wanted to explore a more careful, collective approach to innovation.
I’d resigned from my job running Doteveryone in the spring of 2019 and, although I didn’t actually formally exit the building until December that year, throughout the summer I had one foot in Doteveryone and the other outside, thinking about what to do next and working on the first draft of a book that I still haven’t finished.
I’d done policy work before Doteveryone, but only odds and ends; really, my experience was in R&D and prototyping, in showing what might come next. I’m still very proud of the work we did at Doteveryone exploring what the future of digital regulation, health, care, and the technology industry might look like, but fitting in and funding that kind of work was always really challenging. The reality of working in a live policy area like technology and innovation is that you have very little time to spend working out what could happen next, partly because you’re always analysing proposed and ongoing government policies and programmes and trying to stop or divert their worst effects.
One of the challenges of Doteveryone is that we were always doing too many different things — but there was a good reason for that: we wanted to show that everything was connected. There are lots of great digital policy organisations with a laser-like focus on issues such as responsible data, privacy, security, child safety, and — increasingly — AI, but not so many that were exploring how it all fitted together. Our perspective was that no one action was enough: legislation was to be welcomed, but in reality much of the law comes after the fact, when the unspoken rules have already been broken — and we felt there was much to be gained by technology businesses being better behaved, and that the broader public should have a say in shaping what a functioning digital society could look like.
I still believe that the social contract for the digital society can’t be written by businesses and governments alone, but in 2019 I was feeling frustrated with the existing mechanisms for public involvement and understanding sentiment, in particular their capture by technology companies like Deep Mind. I have an almost allergic reaction to the phrase “the art of the possible” (honestly, have you ever been in a productive meeting where someone has used that phrase?), but one of the things that concerned me then and worries me now was who gets to ask the public what they think and who gets to choose what they ask?
In the digital policy world, the “art of the possible” is often just a pencil sketch on the back of a Big Four consultancy report, and the truisms buried inside those reports quickly became dogma, without anyone really questioning who had commissioned that work and why, or who it represents. One of the reasons I left the think-tank world is because it’s really tiring to be frequently wheeled in as the dissenting voice, often for “balance” — particularly when that takes away time from making something new and different.
So, to cut a long and waffley story slightly shorter, when I registered the domain in July 2019, I wasn’t sure exactly what we would do, but I knew I wanted it to be careful, productive, and collective. And I knew I wanted to do it slowly.
What we’re doing now
Two years later, Careful Industries is now five people, with a growing network of freelancers and associates. Working with curious, talented, caring people is loads of fun, and I feel really lucky to have the opportunity to be part of building such a brilliant new team.
As well as working with corporate clients, helping companies to develop more imaginative strategies and better ethical practices, we also run research and prototyping projects that explore what collective, community-driven innovation really looks like. Some of our current projects include research into how community businesses can make and own the technology they need; the development of a foresight observatory for civil society; and a design lab for seven small and emerging charities and social enterprises.
I bootstrapped our initial growth through doing consulting work, and a limited company structure means that we can charge our corporate clients competitive prices and use that money to subsidise other things. I learnt at Doteveryone that businesses don’t like giving money to charities unless they get name recognition, and that it’s almost impossible to run a sustainable organisation while constantly negotiating over a thousand pounds here or there or the placement of a logo for an idea that would be worth ten or twenty times more if it came from a consulting firm. Our work is rigorous, original, and transformative, and it is worth the market rate. If you’d like to work with us, get in touch :-)
Meanwhile, our new not-for-profit arm Promising Trouble is the place for us to start prototyping community tech initiatives, including the next round of the Community Tech Fellowship. It’s early days, but the plan is to grow a community of practice that celebrates more plural, diverse and people-centred approaches to making technology. We want to help to hold that space between the market and the state, and help seed more community-driven data and innovation projects that can add richness and difference to the broader tech ecosystem.
This week isn’t just two years since I bought the domain. It’s also the week Jeff Bezos went on an 11-minute jaunt into space and Dominic Cummings explained on television “that we should be very, very aggressively trying to get into position these very rare people who are times a hundred or times a thousand smarter” to solve the endless series of wicked problems that governments have to solve. Innovation does not have to be heroic, aggressive, or display overtly masculine qualities to be effective. Other ways are possible, and now seemed like a good time to share our progress in shaping one alternative. | https://medium.com/@rachelcoldicutt/a-careful-industries-update-1038858c8b2c | ['Rachel Coldicutt'] | 2021-07-21 19:33:39.222000+00:00 | ['Innovation', 'Blog Posts', 'Community', 'Year In Review'] |
Should BTC be Legalised? | Bitcoin has become the new buzzword among the digital financial markets since its price increased by 220% this year.
One of the striking features which makes it unique from the conventional currency is that it is decentralized. Bitcoin is neither backed nor managed by any central institutions like banks. It is managed and recorded on a blockchain network. The network assures that the transaction is transparent and secured.
As Bitcoin started getting popular, regulatory authorities of countries all across the world seemed to be confused in handling it. Some countries legalized it while others made Bitcoin illegal. While some others restricted and regulated the crypto markets in their country.
Should Bitcoin Be Legalized? | Should Bitcoin Be Illegalised?
After reading about the lucrative profits associated with Bitcoins, are you thinking to buy some of them? I would first recommend you to check the status of cryptocurrency in your country.
If Bitcoin Is Legalised!
Most of the fiat currencies are evaluated based on the behavior of the US dollar, rates of crude oil, and the social and political conditions of the country. Amid the chaotic financial environment and the pandemic situation, some of the countries decided to legalize the controversial Bitcoin.
More than 100 countries (till 2020) including Japan, Singapore, Switzerland, Malta had recognized the status of Bitcoin and legalized it.
As reported by many of the nations, legalizing Bitcoin would help them to revolutionize the financial system. Let us find how!
Smooth Cross Border Transaction: Less transaction time and lower transaction fees -results in a smooth cross border transaction of Bitcoins. Many of the nations advocated that they just need to strengthen their digital infrastructure to easily send and receive crypto across the country or world.
Less transaction time and lower transaction fees -results in a smooth cross border transaction of Bitcoins. Many of the nations advocated that they just need to strengthen their digital infrastructure to easily send and receive crypto across the country or world. Counterfeiting : Counterfeiting of fiat currency is one of the major issues faced by most nations. This further results in more intensive problems like financial terrorism, cross-border illicit activities, etc. Bitcoin is immutable and thus can be treated as the solution against the issue of counterfeit fiat currency. Each transaction of crypto is recorded on the blockchain. Any alteration in the transaction is being informed to all the nodes or systems involved within that particular block of transaction. Thus, duping the whole system is highly impossible.
: Counterfeiting of fiat currency is one of the major issues faced by most nations. This further results in more intensive problems like financial terrorism, cross-border illicit activities, etc. Bitcoin is immutable and thus can be treated as the solution against the issue of counterfeit fiat currency. Each transaction of crypto is recorded on the blockchain. Any alteration in the transaction is being informed to all the nodes or systems involved within that particular block of transaction. Thus, duping the whole system is highly impossible. Privacy: When the transaction takes place on a blockchain network, the identity of both sender and receiver remains completely anonymous. Only the wallet addresses(a combination of random numbers and alphabets) are being shared between them. Thus, privacy can be assured when people transact in crypto coins.
When the transaction takes place on a blockchain network, the identity of both sender and receiver remains completely anonymous. Only the wallet addresses(a combination of random numbers and alphabets) are being shared between them. Thus, privacy can be assured when people transact in crypto coins. Security: Bitcoin transactions are secured by following cryptographic techniques. The information related to the transaction amount, wallet addresses, and other data which need to be filled during the transaction, all remains encrypted. Cryptography ensures that the network is secured and thereby safeguard the money from getting stolen.
Bitcoin transactions are secured by following cryptographic techniques. The information related to the transaction amount, wallet addresses, and other data which need to be filled during the transaction, all remains encrypted. Cryptography ensures that the network is secured and thereby safeguard the money from getting stolen. Infrastructure: Bitcoin follows a decentralized model based on blockchain technology. All the transactions are verified by the participants or miners on their systems connected to this network, and the transaction gets completed. Thus, cryptos need not be minted and stored up in bank lockers. There is barely a need to set up the huge physical infrastructure or maintain the manpower for crypto transactions.
Many of the nations legalized digital currency to enhance the experience of their citizens.
But, should other countries legalize Bitcoin?
If Bitcoin Is illegalized!
Bitcoins are still seen as the doubtful currency in many of the nations. Even in some of the nations, you might be imprisoned if you withhold the coins or are involved in the transaction of cryptocurrency.
While in some others, the government authorities ended up making it illegal. Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Vietnam, Qatar, and many more countries banned Bitcoins due to one or the other reasons as stated below:
The decentralized nature of cryptocurrency makes the government skeptical and made them feel like losing control over the financial system. Besides the concern of the security of citizens, authorities are also concerned about the notorious crypto exchanges involved in promoting a decentralized payment structure.
Semi anonymous behavior of the Bitcoin transaction is a big question mark to many governments. Anonymity in transactions can result in money laundering, tax evasion, and giving birth to a haven for black markets, as per the nations who banned the digital currency.
Tax evasion is also one of the main bones of contention for the authorities. The transaction path of crypto can be traced but not the amount which is being transacted, which can result in evading the taxes. This can ultimately create difficulty for the legal and financial systems of the nation.
Money can be laundered easily with the help of cryptocurrency or Bitcoin. A person needs two crypto accounts to launder the money, and the transfer looks perfectly legitimate. The lack of central authority, proper regulations, and anonymity can help in easy evasion.
But even after all the problems, making the currency completely illegal deprives the countries of utilizing the potential benefits of the cryptocurrency.
Thus, if a nation can partially legalize Bitcoin, then the whole financial system might operate in a hassle-free manner.
Summing Up
Making crypto either completely legalized or completely illegalized might be difficult for most of the nations. Thus, some of the countries have found the middle path of introducing crypto in their country.
Most of the nations are seeking to utilize the potential benefits of the cryptocurrency while providing the structure to safeguard investors. Nations like the United States of America, countries of the European Union, Egypt, Indonesia, and many more have restricted the environment for BTC but did not outrightly illegalize Bitcoin.
Most of the countries are constantly strengthening their digital payment infrastructure and creating a favorable environment for Bitcoin transactions. They are making sure that BTC transactions are following the rules related to anti-money laundering, tax evasion, and financing terrorism.
Predicting the future of Bitcoin might be difficult at this moment of economic slowdown. So, think before you invest! | https://medium.com/@tarulikajain/should-btc-be-legalised-4619a3b5b0bc | ['Tarulika Jain'] | 2020-12-25 17:10:30.138000+00:00 | ['Cryptocurrency', 'Cryptocurrency News', 'Cryptography', 'Crypto', 'Cryptocurrency Investment'] |
Decision Matrix — How our decisions impact our life | Life is result of choices.
“To do or not to do”, this is what defines you and your life.
In our life, we always get choices and what we do is decide.
And this decision is what defines us.
These choices we get in life, lead our path.
There is nothing called luck.
If someone makes the right choice, usually people call them lucky. If the same person had made the wrong choice, they would have become unlucky. Strange isn’t it.
There is also nothing called life’s plan.
Its our choices which lay out the plan.
Our life depends only and only on one thing, and that is capability to decide. Our life is no different than a flow chart.
In fact our life is like a flow chart.
And this flow chart has number of decision points, and these are the chances we get to change our life.
Often we are these decision point on flow chart.
The choice is to either continue what we are doing the rest of our lives or to start something new, like a new job, move to a new place or take up new challenge.
Some of us who have
- Guts to change their life
- Take up new challenges
- Face new odds
They usually take up the chance to change their life.
Others just find some excuse (there can be thousands of them) and continue with their life. Both these people are right, as its their life, which is changing for good or worse as per the decision they take. | https://medium.com/@infinity-warren/decision-matrix-how-our-decisions-impact-our-life-164742ad258c | ['Infinity Warren'] | 2021-12-24 09:07:35.274000+00:00 | ['Decisión', 'Luck', 'Lifehacks', 'Impact', 'Life'] |
Why fast-track leaders lose their mojo, and how to gain it back | Congratulations! Your company made Inc. magazine’s 500/5000 list of fastest-growing companies.
The invitation to go to the grand induction ceremony is on your desk. Your baby, Rocket Inc., is now on the map. Local papers have printed the announcement on the front page. The phone has been ringing off the hook from potential investors.
Wooohoooo!!! You, the founder/executive/ CEO/leader, made it into this fast-track exclusive club. What could be better?
So…….Why do you feel like a phony as you cut the celebratory cake? Where is your elation of the accomplishment? Why are you engulfed with fear that the whole facade will come crashing down and hit the dirt?
You know and the statistics show that fast growth generates a myriad of new problems. The fast road to success is not littered with rose petals alone — there are many, many thorns embedded in between.
Founders/executives/leaders of most fast-growing companies are inadequately prepared for the many financial, operational and personal risks that pop up and become killjoys. I can safely bet that you relate to at least a few, if not many, of the following:
Risks that rob your mojo
Cash flow crunch. The ebb and flow of cash in and cash out gets extremely complicated. Fast-growing startups burn money for years before generating positive cash flow. Your monthly expenses may exceed the inflow. A common scenario is exceeding your credit line and suddenly one bad sales month spells disaster.
Turnover. You funded the last few cash flow shortages by postponing payment of your salary and that of some of the other senior team members.
Some of the employees, including your right-hand people, are polishing their resumes. Contractors and suppliers are threatening to stop providing products/services and may actually follow through.
Need to spend to become a big company. Your team is pushing for more robust processes and equipment to deal with the present load and the growth trajectory. All this requires cash, but cash is scarce.
Finding good investors. Those who can partner with you and be supportive to help you grow and prosper. They exist but, where are they? How do you screen them?
Sometimes, smelling blood in the water, what you are getting are offerings laced with crazy conditions. These predators-masquerading-as-investors want their pound of flesh even if the venture fails. You want to say “no.” Are you in a position to say no?
Investor relations is cutting into `productive’ effort. You had collected enough investment dollars to tide you over the erratic cash flows. You are now indebted to many people who demand your time whenever a thought occurs to them.
Every week, new cash flow projections have to be prepared in “their” format, not the one you winged last week. When do you do real business?
Trying to race a VW Beetle at the speed of a Ferrari. VCs have invested big money in you to grow fast and become a “unicorn.” You have to keep going faster and faster. The more you speed up, the more is required from you. Where is that money coming from?
Operations and customer service problems. When you started everyone and anyone could handle all aspects of the business. The processes were simple and one-person-smooth. Now you have silos, and the left hand does not know what the right does.
Meanwhile, the internal team is praying for a slowdown so that they can catch their breath. You can already hear the stress level and petty fights in the voices of customers and employees.
Over-reliance on early customers. The growth that put you on the map was from the few early customers. They know it and are continuing to tighten the screws. In order to be successful, you are now trying to diversify your product line, expand geography, and increase margins.
The early customers are not agreeing to change to the new programs. Do you let them go or continue to serve them as a loss leader?
Star salespeople bomb out. To keep up with ever-expanding sales requirements you hire many new salespeople. They were stars in their previous positions. In your venture, a good percent cannot deliver for many months.
They incur costs of on-boarding, training, travel and any “guaranteed” bonuses. The costs pile up. However, sales are a promise in the future.
Responsibility for the entire value chain. You meet the family of your team members in the company picnic. You smile dutifully but cringe inside at the thought of how many people are dependent on you.
You worry about everyone in the complex value chain of suppliers, customers, business partners, and stakeholders. You must keep them engaged and successful. The burden of the entire chain is on you.
I could go on, but you get the idea. Passion, what passion? This was your dream, your energizer. What happened? Your enthusiasm is waning. You are killing yourself physically, mentally and emotionally.
You question whether all this insane effort was worth the physical and emotional pain. How are the problems of rapid growth better than those when you had little growth?
Growth risk is an important issue. It is equally as relevant as economic downturns or technology obsolescence. Those issues are also on your mind While others celebrate the growth of your company, many organizational, professional and personal issues have formed a twisted rope that is slowly strangling you.
You were dreaming of a smooth upward curve, like the one you saw in the PR documents of winning companies. Instead, you are riding a scary roller coaster of evolution and revolution. These are strewn with risks that ebb and flow and are constantly changing. You are bogged down and losing your mojo. You cry out, “I need help!”
You are definitely not alone. I have been there. I have felt that. My last company was in the Inc. 500/5000 for five years in a row. At one time or another, I have felt the pain and agony of many of these issues and more.
Now what?
Don’t despair, you are not alone. There are many groups in your area that can help you and share some of this burden with you. In hindsight, I wish I had made use of that resource when I was struggling with these very issues while building a fast-track company.
Who can help?
Your team: It is their role to do a good job and tackle problems. You have hired very carefully.
Board of directors: It is their fiduciary responsibility to look after the interests of the stakeholders, particularly the shareholders.
Board of advisers: It is their duty to be the domain experts and augment the skills of the team.
Investors: They invested in you because of the past rapid growth. They can provide casual, often contradictory advice.
Professional service providers (accountants, lawyers, etc.): For a fee, they provide services in their area of expertise.
Consultants: They are hired for a specific service that may be needed. They are the domain experts.
Mentors: Your mentors can provide objective feedback and support.
Trade groups: They provide industry-specific non-competitive information and lobbying services on behalf of all members.
These are all the people who can help you shoulder some of the tasks to do it right, outsource your load, and reduce the risks associated with growth.
You are already familiar with these resources and are taking advantage of their help and counsel to lighten your load. And yet, your problem persists.
The intense and convoluted nature of issues faced uniquely by the CEOs of a fast-growing enterprise is not fully tackled by all of these supporters.
The cry for help remains muffled inside. You cannot bring many of your issues to anyone in these groups. You are the boss, after all. You have to appear not just strong, but also invincible. Many of your issues either remain unresolved or are sub-optimized.
As you set out to change the world and your biggest home run is yet to be hit, you may have an unsettled feeling that there are even more problems coming ahead. And, you are stuck as it is. What about what is around the corner?
It is very lonely at the top. Help!
A higher resource
The biggest challenge is your lack of connections with people who are in a similar situation and through grit and trial may have made inroads on some of the very issues that are causing you lack of sleep. In turn, you may have ideas for them.
It behooves you to consider an additional, often neglected, source of help.
A peer group of CEOs can make the most impact on you and your business for tackling the issues that you face. Each group is purpose-built to help members help each other mitigate risks and improve performance and outcomes of their businesses.
The peer group can help you move from fear-based and response management to purpose-driven leadership. The members are selected so that they are not competing with you. They have no ax to grind. They can be truthful, however harsh it may seem at first. They are there for you and the group’s welfare.
The rapid pace of growth creates a certain emptiness in the leader. A peer group of CEOs has the capability of filling that emptiness with renewed potential. Such a group can help you get your mojo back like no other group can.
I am presenting this bald advocacy because I wish I had made use of this resource when I was struggling with these very issues while building a fast-growing company. You can take advantage of my hindsight.
A peer group defined
A peer group of CEOs rests on a solid premise. It comprises of ambitious and hard-working leaders who are committed to helping every member of the group continued success through shared experiences and mutual support. If you decide to add such a peer group to your mix of support, here are a few things to look out for:
Leaders only: The peer group is made up of leaders of companies. All of them are founders, presidents, CEOs and business owners.
As equals, they can openly discuss and support each other with strategies that enhance personal life and personal freedom while continuing sustainable growth and profits.
Empathy: Group members are more likely to understand and empathize with your life and work situation because they are all in a very similar situation.
Non-competitive: The members are selected so they belong to non-competitive businesses. Without that assurance, you may be reluctant to divulge critical details or ask for help. Non-competitive selection allows the discussion to be free and open and gives the chance for members to be honest and vulnerable.
Community: You are part of a community — a network of similar executives who want to grow their business and manage risks, just like you. The group members help each other gain perspectives, break down walls, and look beyond in creative ways.
Often you are not aware of your own blind spots. The other members shine a light on it. In group interaction, the members should be able to challenge and are comfortable in being challenged to take their business and personal life to the next level.
Diversity with commonality: The leaders share some degree of commonality in size and/or stage of evolution (homogeneous) and are different in other sets of skills or domains (heterogeneous). This homogeneous/heterogeneous combination makes it ideal to connect with the group. Such a group can provide an even and immediate exchange of benefits while being totally non-competitive and agenda-free.
Goal: In spite of the many benefits of a social organization, the peer group of CEOs should not primarily be a social organization. Its agenda is for business and personal development. The collective goal is to turn each other’s “What to do???” into “What to do.” Moreover, the group holds you responsible that you do it.
Psychic benefit: In addition to getting help for you, an additional bonus is an immeasurable fulfillment of helping other fellow leaders with your own experience and insights.
Role of a facilitator
With or without a facilitator, a group of leaders of fast-growing companies in one room presents enormous potential. However, with a competent facilitator leading them, it can add several key benefits to the dynamics.
Dedication: Facilitators are, often accomplished, individuals in their own right and are dedicated to increasing the effectiveness and enhancing the lives of fellow leaders. They have the capability of counsel because they have walked the walk. Their raison d’être is for the members to achieve personal and organizational results.
Curb the competitive streak: High-powered leaders are used to their lofty stature and may find it difficult to control their competitive streak. They are all soaring eagles, after all. Empathetic listening is not necessarily their strong suit. Without a facilitator, group dynamics can be dodgy, as in any unsupervised activity. It is the facilitator’s role to streamline the process, guide the personalities, and enable the best outcome to emerge in the group.
Wear many hats: The facilitator is an accomplished leader who has traversed this journey before. (S)he can wear different hats with the group. The facilitator is a coach, adviser and mentor rolled in one and someone totally committed to your success.
Thinking outside the box: A facilitator can dig down into the issue with the members so that they can start to look beyond their own comfort zone. This is where the magic happens — and start to explore areas of solutions that they may have never thought of before. That could be more illuminating and transformative than anything else they’ve done before.
Extract all the juice: A facilitator who moderates the group, and is not part of the group, can stimulate thinking, frame issues, guide discussions, keep the process on track, limit tangents, and ensure accountability in the group. Their role is to ensure that every bit of the experience and wisdom is developed, shared and applied.
Expand the moment: Discussions can get passionate and even heated before the Aha! moment for you. The facilitator can expand that precious moment to make it a broader learning for the entire group.
Complementary content: Based upon the need of the group, the facilitator can call in additional resources for learning and proven ideas.
Selecting the right members: The most important role of a facilitator is to select the right members for the group. Groups work best when the members have something to learn from the other members and they, in turn, can reciprocate with similar contributions.
Maintaining confidentiality is paramount. A dysfunctional member can dampen it for all members. The facilitator may ask a member to leave if that member is deemed not to be a good fit for the group.
A facilitated peer group of leaders, made up of fast-growing companies, can provide the members with a distinctive place for tackling tough issues, gaining esoteric wisdom and personal transformation.
Help is available. Such a group may be just the answer that you and your fast-growing company need. You can get back your mojo.
A version of this article first appeared in Upsize Magazine.
To see other opinion columns go to “Planting Seeds”.
Rajiv Tandon is executive director of the Institute for Innovators and Entrepreneurs and an advocate for the future of entrepreneurship in Minnesota. He facilitates peer groups of fast growth Minnesota CEOs. He can be reached at [email protected]. | https://medium.com/on-startups-and-such/why-fast-track-leaders-lose-their-mojo-and-how-to-gain-it-back-8689d11a058d | ['Dr. Rajiv Tandon'] | 2019-03-06 23:24:05.521000+00:00 | ['Growth Challenges', 'Fast Growth', 'Entrepreneurship', 'Peer Group'] |
100 IQ Test Questions Part 1— Creative Math Test that Train your Brain Smarter | Hello everybody welcome back to my another smart IQ test session, The Creative Math Test. However, mathematics is very boring to most of you, and if you can’t stimulate interest, it is very difficult for you to get improved.
Everybody love games, I have prepared 100 interesting and challenging math games that can play a role in guiding and stimulating interest. Psychologists have confirmed that people are often learn about the world through games, Mathematical games can change the way of people think and stimulate the potential of the brain.
Alright let’s dive deep to the myst math!
Part 1: Concept of Number Training A
Question 1–10: Train your omnidirectional perception number and its law.
1. The Half of 8
My classmate told me half of 8 is not 4, it is the other two numbers. Do you know which two numbers?
2. Staircase to 6th Floor
There are two good friends, Mike and Rose, who live in the same building in California United States, and the number of stages between each floors of this building is the same. Mike lives on the 4th floor and has 54 steps to go home; Rose lives on the 6th floor, how many steps does Rose have to go home?
3. How many eggs does the hen lay?
Nichole’s grandma raised 10 hens, she was very curious, and find out that their 2 and a half hens had laid 2 and a half eggs in 2 and a half days. How many eggs did all the hens lay in 10 days?
4. The Next 6
1=6, 2=66, 3=666, so 6=?
5. Students in 3 Classrooms
Jeff, Mike and Carl are good friends. They are in Class A, B, and C respectively. There are 161 students in 3 classes. Class A has 2 more students than class B, and class B has 6 more students than class C. So how many students are in class B?
6. Put Two 7 Back
125×4×3=2000, obviously this formula is wrong, so how can you make it right by placing two 7 into the formula.
7. The Blooming Flowers
There is a garden in the community where Bob and Anna live. Spring is here, and all kinds of beautiful flowers are blooming one after another. On the first day, there are 1 flower, 2 flowers on the second day, and 4 flowers on the third day, and so on. All the flowers happened to bloom within a month. So which day the flowers in the garden are half bloomed from total number of flowers?
8. Fill up Half Basket of Table Tennis Balls
Lily and her classmates helped the teacher clean up the table tennis. Suppose the number of table tennis balls doubles every minute. If this continues, the basket with table tennis balls will be full after 8 minutes. How long will it take to fill half a basket of table tennis balls?
9. Cashier vs Customer Money Changing
Saylor went to supermarket to buy snacks. His favorite snack was 20 dollars a pack, he give cashier 50 dollars and ask for change. After the cashier changed him 30 dollars, Saylor has found his 20 dollars in another pocket. After giving it to the cashier, the cashier returned the previous 50 dollars to him. So who lost?
10. Divide and Pack-up the Apples
Tim’s mother has bought 8 apples from supermarket and ask him to put these apples into 5 bags, each bag must contain even count (Doubles) of apples. How he can achieve it?
Cheers! you have completed IQ test questions part 1, hope you all enjoy these brain teasing math questions. Share to your friends and family and challenge them with your answering speed, and compare to see how well they can solved the questions.
Let’s continue to part 2 questions!
Checkout the answers from MKI’s blog. | https://medium.com/@mustknowit/100-iq-test-questions-part-1-creative-math-test-that-train-your-brain-smarter-b02d4e75c6e | ['Must Know It'] | 2021-01-06 04:45:08.499000+00:00 | ['Brain Training', 'Questions', 'Training', 'Mathematics', 'Smart'] |
Introduction to Molecular Modelling: Part 3 (Creating High-Quality Images) | Installing POV-ray
This is very easy, just head over to the POV-ray website and download the official installer for Windows. If you are on Linux, then follow the instructions on this page. For Mac, you can find unofficial installers here.
Then you have to put the folder containing POV-ray executable on the PATH. The name of the executable and folder might be different in different versions. I am currently using POV-ray version 3.7.0 and in my case, the executable is C:\Program Files\POV-Ray\v3.7\bin\pvengine64.exe. So I have put the bin folder in PATH. If you don’t know how to do this, go through this guide for windows. (If you are on linux or mac, then you have to google) This step of putting the executable on path is really important, otherwise handling the program becomes more difficult.
You will also need to have the software Avogadro for dealing with molecular structures.
Generating ray-traced structures
First, draw or open some structure in Avogadro (part 1). Then go to File > Export > POV-ray… . A subwindow should open:
Avogadro POV-ray controls
Here press Select… to choose the save location and name for the final image file. Then set resolution, and check ‘Antialias’ and ‘Alpha transparency’ options. These will make the final image nicer looking, and have a transparent background. Also check the Render using POV-ray option. (The keep POV-ray source box keeps that POV-ray input file, even after the image has been created, and this does not affect the image in any way).
Finally, on the Path box, type in the name of the POV-ray executable that you have in your PC. In my case, this would be pvengine64. Then press Render. If everything is ok, then POV-ray should open, and the image should be generated. You will see something like this:
POV-ray image for acetic acid
Remember, the rendered image has the same orientation and size as the molecule in Avogadro, so you can rotate or zoom in/out to change it according to requirements.
Adding H-bonds to the diagrams
Now one of the problems of this method is that Avogadro does not include the hydrogen bonds in the POV-ray input file, so the final image does not have them, even if they are shown on Avogadro.
For example, try drawing a methanol-water dimer in Avogadro and then optimize it with MMFF94s force field. If you turn on the “Hydrogen bond” option on the left, you will see the H-bond as yellow dotted lines on the structure. If you then export it as POV-ray image, the hydrogen bond will be missing from the rendered image.
I do not know of a way to fix it from the inside of the software. However, there is a macro script that can add dashed bonds to POV-ray image. I got it from here.
#macro dashedLineL(_point1,_point2)
#declare dashLength = 0.05;
#declare lineRadius = 0.03; #declare currentDashEnd = _point1;
#declare currentDashStart = <0,0,0>;
#declare lineDirection = vnormalize(_point2 - _point1);
#while (vlength(currentDashEnd - _point1) < vlength(_point2 - _point1))
#declare currentDashStart = currentDashEnd + (lineDirection * dashLength);
#declare currentDashEnd = currentDashEnd + (lineDirection * (dashLength*2));
cylinder{currentDashStart, currentDashEnd, lineRadius
pigment { rgb <0.6,0.6,0.6> }
finish { ambient 0.7 }
}
#end
#end
Then you just have to put in the following line to add a dashed hydrogen bond between atoms at (x1,y1,z1) and (x2,y2,z2)
dashedLineL(<x1, y1, z1> , <x2, y2, z2>)
Now doing this manually can be tedious if there are multiple H-bonds to add, so I have written a small Python script that can be used directly from Avogadro. You can get this script here. Put the .py file in any location you want.
You have to install Python first for this to work. When installing don’t forget to put the python in the PATH. Then open Avogadro, and go to File> Export > POV-Ray… . Then edit the Path to: python <path to where you placed the povpywrapper.py file>. If the path to the script contains space then you have to put the whole path in double quotes, otherwise it will fail.
Then press Render. The image produced should now have Hydrogen bonds in it:
The way the script works is that it takes the POV-ray input file generated by Avogadro, and guesses the elements by their colour (so the default color scheme can’t be changed). It then checks if any N,O or F are close to any H (≤2.0 Å), and adds those hydrogen bonds to the input file, and finally calls the POV-ray executable with the arguments provided by Avogadro.
[Note that the script assumes that the POV-ray executable is in PATH, and is named “pvengine64.exe”. If you have a different version then you have to edit the .py file yourself]
That’s it! You can now make nice pictures of molecules yourself. | https://medium.com/swlh/introduction-to-molecular-modelling-part-3-creating-high-quality-images-92cfdb6bca22 | ['Shoubhik R Maiti'] | 2020-11-24 12:50:24.622000+00:00 | ['Molecule', 'Python', 'Avogadro', 'Computational Chemistry', 'Pov Ray'] |
33. Mood-worlds of the Slowdown. Olelakan Jeyifous and Simon Stålenhag… | It’s hard to believe there’s a British child of my generation (I was born in 1970) who did not play in or near such a waste-ground as a kid, but I imagine that’s consistent across much of Europe — certainly Amsterdam (from which Van Eyck’s playgrounds spring up like flowers) and Berlin, where the bombs’ scars are still just about visible as toothy gaps, but now usually populated by beautiful, convivial gardens and playgrounds (described here).
So the mood-world of the bombed-out playground is clearly tangible and immediately recognisable, but the way that images are provoked is also slippery and complex enough to offer this “assemblage of mixed moods.” This makes the concept of mood-world itself as interesting as the particular instance of the waste-ground or bombsite.
‘Mood-worlds’ may be valuable addition to our toolkit, as something other than mere drawings, plans or reported populated with tables and graph—as more open, evocative, generative, diverse, immersive and almost ambient sensibilities. They could work alongside other forms of input, providing a far richer set of ingredients for brewing new thoughts about cities and places.
Highmore, as a cultural theorist, explores these mood-worlds through narrative forms such as novels and films. Assessing different forms of representation may open up new vistas onto the landscapes in question here.
But waste-grounds and bombsites are the opposite of what a slowdown landscape mood-world might be. They provide useful prompts, through their indeterminacy, openness, blankness, scrappy at-hand adaptability, fallow condition, and not least the resilience and diversity of their intransigent flora. Yet a slowdown landscape could be rather more joyous, vibrant, alive, and sometimes impeccably designed. The typical Post-war Bombsite Mood-World was often a key backdrop to the Acceleration-era narrative—a space not left purposefully incomplete or fallow, but merely carelessly left behind in pursuit of narrow economic agendas.
Stålenhag’s slowdown landscapes
Perhaps the Swedish artist Simon Stålenhag captures this maudlin mood-world redolent of the end of the Great Acceleration, endless soft-blue chilly landscapes punctuated by the headlamps of 1980s Volvos glowing in the gloom, or ramshackle ICA supermarkets slowly tumbling into the snow. Only a fully Nordic writer like Karl Ove Knausgård could capture the stubborn melancholy of these scenes. I recall his description of flying into Oslo and looking down at the pin-pricks of orange car headlamps amdist the cloaking snow and indigo: “like little ponds of heat … filled with a particular contrarian dignity, for the space in which they occur is not only black and freezing cold and endless, it is also expanding.”
Stålenhag’s exurban environments are video game widescreen, hovering indeterminately in the similar landscapes of the USA’s Mid-West and Sweden’s midriff, bleakly beautiful, largely depopulated, redolent of entropy, with vanishing points that most thoroughly vanish, lost in the mist. | https://medium.com/slowdown-papers/33-slowdown-landscapes-the-mood-worlds-of-the-slowdown-3985f7f6f081 | ['Dan Hill'] | 2020-10-12 20:26:13.379000+00:00 | ['Art', 'Design', 'Urbanism', 'Architecture', 'Cities'] |
Life Inspirational Quotes in Hindi — The Story in Hindi | in Change Your Mind Change Your Life | https://medium.com/@mail-72840/life-inspirational-quotes-in-hindi-the-story-in-hindi-hindi-stories-inspirational-quotes-fe824dc92ad1 | ['Raman Mankotia'] | 2021-01-11 08:35:12.253000+00:00 | ['Life Inspiration', 'Life Lessons', 'Quotes About Life', 'Quotes'] |
Can LIWC help predict Jungian cognitive functions? | In my previous post Towards Jungian Typology with Data Science I drew the outlines of a novel way to assess Carl Jung’s original personality types using data science. Here is how I’ve gone about with an initial experiment using quite up to date technical methods such as XGBoost and UMAP and the well-researched psychological word categories LIWC. The code used in this experiment is published here for reference.
The website typealyzer.com (R.I.P. 2008–2019) allowed people to post a blog URL and get back the four-letter Myers-Briggs type. Digging deeper into how the MBTI works shows that each of the 16 types have a dominant cognitive function. For simplicity those Jungian cognitive functions can be reduced into four basic functions that are either extraverted or introverted i.e. applied to a persons inner world or thoughts and feelings or outer world of things and other people.
In comparison to ordinary business data such as sales or stock data view thorough the lens of business logic, natural language data viewed through the lens of Jungian theory is way more complex and challenging. That’s why I find it so fascinating. However, as in any data science project one of the first things to do is to reduce complexity, so that’s where we start.
Let’s start by reducing the eight original cognitive functions to four, by just disregarding that each of them should also be either extraverted or introverted.
Sensing ( S )
) iNtuition ( N )
) Thinking ( T )
) Feeling (F)
Reducing linguistic complexity by applying LIWC
The dataset I use if full of noice since it is based on all the text found on an URL put into the typealyzer.com. Lots of irrelevant words and numbers, such as time stamps, link text etc can be found in every sample. Since it’s the psychologically meaningful words where interested in it makes sense to create a structured dataset by counting the words in the LIWC (2007) categories first. We actually end up with with 64 new columns that we’ll later use to predict the four Jungian basic types.
The structured dataset with Jungian types and cognitive functions (left) and LIWC results to the right
Most of the people that took the time to post the actual MBTI type of the posted blog URLs seems to have been of dominant iNtuitive type judging by the distribution of samples for each class. That probably makes sense from a typlogical perspective, since intuitive types are supposed to be more interested in abstract things such as typology systems.
Dominant iNtuitive types are about three times as common as sensing types
There is a handy Python library called imbalanced-learn that nicely complements and integrates into the very popular machine learning library Scikit-Learn. It contains several ways of handling class imbalances such as these and I decided to use the RandomUnderSampler to get about the same amount of samples in each class. After balancing the classes we have about 2500 samples in each class. That will do!
Predicting the four functions with XGBoost
The technical description of XGBoost is that it is a decision-tree-based ensemble Machine Learning algorithm that uses a gradient boosting framework. It suffices to know that it has performed very well in many machine learning competitions the last years and is considered a good first choice for general machine learning tasks today.
Here is a visualisation of how it managed to predict the four Jungian functions based on the 64 LIWC categories.
Almost no predictive power at all
A quick look at the confusion matrix tells that there seems to be almost no predictive power at all. This is confirmed by looking at sklearn’s more detailed classification report.
No better than random
We could just as well have thrown a dice to guess the Jungian functions from the LIWC categories. Absolutely no indication of predictive power what so ever. It’s nice when you get experimental results that leaves no room for doubt, isn’t it!
Too many columns makes the algorithm overfit?
Let’s see what happens if we reduce the 64 LIWC-category columns into just two. Since we’re dealing with features derived from natural language we might not want to use good-old PCA. And since UMAP is faster and newer than t-SNE (just kidding, even though it’s true) we’ll go with UMAP. Let’s reduce the 64 dimensions (LIWC-category columns) to only two so we can visualise them nicely.
A beautiful starry boomerang in a night sky signifying nothing
Each of the dots here represent a row in the dataset and the four Jungian functions a colour-coded to see how well they spread out. They don’t actually. It’s all just a chaotic mess where dots of each colour are spread all over the boomerang-like cluster. The little mostly blue satellite of dots in the upper part of the chart as well as the other small clusters are most likely outliers that adds nothing to the overall understanding.
Let’s again do the same classification with XGBoost, but this time with only two features (i.e. columns). We should probably be reducing the dimensions a little less aggressively, let’s say 5–10 dimensions would be more reasonable. But since we now know that we calmly can keep our hopes down to find anything in the data anyhow, let’s just use the same embedding that we used for plotting.
Even worse, which shouldn’t come as a surprise. Especially iNtuition is misclassified as Sensing
If we have a look at the classification report we can conclude that we’ve gone from a result exactly in par with random throws with a dice to even worse than trowing dice!
Accuracy below 25 per cent with four classes. That sucks.
What is to blame for the poor predictions?
LIWC, XGBoost and UMAP are all well-researched and battle-tested methodologies. That, unfortunately, can not be said about how the original data for the dataset was collected. Here are some of the short-comings of how the data was collected.
Anyone could post any URL, not only blogs.
Anyone could state that the posted website author had a certain MBTI type
Any type of shallow online test could be the grounds of the stated type
The text data from each URL is full of noice such as boiler plate text
I would say that even though we’ve used pretty standard and reasonable choice of machine learning algorithms and evaluation metrics here. But any data science project fundamentally comes down to one paramount limitation; sh-t in — sh-t out.
Let’s see if we can get hold of a better dataset later on and repeat the experiment! All the code is published here. | https://medium.com/analytics-vidhya/can-liwc-help-predict-jungian-cognitive-functions-d096a039dd4f | ['Mattias Östmar'] | 2020-09-04 13:13:52.083000+00:00 | ['Umap', 'Xgboost', 'Data Science', 'Carl Jung', 'Liwc'] |
Enable Open Banking With Salesforce | Your bank account holds your money, and you probably use your checking account for most of your transactions and payment. But the increase in technological advances creates options to maximize the value you get from your respective banks. With open banking, third parties can assist you to save money, time, borrow easily and pay painlessly.
What is Open Banking?
Open banking is the method of sharing financial information electronically, securely and only under certain conditions that the customers approve of. Basically, Application Programming Interface (APIs) allows third parties to access customers’ financial information with ease, which promotes the development of new apps and services. Open banking is the technology of allowing access and control of consumers’ banking and financial accounts through third-party applications. Banks allow access and control of consumers’ personal and financial data to third-party service providers, that are typically tech startups and online financial service vendors. Customers are required to grant consent to let the bank allow such access, like checking a box on a terms-of-service screen in an online app. Third-party open banking APIs can then use the customer’s shared data
Open Banking Process Flow:
Business Scenario: In today’s fast-paced world time is a key aspect of a business. Also, in this competitive world & cutting-edge technology one should understand how to leverage the full potential of technology. And provide business solution services on time with ease with the best quality.
Time plays an important aspect when it comes to NBFC Institution. In short, loan processing should be quick and hassle-free without compromising on the required paperwork to be done.
One of the most crucial parts of this process is bank statement verification, detailed analysis of statements and lastly, the creditworthiness of customers for an applied loan. It surely is a cumbersome process but an important aspect of loan processing.
Also, several times for loan processing, the customer needs to provide bank statements from various banks where he holds the account. So that loan providing institutions should be sure enough for all the checks.
Currently, this documentation takes a lot of time as it is entirely dependent on the customer or an agent who works on behalf of the customer that ultimately wastes a lot of valuable time of loan processing thus lengthening the process furthermore
Solution: To tackle this process of the extensive bank statement verification or its analysis. Open banking technology could be utilized. You ask how? Well, open baking is a technology which could be used where NBFC’s sends an API call to banking systems that are utilizing this open banking technology. NBFCs are using various CRM platforms for their loan processing e.g. No 1 CRM Platform of Salesforce.
So, an email is sent from the Salesforce platform to the intended prospect that has a consent form with the required link enabled for authorization purposes. This process feeds in the information of the customer from the bank to the open banking system that is ultimately opted by the NBFC institution.
Once the customer gives the consent by clicking on the link that opens the open banking page, he /she chooses the bank he has accounts in and then clicks on submit or approve. Soon after that, all required details of the customers’ bank will be extracted, and the required response will be sent back to Salesforce — which could be a PDF file of the bank statement or the response could be stored in the VF page — however the customer want.
This way it saves a lot of time and gives a quick turnaround time on loan processing, where the NBFCs’ can take a quick decision of loan application.
The above use case is just one aspect of open banking. Open banking could be leveraged for a lot of other banking processes. It is already a process in itself.
Some of the Open Banking API providers are IWOKA, Yapily, Pelican Payments, etc.
Banks that use Open Banking: HSBC, Barclays, Lloyds, Nationwide, Royal Bank of Scotland.
Open Banking API:
Note: Banks must accept or follow or be compliant with PSD2(Payment Service Directive) especially for EU banks. Checklist includes. API Function, API authentication, API documentation.
Don’t forget to give us 👏 ! | https://medium.com/@v2solutions/enable-open-banking-with-salesforce-b395d3ce1aca | [] | 2020-01-24 13:47:24.919000+00:00 | ['API', 'Barclays', 'Open Banking', 'Lloyd', 'Salesforce'] |
“A Word made Flesh is seldom” | A Personal Meditation on the Poetry of Emily Dickinson
Regarded by some as The Belle of Amherst, the American poet and woman of letters Emily Dickinson can hardly be described by a single moniker. She remains a mystery, not fully knowable, and yet paradoxically revealed in intimate glimpses through her verse. Dickinson held words as sacred and the act of stringing them together as a solemn ritual undertook with great reverence. Spending her entire life in Amherst, Massachusetts, Dickinson fashioned a stoic public persona that over time resembled a narrowing funnel that let in fewer and fewer people. She eventually chose to interact with those outside her family through letters. These epistolary relationships worked well because the reclusive Dickinson proved most expressive when putting ink to paper. But more importantly, she felt so much and so strongly that it was sometimes hard for others to be near her. She found it even difficult to be with herself at times.
The Soul selects her own Society –
Then – shuts the Door –
To her divine Majority –
Present no more –…
But no matter how sparse her outer realm became, her inner life soared. She preferred to compose her poems during the night, but like any dedicated writer, was never without a scrap of paper and pencil throughout the day to record images, words, and phrases that came to her. She found inspiration in the quotidian tasks of the day, “She sweeps with many-colored Brooms –…,”1 and crafted them, sometimes rather cryptically, into metaphors about life, and death, and the human condition. She grasped the preciousness of the temporal, the ephemeral, commenting on the stem of a dandelion, a gust of wind, a beam of light, the baptism of dew, and the drift of a dust moat. Not even the most seemingly inconsequential of our lives, such as the gnat, escaped her notice and contemplation.
I am not sure when I encountered my first Emily Dickinson poem, but I know that they have been roaming around in my mind for as long as I can remember. When I feel a longing for her words, I usually reach for the old paperback copy I own from 1961. The edges of the pages are soiled and slightly foxed, and the orange cover faded. It fits nicely in my hands, neither too large nor too small, and the pages make a satisfying crackling sound as I turn them. It was not new when I received it during my freshman year of college from a dear friend. He and I shared an eclectic affinity for the arts that had made us a bit odd among our high school peers. But we were not concerned by this, and instead felt a bit smug as we spent hours together discussing poetry, listening to Mahler symphonies, watching the mesmerizing images of Philip Glass’s Koyaanisqatsi, anticipating Marlon Brando’s “Stella!” scream in A Streetcar Named Desire, and singing along with Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones in Oklahoma! My friend had found this particular book of poetry in some second-hand shop, and it fit into his budget as an impoverished college student. He proudly presented it to me as a Christmas present in 1990 with a beautiful note about our friendship inscribed on the title page. Priceless to me, this volume will never be placed into the discard pile during a culling of my bookshelves. I have lovingly tucked my favorite photo of us between two pages. It depicts one of our happy adventure days as we stand near the historic Covered Bridge in Elizabethton, Tennessee, built in 1882, four years before Emily Dickinson’s death. We look young and relaxed. He is wearing his standard outfit: a well-washed t-shirt and Birkenstocks; I have on shorts and sunglasses. We are leaning against a white wooden fence at the edge of the water where ducks swim and seek handouts of bread. For the first time recently, I wonder what passerby we asked to take our picture. But that will remain unknowable, almost as elusive as the recapturing of a day of wonders from one still photo, one fixed moment in time.
Emily Dickinson proved exceptionally dexterous at capturing a snapshot of a moment through words. Adjectives and adverbs created a vivid portrait, while her deftly chosen verbs left much open to interpretation. She embraced minimalism way before it evolved into the admired alternate lifestyle championed by some today. She lived a life of minimal possessions and relationships, an ascetic landscape on which to create. She valued an economy of words, a frugality that came not out of scarcity but because she savored the plucking out of that one perfect word that held a world of meaning within its few letters. She mostly preferred to communicate her poetic message in no more than 20 lines and never exceeded 50. Instead of epic narrative poems such as those by Keats or Byron, Dickinson gave her eventual readers truth and imagery in concentrated capsules.
While her poems rested in a confined physical space on the page, Dickinson knew few bounds in her subject matter. She wrote much of nature, and the divine, and the relationship of both to the human condition. Her verse often spoke of hope, and so despite what limitations the world or even she herself imposed, it seemed that the light of hope burned brightly in her spirit.
“Hope” is the thing with feathers –
That perches in the soul –
And sings the tune without the words –
And never stops — at all –…
She did not shy from explorations of the eschatological kind because she felt a restlessness to know what happens at the end, what lives beyond the present life we know.
Before Me — dips Eternity –
Before Me — Immortality –
Myself — the Term between –…
Her religious roots grew from the strict, piety-focused tradition of the Congregationalists. She tried as a young person to feel at home in that world and belief system, but except for her strong alignment with their abolitionist leanings, she felt too much of a pull-push relationship with the divine, a sort of war with God, to find comfort there. Her spiritual beliefs aligned more with the progressive views of the Transcendentalists who blossomed around her New England. As with Whitman and Thoreau, Dickinson encountered the divine in nature, and often proffered more questions than answers.
Some keep the Sabbath going to Church –
I keep it, staying at Home –
With a Bobolink for a Chorister –
And an Orchard, for a Dome –…
God preaches, a noted Clergyman –
And the sermon is never long,
So instead of getting to Heaven, at last –
I’m going, all along.
But regardless of any philosophical quarrels she might have had with her church, Emily Dickinson embraced their hymnody, and it contributed significantly to her verse. Dickinson’s writing has much in common with music even beyond the standard considerations of meter and rhyme. Her distinct punctuation, especially the use of the dash, establishes a definitive, yet often unexpected, cadence; and her use of capitalization emphasizes as an agogic accent would a note of importance within a measure. While many of her poems flow in the meter of her favorite hymns, Dickinson was not afraid to present changing meter or even asymmetry, much in the way that 20th century composers would feel liberated from the rhythmic and metric confines of the Common Practice Period.
There seems little doubt that as a writer and thinker, Emily Dickinson functioned more as a harbinger of the future than a recipient of success in her lifetime. Misunderstood and unappreciated, she suffered unveiled dismissal because of her gender and eccentricities. After her death at age 55, almost 1,800 poems were discovered and collected. These works resided in a variety of locations and in numerous formats — within her desk on fine stationary, enclosed in her prolific correspondence, and even through her own attempts at self-publication in small booklets of poetry, fascicles constructed from folded paper and handsewn. Her family also found fragments of verse on scraps of paper, discarded envelopes, and even candy wrappers. Having only received an anonymous publication of 10 or less in her lifetime, Emily Dickinson would finally receive a posthumous publication of a complete volume of her verse in 1955, almost 70 years after her death, by Harvard University Press.
When looking at her entire oeuvre, there seems something especially provocative and captivating about her opening lines, often the only part I can quote accurately from memory. They circle in my head in a repeating cycle like an earworm does with a musical fragment. Perhaps the fact that she did not title her poems, and thus the first lines undertake a dual purpose, strengthens their impact. Who can deny the arresting cadence and imagery of these opening words? No matter how many times I have read or recited them, they still leap off the page with urgency as if being revealed for the first time.
Because I could not stop for Death –/ He kindly stopped for me –…
My life closed twice before its close –…
Success is counted sweetest/ By those who ne’er succeed…
I heard a Fly buzz — when I died –…
If you were coming in the Fall,/ I’d brush the Summer by…
I measure every Grief I meet…
A Word dropped careless on a Page…
She sweeps with many-colored Brooms –…
This is my letter to the World/ That never wrote to Me –…
I am grateful that Emily Dickinson gifted us with such a prolific collection of verse because an “undiscovered” one seems to be waiting for me when I need it. A few days ago I encountered “A Word made Flesh is seldom” for the first time. It is one of her poems with an unknown date of creation although some scholars have speculated that it might have been written circa 1862 when many of her poems that celebrate linguistics were conceived. The lines reveal her usual prowess and veiled, multi-layered meanings. Even experts find this one a bit tricky to excavate and suggest a variety of possible interpretations. What appears certain is that Dickinson took the opening line from The Gospel of John, whose first chapter has much to say about Jesus, the Incarnation, as Word. Verse I declares, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Then in verse 14, we read the eponymous phrase, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” Additional consensus can be found that this is an example of Dickinson drawing on traditional Christian beliefs, and then reshaping and expanding them to reflect her worldview. She is not irreligious in this poem, quite the opposite. She has sought common ground between the faith of her childhood and her reverence for the written word. That I stumbled upon this powerful poem in the month of December because of its relationship to Advent, speaks to one of the most significant aspects of her body of poetry. Whatever time of year or season in life, a reader can discover at least one poem, and probably more, that speaks to the moment and deepens the reflection of the heart and soul. Her relevance remains, and I believe fulfills her sincerest desire to create timeless words that would keep her ever present.
Beauty crowds me till I die
Beauty mercy have on me
But if I expire today
Let it be in sight of thee –
1.The Dickinson poetry quotations in this essay all come from Final Harvest: Emily Dickinson’s Poems. Selected by Thomas H. Johnson. Little, Brown and Company, 1961. | https://medium.com/@kelliedbrown/a-word-made-flesh-is-seldom-c5cff6e1dba6 | ['Kellie Brown'] | 2020-12-18 15:56:51.916000+00:00 | ['Books And Authors', 'Emily Dickinson', 'Christmas', 'Poetry', 'Poems On Medium'] |
Volume Two of The Best Illumination Writers Christmas Reads | Photograph by Johnathon Borba on Unsplash
So, here we are with yet more great Christmas reads from some of our wonderful writers. It never ceases to amaze me what a deep well and wide variety of writing creativity were have here on Illumination. There have been so many different takes on the theme of Christmas, clearly showing that it means something very unique for everybody.
For me personally it is a time of happiness and joy, a time of good food and wine, but most of all, a time for family and friends to get together and rejoice in the lives that we are so fortunate to live.
Of course, the pandemic has put us all in an onerous position. However, the human spirit will always rise above anything that tries to restrict it, be it conflict, illness or loss. For me personally it has been a challenging year with a move to a new continent and a panoply of serious health issues. But I am happy to report that I am finally resolving those issues and look forward better days. I will not allow my past hard times to define my future.
For those of you who might be passing a difficult time please remember one thing, All Things Must Pass. With that I wish you all a very happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year.
Finally, please do have a read of the terrific contributions in volume one of this collection of Christmas related articles, stories and poems. And feel free to send me a link to your own efforts on this subject so that I can add to this post. Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year to you all.
Aldric Chen
Kevin
Christine Graves
janny’s heart
Liam Ireland
Stuart Englander
Larry Nowicki
Eizza Misa
James Jordan | https://medium.com/illumination/the-best-illumination-writers-christmas-reads-59c7ba23c95 | ['Liam Ireland'] | 2020-12-20 10:15:00.068000+00:00 | ['Illumination', 'Writing', 'Christmas Reads', 'Yuletide Creativity', 'Short Stories And Poems'] |
Does CBD Oil Get YOu High | When researching whether to start using CBD oil for health and wellness concerns, many people worry about whether you can get ‘high’ from taking CBD. They associate CBD with marijuana, and they associate marijuana with getting ‘stoned.’
The short reply to this question is simply no, CBD or cannabidiol is not an intoxicant in any way.
CBD’s sister molecule THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, is the cannabinoid that has these psychoactive properties.
The cannabis Sativa plant produces CBD, and here’s where it gets a little confusing. We need to know the difference between hemp and marijuana.
In terms of the family of cannabis plants, there is not a whole lot of difference. They are both cannabis Sativa, and the difference is technical. It’s a legal definition which states that hemp is defined as cannabis Sativa or marijuana with less than 0.3% THC.
From a different perspective, it’s important to understand that the average marijuana plant that people might smoke would have about 16% to 17% THC by weight.
With that level of THC, when consumed, the psychoactive ingredient will get you high, whereas hemp is only 0.3% percent. Which means there is around 50 times less THC in hemp than in marijuana.
If you’re buying CBD products derived from pure hemp, there is no chance at all of becoming intoxicated. It’s five thousand percent less intoxicating than marijuana.
It is always vital to source your CBD products from a reliable supplier, which has been clearly labeled, so you can see what you are really buying.
cbdhempreview.com | https://medium.com/@dinoortolani.v1/does-cbd-oil-get-you-high-6b44a407a688 | ['Dino Ortolani'] | 2020-08-07 02:07:41.145000+00:00 | ['Cbd', 'Cbd Oil'] |
A Rhapsody of Lego and Coding | I am a Lego fan and a software engineer. I work on engineering problems in daytime and build Lego models at night. It occurs to me that there is a subtle continuation for these two types of activities.
What do they have in common?
Start with basic components and build an edifice. From Millennium Falcon to Bugatti Chiron and from Taj Mahal to Hogwarts castle, you can build almost anything with Lego bricks. People create complex software systems with basic built-in types and control/loop statements.
Break things down to small components or subsystems. When building a complex software system, engineers break the design down to components. That’s also how most Lego designers figure out their design details. They start with a vision of a model and seek solutions or heuristics to achieve the desired effect.
Be careful of making mistakes in a minefield. Lego experts know when they should slow down to double check some crucial steps. Those extra time help prevent expensive tear down and rebuild work afterwards. Experienced software engineers think carefully of any change that might cause unexpected breakdowns. A piece of sloppy code could become a source of problems when adding more features on top of it.
Roll back to a stable version if issues occur. A note for an App update often says bug fix. New issues may occur when adding new features to complex software systems. If we could detect the issues but could not resolve them, roll back to a previous stable version is the safest way. This practice would make sure that online services are not interrupted. Likewise, when you are building Lego models with thousands of pieces, you may find some parts don’t fit. And you know that the problem is not due to the current step. To prevent failing to complete the model at the end, you should promptly “roll back” to the step for that part.
Completing a challenging project makes you proud. Working in an Internet company that serves millions of users per month, you’re likely to deal with issues cause by high load. It takes hard work, persistence and intelligence to solve these problems. Similarly, nothing compares the feeling when you complete the 7541-piece Millennium Falcon set.
Sorting is a prerequisite for a large group of algorithms in computer science. For instance, a sorted array possesses a set of wonderful properties. With these guarantees you can devise clever algorithms. Modern Lego sets comes in bags with numbers, which correspond to major steps. This consideration reduces the pool size you need to search for a particular piece. Yet, your building speed is still limited by how fast you can locate pieces (and put them together). Experienced Lego builders tend to sort the pieces in each bag by shapes or color before they start. You can spend the saved time appreciate the design and building techniques.
Don’t judge the functionality of a piece of code by the number of lines. Some code are so redundant that the same functionality could be achieved with one third of the number of lines. Readability could also improve with fewer lines. A lot of People decide whether it is worth buying a Lego set using the pieces per dollar ratio. They think that the higher this ratio, the higher value the set has. Nothing could be further from the truth. To represent complex shapes, Lego manufactures ever more complex-shaped bricks. Large and complex pieces are much more expensive to make than regular pieces. And the functionality they achieve are not possible with simpler bricks. Thus pieces per dollar ratio is not an ideal way to determine the value of a Lego set. | https://medium.com/hackernoon/a-rhapsody-of-lego-and-coding-ebce87c9fb01 | ['Weihe Wang'] | 2019-05-23 17:09:33.095000+00:00 | ['Software Development', 'Lego', 'Engineering', 'Software Engineering', 'Algorithms'] |
A Gesture Of Help | As the night grew colder, I stood there sipping my coffee, feeling the crisp night air on my face. The whole city was bustling even though it was late into the night. The buzzing of my phone brought me out of my daze; another work call. Honestly, I have never seen a successful lawyer who has peace of mind. I took the call. It was Riya, my coworker.
‘Hey, are you free?’
‘Yeah, kinda. What’s up?’
‘I was thinking, we could grab a drink together since it’s the weekend. I’m here at Toit, wanna join me?’
‘Yeah sure, I’ll be there in five.’
As I went into the pub I saw her sitting there. Usually she drank with a lot of people but today she was alone. I wonder what happened. I went and sat with her and ordered a beer.
‘Sup?’
‘Nothing much. Just tired.’ She replied nervously.
My gut said something was up. Maybe she was in trouble? She slowly raised her eyes and started to talk.
‘Hey I know we’re not that close. But lately, I’ve been noticing that you’re too tired and your eyes look lifeless. Is there something wrong?’
I was a little taken aback at her sudden question. We weren’t even that close how did she know I was feeling stressed out lately?
I replied, ‘Oh it’s nothing much I’ve just been a little stressed out lately.’
‘Yeah, I know. Alisha, I know you have the student loans and all to pay back but I think you’re too harsh on yourself. You work too hard and now you like a zombie! I think you should ease up a bit and be more gentle with yourself. And if you need anyone to talk to, remember that I am always here for you. Okay?’
We talked for some more time and then went our separate ways. As I sat on my bed I remembered what she said.
Now that I think about it I have been too harsh on myself and worrying over every single mistake. Maybe I should be more gentle? I was amazed by how much power a small suggestion has over me to even question how I treat myself! But I’m really grateful to her, if she had never brought up the topic I would’ve never thought about it. Even though it was just a small help, I know it’ll make a great impact on me. I think we all need a friend like her. | https://medium.com/@kithusjoy2004/a-gesture-of-help-99d87c07dc25 | ['Christine Joy'] | 2021-07-05 14:56:58.830000+00:00 | ['Helping Others', 'Motivaiton'] |
How to find and organize your data from the command-line | How to find and organize your data from the command-line
Introducing metaframe: a markdown-based documentation tool and data catalog for data scientists.
Repo: https://github.com/rsyi/metaframe
If you are a data scientist, it’s your job to extract value from data. But in your career, you’ll likely spend (and have spent) a non-trivial amount of time looking for and getting context around said data. In my experience, this commonly plays out as a wild goose chase — you ask the most senior person on your team who refers you to someone else, who refers you to someone else, who tells you they don’t know what you’re talking about. You then repeat this process until you find someone who can refer you to a useful table.
person = senior_data_scientist
while person and not_tired:
response = ask(person)
if type(response) == Table
rejoice()
if type(response) == Person
person = response
But this algorithm is really pretty terrible! It’s by no means an exhaustive search, and you’ll often end up with an unmaintained, unused table. If you decide to just risk it and use this in your production pipelines, you could end up costing your company a lot of money when you find out six months down the line that this table doesn’t do what you think it does. What’s more, it’s a huge waste of time! Sometimes you’ll forget what the table does months later and you’ll have to do this again, to the dismay of your coworkers. So what can you do?
A brief intro to data catalogs and their limitations
Luckily, there’s already a solution to this problem: the data catalog. Data catalogs are aptly named, for they simply provide you with a catalog of your data. They let you search and find tables by name, view their columns and metadata, and enrich this metadata with additional documentation. A number of closed source players exist, like Alation and Collibra, and open-source versions have been released by a number of tech companies, including Netflix’s Metacat, Lyft’s Amundsen, and LinkedIn’s Datahub. And tons of companies have been creating these tools for themselves (Airbnb, Uber, Google, Facebook — to name a few).
This begs the question: why not just use/implement one of these solutions?
Well, you might want to seriously consider it, eventually, but there are enormous barriers to entry: catalogs tend to be expensive to set up, or, in the case of open-source tools, difficult to set up. For companies with only a handful of data scientists and analysts, it’s hardly worth upwards of 10s of thousands of dollars or months of work to implement a tool that will, at best, save you the few minutes of turning to your neighbor and asking him/her about that table again.
I’ve talked to a number of friends at smaller startups about this, and while the problem of data documentation and data discovery is salient even at the smallest scales, the cost-benefit tradeoff simply doesn’t make sense. But just because the problem is too expensive to solve with existing methods doesn’t mean that a cost-effective solution doesn’t exist.
So what’s the solution?
I thought, “there has to be an easier way to set up a catalog.” Day-to-day, I just want to look for my data, check the column names, and take some notes. Why is that so hard? I already can do that manually by saving everything in a team-wide spreadsheet.
So I thought I’d try to 80/20 this. The result?
Metaframe.
Metaframe is a CLI-based data catalog with a custom Markdown-based metadata backend, a fzf-based search service, and an ETL pipeline written in bash and python, built off of lyft’s amundsendatabuilder library.
But that’s hard to grok. Here’s a quick demonstration:
At its core, metaframe is just a slightly opinionated documentation tool. Want to just write notes for one table? Easy, just type the following:
mf new table_name
and you’ll enter into a text file located at ~/.metaframe/metadata/table_name.docs.md , where you can add your notes on this table. These will then be accessible in your search, by running
mf
And this isn’t tied to tables — you can create a new doc for SQL queries, ML models, jupyter notebooks, or more. I personally keep a subfolder in ~/.metaframe/ called recipes , where I store named snippets of SQL.
If you want a more full-fledged data catalog experience, metaframe also supports locally-run ETL jobs. All you need to do is specify a connection in yaml by running mf connections edit , then run mf etl , and all your data will be accessible using mf . After searching and finding a table you want to take notes for, you can press enter to edit a doc associated with the selected table, and this doc will be appended to your metadata preview window in future searches.
Because the file structure is entirely text-based, you can even navigate to ~/.metaframe/metadata and version-track it with git. In a company with a number of collaborators wanting to share notes, a simple pattern could be to set up CI/CD (or an airflow job) to populate this data in a git repository automatically and have users push their personal docs to branches in this repo. Because this is version tracked, you should be able to easily see what tables your coworkers know about without even having to ask them by checking the commit history of their personal branch.
Any caveats?
The only issue I’ve noticed with metaframe is that it’ll start to chug at around 100,000 tables. But for companies that have this sort of scale, it may be prudent to (a) not run the ETL job locally and (b) restrict which schemas are being pulled. In metaframe, this is simply a matter of adding a few flags, like included_schemas or excluded_schemas , to your mf connections edit file. See the docs for more details.
Metaframe supports manual documentation and ETL over presto or neo4j (amundsen) out-of-the-box, but we also support custom build scripts to enable custom extraction jobs (from any warehouse, from pre-scraped database stores, etc.). We are also in the process of building out more native connections (e.g. Snowflake and Postgres are in the works). If you’re passionate about getting this to work for your particular setup, feel free to drop an issue and we’ll help out. Or, if you’re so inclined, make a contribution! :)
Summary
Data documentation and data discovery are serious problems, but they’re not things that data scientists typically think about. It’s easy to neglect a problem that wastes less than an hour a week, but I’m here to tell you that there are solutions for this at all scales. Give metaframe a try, and I guarantee you once you have a taste of it, you won’t be able to live without it.
Repo: https://github.com/rsyi/metaframe | https://towardsdatascience.com/how-to-find-and-organize-your-data-from-the-command-line-852a4042b2be | ['Robert Yi'] | 2020-10-17 20:49:52.203000+00:00 | ['Data Science', 'Data Catalog', 'Towards Data Science', 'Command Line', 'Productivity'] |
Proposing a Solution to Affordable Housing in New York City | The first step is to discuss the housing problem in New York and describe the peculiar situation we’re in…
As the nation is combating a global pandemic and fighting for social justice and freedom to Black people after 400 years of racial and financial inequality, there is a greater urgency to develop more suitable affordable housing solutions to marginalised members of society.
According to The Coalition For The Homeless, over 61,000 New Yorkers sleep in shelters every night but only 6,000 apartments are being planned to be built every year through 2026.
Part of the reason for this low amount is attributed to the popular belief that affordable housing is not profitable. With New York City being the epicentre of the corona virus pandemic, homeless and displaced residents are bearing the brunt of it.
In 2017, there were 560,000 more households that required low-rent apartments than apartments available due to rising rents and stagnant incomes over the last twenty years
Share of housing units created or preserved by income band
Looking into the numbers, 20% of housing in New York is reserved for individuals with extremely low income and very low income households.
The overwhelming majority, 58% is catered to low income households.
The gap in the supply of housing for residents with higher levels of homelessness and poverty is what needs to be addressed.
Statistics show that during an economic downturn, the use of Low-Income Housing Tax Credits(LIHTC) to build and maintain housing falls. In the Great Recession, it decreased by almost 50% from more than 116,000 units in 2004 to 61,000 units in 2010.
Under the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act, there was a reduction of corporate taxes which led to reduced incentives and the value of the LIHTC tax credits, leading to a decrease in the number of houses built.
As the world deals with the after-effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, developers might have less incentives to develop affordable housing for residents.
Trends in Affordable Housing Market
The biggest and most relevant trend we are seeing in the affordable housing industry is shrinking supply and high demand. With the COVID-19 crisis, we believe we are right to assume these issues will continue and create a greater demand for affordable housing solutions. This has been an issue since affordable housing first began to be addressed and only continues to grow as the gap between a liveable wage and the median wages earned by low income housing candidates continues to rise.
The share of low-income renters experiencing housing hardships in 2019
People who qualify for affordable housing are generally having a difficult time making ends meet, with 30% of low-income renters falling behind on rent, 20% having their utilities turned off, and 15% being threatened with eviction.
As of March 2019, 181,090 families are on the waitlist for public housing and 138,705 families are on the waitlist for Section 8 housing.
Homelessness has been steadily increasing in New York City. As of January 2020, there were 62,679 homeless people in the city (14,682 families and 22,013 homeless children). This number will continue to increase — likely leading to more than 100,000 people in New York City being homeless by 2021. There is an immediate need for a solution to assist the homeless communities in addition to the low-income affordable housing candidates.
The next step is to propose a solution to the housing problem…
This form of construction creates affordable and adequate housing for low to middle-income earners, public workers, and SMBs.
At scale, modular housing construction reduces building costs and construction time by 20% and 50% respectively compared to traditional methods.
Modular construction homes significantly reduce the cost and time of building a home
Time and Cost Advantages of Modular Construction
Traditional methods of construction are unable to meet the growing requirements. My proposed solution involves converting shipping containers to affordable housing and strategically placing them on vacant plots of land scattered across the city.
Structural Advantages of Modular Construction
Incorporating modular housing into the way homes are built will give developers an advantage as a “green solution” over their competition.
A 1 bedroom layout is shown here. There will be a few modifications to the final design
From a building programming standpoint, there’s an average loss factor of 30%, and a minimum buildable area of 20,751 sq ft. An average building using this form of construction can hold up to 90 units.
Proposed room specifications for a one bedroom unit. For a two bedroom, the size would be 320 sq. ft
I identified this as a way to save design costs, labour costs and reduce time spent building a home. Conservative estimates show that this form of construction reduces building costs by up to 15%. At full efficiency, that number rises to 25%. By adopting this approach, construction work would be carried out at the same time that excavation takes place.
The modular construction building process takes between 37 and 46 weeks
It has been proven that traditional construction methods are unable to meet the growing requirements of housing in New York City. Alternative construction methods allows homes to be built faster and easier.
A three-step solution is required to fix the issues surrounding affordable housing
Achieving a project solution of this magnitude requires a significant amount of investments funded by the public and private sector.
Partnerships with Non-Profit Organizations:
Joint ventures between affordable housing developers and non-profit organisations are helpful to create an organic community of tenants. An ideal environment for low-income and extremely low-income households is an urban village filled with supermarkets, open spaces, workshops, and parks.
Partnering with non-profit organisations like Camba Inc, New Story Charity, and ACE will allow us to work with cultural institutions that are mission-aligned and looking to provide shelter for their community members. This would allow us to cut costs & engage with other communities.
Partnerships with the Public Sector:
There are a number of grant and loan opportunities available to developers by the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund:
Loan Opportunities under the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund
Partnerships with Individuals:
An effective affordable housing solution involves engaging with community members to make regular tax-deductible donations towards housing people who have fallen into homelessness. These regular contributions, in the form of $1 - $50 monthly contributions will equip tenants with the social services they need to thrive.
Partnerships with Banks:
In a bid to raise more capital, developers can sell their tax credits to banks for cash that can be used to building homes for the less privileged.
As developers work to provide shelter for the homeless, they should continually look for ways to develop a program that assists distressed individuals and families to get back on their feet. Affordable housing solutions should allow tenants who sign multi-year lease agreements to defer rent payments for the first twelve months, after which they’ll pay between 1.5% and 3% interest in subsequent years.
The bulk of people become homeless due to loss of jobs or extenuating circumstances like unplanned health issues. By providing rent relief, tenants would be able to stay afloat while living in their units. Individual mentorship programs in partnership with local non-profit organizations will work towards providing individual financial assistance and job search opportunities for tenants. Solutions include:
Setting up workshops for applicable tenants to get immersed back into society
Provide employment to underprivileged members of society
Partnering with the government to provide housing to recently released convicts and military members to reduce the number of displaced members on the street.
There are financial risks from investing in the affordable housing market.
Under the affordable housing solution, there are three major risks that have the potential to endanger financial sustainability:
Tenant Default — Tenants are inherently “risky” being that they are lower than 60% AMI. Affordable rents and the deferred rent can relieve their financial strain throughout the life of their lease. Additionally, developers should look to invest in tenants’ financial education by connecting them with other non-profit organizations that focus on financial education (e.g. DREAM Organisation) and partner with organisations to provide employment referrals for underrepresented low-income urban citizens. These efforts will prevent them from defaulting on the balloon payment at the end of their lease. Construction Issues — The business of real estate development inherently has great risk during the construction process. This is a risk that is unavoidable. A way to assuage difficulty during construction is to sign recurring contracts with the same general contractors to eliminate any variability in quality and price. Decrease in donations and grants — Grants and donations make up the majority of funds and is expected to fuel development projects. To prevent a decrease in donations and grants, developers should closely manage relationships with donors and lobby for policies that favour donations in the form of tax credits.
I hope this article serves as a starting point for individuals to start thinking about how lack of affordable housing affects their community. My hope is that developers are encouraged to think outside the box and develop ways to solve the affordable housing crisis affecting underserved members of society.
I am grateful to John Mooney, Alex Suh, and Professor Josh Panknin for their contributions to this research and proposing solutions to the housing problem affecting thousands of residents in New York City. | https://medium.com/@mikeoviosu/proposing-a-solution-to-affordable-housing-in-new-york-city-eeed49d8560 | ['Michael Oviosu'] | 2020-06-16 16:03:00.200000+00:00 | ['Affordable Housing', 'Community', 'New York', 'Homelessness', 'Modular Homes'] |
A Picture is Worth 1970 Words | The tweet and where the link led.
I joked in a tweet that I am not a writer because if I could intern or apprentice with anyone, learn their craft and how they do it firsthand, it would be with photographer Clyde Butcher. He still uses large format cameras and shoots on huge pieces of film that can be printed in black and white in his studio. He lugs them out into the wilderness, most often the wilds of Florida, and captures the beauty of nature in a way similar to Ansel Adams. His images are so magical I can stand before them taking in the talent, the chemistry, the artistry until every other member of my party has grown bored and wandered off.
Of course, when I say I’d love to apprentice with him, this is in some idealized fantasy world where Covid doesn’t exist, where I have the time and monetary freedom to do such a thing, and he is younger and more willing to take on a student.
It’s still telling on myself.
In one of my early writing experiments, I drafted a play or musical of sorts using songs I’d recorded from the radio. (I’m old so when I was seven or eight that was the only way to go about having a group of songs in a particular order was to sit before the radio, finger at the ready to push record, and hope the DJ didn’t talk over the intro or outro. Unless, of course, you owned one of the fancy tape players with more than one deck — and the disposable income to buy all those singles or albums. Eventually, I’d get my hands on a triple-deck tape player that was the closet I would come to a 5-disc changer for another decade, but that might have been after I’d passed the age when I shared my work with others, unashamed and excited.)
Maya Angelou’s famous quote about creativity is part of an article in which she goes on to talk about how “[i]t is our shame and our loss when we discourage people from being creative…Too often creativity is smothered rather than nurtured. There has to be a climate in which new ways of thinking, perceiving, questioning are encouraged. People also have to feel they are needed.” This was in 1982. A year or so later, my parents still hadn’t gotten the memo as they responded to my melodramatic and derivative “play” with boredom and the sort of looks that might get you your own shrink if you were from the kind of family that did that sort of thing. I got the immediate and distinct impression that there was nothing good in my efforts and that they were unwelcome and strange.
I think the next time I showed anyone something I’d written (unless I had to for a grade) was in my thirties. And even then, I think most agents probably had a similar reaction as my parents. They just had it in their homes and offices instead of my grandmother’s living room, that thinking back was a perfect encapsulation of her aesthetic and life. Perhaps my parents were onto something back then. Or perhaps my writing might have improved a bit faster if I hadn’t been so ashamed of it that I hid notebooks of it behind shoeboxes, under the bed, and in the space between the drawer and the back of the dresser.
Stories of children who took diaries and notebooks of stories to school with them always boggled my mind even before other students or teachers found them and embarrassed or questioned the intentions of the writers. How anyone could risk another soul seeing the thoughts in their heads baffled me even as I mimicked soap operas I caught in the summer time and rewrote episodes of Facts of Life with kids I knew so they seemed more realistic.
My husband’s creative endeavors during those ages tended to lean more toward movie making and he tells of filming such epics as The Moped Warrior with a video camera and editing the VHS with a pair of daisy-chained players with his friends. I’m not sure I could say his parents were much more supportive except for letting him use their technology and not suggesting he needed a psychiatrist to examine him.
Then again, cameras were something even my parents understood. At the time I was learning to hide my words, I was encouraged to share my pictures. Back then, my colorful plastic 110 cameras were mostly for end-of-year field trips, birthdays, and other special occasions when you wanted to remember the day with blurry images of people you’d later forget.
Seriously, for all the modern attraction with Lomography and plastic cameras, there’s a reason people revived the Diana and Holga, but not the 110. (To be fair, they did revive it in black and white in 2012, but that was pretty much after they’d dug through the photographic graveyard and reanimated everything but the daguerreotype.) Nothing at a distance was in focus. Nothing up close was in focus. And the film itself was so small, even 3.5 x 5 pictures were a grainy mess. The 110, which was generally slightly longer than an Android phone and about six times as thick, made it impossible to believe in tiny spy cameras being useful. Taking a picture on film smaller than the 110 sounded like a great way to keep something secret forever. (Although I fully admit to having one of these things in all black and loving it despite it not being practical or ever working as advertised.)
For those who have never had the pleasure of using 110 film, it came in a cartridge so it was super-easy for kids to use. Back then we knew recycling was important, but we didn’t quite understand that adults were lying to us about how recycling worked or that it was far more important for companies to make less plastic than to leave it up to us kids to figure out what to do with it. It was shorter than 35mm and generally cheaper. It was also, again, utter crap.
In 1984, though, I got the best gift for a budding photographer, only to lose it the following year in a lawsuit.
The Kodak CHAMP instant camera was awesome, took the kind of dreamy, randomly-sharp pictures that would later be all the rage for Lomography fans and would initially inspire a raft of filters and apps in the early days of Instagram decades later. Not only were they instant in an era where most cameras required you to finish the roll, save up your allowance or lunch money, and talk someone into taking you to the drug store to drop it off, wait a week, and then get a ride to pick up the photos, but the film itself was the perfect hybrid of the older peel-open Polaroid film and the newer “shake it” (but, really, please don’t) style. Because Kodak had been making Polaroid’s film stock for ages, they were kind of perfectly poised to take the good parts of both styles, creating a film that instantly began to develop once ejected without any messy chemical sheets to dispose of, but had a back that could be peeled off later so the photos sat flat in albums.
I loved them. I loved running around with that lunchbox-sized hunk of plastic shooting pictures of everything I could find. And because I didn’t have to wait to see the results of my experiments, I could adjust my composition or technique on the fly. (I could also take photos of my Barbies wearing the clothes I’d designed out of scraps and staple them to the sketches, but that’s a whole other dumb thing child-me did.)
Picture-taking me was something my parents understood. They took pictures. Everyone they knew took pictures. Maybe not close-ups of mushrooms or strange angles of canoe parts, but I guess they assumed I’d eventually settle into taking pictures of friends like a normal kid if I ever made any. To that end, they indulged my weirdness. They supplied film, drove me to the local Eckerd Drugs to get film developed, and let me use the heavy Vivitar SLR with removable lenses that I still have somewhere in the house along with my old Minolta SLR, Canon SLR, and collection of Polaroid Land Cameras purchased long after their heyday when I had to rewire the battery compartment to accept AAAs.
I run across those occasionally and wonder if I can still find the magic I felt using those thirteen years ago. I still have 120 film (far bigger film than the 110 despite what the names suggest) I never developed even though I have a negative scanner still sitting on the end of my desk.
And I still have the photographs my mother hung on her walls until she died. Surprisingly, they were mostly landscapes, black-and-white images of farm equipment or flowerpots rather than people. Seems the images I gifted her over the years became décor as much so as the pictures of her mother and granddaughter hanging near the dining table.
Many of those were printed when I was in college. Even though I’d gotten good grades and comments in Honors English, when I decided to be an impractical freshmen and switch my major from International Business to Art, it was so I could take photography rather than writing. For the record, I was not a particularly-gifted photography student and our professor, who shaved her head in the dead of winter on what was rumored to be a party dare, did her best to discourage me back into any other college on campus. (The 2D design professor also tried mightily to ensure I knew I was awful.)
I did eventually end up with a degree in business after transferring to the Art Institute in Fort Lauderdale and realizing that paying an obscene amount of money to take pictures of soap and cat food in a studio was beyond foolhardy. ADHD and being too mature in middle- and high-school can lead to some dumb decisions in one’s twenties, but that’s a topic for another day.
So, maybe I’m not really a photographer after all. Maybe that was just a multi-decade fever dream caused my the chemicals we used to use to make photographs.
I still “see” in images, whether abstract paintings and designs as I drift off to sleep or the snapshots frozen before my face as I hike and roam city streets. When I used to write, I still “saw” in images, though now I feel blocked and the images won’t play right, as though the video files in my brain are all corrupted, mislabeled, or in the wrong format.
Recently, (as though time still has meaning), Amanda Gorman was interviewed by Anderson Cooper following her brilliant inauguration poem. He asked her if she was inspired by images from the Capitol insurrection and she corrected him. “I’m a poet,” she said, “so I often I don’t work in images. I work in words and texts. And so, what I was actually doing is while keeping mental sanity looking through the tweets and the messages and articles and seeing what stood out.”
Her words stuck with me long after that interview, and it was likely the words no one else paid much attention to, the words describing her craft and how she makes sense of the world. Her words made me question if I’ve ever been a writer. Can one be a writer if they are primarily trying to find the thousand words to describe the photograph they imagine, but can’t shoot.
I don’t really have an answer to that question anymore than I have any idea how to repair those old Land Cameras that stopped working.
I do hope to find a way to continue doing both, to keep experimenting with words and pictures, no matter how terrible I am at either (or both). | https://medium.com/@nelizadrew/a-picture-is-worth-1970-words-261048ab9097 | ['Neliza Drew'] | 2021-04-03 20:44:53.913000+00:00 | ['Writers On Writing', 'Writer', 'Photographer', 'Photography', 'Writers Block'] |
The funny film: A Call to Boycott | It was undoubtedly the most frustrating cinematic experience ever. I watched Funny Boy by D. Mehta [DM] on CBC Gem, during the weekend of 5th November 2020. It is indeed a ‘funny’ film, which does a great deal of injustice to a Lankan Tamil queer boy’s coming-of-age story. Funny Boy is a novel authored by a cis gay Tamil man, S. Selvadurai, who is a member of the global Tamil diaspora, or to be precise, the Lankan Tamil diaspora of the territories of Turtle Island we know as Canada. It is definitely a beautifully written book.
Growing up in socially conservative Sri Lanka in the 1990s, this writer used to love how the mere mention of the book would annoy closeted LGB people, as well as homophobic and anti-Tamil reactionaries. The novel Funny Boy, we can clearly establish, is a classic. It has a definitive place in the annals of literature in English, in Sri Lanka, Turtle Island as well as elsewhere.
This is a story that revolves around a 15-year-old Tamil cis boy growing up in Colombo of the late 1970s and early 1980s. A cinematic creation based on such a story imperatively requires a strong focus on research on the horrific incidents that took place in July 1983, the political developments in Sri Lanka, especially of the 1970s, and under the first few years of the Jayewardene administration in the early 1980s.
The film ‘Funny Boy’ by DM, it appears, has failed to provide adequate attention to these realities. The final product very much resembles an act of cinematic sleepwalking and knocking oneself right against a wall. Many Illankai Tamils in Sri Lanka and the worldwide Tamil diaspora have clearly stated why this film is an offensive atrocity that only deserves boycotting and condemnation. In what follows, this writer will seek to highlight a few perspectives on why this film is deeply problematic, from a Sinhalese, if not Sinhala-Buddhist, perspective.
The Casting Quagmire
The casting is obviously very offensive to the entire Tamil populace of Sri Lanka, and to the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora. Not a single native-Tamil-speaking actor has been selected to play the key roles. To play the character of Arjun, the 15-year-old protagonist, how on earth could one justify the choice of a thirty-something non-Tamil and non-Tamil speaker? To add further insult to injury, the actor chosen for the protagonist also happens to be a cis gay person of Eurasian descent!
In her media engagements, DM repeatedly reiterates how hard she tried to ensure a Tamil cast, and Failed. To the discerning observer, this very much sounds like a futile damage control effort.
DM claims that no Tamil person in Sri Lanka would accept to act in a movie of this nature, especially because of its thematic of non-heteronormativity! This again is the most ludicrous claim. Why were Tamil queer Sri Lankans not adequately consulted? Sri Lanka is home to many LGBTQI+ activist collectives, some of them founded and led by, and/or, with a strong concentration of, Tamil queer Sri Lankans. Given the connections of this story to the worldwide Illankai Tamil diaspora, why were Illankai/Eezham Tamil diaspora artists, especially queer artists, not adequately consulted? Why was it not clearly established that Illankai Tamils will play the lead roles? In her recent media engagements, DM says that her priority was to find people who could ‘act’. This is an incredibly condescending claim that runs against the grain of something that is highly prioritised and appreciated in present-day artistic creations — ‘representation’.
As many observers have highlighted, the choice of the core cast is beyond belief. Who on earth would consider a Pakistani actor to play the role of a Lankan Tamil appa? Or a non-native-Tamil-speaker to play the role of a Tamil amma in Colombo? DM and her team’s desperate use of the Sinhala-Tamil family background of the actress who plays Arjie’s mother is also extremely problematic. It is, as many Tamil analysts have rightly highlighted, a blatant act of entitled gaslighting.
Most importantly, when one reads through narratives of people who were invited to come on board in relation to certain aspects of the film, and when one takes a good look at the cast, and the networks of some of the actors, especially those who are Sri Lankan, one thing becomes quite clear: that DM had not bothered to gauge the extent of the task at hand, and launch an essential initiative — a process of open-casting. Instead, it very much looks like ‘networks’, and ‘personal connections’ have been prioritised in identifying potential cast members. Hanging around in English-speaking theatrical circles in Colombo, for example, is by no means sufficient when it comes to the daunting task of casting for a cinematic venture of this nature.
Representation really matters. Hence the necessity of high-quality, intersectionally-informed and sensible representation. In sum, it is not unfair to establish that DM and her team had not bothered to look hard enough, for Lankan Tamil talent, for a film about Lankan Tamils.
A Tale of ‘Intersectional Bankruptcy’: Gayness against Tamilness?
Most pathetically, DM seeks to take credit for casting a cis gay non-Tamil Eurasian man in his thirties for the role of a 15-year-old queer Tamil boy. Her argument is that she prioritised casting a gay man for the character of the protagonist, irrespective of the actor’s ethnicity! This is beyond shameless, and is a perfect example of what I may call the filmmaker’s ‘intersectional bankruptcy’. She does not even seem to be capable of beginning to grasp the deeply problematic nature of a) her choice and b) her case to justify that choice. To her, respecting the intersections of being Tamil and queer appears to have been of lesser importance than casting a non-Tamil, Eurasian, thirty-something cis gay man for the role of an adolescent Tamil queer boy, in a coming-of-age story! How can the protagonist’s sexual orientation prime over his ethnicity? How on earth can one justify the choice of a thirty-something Eurasian to play a 15-year-old non-heteronormative Tamil boy???
This kind of casting is NOT representation. This is equivalent to a white settler actor/actress being given the lead role of an indigenous character, in a film set in Turtle Island. DM’s choice is equivalent to a non-Te-Reo-speaking queer Pākehā New Zealander being asked to play a role of a Maōri Takatāpui character whose first language is Te Reo Maōri, in a film set in Aotearoa. This choice is equivalent to the tendency among many cis-het and intersectionally bankrupt filmmakers to cast cis people to play trans characters. These are all prejudiced, poor, deeply problematic and offensive choices of casting.
Butchering a Beautiful Language
The way in which core cast members speak Tamil is excruciatingly disturbing, to say the very least. While the deeply problematic language politics of this film have been subjected to strong, logical and thought-provoking critiques, suffice to note here that DM and her team have caused the ultimate insult to an ancient, rich, poetic and beautiful language — yet another abject affront to the Illankai Tamil communities in Sri Lanka and abroad. If DM and her team had the slightest idea of how complex and deeply ingrained ‘language politics’ are in the Lankan context, and what linguistic discrimination means to Lankan Tamils, they would never have opted to lead their viewers down such a shameless garden path.
The language spoken by the film’s key cast, is a new linguistic concoction altogether. It certainly does not sound anything like Tamil. One hears none of the Illankai Tamil accents. Telefilm Canada should take serious note of the fact that if this film deserves any credit, it is for inventing a strange new language that may only be intelligible to the maker/s of the film! Not only Tamil viewers, but Sinhalese viewers from Sri Lanka have also clearly highlighted how the film has blatantly butchered the Tamil language.
Insulting the Illankai/Eezham-Tamil Diaspora
In responding to the very justifiable critiques made by Tamil people in Sri Lanka and the diaspora, DM goes into a reckless gibe that insults the Illankai/Eezham Tamil diaspora, claiming “if we care so much, we should be back in our country and fighting for it there!”. Coming from someone living in a country that is home to one of the world’s largest Illankai Tamil diaspora communities, as someone who co-wrote a filmscript with an Illankai Tamil author, this statement is beyond nauseating, to say the very least. Anyone who has the slightest idea of the acts of systemic discrimination, and acts of violence perpetrated against the Tamils of Sri Lanka — much of that violence being state-sanctioned — would cringe before making such a claim. This statement is clear proof that DM has strictly speaking no clue whatsoever about the sheer magnitude of what it means to be positioned at the receiving end of a deeply divided society, as an ethnonational and linguistic minority. Claims of this nature are deeply hurtful, as Lankan Tamils and members of the Tamil diaspora have clearly claimed. As a Sinhala, and Sinhala-Buddhist Sri Lankan, a queer womxn and as a political analyst, it is this writer’s firm belief that the least us Sinhalese could do is to empathise with those who acutely feel the pain and anger caused by ludicrous statements of this nature.
Movie: Fail!
Aside the casting nightmares, butchering of one of the most ancient and richest languages, to say that some of the acting is atrocious is a euphemism. The film itself was very much like a series of unedited and undone clips wrapped together in a disorganised way. Given the structure of the book, and in DM’s own admission, given the casting-related challenges she faced, a series, composed of a number of separate episodes, may have been much more appropriate.
Only in Sri Lanka? Why the duplicity re this film?
What if Derry Girls — a story set in a conflict-ridden and deeply divided society during one of the most challenging years of that conflict — happened to include a foreign cast with no clue of the Derry accent, or lived experience of any description in the local context of Derry, or for that matter in the north of Ireland or the Irish Republic? What if The Crown was created by a group of people from a non-English-speaking foreign land with next to no clue of British political history? What if non-English-speaking actors who had zero resemblance to the key roles were chosen to play them? What if two non-British womxn who had zero resemblance [in looks, speech, or disposition] to young and middle-aged Queen Elizabeth, were chosen to play those two roles? Would a serious director even think of something so ridiculous, even in their wildest dreams?
So why should anyone applaud, or seek to see anything positive in this nightmare of an unfunny film? This is a question that Telefilm Canada, CBC, Netflix, and all relevant Canadian authorities must seriously ask themselves.
Withdraw the Oscar Nomination!
Telefilm Canada, CBC, Netflix Canada and all other parties concerned should take note of the fact that this film only deserves the most unreserved contempt and boycotting. This should also especially come from us Sri Lankans who, despite all the daunting odds, believe in a better, liberal and cosmopolitan Sri Lanka for us all. It especially falls upon us Sri Lankans to provide unconditional support to the ongoing petition campaign launched by Illankai/Eezham Tamils to call upon Canada to withdraw the Oscar nomination of this [un]funny [non]film.
It is also quite clear that this film uses narrowly construed perceptions of ethnonational politics in Sri Lanka to appeal to a predominantly white Canadian audience. The underlying logic seems to have been one of ‘who cares what language is spoken in the film or who acts in it, for as long as it is convincingly marketable to white-settler Canada?’ One of the foreign actresses, a Panjabi Canadian who plays the role of a Tamil aunty (!!!), claims that she was thrilled to be part of a film about brown people! Aside a probable cluelessness about the ethnonational politics of Sri Lanka, claims of this nature, as analysts have reiterated, amount to deeply offensive acts of erasure. The only decent thing, for the entire non-Tamil cast of this film, would have been to refuse to act roles that should have been played by Illankai Tamils, and preferably native Lankan Tamil speakers. This especially concerns the non-Tamil-speaking actress [from a highly privileged expatriate background] who touts her Sinhala-Tamil roots to gaslight and shutdown Illankai Tamils who rightly question her suitability to play a Tamil amma.
This writer, a Sinhala-Buddhist Lankan queer womxn, is tremendously proud of the excellent work done by many Tamil and Tamil-speaking queer people in Sri Lanka, and by Illankai/Eezham Tamils in the worldwide Illankai/Eezham Tamil diaspora — an invaluable source of critical engagement and [un]learning. In conclusion, it is worth reiterating the obvious — that Lankan Tamil queer people are best placed to make films and artistic creations about Lankan Tamil queer people.
The writer [@fremancourt] is a political analyst. She is writing in a personal capacity, and her views do not represent those of any individual or organisation. | https://medium.com/@fremancourt/the-funny-film-a-call-to-boycott-e794039dd6a1 | ['Dr Chamindra Weerawardhana'] | 2020-12-11 04:12:24.970000+00:00 | ['Sri Lanka', 'LGBT', 'Canada', 'Cinema', 'Coming Of Age'] |
Thanksgiving Dessert | Let me be the first to wish everybody a Happy Thanksgiving! There may be a few empty seats around everyone’s table this year, so I wanted to send some holiday cheer to the Flan Club with another industry breakdown and public market play!
This week’s curation will be from the energy industry. I’ll try to diversify when I can but you can expect the bulk of these to be biotech or energy related. Using the classic and very appropriate horse-racing analogy for my investing approach: I love betting on the horses in the biotech industry, but what I find most appealing about the energy industry is the track itself.
I’ll take this time to disclaim that I may/may not own securities in the companies mentioned. I’ll try to tell you when I do, but in no way are my stock plays financial advice. Everything I do is satire and should be taken as such.
AS ALWAYS TL;DR AT THE BOTTOM
Government officials have discouraged people from having large gatherings this holiday to stunt the spread of COVID-19. While some may still be traveling, if the lack of small birds at my grocery store is any indicator, I’d say there will be significantly fewer cars on the road this year.
While the ongoing pandemic has affected millions of lives around the world, the first half of 2020 saw an unprecedented decline in CO2 emissions. In last week’s post, I gave my two cents about Altimmune ($ALT) and recent vaccine news. During my research I came across not one, not two, but three articles analyzing atmospheric reductions resulting from government imposed lockdowns.
Total global CO2 emissions were 8.8% lower in the first half year of 2020 than in 2019. As soon as lockdown measures were lifted, most economies resumed their usual levels of emission. This period of historically low emissions will have a rather minuscule effect on the long-term CO2 concentration in the atmosphere. Thus, the authors stress that the only valid strategy to stabilize the climate is a complete overhaul of our energy production and consumption systems. Individual behavior is certainly important, but structural changes will in the long run reduce the carbon intensity of our global economy.
Under the Paris Agreement in 2015, Obama committed the US to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 26–28% by 2025, from 2005 levels. In 2019, emissions were 12% down on 2005 levels. Despite President Trump withdrawing the US from these targets, seeking to roll back emissions standards and environmental protections; in the past two years the largest reductions in global emissions came from the US. An important signal that the winds may be shifting when it comes to investing in sustainability solutions. Numerous U.S. corporations already committed to aggressive energy policies that will reduce their carbon dependency and emissions.
“If we like it or not these are the numbers. Of course, can the US do more? Definitely. Can the US be a leader of the global energy transition? Definitely. So therefore the US politics will matter more.” — Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency
President-elect Joe Biden has already announced that he intends to re-join the Paris Agreement. With substantial ground to cover, and pressure to accelerate emission deadlines, Biden has detailed plans for the USA to achieve a 100% clean energy economy (net zero emissions) by 2050 and for the country to become a “clean energy superpower.”
Vehicle emissions will be at the core of this as Biden wants to use the Federal government procurement system, which spends $500 billion per year, to support the drive towards clean energy and zero-emission vehicles. This system is intended to swap government fleet vehicles with American-made EVs and create a system that offers rebates or incentives for consumers to replace gas cars with electric vehicles. EVs are responsible for considerably lower emissions over their lifetime than conventional internal combustion engine vehicles.
Note that in countries with coal-intensive electricity generation like the US, the benefits of EVs are smaller and can have similar lifetime emissions to the most efficient conventional vehicles — such as hybrid-electric models. To reach his net zero-goal, he has promised federal spending of $1.7 trillion over the next ten years to support the buildout of the USA’s clean energy infrastructure.
PitchBook has predicted Biden’s plan to invest in clean energy and sustainable infrastructure will create “a potential boon for the cleantech startup ecosystem.” This capital will be used as an instrument of transformational change and as a sail to catch the winds of the sustainability mega-trend. Combining this momentum with aligned federal policy has already increased investors’ attention on the sector.
The Three Stooges of the EV Market (Tesla, NIO, Nikola)
Tesla ($TSLA) is an American electric vehicle and clean energy company. Tesla’s current products include electric cars, solar panels/solar roof tiles, battery energy storage from home to grid scale, and related products/services. The Palo Alto-based EV maker has seen more than a 400% gain from the beginning of 2020 till today. Elon Musk recently surpassed Bill Gates in terms of wealth in a recent move.
Chinese electric-vehicle maker Nio, ($NIO) celebrated their 6th birthday yesterday as its market cap recently surpassed that of automakers BMW and General Motors. The company also manufactures e-powertrains, battery packs, and various other components and offers battery swapping services. This designer, manufacturer, and seller of electric electric SUVs has gained 1277.6% year-to-date in the stock market.
Nikola ($NKLA) is an American company that has presented a number of zero-emission vehicle concepts since 2016 and has indicated plans to produce some of them in the future. The company is based in Phoenix, Arizona, where its corporate headquarters is located. Yesterday they snapped their eight-day streak over the course of which the stock has rocketed over 75%.
Splashy stock market gains generated a buying frenzy among EV investors. This year in particular has featured a boom in special purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs. This blind capital pool is usually run by a private equity manager looking to take a private company public.
More recently, investors have begun bidding up shares of SPACs that have rumored or already agreed to attractive deals. Speculation in SPACs is reminiscent of the dot-com bubble. Nikola went public by merging with a SPAC called VectoIQ ($VTIQ) and has delivered significant returns to early investors.
“We chose the SPAC route because there was simply too much uncertainty in the market with the coronavirus,” Nikola Chief Financial Officer Kim Brady said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. “If we had pursued the IPO path, we would not be a public company at this point.”
With a typical IPO, a company learns how much capital it is raising only after several months of wrangling with underwriters and investors. It can also fall through at the last minute, especially if markets slide. A SPAC deal can take similar time to complete, but the negotiations are simpler and the terms are determined earlier in the process.
Post-merger returns from stars like Nikola, Virgin Galactic, and DraftKings have been stunning but some critics worry that companies going public through SPACs aren’t getting as much scrutiny as those using traditional IPOs, creating risks for investors. For example, Nikola now faces probes from the Department of Justice over whether it misled investors when raising money.
Electric vehicles aren’t the only overhyped SPAC sector. So far 11 cannabis SPACs have either announced a deal or are searching for one. And in online gaming, there are no fewer than 10 SPACs in the works. The sensible thing is probably to stay on the sidelines for this one. I am sure this market can stay irrational longer than I can stay solvent. This bubble may be fun to watch from the outside, but am I being foolish for not riding the wave while these SPAC-tacular returns continue?
Let me try to make the bull case for playing these. Probably won’t win any investor of the year awards for doing this move, but these are the types of risks the Flan Page was built for. Institutional investors like California’s State Pension fund seem to be comfortable having large positions in SPACs, why shouldn’t I?
The only real long-term winners here may be consumers and the environment, but I’m willing to buy in and find out. After consulting with the Capos for advice on what to look for, I was initiated into the SPAC mafia on Tuesday at market open and began building a crew.
My Three Stooges of the EV Market : (Nuvve, Microvast, Canoo)
Newborn Acquisition Corp. ($NBAC) a publicly traded special purpose acquisition company announced the signing of a definitive merger agreement to take Nuvve public. Nuvve’s proprietary vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology enables the linking of multiple electric vehicle (EV) batteries through EV charging stations into a virtual power plant (VPP) to absorb or release energy from the grid as needed.
The company monetized this system, meaning that customers have the opportunity to be paid for this service. According to Nuvve, the most established commercial operation of such a power plant has been realized in Denmark. Nuvve’s technology and ecosystem has proven to successfully lower the cost of electric vehicle ownership, while supporting the integration of renewable energy for a scalable and sustainable green society. Nuuve projects +300% revenue growth over the next 2 years and current valuations are at a significant discount to the two primary comparables ($BLNK and $SBE) . [UPDATE: As of posting this may not be the case anymore… see Portfolio Status below]
Purchased 100 shares of $NBAC at $12.05
Tuscan Holdings Corp ($THCB) has reportedly progressed to advanced levels of merger conversations with Microvast. This Texas based EV Battery Maker has business focused in the fruitful Chinese EV market and expects to finish the year with over $100 million in revenue. Based on Lithium Titanium Oxide (LTO) chemistry, the electric buses used in the 2018 Winter Olympic Games were powered using their ultrafast batteries which can be fully charged within 10 minutes with a 400 kW charger.
There is a shareholder meeting on December 3rd to approve the deal or extend the period of time THCB has to find a deal from 12/7/2020 to 4/30/2021. It is worth noting this was originally a cannabis SPACs (see the THC). At that meeting, preferred shareholders will have the right to redeem shares at their buy-in price of $10 — which means there’s a chance a significant portion of the trust could be returned to them leaving the chance of this deal closing in the dust. There is also the potential for this stock to climb heading into the 12/3 meeting and a chance investors are pleased with the acquisition target. Let’s hope this deal goes through!
Purchased 100 shares of $THCB at $11.29
Hennessy Capital ($HCAC) is merging with start-up Canoo a subscriptions-only electric vehicle with a loft-like interior. In this presentation, the Chief Product Officer indicated that the app would determine when the vehicle is not being used and would allow (with your permission) sub-leasing/sub-subscription of the vehicle. This bet is that the subscription based car will be the evolution of the lease market which leases 4 million new vehicles a year. A subscription includes the lease, insurance, maintenance, DMV bullshit and etc all in one monthly flat-fee.
The subscription like any other asset-backed security, this company can easily securitize the recurring subscription cash flow and essentially sell the vehicles to investors, clearing up capital from their balance sheet. Rather than a one-time vehicle sale, the revenue from the subscription model has a 4x greater margin. Furthermore, the subscription model generates consistent cash flow and is more resilient than one-time vehicle sales.
Purchased 100 shares of $HCAC at $11.73
Portfolio Status | 11/30/20 | Market Open
$ALT — Cost Basis - $8.93 | Market Price - $10.79 | | +20%
$NBAC — Cost Basis - $12.05 | Market Price - $16.90 | | +40%
$THCB — Cost Basis - $11.29 | Market Price - $13.00 | | +15%
$HCAC — Cost Basis - $11.73 | Market Price - $13.50 | | +15%
TOTAL UNREALIZED GAINS: +23%
TL;DR
The landscape for energy investing is fertile. With “car-guy” Joe Biden poised to take office, electric vehicle stocks have been on a run! I want to hang-10 on the EV SPAC wave and get in on the magic; so I responsibly purchased 100 shares in $NBAC, $THCB, and $HCAC at market open on Tuesday 11/24/20 and will let you guys live vicariously through me.
Thanksgiving Special Diversification Strategy (3–3 Overall)
Washington Football Team vs. Dallas Cowboys | https://medium.com/@flanny/thanksgiving-dessert-7bf913d68da6 | [] | 2020-11-30 14:56:31.631000+00:00 | ['Investing', 'Energy', 'Thanksgiving', 'Electric Vehicles'] |
the air around me still feels like a cage | It’s been three years, and I can’t fall asleep without a little help.
You sang ballads like lullabies and I never forgot how your hands were always so careful. You were rain and the sound of the door closing. You were broken bones and broken promises and broken mind and you never let me hold it all in my palms. You were the poetry you never wrote, I never read, we never shared. You were the hurricanes you kept inside you, with your fingertips ever so slightly electrifying. You were the colourless skies, drowning in greyscale seas. We were capsizing boats and free-falling bodies, so nonchalant of our bruises. We were the Memphis blues, in song and in gazes; we were music in silent places.
You pulled me out of fake eternities and we ran spirals into sorrow and the walls were echoes of every word we never meant. Clawing at innocence, haunting peripheral vision, running away. You snuffed your thirst for arson on my skin. I don’t know what I bled for — your impromptu whims or everything that you killed in me. But you were searching touch in dim lights and grim sights. You were strength in arms and fear in eyes.
You were cowardice and ambiguity and callous and doom and conceit and hope and accusations and pretense and delusion and insecurity and denial and gone and you were gone you were gone and every ceiling screams lies at me and you were gone you were always fucking gone.
You crumbled at my feet. You were all the lives kept out of my reach.
I was lost and found, you were infinite. | https://medium.com/dark-fiction/the-air-around-me-still-feels-like-a-cage-ff30c636c137 | [] | 2017-04-02 16:14:23.189000+00:00 | ['Pain', 'Destruction', 'Poetry', 'Love'] |
Website Review: HotelPower.com: Wanna Go For a Vacation? | There are a few things in this world that link us all together. A desire to be happy, the feel of a true kiss, and the ability to look down at the bill for our dream vacation and say, “It only cost WHAT?” There are dozens of websites out there who want to give you that last item, but another one is diving into the online ocean with promises of bigger, better, and brand-new deals to choose from.
HotelPower.com is officially launching on Oct. 14, 2014. It’s being backed by parent company GTI, one of the nations largest travel agencies. They’ve been in the business since 1994, so they’re leveraging those heavily developed relationships in the hotel world in order to deliver the best deals around.
Admittedly I haven’t booked through them (yet), but I did check out their site extensively and I was quite happy with the numbers I saw. Here are samples of what you can find on there:
Ritz-Carlton New York, Battery Park — 30% off ($1,166.81 vs. $1,659.44)*
Atlantis Beach Tower, Nassau, Bahamas — 79% off ($170.67 vs. $806.90)*
The Langham London — 38% off ($767.98 vs. 1,236.12)*
*HotelPower rates may include taxes and fees from some hotels. When searching other travel sites to compare prices, please go through to the check-out page for an accurate comparison where they have added taxes and fees.
(The disclaimer was written by them. I could never write something that sounded so legal.)
I’ve used on Travelocity, Orbitz, Kayak, and others before, so I’ve got no reason not to give HotelPower a run for my money, especially if they keep posting deals like this. Any ideas on where I should go? | https://gobsofreviews.com/website-review-hotelpower-com-wanna-go-for-a-vacation-82ec59d28fd4 | ['Luke Goldstein'] | 2016-12-02 05:34:31.894000+00:00 | ['Reviews', 'Travel', 'Hotels'] |
8 Important Lessons for Programmers That I’ve Learned at 18 | Don’t Fall for the Appeal to Tradition
The logical fallacy “appeal to tradition” is an issue than can frequently appear among software developers. The key phrase to know if you’re falling into this trap is “we’ve always done it this way!”
Especially as a new developer, it can be hard to suggest new ways of doing things. If a more experienced developer is falling into this logical fallacy, it’s important to call them out on it. Or if you are an experienced developer, don’t be afraid to try new things.
Everyone benefits if there is a faster, more efficient to do something than the old way — so always keep an eye out for ways to improve.
Developers like to do things so that they can know it will work and so they can get the task done quickly. This usually means doing things in a way they already know, but it certainly doesn’t mean that’s best. | https://medium.com/better-programming/8-important-lessons-for-programmers-that-ive-learned-at-18-6e954634322e | ['Alec Jones'] | 2020-05-26 15:18:37.299000+00:00 | ['Programming', 'JavaScript', 'Software Development', 'Python', 'Startup'] |
Moving from Permanent to Contracting — Everything You Need to Know | Switching from permanent employment to a contracting is a big step, but it doesn’t have to be difficult. Read our guide below to learn more about how to make the move.
What are the Main Differences Between Permanent Employment and Contracting?
A contractor is an independent professional who signs a “contract of service” with an organisation. They are temporary workers who are typically hired on a project basis. Rather than receiving a salary, contractors invoice the client organisation for the number of hours or days worked. As they are not on the company payroll, they are responsible for ensuring all necessary taxes are paid to the Revenue Commissioners. While contractors do not receive employee benefits (e.g. holidays, sick pay), they usually take home a higher rate of pay that is inclusive of these entitlements.
Employees, on the other hand, sign a “contract of employment”. They are directly employed by the organisation on an ongoing basis. As they are on the company payroll, they receive an annual salary and the company accountant takes care of paying income tax on their behalf. As employees, they are entitled to a number of benefits such as holiday pay, sick pay, or bonuses.
Why Move from Permanent Employment to Contracting?
Higher Take-Home Pay: Generally speaking, contractors are paid more for their work than their permanent equivalents. Contractors’ higher rate makes up for the fact that they are taken on for a shorter length of time and that they will not receive employee benefits.
Generally speaking, contractors are paid more for their work than their permanent equivalents. Contractors’ higher rate makes up for the fact that they are taken on for a shorter length of time and that they will not receive employee benefits. Build A Wealth of Experience: Given the shorter length of contracts, contractors can hop between roles and organisations. This offers ample opportunity to develop professionally by upskilling and building networks. Experienced contractors with extensive experience, exposure to a wide range of organisations, and a more diverse skillset can command high rates.
Given the shorter length of contracts, contractors can hop between roles and organisations. This offers ample opportunity to develop professionally by upskilling and building networks. Experienced contractors with extensive experience, exposure to a wide range of organisations, and a more diverse skillset can command high rates. Build Your Network: As you move from contract to contract, you will have the opportunity to develop relationships across a range of different organisations. Over time, you will find that you have built up an expansive network who may then be able to help you find further contract work, or open the door to more permanent roles.
As you move from contract to contract, you will have the opportunity to develop relationships across a range of different organisations. Over time, you will find that you have built up an expansive network who may then be able to help you find further contract work, or open the door to more permanent roles. More Flexibility: Contractors act as their own boss. This gives them more freedom and control over when and how they work. As a contractor, it’s possible to structure your working week, month and year around your lifestyle. Contracting roles are also more likely to offer flexitime and/or remote working.
Read our article “What Are the Benefits of Being a Contractor?”
What About Financial Stability?
Permanent employees who are considering transitioning into contracting often have doubts around financial stability. As a contractor, there will likely be times when you have gaps between projects. However, this can be mitigated if you work with a recruiter to ensure that you have a new role lined up after your current contract finishes. What’s more, developing your skillset on an ongoing basis will enable you to stay competitive.
How to Make the Switch from Permanent to Contracting?
Partner With A Recruiter: Chat to a recruiter who specialises in contracting roles. They will be able to give you an overview of the market and advise on your rates. Let the recruiter know what kind of work you are interested in so they can put you forward for any relevant roles that arise.
Chat to a recruiter who specialises in contracting roles. They will be able to give you an overview of the market and advise on your rates. Let the recruiter know what kind of work you are interested in so they can put you forward for any relevant roles that arise. Hire Tax Accountants: If you have been successful in your job search, the next step will be to engage the services of specialist tax accountants. They will advise you on the right limited company structure for your needs and take care of setting this up for you. This will enable you to get your contracting career off to a flying start!
If you have been successful in your job search, the next step will be to engage the services of specialist tax accountants. They will advise you on the right limited company structure for your needs and take care of setting this up for you. This will enable you to get your contracting career off to a flying start! Submit Monthly Timesheets: Your client invoices will be based on the number of hours or days you work. As such, you will need to submit timesheets every month to your tax accountants. They will then take care of deducting your taxes and paying you.
Your client invoices will be based on the number of hours or days you work. As such, you will need to submit timesheets every month to your tax accountants. They will then take care of deducting your taxes and paying you. Make Plans for After Your Contract Ends: As you approach the end of your contract, you will need to make plans for afterwards. In some cases, your client may offer to extend the existing contract. Otherwise, you will need to figure out if you would like to find a new job or take a break. If you decide to find something new, notify your recruiter well in advance so they can keep an eye out for relevant roles.
What Are Your Options as a Contractor?
To get started as a contractor, you will need to set up a Limited Company structure. There are multiple set-ups to choose from; the most popular options are:
1. PAYE Umbrella Company
If you are new to contracting, this option offers an easy transition. PAYE Contracting involves working with a specialist third-party to create an Umbrella Company with which you will sign a contract of employment. The primary functions of the umbrella company are to arrange payment for your work and correctly deduct taxes. As a PAYE contractor, you are treated as an employee which means that you are still entitled to benefits like holidays and sick day allowance. However, you can also move freely between contracts.
2. Personal Limited Company (PLC) Contracting
Alternatively, you could set up a Personal Limited Company. With PLCs, the contractor enjoys greater flexibility and control over their finances. For example, you can employ staff, claim expenses, start a pension plan, and purchase company assets. PLCs are typically complex and costly to set up, however, they are a very tax-efficient solution and offers a higher rate of pay than PAYE contracting. As such, these are an ideal option if you intend to contract long-term. | https://medium.com/@berkleymarketingteam/moving-from-permanent-to-contracting-everything-you-need-to-know-b1cc89a3276d | ['Berkley Recruitment'] | 2020-12-08 09:26:22.799000+00:00 | ['Employment', 'Career Advice', 'Career Development', 'Contracting', 'Career Paths'] |
Connect with us | Learn more. Medium is an open platform where 170 million readers come to find insightful and dynamic thinking. Here, expert and undiscovered voices alike dive into the heart of any topic and bring new ideas to the surface. Learn more
Make Medium yours. Follow the writers, publications, and topics that matter to you, and you’ll see them on your homepage and in your inbox. Explore | https://medium.com/ascenderpgh/heres-what-we-ve-been-up-to-in-2020-e3d72f74ae00 | [] | 2020-12-17 18:52:54.454000+00:00 | ['2020', 'Startup Life', 'Coworking', 'Entrepreneurship', 'Pittsburgh'] |
14 most beautiful Brand Books/Style Guides | Inspiration for creating your own brand guidelines
How do you keep everybody in your organization using your brand consistently? A Brand Book and a Brand Style Guide are similar documents that can both be key tools for brand management. What are some examples of great Brand Books and Style Guides that you can use for inspiration?
The brand of your organization is ideally built from the ground up from the Purpose or core idea of your organization, with the visual or tangible elements as a prime identifier for it. The brand of your organization can be thought of as making itself tangible through four vectors: Product, (Physical or Digital) Environment, Communication and Behavior.
A Brand Book inspires and helps keep people in your organization aligned with the Purpose or core idea of your organization, and helps them think, communicate and act from that Purpose as a starting point.
inspires and helps keep people in your organization aligned with the Purpose or core idea of your organization, and helps them think, communicate and act from that Purpose as a starting point. A Brand Style Guide helps the people inside and outside of your organization who use your visual brand assets, to use them consistently and correctly.
As you can see, a Brand Book is geared more to meaning and inspiration, while a Style Guide is geared mainly toward maintaining visual Brand Consistency. Both of these documents contain aspects of your Brand Guidelines.
Brand guidelines are considered to be the log book for a brand’s identity. They are not just a document that collects information about your brand. Brand guidelines are key to brand alignment. Storing brand guidelines on a PDF document and sharing updated versions over and over again will lead to misalignment because so many versions exist. It becomes a hassle for your colleagues to find out which file is the correct one and who’s hard drive it’s on.
If all your stakeholders know how to find your brand guidelines, know what they are and how they apply to their specific role, you have achieved brand alignment, a critical measure when it comes to customer attraction and satisfaction.
See more on what interactive, cloud-based Brand Centers have achieved for leading brands.
In short:
Create your own brand book / style guide
Are you looking for inspiration for your brand book? There are plenty of companies that have published their brand books online.
Lytho also has you covered with 2 free white papers so you can get started with creating your very own brand style guide.
The most beautiful Brand Books/Style Guides
Here is a selection of our favourite brand books and style guides:
1. Love to Ride
Love to Ride is an online bicycle community with a mission to encourage people to bike. Their brand book is colourful and doesn’t contain much text.
2. Red Cross
Red Cross keeps it short and simple. This brand poster tells you everything you need to know about Red Cross brand guidelines in a PDF.
3. Cisco’s Interactive Brand Book / Style Guide
Cisco has decided to create an interactive Band Book / Style Guide to really showcase their brand. There are multiple ways you could do this, if you would like to go that route and there are benefits of having an interactive brand book / style guide.
You could, for instance, use Lytho’s Brand Center to create an interactive brand book. This allows all stakeholders (internal and external) to access the brand book everywhere and download logos, font, and other assets directly from within Lytho.
Creating your brand book in Lytho’s Brand Center, also means that everyone is always accessing the latest version. You won’t need to worry about people using an old version that they have downloaded years ago and isn’t up to date anymore.
4. Coca Cola
Coca-Cola’s brand book beautifully displays what associations and emotions their brand should evoke in their consumers. You don’t have to say a lot to emit a strong message. Coca Cola’s Brand Book / Style guide is the go-to place for many partners.
5. I Love NY
Urban and stylish. These two words sum up I Love NY’s brand book.
6. Macaroni Grill Brand Book
This attractive and illustrative brand book has a warm, Italian feel to it. Macaroni Grill uses the word “crave” as an acronym and choses keywords that fit the brand.
7. Scrimshaw Coffee
A little pinch of retro. Scrimshaw Coffees brand book.
8. Google
Clean and clear. That’s how Google presents their brand. Check out their brand style guide. You can imagine that larget brands like Google need to showcase in a simple way how their brand elements are allowed to be displayed. Google’s Brand Book / Style guide is key to brand consistency.
9. Bacardi
The Bacardi brand book is one of our personal favorites. It breathes the Cuban vibe and has a nostalgic feel to it. See their brand book on Here Design.
10. Mailchimp’s Brand Book
Mailchimp has a special link uniquely describing the tone of voice of the company. Mailchimp has recently redesigned their entire brand, going from a email marketing tool to a full stack marketing solution. Their Brand Book / Style guide, helps them to consistently tell their story after their redesign.
11. Spotifly’s Brand Book
Spotify is not only known for their logo. They have been using other brand elements that are recognizable as well. In Spotify’s Brand Book / Style guide, you can clearly understand how all elements that make the Spotify brand, may or may not be used.
12 *Santa*
Although *Santa* is not an actual brand, *Santa*’s brand book is a clever example of keeping things playful and very visual. If it suits your brand, why not? This brand book is an initiative by Quietroom.
13 Glossier
Glossier’s Brand Book / Style Guide goes into detail on how the logo and wordmark can be used to keep their branding consistant. You can imagine that without guidelines, people could use the assets in many different ways.
14 Apple’s Brand Book / Style Guide for Channel Affiliates
Having such a strong brand as Apple and thousands of re-seller, a brand book / style guide is a real must. In our opinion, they should invest in an interactive brand center. When conducting our research for this article, we came across multiple outdated versions of their affiliate brand book. These outdated versions can easily lead to inconsistency in Apple’s brand efforts.
Create your own Brand Book / Style Guide
Now it’s your turn. Download our free resourcess to get great tips to create one!
DOWNLOAD BRAND BOOK
PREVIOUS STORY
← Buyer personas in retail
NEXT STORY
Mr. Timesaver: a local success story → | https://medium.com/marketing-and-branding/14-most-beautiful-brand-books-style-guides-c5be47bb5285 | ['Raul Tiru'] | 2020-12-17 14:40:13.305000+00:00 | ['Branding Strategy', 'Brand Book', 'Branding', 'Style Guides', 'Brand Strategy'] |
Key Healthcare Technology Trends Driving Change in The Sector | Digital healthcare is an enormous sector. Its rapid growth is accelerated by rising patient care costs, growing consumer expectations as well as the recent global pandemic situation. So what is the outlook for digital healthcare in 2020 and beyond? Here are the top healthcare technology trends that can help enable better outcomes at lower costs.
Data science will continue to drive healthcare outcomes
Healthcare generates enormous quantities of data. There’s little debate that there is a tremendous insight to be mined from this vast data lake — leading to improved patient outcomes.
Today’s data science tools, including predictive analytics and AI sciences such as machine learning, draw much deeper insight, much faster. We think 2020 will continue to see dramatic advances in the way data science contributes to healthcare outcomes.
For example, Microsoft uses machine learning to distinguish between healthy tissue and tumours, with Project InnerEye using AI to help medical experts with surgical and radiotherapy planning.
Indeed, through 2020 we expect data science to continue to prove essential to addressing the three critical challenges of healthcare:
Data science will help assess risks and assist healthcare providers in triaging and the planning of care.
AI approaches will continue to improve diagnosis, provide novel treatment options, and give physicians better guidance towards treatment and prescription decisions.
Population data will drive deeper insight into public health issues and will help governments and healthcare providers put in place strong, preventative measures.
Of course, data science is likely to be critical in alleviating the COVID-19 crisis, informing everything from treatment options through to the pace at which normal social interactions can be resumed.
Automation — reducing the cost of healthcare
Robotic process automation (RPA) and other automation tools are growing in prominence, with KPMG predicting a USD 5bn market in 2020. As one of the top healthcare technology trends, RPA can help enable greater productivity at lower costs.
We know that RPA can deliver quick wins for time-pressured staff — and staff pressure is a common issue in healthcare. For example, a single medical incident can trigger a complex patchwork of insurance claims with seemingly endless paperwork. RPA speeds up the process automating tedious, manual insurance tasks to dramatically improve claim efficiency — reducing the cost base for providers.
In the broad, automated approaches to healthcare processes act in a similar way to automation in any other industry setting. Automation reduces manual steps, wastage, and errors. In an era where there is unprecedented pressure on healthcare systems around the globe, automation is set to provide marked relief — throughout 2020.
While automation can significantly increase productivity in the healthcare field, RPA instances can also introduce additional security vulnerabilities. Check out this whitepaper addressing the top 10 security risks in robotic process automation.
Technology and the human side of healthcare
Humans are at the core of the healthcare industry. While technology is often about the technical and the procedural, technology also has a human face. In healthcare, the human face of technology can be as powerful as data science and AI in delivering improved outcomes.
Virtual healthcare is one example — and a very poignant example in 2020. First, given cost pressures in the health system, it’s hard to ignore the cost-saving benefit of virtual healthcare. However, virtual healthcare is also about access and that’s perhaps the most important aspect in 2020, and beyond — when healthcare provisioning often must be performed at distance.
For example, digital twin technology is quickly emerging as a way to enable highly targeted care, allowing to prevent and treat health conditions efficiently. Digital twins can deliver tangible benefits by emulating health conditions. Researchers can use data from patient-worn sensors, like Apple Watch or Fitbit, to create a digital twin which is essentially a “backup of a patient’s physical state” before a treatment procedure.
Then there’s the simple interaction layer. Humans must interact with healthcare providers on a regular basis, but with time-pressured, loaded staff, healthcare providers are sometimes not able to provide primary healthcare consulting in a timely, well-organized and cost-effective manner.
According to the Harvard Business Review, tech-driven cost benefits could amount to USD 10bn annually across the U.S. healthcare system.
Chatbots and voice technology can support patients in a variety of ways, from assisting with the booking process to guiding them through assessments, recognising and analysing symptoms through chat conversions. Data collected by chatbots can help doctors to save extra time as well as assist in decision-making concerning treatment procedures and care.
Harnessing the multi-stranded power of healthcare technology trends
Voice enablement, digital twins, RPA, automation, machine learning, AI, data science… healthcare technology is a broad and complex field. How can healthcare providers navigate the vast arsenal of healthcare technology tools during what is perhaps one of the most disruptive years in recent memory? Engaging with a technology partner that has deep expertise across the entire information technology field is a good start.
At ELEKS, we have years of experience helping transform the healthcare sector. Moreover, we’ve developed our own healthcare solution for unified clinical data management and process automation. It gives us insight and skills to empower every aspect of your healthcare business.
Get in touch with us to see how we can help your organisation stay ahead of 2020’s healthcare technology trends.
Originally published at https://eleks.com on June 11, 2020. | https://medium.com/eleks-labs/key-healthcare-technology-trends-driving-change-in-the-sector-ddc4d885c136 | [] | 2020-07-30 08:39:21.095000+00:00 | ['Software Development', 'Eleks Trends Blog', 'Healthcare', 'Healthcare Technology', 'Healthtech'] |
How Kubernetes is used in Industries and what all use cases are solved by Kubernetes? | What is Kubernetes?
Kubernetes is an open source orchestration system for Docker containers. It handles scheduling onto nodes in a compute cluster and actively manages workloads to ensure that their state matches the users declared intentions.
2253 companies reportedly use Kubernetes in their tech stacks, including Google, Shopify, and Slack.
Docker, Microsoft Azure, Ansible, Vagrant, and Google Compute Engine are some of the popular tools that integrate with Kubernetes.
CASE STUDY:
Challenge:
With over 250 million monthly active users and serving over 10 billion recommendations every single day, the engineers at Pinterest knew these numbers are going to grow day by day, and they began to realize the pain of scalability and performance issues.
After eight years in existence, Pinterest had grown into 1,000 microservices and multiple layers of infrastructure and diverse set-up tools and platforms. In 2016 the company launched a roadmap towards a new compute platform, led by the vision of creating the fastest path from an idea to production, without making engineers worry about the underlying infrastructure.
solution:
Their initial strategy was to move their workload from EC2 instances to Docker containers; they first moved their services to Docker to free up engineering time spent on Puppet and to have an immutable infrastructure.The next strategy was to move to Kubernetes.
Impact:
“By moving to Kubernetes the team was able to build on-demand scaling and new failover policies, in addition to simplifying the overall deployment and management of a complicated piece of infrastructure such as Jenkins,” says Micheal Benedict, Product Manager for the Cloud and the Data Infrastructure Group at Pinterest. “We not only saw reduced build times but also huge efficiency wins. For instance, the team reclaimed over 80 percent of capacity during non-peak hours. As a result, the Jenkins Kubernetes cluster now uses 30 percent less instance-hours per-day when compared to the previous static cluster.”
The Cloud Management Platform team at Pinterest started their journey on Kubernetes back in 2017. they dockerized most of their production workloads, including the core API and Web fleets, by the first half of 2017. Extensive evaluation on different container orchestration systems was then done by building prod clusters and operating real workloads on them. By the end of 2017, they decided to go down the path of Kubernetes because of its flexibility and extensive community support.
So far, they’ve built their own cluster bootstrap tools based on Kops and integrated existing infrastructure components into our Kubernetes cluster, such as network, security, metrics, logging, identity management and traffic. they introduced Pinterest-specific custom resources to model our unique workloads while hiding the runtime complexity from developers. they’re now focusing on cluster stability, scalability, and customer onboarding.
Pinterest custom resources and controllers
In order to pave an easier way for our engineers to adopt Kubernetes and make infra development faster and smoother, they designed their own Custom Resource Definitions (CRDs).
PinterestService resource puts together a deployment, a service, an ingress and a configmap, so service developer will not need to worry about setting up DNS for their service.Inject necessary runtime support for the applications. The user only needs to focus on the container spec for their own business logic, while the CRD controller injects necessary sidecars, init containers, environment variables and volumes into their pod spec. This provides an out-of-box experience to the application engineers.CRD controllers also do life cycle management for the native resources and handle visibility and debuggability. This includes but is not limited to reconciling the desired spec and the actual spec, CRD status updating and event recording. Without CRDs, app engineers must manage a much larger set of resources, and this process has proved to be error prone.
Application Deploy Workflow
They ramped up the cluster, and working with a team of four people, got the Jenkins Kubernetes cluster ready for production. “We still have our static Jenkins cluster,” says Benedict, “but on Kubernetes, we are doing similar builds, testing the entire pipeline, getting the artifact ready and just doing the comparison to see, how much time did it take to build over here. “We’re currently building the entire Pinterest JVM stack on this new cluster,” says Benedict. “At peak, we run thousands of pods on a few hundred nodes. Overall, by moving to Kubernetes the team was able to build on-demand scaling and new failover policies, in addition to simplifying the overall deployment and management of a complicated piece of infrastructure such as Jenkins.
THANKS FOR READING!! | https://medium.com/@abhya-s944/how-kubernetes-is-used-in-industries-and-what-all-use-cases-are-solved-by-kubernetes-cb5f298c1514 | ['Abhya Singh'] | 2020-12-26 17:33:09.642000+00:00 | ['Case Study', 'Kubernetes', 'Kubernetes Cluster'] |
‘Anything for Jackson’ is the rare horror-comedy that gets both elements right | Anything for Jackson begins with a long, static scene of comfortable domesticity. Audrey (Sheila McCarthy) putters around the kitchen while her husband Henry (Julian Richings) complains over his breakfast about a pair of pants she’s hemmed for him. He thinks one leg is slightly shorter than the other, worried that he’ll be at the office “looking like some kind of rapper guy.” His wife reminds him gently that no one will mistake him for a “rapper guy.”
Then they notice something outside. “She’s early,” Henry says, aghast. They rush out the front door, and we watch, waiting, to figure out what’s happening. The fixed camera comes unmoored, pushing ever so slightly toward the door, shifting slightly to reframe the central hallway… as Henry and Audrey re-enter the house, dragging a screaming, sobbing pregnant woman behind them.
Henry (Julian Richings) and Audrey (Sheila McCarthy) discuss the latest wrinkles in their plan. / courtesy Shudder
This is Becker (Konstantina Mantelos), a patient of Henry’s. The father of her child is “long gone,” and she doesn’t really have any friends or family to look after her, either. This makes her the perfect victim for the older couple’s scheme: they need a pregnant woman, you see, in order to perform a “reverse exorcism.” Their grandson Jackson died in a car crash, and they need a vessel for him to inhabit in order to bring him back to life.
Unfortunately for everybody involved, Henry and Audrey have done something far worse, and have inadvertently invited something far more sinister than just the ghost of their dead grandson into their home. As the situation in their house spirals out of control, as ghosties and ghoulies rampage through the halls, they must figure out how far, exactly, they are willing to go for Jackson.
This is director Justin G. Dyck’s first horror film, but is far from his first feature; since 2014, he’s directed 27 made-for-TV films. The vast majority of his output is family-friendly fare with titles like Forest Fairies and Super Detention, alongside made-for-TV holiday movies like A Puppy for Christmas and Christmas With A Prince. Many of these were written by Keith Cooper, who also wrote Anything for Jackson. A pivot to genuinely-frightening horror seems like a strange career move for the duo, but the family dynamics in Anything for Jackson are its secret weapon, and Dyck captures them with ease. Aubrey and Henry are a completely believable couple, motivated by a genuine love for their grandson; they just also happen to be hapless Satanists who are messing with something far beyond their ability to control.
Henry (Julian Richings) takes an uncomfortable phone call / courtesy Shudder
Many horror-comedies lean too heavily in one direction or the other, either delivering too many laughs to be scary or else being so scary that people are afraid to laugh. Anything for Jackson is the rare film in the subgenre that gets both elements right; when it goes for scares, it’s frightening, and when it chooses instead to lean into the zany, madcap nature of the couple’s plot spiraling out of control, it’s blackly amusing. The specific nature of the ghosts in Anything for Jackson means a lot of the “scares” are jump-scares, but they feel earned because they are in service of a plot where it seems like anything could happen at any moment. There are also a number of genuinely nerve-wracking sequences that rely on unsettling imagery instead of just loud noises or gore — think contortionist horror — and they’re the most effective sequences in the film.
The whole thing is anchored by solid performances across the board, especially from Sheila McCarthy as a loving grandmother with sinister intentions. The always-reliable Julian Richings is capable of fury and pathos, alternately harrowing and pathetic depending on how well things are going for him at any given moment.
Anything for Jackson is yet another solid offering from Shudder, a streaming service that has grown into something essential for genre fans this year thanks to original films like Host, The Mortuary Collection, and Spiral. It also signals Dyck as a new voice in horror with a lot of promise; he has a number of films in the works with titles like Christmas in the Rockies, Christmas in the Wilds, and A Christmas Exchange, but here’s hoping he returns to horror soon. I’ll certainly be there if he does. | https://medium.com/everythings-interesting/anything-for-jackson-is-the-rare-horror-comedy-that-gets-both-elements-right-57493725b170 | ['Eric Langberg'] | 2020-12-02 21:10:04.249000+00:00 | ['Film', 'Horror', 'Movie Review', 'Film Reviews', 'Movies'] |
Getting Prolific, Day 6: Progress Is Priceless | How can you suddenly see a bit further than you could before?
Few things make a greater contribution to your positive inner life than making progress.
Even small progress. That still counts for more than you think, since it adds the force that spins your motivational flywheel.
Whatever project you’re working on, whether it’s training your pet, painting a canvas, fixing the house, or growing your business, the primary goal should be building greater momentum with each step. Using your own progress as leverage.
This may sound like a chicken egg paradox, but once you have some, you can get some. The more you work, the more you understand what working means, and this knowledge informs the future decisions.
Computer engineers invented agile development for this reason. Programmers make assumptions, create the first version of their software, test it, and then revise it for the next iteration. And they repeat that process until they’re happy.
Not until it’s perfect, but until they’re happy.
Big difference there.
The good news is, you don’t have to be a computer engineer to get your motivational flywheel spinning. This principle is applicable to any endeavor.
It takes me back to middle school, when I first started writing music. My first few dozen songs were horrendous. The words were meaningless drivel, the chords didn’t harmonize, and my hormonal, prepubescent vocals were cracking every other line.
Most teenagers would have rage quit within a few months, and it crossed my mind more than a few times.
But what kept me moving forward was the sense of progress. Each new tune flooded my creative process with intense learning experiences. Every time I sat down and wrote something new, I got a bit smarter about writing. That journey, grating and embarrassing as it was, populated my frame of reference and expanded the palette from which I composed.
And the faster my flywheel spun, the easier it became to motivate myself to write the next song.
Funny thing is, that was thirty years ago. Hundreds and hundreds of songs ago. And today, that same sense of progress still inspires my songwriting.
Like the moment I accidentally discover some unexpected chord while fiddling with a new song.
Whoa, was that a diminished seventh right there? Where the hell did that come from? Listen to the emotional tension that sound creates. Cool.
And the release the listener feels when the bridge goes up a half step to reach the minor seventh? Wow.
That kind of progress is unbeatable. It feels like I can suddenly see a bit further than I could before.
What gets your motivational flywheel going? Are you willing to experiment relentlessly until you find the formula that works for your work?
One visualization that’s fun is to think of yourself as a government contractor who builds battle robots for the military. Every subsequent model your factory produces improves upon the previous one by correcting flaws found during battle. The soldiers stop by the assembly line and give you these small shreds of context from the front lines.
And now every modification the engineers do make the robot’s creative mechanism more capable against future opponents, more adept at solving problems, and more able to fend off potential threats to its plans.
That’s progress you can use as leverage.
Remember, most achievements are the culmination of years of daily work and incremental growth. If you want to make a greater contribution to your positive inner life, get that flywheel spinning.
When was the last time you did something and suddenly saw a bit further than you could before?
Subscribe to getprolific.io and get daily how-to articles and email inspiration on how to beat writer’s block, plus 300+ proven creativity tools. Beat writer’s block for only $12/month! | https://medium.com/@nametagscott/getting-prolific-day-6-progress-is-priceless-186243b1b1f5 | [] | 2021-08-27 17:03:28.610000+00:00 | ['Creativity', 'Prolific', 'Overcoming Writers Block', 'Writers Block', 'Creative Process'] |
Hope, its two daughters, and the iceberg of gun violence… | Illustration of Ahmaud Arbery by @nikkolas_smith
THIS ARTICLE WAS FIRST DRAFTED IN MAY.
I fight back tears and shield my eyes , from the replay of the shooting of Ahmaud Arbery on CNN news, as I unconsciously tally mark another black life lost. Of course, one life of many lost that same day, week, month or year for the crime of simply being black. This time round, my tears are not filled with complete anger, strife or disdain towards white perpetrators and the continued cycle of systemic racism. It is also filled with courage. I have anger towards the way things are, but courage to know that it doesn’t have to or will remain the same; and I can do my part in making change. So can you. However, the pursuit of change is complex.
An Example Of Courage:
I stumbled across a documentary on The Children's Crusade that took place in Birmingham, Alabama during the first week of May, 1963. At the time, Birmingham was considered literal hell on Earth for African Americans, or anyone that was not considered pale; the most racist and segregated city in the south. The initial phase of the crusade began on April 12th 1963, with the leadership of Martin Lither King Jr (MLK), Reverand Ralph Abernathy and Reverand Fred Shuttlesworth. Under the plan of the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights, an affiliate organisation of the Souther Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) of which MLK was the president of, the plan was for as many black people, to join MLK and other leaders in a non-violent march to city hall as part of a campaign to demand the desegregation of Birmingham. The march was as a result of calling into question the broken promise of the merchant leaders in the community to allow for economic and community mobility of African Americans.
The idea was to risk the reality of jail and brutal attacks in order to bring to attention their concerns. MLK saw this as a call to carry out his Macedonian aid, similar to Apostle Paul:
“I am in Birmingham because injustice is here. Just as the prophets of the eighth century B.C. left their villages and carried their “thus saith the Lord” far beyond the boundaries of their home towns, and just as the Apostle Paul left his village of Tarsus and carried the gospel of Jesus Christ to the far corners of the Greco Roman world, so am I compelled to carry the gospel of freedom beyond my own home town. Like Paul, I must constantly respond to the Macedonian call for aid”.
However, the march did not materialise the desired results and MLK amongst others were arrested and went to jail. Another strategy kicked into effect. SCLC leader James Bevel organised a march for thousands of children who put themselves forward to protest peacefully. They marched in groups of 50, and peacefully accepted arrests and being pushed into police vans. However, they weren’t met with a peaceful response. On the first day of the protest, hundreds of children were arrested. By the second day, Commissioner of Public Safety Bull Connor ordered police to spray the children with powerful water hoses, hit them with batons and threaten them with police dogs. This did not deter their fighting spirit, as over the next few days, children continued to protest and the images circled throughout the nation and the world, caused an outcry. Businesses in Birmingham began to feel the pressure, especially after the condemnation from John F Kennedy (who’s hand had to be forced, before siding with the civil rights movement). The civil leaders in the community eventually agreed to make change to laws and free the children in jail. This courageous act of change and victory was still met by injustice and violence as later on that year in September 1963, four little girls were killed by bombs planted by white supremacists at the 16th St. Baptist Church and over 20 more were injured.
The Iceberg Of Gun Violence
In an attempt like MLK said to not “rest content with the superficial kind of social analysis that deals merely with effects and does not grapple with underlying causes”. I want to challenge your perspective, if not inclined, or further probe your social analysis of the underlying issues of a black body getting shot by the police, not in an attempt to have the answers or to be reductionist, but to acknowledge the complexity of gun violence on black bodies. Edward T.Hall in 1976 used the iceberg analogy to appraise culture. Almost 92% of an iceberg lies below the surface of the water. | https://medium.com/@toboredafiaga/hope-its-two-daughters-and-the-iceberg-of-gun-violence-b1392945c70a | ['Liberty Now'] | 2020-12-22 15:10:17.276000+00:00 | ['Gun Violence', 'Activism', 'Black Bodies', 'America', 'BlackLivesMatter'] |
Add Emoji to your Angular application | Preparing our environment
Creating projects, generating application and library code, performing tasks such as testing, building and deployment depends on Angular CLI.
To install the Angular CLI, open the terminal and run the following command:
npm install -g @angular/cli
At this point we create our workspace by running the following commands:
cd ~
ng new emoji-app
With the ng new command, you will be asked a series of questions depending on the version you have installed of the Angular CLI, which you can accept with the default values.
Typical questions you should answer:
Would you like to add Angular routing? Yes
Which stylesheet format would you like to use? SCSS
This can take a few minutes.
Hello World
The first thing we are going to do after creating the project is to certainly start it and see by default what is present in our workspace.
cd emoji-app
ng serve
At this point, open your browser and navigate to: http://localhost:4200/
As you can see, Angular’s CLI was kind enough to create a default page for us immediately displayed on the browser.
Necessary dependencies
To achieve our goal we will use the module: “ngx-emoji-mart”.
As a first step we are going to install the following dependency:
npm install @ctrl/ngx-emoji-mart --save
At this point under the “dependencies” property in package.json you should be able to see something very similar to this: @ctrl/ngx-emoji-mart: ^4.1.0 .
At this point, we add the reference to the new module inside our app.module.ts and FormsModule in order to correctly use all the angular directives
import { BrowserModule } from '@angular/platform-browser';
import { NgModule } from '@angular/core';
import { AppRoutingModule } from './app-routing.module';
import { AppComponent } from './app.component';
import { FormsModule } from '@angular/forms'; import { PickerModule } from '@ctrl/ngx-emoji-mart'; @NgModule({
declarations: [
AppComponent
],
imports: [
PickerModule,
FormsModule,
BrowserModule,
AppRoutingModule
],
providers: [],
bootstrap: [AppComponent]
}) export class AppModule { }
and we import the CSS in the configuration file of our project angular.json under the field projects.emoji-app.architect.build.styles
... "styles": [
"src/styles.scss",
"node_modules/@ctrl/ngx-emoji-mart/picker.css"
] ...
Alternatively, you could also import the CSS in the src/styles.scss file as follows:
@import '~@ctrl/ngx-emoji-mart/picker';
Let’s code template
Although during the generation a default template was created in the app.component.html , we clean the code from the automatically generated one and proceed to create a text-area with a button to add the icons.
We will display the compiled text immediately below our input.
Let’s create a title for our app.component.html page and a small paragraph below
<h1>Angular Emoji</h1>
<p>This is where the magic happens</p>
At this point, we add our text-area
<textarea placeholder="Type a message" type="text" name="textarea" [(ngModel)]="textArea"></textarea>
and in app.component.ts the variable “textArea”.
public textArea: string = '';
At this point, all that remains is to take advantage of our installed module.
We then add a button after the textarea to activate the emojiPicker and the emoji-mart directive
<button (click)="isEmojiPickerVisible = !isEmojiPickerVisible;">😀</button>
<br> <emoji-mart class="emoji-mart" *ngIf="isEmojiPickerVisible" (emojiSelect)="addEmoji($event)" title="Choose your emoji"></emoji-mart>
Clearly, as it is possible to observe, some variables have been used that are not yet present within our typescript component.
For this reason, let’s go to the app.component.ts and complete our component with the boolean isEmojiPickerVisible and the addEmoji method
export class AppComponent {
public textArea: string = '';
public isEmojiPickerVisible: boolean; public addEmoji(event) {
this.textArea = `${this.textArea}${event.emoji.native}`;
this.isEmojiPickerVisible = false;
} }
What the addEmoji method basically does, is nothing more than to input the value of the selected emoji and close the Picker again (depending on the behaviour you want the Picker to have, you can comment or not the line of code)
Let’s style
As in everything, making a layout a little more pleasing to the eye is always an aspect that should not be underestimated, even if it is a simple tutorial.
Specifically, we go to our app.component.scss and add the following code
.container {
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: 100% 0%;
width: 36%;
button {
background: transparent;
border: 0;
transform: translateX(-40px);
cursor: pointer;
&:focus {
outline: 0;
}
}
}
Make sure you have enclosed the textarea and the button inside a div with class “container” as below
<div class="container"> <textarea placeholder="Type a message" type="text" name="textarea" [(ngModel)]="textArea"></textarea> <button (click)="isEmojiPickerVisible = !isEmojiPickerVisible;">😀</button> </div>
Final output | https://medium.com/@vaiz10/add-emoji-to-your-angular-application-c753e0d5cf84 | [] | 2020-12-11 08:32:49.263000+00:00 | ['Bootstrap', 'Angular', 'JavaScript', 'Google', 'Frontend'] |
Add Tests to Express Apps With Jest and SuperTest | Creating the App We’ll Test
We create a project folder by creating an empty folder and running the following to create a package.json file with the default answers:
npm init -y
Then we run the following to install the packages for our apps:
npm i express sqlite3 body-parser
Then, we create the app.js file for our app and write:
const express = require('express');
const sqlite3 = require('sqlite3').verbose();
const bodyParser = require('body-parser');
const app = express();
const port = process.env.NODE_ENV === 'test' ? 3001 : 3000;
let db;
if (process.env.NODE_ENV === 'test') {
db = new sqlite3.Database(':memory:');
}
else {
db = new sqlite3.Database('db.sqlite');
} db.serialize(() => {
db.run('CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS persons (id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, name TEXT, age INTEGER)');
}); app.use(bodyParser.json());
app.get('/', (req, res) => {
db.serialize(() => {
db.all('SELECT * FROM persons', [], (err, rows) => {
res.json(rows);
});
})
}) app.post('/', (req, res) => {
const { name, age } = req.body;
db.serialize(() => {
const stmt = db.prepare('INSERT INTO persons (name, age) VALUES (?, ?)');
stmt.run(name, age);
stmt.finalize();
res.json(req.body);
})
}) app.put('/:id', (req, res) => {
const { name, age } = req.body;
const { id } = req.params;
db.serialize(() => {
const stmt = db.prepare('UPDATE persons SET name = ?, age = ? WHERE id = ?');
stmt.run(name, age, id);
stmt.finalize();
res.json(req.body);
})
}) app.delete('/:id', (req, res) => {
const { id } = req.params;
db.serialize(() => {
const stmt = db.prepare('DELETE FROM persons WHERE id = ?');
stmt.run(id);
stmt.finalize();
res.json(req.body);
})
}) const server = app.listen(port);
module.exports = { app, server };
The code above has the app we’ll test.
To make our app easier to test, we have:
const port = process.env.NODE_ENV === 'test' ? 3001 : 3000;
let db;
if (process.env.NODE_ENV === 'test') {
db = new sqlite3.Database(':memory:');
}
else {
db = new sqlite3.Database('db.sqlite');
}
So we can set the process.env.NODE_ENV to 'test' to make our app listen to a different port than it does when the app is running in a nontest environment.
We’ll use the 'test' environment to run our tests.
Likewise, we want our app to use a different database when running unit tests than when we aren’t running them.
This is why we have:
let db;
if (process.env.NODE_ENV === 'test') {
db = new sqlite3.Database(':memory:');
}
else {
db = new sqlite3.Database('db.sqlite');
} | https://medium.com/better-programming/adding-tests-to-express-apps-with-jest-and-supertest-d0e7aaac4c08 | ['John Au-Yeung'] | 2020-02-28 16:32:54.414000+00:00 | ['Expressjs', 'Nodejs', 'Programming', 'JavaScript', 'Technology'] |
Shake things up with Redux#405 | Discuss in words something you learned in class today or this week.
-Protected Routes- component is the blueprint for all protected routes in the application. If the user is logged in, go on and display the component in question; otherwise, redirect the user to sign-in page. Additionally, we can define the logic of isLogin utility function separately in utils folder.
What is Redux?
-Redux is a predictable state container for JavaScript applications. It helps you write applications that behave consistently, run in different environments (client, server, and native), and are easy to test. Simply put, Redux is a state management tool.
What is ‘Store’ in Redux?
-Redux is a state container for JavaScript apps, often called a Redux store. It stores the whole state of the app in an immutable object tree. To create a store the createStore(reducer, [initialState], [enhancer]) function is used to create a new store. It takes three arguments: reducer — A reducing function.
How is state changed in Redux?
-The only way to update a state inside a store is to dispatch an action and define a reducer function to perform tasks based on the given actions. Once dispatched, the action goes inside the reducer functions which performs the tasks and return the updated state to the store. This is what Redux is all about.
What is the difference between a Presentational component and a Container component?
-As a way to simplify the distinction, we can say presentational components are concerned with the look, container components are concerned with making things work. On the other hand this is a container component. It manages and stores its own data, and uses the presentational component to display it.
What is the second argument that can optionally be passed to setState and what is its purpose?
-A callback function which will be invoked when setState has finished and the component is re-rendered.
What is your opinion of currently popular frameworks/libraries? List and provide your thoughts.
-I personally love React & Redux. React is an amazing library which allows a user to re-use components and Redux can change the state of those components by triggering an action which re-renders the static representation your component to create a dynamic feel to your App.
Austin Coding Academy | https://medium.com/@kevbodyworks/shake-things-up-with-redux-405-fdd21ef5610 | ['Kevin Valias'] | 2020-10-13 20:25:57.014000+00:00 | ['Coding', 'Web Development', 'Codingbootcamp'] |
Using Ecto.Multi for Complex Database Transactions | by Vikram Ramakrishnan
Recently, we worked on a client project that required sending over a number of fields to the server during user registration. Some of these fields (email, password, etc.) were part of the user schema and others with other schema. Since these other schema depend on user , we would have to nest conditional transactions in our RegistrationController , which would provide potential for multiple points of failure. Rather than nest these conditional transactions, we wanted to be able to easily sequence our transactions and match on errors and failures. The following is an explanation of how we used Ecto.Multi to make this easy.
Consider the following example. You have two schema: user and address . A user has_many addresses and an address belongs_to a user . During the user registration process, you want the user to submit their user details along with their mailing address details. For simplicity sake, let’s assume we’re validating on all of the fields, so in the event of any fields not being sent over to the server, the entire transaction fails. Here’s an example of good request params being sent over to the server:
{
"user": {
"email": "[email protected]",
"password": "password1",
"phone_number": "6176176176"
},
"address": {
"city": "Cambridge",
"country": "US",
"postal_code": "02139",
"state_province": "MA",
"street_line1": "5 QuantLayer Ave."
}
}
Since a mailing address belongs to a user, we have to create a user to associate with the address before the address can be created. Keeping that all in mind, the logic might look something like this:
1. Try creating a user
2. If user creation fails, return an error
3. If user creation succeeds, try creating an address
4. If address creation fails, delete the user and return an error
5. If address creation succeeds, return the user and jwt
Here’s an example of what this looks like in the controller:
user_changeset = User.changeset(%User{}, user_params) case Repo.insert(user_changeset) do {:ok, user} ->
address_changeset =
%Address{user_id: user.id}
|> Address.changeset(address_params) case Repo.insert(address_changeset) do
{:ok, _address} ->
{:ok, jwt, _full_claims} =
Guardian.encode_and_sign(user, :token) conn
|> put_status(:created)
|> render(MyApp.SessionView, "create.json", jwt: jwt, user: user) {:error, changeset} ->
Repo.delete(user) conn
|> put_status(:unprocessable_entity)
|> render(MyApp.RegView, "error.json", changeset: changeset)
end {:error, changeset} -> conn
|> put_status(:unprocessable_entity)
|> render(MyApp.RegView, "error.json", changeset: changeset)
end
There are a few things I don’t like about this. First of all, the nested case statements make it difficult to follow. Secondly, we’re deleting the newly created user on an address failure, which increases the number of database transactions. And finally, we aren’t handling errors based on bad inputs for both user and address params. This approach is really flimsy. Imagine adding another step, like required credit card details. Nesting further case statements along with tracking multiple points of error become a hassle. I would rather be able to rollback the entire transaction if any part of it fails.
Enter Ecto.Multi
Ecto.Multi lets us handle multiple, dependent Repo transactions.
The docs (https://hexdocs.pm/ecto/Ecto.Multi.html) describe it as follows:
“Ecto.Multi makes it possible to pack operations that should be performed together (in a single database transaction) and gives a way to introspect the queued operations without actually performing them. Each operation is given a name that is unique and will identify its result or will help to identify the place of failure in case it occurs.”
So, let’s rewrite the example above with Ecto.Multi :
user_changeset = User.changeset(%User{}, user_params) multi =
Multi.new
|> Multi.insert(:user, user_changeset)
|> Multi.run(:address, fn %{user: user} ->
address_changeset =
%Address{user_id: user.id}
|> Address.changeset(address_params)
Repo.insert(address_changeset)
end) case Repo.transaction(multi) do
{:ok, result} ->
{:ok, jwt, _full_claims} =
Guardian.encode_and_sign(result.user, :token) conn
|> put_status(:created)
|> render(MyApp.SessionView, "create.json", jwt: jwt, user: result.user) {:error, :user, changeset, %{}} ->
conn
|> put_status(:unprocessable_entity)
|> render(MyApp.RegView, "error.json", changeset: changeset) {:error, :address, changeset, %{}} ->
conn
|> put_status(:unprocessable_entity)
|> render(MyApp.RegView, "error.json", changeset: changeset)
end
Here, we assign an Ecto.Multi.new transaction to multi . Multi accepts changesets through functions like insert . Note that the :user and :address are the unique names we assign to the operations in Multi.insert/2 and Multi.run/2 , which is why we can pass user to Multi.run/2 . The changesets are checked, and if there are errors, the transaction doesn’t start and returns the errors. We then use Multi.run to pass an arbitrary function, which is dependent on the user in the line prior. When we execute the transaction with Repo.transaction(multi) , we can pattern match on all the possible outcomes, which makes adding more requirements later on easier.
More good perspective on the purpose of the library is contained here in the original Ecto.Multi PR: https://github.com/elixir-ecto/ecto/issues/1114
Interested in discussing custom software needs more broadly? Drop me a line at [email protected] — I would love to chat with you. Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/@QuantLayer | https://medium.com/hackernoon/using-ecto-multi-for-complex-database-transactions-70aac419e81c | [] | 2017-07-14 13:04:46.589000+00:00 | ['Phoenix Framework', 'Web Development', 'Elixir', 'Erlang', 'Startup'] |
How to convert CSV to JSON in Python | The process of file format conversion Python is definitely no cake walk, especially for CSV to JSON. So how can we add this important functionality to a project while protecting our afternoon from being wasted on the task? Well, I have just the thing.
We start off by pip installing our API client:
pip install cloudmersive-convert-api-client
And with a simple function call for convert_data_csv_to_json, involving an API instance, we may proceed thus:
from __future__ import print_function import time import cloudmersive_convert_api_client from cloudmersive_convert_api_client.rest import ApiException from pprint import pprint # Configure API key authorization: Apikey configuration = cloudmersive_convert_api_client.Configuration() configuration.api_key['Apikey'] = 'YOUR_API_KEY' # Uncomment below to setup prefix (e.g. Bearer) for API key, if needed # configuration.api_key_prefix['Apikey'] = 'Bearer' # create an instance of the API class api_instance = cloudmersive_convert_api_client.ConvertDataApi(cloudmersive_convert_api_client.ApiClient(configuration)) input_file = '/path/to/file' # file | Input file to perform the operation on. column_names_from_first_row = true # bool | Optional; If true, the first row will be used as the labels for the columns; if false, columns will be named Column0, Column1, etc. Default is true. Set to false if you are not using column headings, or have an irregular column structure. (optional) try: # Convert CSV to JSON conversion api_response = api_instance.convert_data_csv_to_json(input_file, column_names_from_first_row=column_names_from_first_row) pprint(api_response) except ApiException as e: print("Exception when calling ConvertDataApi->convert_data_csv_to_json: %s
" % e)
And now all you need to do is specify your input file path. Once it has your request, the API will make the appropriate format conversions and then return your JSON file. Now that’s a cake walk! | https://medium.com/@cloudmersive/how-to-convert-csv-to-json-in-python-b17af6852749 | [] | 2020-05-14 19:12:17.899000+00:00 | ['Python', 'Csv', 'Convert', 'Json'] |
Monads, what are they good for? | Let’s use our map, andMap, andThen we should find some interesting Parsers.
Monads, what are they good for?
Where we put it all together to discover a new lib.
me> So… what’s all this good for anyways? 😩
wat> What is “all this” you speak of? 🤨
me> Functors, Monads, Applicatives… what’s the point?
wat> Ooooh, someone is moody today. 😅
me> I mean, I know Functors are things you can map on, Monads things you can andThen on and Applicatives things you can andMap on… and it feels like whoop-dee-doo, what do I do with all this now?
wat> Because you were not trying to learn all this just for the pure joy of learning useless facts? 😏
me> Kind of. Yes. In fact, I’d rather do this for a purpose, to be honest.
wat> Well, let’s see whether this knowledge helps you discovering a new library… say… the Parser module.
me> I don’t know… that sounds complicated. 😐
wat> All the better. Let’s open our books at… https://package.elm-lang.org/packages/elm/parser/1.1.0/ :
me> Unsurprisingly, it’s about creating Parser a instances… that unsurprisingly promise to parse an arbitrary string and either produce an a value or fail… sounds familiar…
wat> I’d says it looks an awful lot like a more generic version of the Decoder a type, doesn’t it?
me> Yes… looking into https://package.elm-lang.org/packages/elm/parser/1.1.0/Parser we learn that Parser a is an alias for a Parser Never Problem a … which is confusing. How can Parser a be defined using itself like that? And there’s not even the same number of parameters for each one?
wat> That’s because they’re not the same type. The Parser a type comes from the Parser module while the Parser context problem a type lives in the Parser.Advanced module. So Parser.Parser a is an alias for Parser.Advanced.Parser Never Parser.Problem a .
me> Ok… so, Never being a special elm type that has no value, I guess a Parser a will not provide context , whatever that’s for ; also, I guess the problem type parameter is for a type that represents problems encountered so the Problem type must be the way the Parser module characterizes those problems… so the only type variable that we have to care about is our a type that is promised?
wat> Yes. We also find a lot of pre-built standard Parser like int , float , …
me> Some of those look funny 🤨 Like:
symbol : String -> Parser ()
wat> What’s so funny about it?
me> Well, what is a Parser () for? What’s the point of parsing something if all we get is an empty tuple?
wat> Hmm… remember when we said that Functor, Monads and Applicatives could be seen as a way to wrap other types of values in something like a context?
me> Yes? What’s the context for Parser a then?
wat> It’s a context that promises to either succeed parsing, or fail… but while parsing, this context is also a way to remember what character your parser is currently looking at.
me> Looks like you’ve just spoiled me the ending there: Parser a is also a Functor, a Monad and an Applicative, right?
wat> Let’s not go too far ahead, but yes it is. Now, to answer your question, a Parser () will not extract an interesting value, but it can say either “hey, this here character is totally what I was expecting there” or “hey, there’s a problem here, this character is not at all what I expected”, and then pass to the next character (or characters) for the next parser in the chain to do its job (or not, because there’s no point continuing when the previous parser in the chain failed).
me> A little bit like when we’re using andMap to accumulate multiple Maybe values, when one is Nothing the end result will be Nothing no matter what the other Maybe hold?
wat> Yup. Just like that.
me> Ok. But… if this is an applicative too, where’s the andMap ?
wat> Just look at this:
(|=) : Parser (a -> b) -> Parser a -> Parser b
me> Hmm… it takes an a -> b wrapped in a Parser context and a Parser a to make a Parser b … that looks like a proper andMap indeed… but why is it not called andMap ?
wat> I guess because designers of the Parser module wanted to adopt a pipeline kind of style:
include Parser exposing (..) clownCarParser : Parser ClownCar
clownCarParser =
succeed ClownCar
|= clownParser
|= clownParser
|= clownParser
|= clownParser -- in my days, clown cars could hold more than just 4 clowns
me> I see… so, I guess you wrap your empty ClownCar constructor in a successful parsing with Parser.succeed , then you take it for a ride accumulating potential clowns with your |= clownParser calls until it’s full. Just like we did filling functions with Decoder.andMap .
wat> Quite. Now, if you have a Parser a and need a Parser b ?…
me> I can either use an a -> b function with Parser.map to pull out the a from a successful parsing and turn it into a b that Parser.map will re-wrap in a successful parser… or maybe go the andThen route when the a value may or may not be enough to guarantee I can have my b . Right?
wat> Right. And that’s how knowing about the Functor, Monad and Applicative stuff is useful. They can help you get to speed with new libraries (provided the authors are adhering to the rules¹).
me> Well, I guess I’m going to have a closer look at all these interesting Parser functions…
wat> Tell me what you discover next time 😃 | https://medium.com/wat-the-elm-ist/monads-what-are-they-good-for-602960df817b | ['Michel Belleville'] | 2020-05-10 10:03:21.888000+00:00 | ['Monads', 'Elm', 'Functional Programming', 'Parser', 'Elm Lang'] |
If you find books boring, read these 5! | If you find books boring, read these 5!
Reading is fun!
Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash
When I talk to my friends, they always have a major complaint about my reading habits. How can you read all the time? Isn’t it boring? I get these a lot. But, I personally find reading peaceful and a meditating act. Also, it ain’t boring.
That’s why I decided to create a post. If you think reading is boring, I have listed down 5 books that you should read.
And Then There Were None — Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie is known for bringing murder mysteries on the pages. Published in 1939, Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None is gripping, mysterious, and keeps you on the edge of the seat. The book’s major plot revolves around the minstrel song(Ten Little Indians). An unknown host invites eight people to a small secluded island. When they arrive there, they are met by a butter couple. Since their arrival, one person out of those ten starts getting killed just like in the minstrel song lyrics.
The story takes you to each character’s journey, their past crimes, and beautifully exhibits the conflicts between ten guests. But, who is the murderer? All the stars in the sky combined together, yet, they won’t be enough to rate this book.
Mark of an unconditional intellect!
The Fault in Our Stars — John Green
Books might seem boring to you. But, they aren’t? You might have loved “The Fault in Our Stars” movie and that’s okay. But, reading the same title will give you goosebumps. The feelings are organic when you go through those words penned down by John Green.
The Fault in Our Stars revolves around two teenagers suffering from cancer — Hazel Grace and Augustus Waters. The cheery, never-give-up spirit of Augustus and scary, lonely Hazel go through a plethora of emotions. While Hazel is going through her cancer treatment, Augustus is an amputee. The bond between them becomes strong and as you flip the pages, you get to see a unique sane love shared by them.
The sadness kicks when Augustus cancer comes back and the ending unfolds deepest emotions including the way to look at life.
Men Without Women — Haruki Murakami
If you find books boring, the primary reason can be the fact that they are long and not visual. To break that, you can start with a book that has 5–6 short stories. Men Without Women by Haruki Murakami is just the book for you.
Men Without Women is a collection of short stories. The book contains 7 short stories and each of them sparks love in a very unique (sometimes strange) manner. Personally, Haruki Murakami is the author who attracted me to books. All the books that I have read till date (not many) are because of Haruki Murakami’s writing brilliance.
So, Men Without Women can be a starting step for you in the world of bibliophiles.
The Alchemist — Paulo Coelho
If you are looking to dive deep in life- its meaning, the purpose, and stuff- this book by Paulo Coelho does wonders. Even if you are a non-reader, you might have heard the name of this book.
People have gone gaga over this book. The story takes a young Andalusian shepherd to the pyramids of Egypt after he has dreams about hidden treasure there. The book's aim is to plant a thought in your mind — finding your destiny. The core of the book lies in this one saying.
when you really want something to happen, the whole universe will conspire so that your wish comes true!
Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life— Hector Garcia and Francesc Miralles
When we are talking about life and destiny, how can someone forget about this masterpiece?
Ikigai is the intersection of your passion, profession, mission, and vocation. According to Japanese, everyone has an ikigai. Some have found their ikigai, while others are looking for it. The authors when went to Okinawa island of Japan got to know the concept of Ikigai. The island is populated with many centenarians.
The book preaches the way to live. How people in Japan have found their ikigai and are living at their fullest? This book enlightens you from inside and changes your perspective. Reading this book as a non-reader, you will take beautiful lessons with you.
Happy Reading! | https://medium.com/illumination/if-you-find-books-boring-read-these-5-b1236eaafb2d | ['Vishal Sharma'] | 2020-07-27 13:44:54.688000+00:00 | ['Writing', 'Review', 'Books', 'Reading', 'Recommendations'] |
8 Social Media Mistakes That Are Killing Your Brand | Photo by Merakist on Unsplash
Social media has great potential for businesses looking to increase their reach, traffic and leads. But when it’s not used properly, it can actually damage your brand’s reputation.
This post will walk you through 8 social media marketing mistakes you should avoid at all costs.
1. Not properly vetting and supervising your social media managers.
Your social media managers are the face of your company online. With social media now driving almost a third of all referral traffic, it’s absolutely critical that those responsible for driving these referrals are up to the task.
While mistakes can’t always be avoided, we’ve seen too many examples of inexperienced, untrained or poorly supervised employees getting free reign of the company’s social media accounts.
Take the American Apparel debacle, for example. In celebration of the 4th of July, the company posted a photo of the Challenger space shuttle exploding in midair; apparently the social media manager was born after the 1986 disaster and mistook the explosion for clouds or fireworks. This could easily have been avoided had there even been one extra level of redundancy in place.
2. Not responding appropriately to negative feedback.
Negative feedback is going to happen. You can choose to ignore it, fight back, or take it in stride. And how you respond says a lot about your brand.
Some brands operate under the assumption that they can simply delete negative comments without repercussions. Others believe that ignoring negative or inflammatory comments is the way to go.
Rather than avoiding, why not use these situations as opportunities to shine? Respond thoughtfully and promptly to negative comments, and use them as opportunities to showcase your commitment to customer service.
3. Buying likes or followers.
Buying fans or followers is risky business. Some brands still believe that padding their numbers by paying for fictitious fans is a harmless endeavor. But did you know that buying Facebook fans can actually hurt your brand by decreasing your overall reach?
Fake fans will never interact or engage with your Page, signaling to Facebook that your content isn’t interesting or valuable to your audience. This leads to an overall algorithmic decrease in your post reach and visibility. You could also find your account being closed, banned or deleted should Facebook find out about your schemes.
It’s far better to focus on attracting real, interested fans who will engage with your posts.
4. Being a one-trick pony.
Posting the same types of content again and again can convey the impression that your brand is boring, uncreative or just not in tune with your audience. Instead of posting link after link or quote after quote, change things up by posting a wide variety of content.
When you get hung up on posting the same types of content again and again, your followers will become less engaged and are more apt to think you simply don’t care about posting engaging content.
5. Promoting your products… constantly.
There’s a time and place for promoting your business or products, even on social media. However, too many brands are still using social media as a channel for pushing their marketing message.
Social selling is all about building relationships and trust that will ultimately lead to sales. Don’t abuse the platform by using it as billboard or commercial. The 80/20 principle is a good rule of thumb: post engaging, high-value content 80% of the time and promote your products no more than 20% of the time. Better yet, think about how you can move your social media fans and followers into your online marketing funnel…then you never have to directly promote on social media.
6. Being inconsistent in use and messaging.
Do you have a schedule for when and how often you post? Do you have a consistent voice that you use across all your social media profiles? Do your profile and cover photos convey what are you brand is about? How do you respond to negative feedback or criticism?
The best way to be consistent in your social media marketing is to have a social media strategy in place. This will include, among other elements, guidance about how and when you’ll use social media:
· Guidelines for how to respond to negative comments
· An FAQ document that various team members can refer to: this will help ensure consistency in messaging
· A repository of brand-related images staff can use for profile photos, cover photos, etc.
· A posting schedule for each social media channel
7. Offering canned responses.
Having a social media plan in place will help you to respond to questions and comments in a consistent manner. But the ‘cut and paste’ method of responding to comments — particularly to criticisms — can lead to some pretty significant backlash.
In 2013, Kmart was heavily criticized for using this strategy to respond to criticisms about their holiday hours and staffing policies. Using a handful of generic responses didn’t go over well.
While having prepared responses in place for commonly asked questions can certainly save you some time, use them with caution. Keep in mind that criticisms, negative feedback and specific questions should generally be met with thoughtful, personalized responses.
8. Spreading yourself too thin.
Just because a social networking site exists doesn’t mean you have to use it.
Spreading yourself thin by committing to too many networks can mean you’re not using any of them effectively.
Instead of spreading your valuable time and resources between 8 sites, consider choosing the top five, three or even two sites that are the best match for your target market. It’s better to fully commit to a regular posting schedule on a few networks than letting many lie dormant.
Final Thoughts
Avoiding these mistakes all comes down to ensuring your team is properly trained, using your resources wisely and responding to your fans and followers in a professional manner. When it comes down to it, treating your social media followers the same way you’d treat in-store customers or clients will help you avoid the worst of these mistakes.
For more content like this, be sure to check out my podcast, The Entrepreneur Cast! | https://jaysondemers.medium.com/8-social-media-mistakes-that-are-killing-your-brand-5fc7e87fffa6 | ['Jayson Demers'] | 2020-07-29 19:46:28.001000+00:00 | ['Branding Strategy', 'Brand Strategy', 'Social Media Marketing', 'Branding', 'Social Media'] |
You Should(n’t) Be Writing | You should be writing.
As far as memes go, it’s one that probably pops up the most in writers’ groups. “If you’re reading this, you should be writing,” “Stop scrolling Facebook and start writing,” and “If you’re not writing right now, you should be” are common variations on this same theme. These memes can be found everywhere, from the #WritingCommunity hashtag on Twitter to the Facebook pages of literary journals and writing schools.
A meme of David Tennant. He is pointing towards the camera. Text on the image is saying, “You should be writing.” Via writingonpoint.com
They seem to balance just the right amount of relate-ability (we know you’re procrastinating because we procrastinate too!) and motivation (no, really, get working!) which is probably why they’re so popular in the writing community.
If you spend as much time in these writing communities as what I do, you’ll know that these images tie into a bigger theme: procrastination. According to social media, procrastination is a massive part of being a writer. Jokes about procrastination seem to be part of the job. “Writers: you’re either writing right now, or you should be” is another variation on the meme that keeps popping up. To be a writer, you’re expected to relate to procrastination.
I know it’s a joke, but I can’t help but wonder: is this really a message we should be absorbing so uncritically? For those of us who tend towards perfectionism, “You should be writing” culture can be toxic to our creativity and state of mind.
A few years ago, when my career was just starting, I wrote YOU SHOULD BE WRITING in capital letters on a piece of paper and stuck it on my wall. I thought it would be motivating. In some ways, it was. But it also made me feel incredibly guilty and anxious. Ironically, this anxiety made it even more difficult for me to write.
I glanced at the paper when I watched Netflix, when I sent emails, when I texted my friends, when I ate, and when I was about to go on a walk. “Could I cut back on the time I spend watching Netflix or eating or exercising?” I wondered. And then I thought, no — those are all essential parts of my life. Recreation and food and exercise is important to me.
The more I stared at that piece of paper, the more I thought to myself, “No. I shouldn’t necessarily be writing. I should be doing whatever it is I need to do.” I threw the paper away, and I started thinking about burnout culture.
Yes — if you want to be a writer, you should simply write. Getting those words down is essential. Sometimes, putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) is difficult, and these memes can be pretty motivating.
But our culture’s obsession with procrastination is worrying. We’ve moved from procrastination being undesirable, to it being something we all admit to doing with shame, to sorta romanticizing it.
Writers — who tend to romanticize writing a great deal, if I may add — tend to romanticize procrastination to the point where we insinuate all non-writing activities are forms of procrastination.
We shouldn’t shame people for procrastinating, because it’s not helpful. But we also shouldn’t insinuate that procrastination is a necessary part of the writing process for everybody, nor should we insinuate that all non-writing activities are procrastination.
When we assume all time spent away from work is procrastinating, we assume we should always be working. But productivity isn’t the only purpose of our lives. Sometimes, we shouldn’t be writing. Sometimes, we should be spending time with our families or eating or sleeping or traveling or reading — or, yes, scrolling through Facebook.
The glorification of productivity — a phenomenon often referred to as ‘burnout culture’ — is incredibly toxic. And it’s everywhere. Millennials have a tendency to boast about their ‘hustle’, and sometimes that means we proudly admit to engaging in unhealthy behavior by putting work first and ourselves second. We boast about running on fumes and try to out-busy one another. “Sleep when you’re dead” is a phrase that comes to mind. Needless to say, this messes us up, mentally, physically, socially, and even professionally.
What happens when burnout culture seeps into creative fields, like writing? Well, we produce shitty work. We may even give up on our work. More worryingly, we damage ourselves. Romanticizing procrastination is not good for humans or art.
So, what’s the antidote for “You should be writing” culture?
Nothing. Literally, do nothing. It helps.
A few months ago, I wanted to write a particular personal essay. I found it very difficult. I kept working on it every day. I felt guilty when I didn’t work on it.
And you know what? After working on it for a week, I had to admit it was awful.
My solution was to do nothing. Yes, nothing. I set an alarm for exactly a week in the future that said, “You can write now.” I promised myself I wouldn’t touch the essay until then. I wrote “You shouldn’t be writing” on a Post-It note and stuck it to my computer. (Since I write for a living, I obviously had to do some writing, but I was referring to that essay in particular.)
When I came back to the essay a week later, I was excited to do so. My week without touching it gave me the mental space to find my passion for it. I returned to the essay replenished, inspired, and motivated.
Now, I often schedule time for doing nothing. I block time off in my Passion Planner by writing the word NONSENSE in green capital letters. I mess around in the kitchen and clean my bathroom. I scroll through social media and happily ignore “You should be writing” memes. I go to my grandmother for lunch. “Should you be working?” she asks. “No, I should be here,” I reply. Because I am a writer, but also a granddaughter, and a bunch of other things — writing is not the entirety of my identity, so it shouldn’t take up the entirety of my time.
Yes, those memes can be motivating for some people, and I’m not policing anyone who shares them. But I am suggesting you take them with a pinch of salt. Next time you see one, remember that it’s totally okay to take a break from writing — in fact, breaks are essential. | https://medium.com/swlh/you-should-nt-be-writing-8a3da5c44794 | ['Sian Ferguson'] | 2019-06-14 06:25:24.599000+00:00 | ['Procrastination', 'Writing', 'Burnout', 'Writing Tips', 'Productivity'] |
World Refugee Day: ‘Safe in Malawi, now we must escape the coronavirus’ | Primo Luanda, Tatiana Bauma and Resh Tikwa are refugees living in Dzaleka Refugee Camp, 50 km from the capital of Malawi, Lilongwe, where the World Food Programme (WFP) distributes food, and the cash to buy food, to refugees. The three are part of Ramiro Prod, a community-based youth organization in Dzaleka that promotes artistic and creative expression. Below they speak in one voice, following conversations with WFP staff.
Dzaleka Refugee Camp is extremely congested. Photo: WFP/Primo Luanda
This is where we live. We are people from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi and many other countries. We’ve fled violence, persecution and insecurity to find peace in Malawi. The camp we live in is designed for 10,000 people. But we are more than 40,000 people here. It is, indeed, crowded.
For a couple of months now, we’ve seen buckets at the entrance of churches and shops. We’ve seen people wearing masks. We’ve seen offices closing down. What is going on?
Gracia Alfonsine, 11, washes her hand. Thanks to sensitization drives, children are more aware of hygiene issues. Photo: WFP/Primo Luanda
We’ve also seen our schools closing. Our little brothers and sisters make up new games every day to while away the hours but there is still boredom here — lots of it. It’s sad to see classrooms shut down. | https://medium.com/world-food-programme-insight/world-refugee-day-safe-in-malawi-now-we-must-escape-the-coronavirus-c39d1ae4c37d | ['World Food Programme'] | 2020-06-19 07:00:19.494000+00:00 | ['World Refugee Day', 'Covid 19', 'Coronavirus', 'Refugees', 'Malawi'] |
Let’s Talk About Toxic Masculinity | The Cambridge Dictionary describes toxic masculinity as “the way that men should behave that are seen as harmful, for example, the idea that men should not cry or admit weakness”.
Calling out toxic masculinity does not mean that we are calling out all men. It merely means that various behaviour, which is seen as traditionally masculine, may be adversely affecting a certain number.
In layman’s terms, what exactly are we talking about? We’re talking about when males choose to hide their real feelings about something as doing so might be considered weak or feminine or gay. We’re talking about the assumption that violence amplifies someone’s manliness. We’re talking about the need some feel to dominate women.
This is a term which, if not adequately contextualized and understood, may seem bigoted. Research tells us that there is not much difference between the male and female brain. The reason people of different genders tend to act differently isn’t because of biological factors but because of unyielding societal norms.
Toxic masculinity can easily take the form of bullying of boys by their peers and domestic violence directed towards boys in their home. It produces psychological trauma in growing boys/adult men through the promotion of aggression and the lack of interpersonal connections and/or intimate relationships with their friends or family.
These traits are reinforced when rude, disrespectful or violent habits in boys have been pushed aside with the phrase “boys will be boys”.
The American Psychological Association says that these traditionally masculine traits, such as suppressing emotions and masking distress have been linked to less willingness in boys and men to seek help and inciting or indulging in aggression, harming themselves and with those who they interact.
This environment of aggressive masculinity affects not only women in the form of domestic violence, sexual assault, etc., but also men of all ages and from all backgrounds. Men who emotionally repress themselves are more likely to face problems including, but not limited to, depression, increased stress and substance abuse. Globally, the suicide rate for men is twice as high as for women.
Psychiatrist Frank Pittman wrote about how men are harmed by numerous traditionally masculine norms, suggesting that its impacts include shorter lifespans, a greater possibility of violent death, and ailments such as lung cancer and cirrhosis of the liver.
Specialists also believe that this behaviour cannot be easily discouraged in men by women but can only be altered by men themselves helping each other out.
A Psychology Today blog post talks about how usage to gender-specific terms may prompt students to construct gendered stereotypes, and in turn, these stereotypes may allow unconscious biases to form and grow in the minds of the children.
To make our society a healthier one, gender disparities need to be dispelled of and men, as well as women, should be allowed to be themselves and not be discouraged by being told how something is too ‘feminine’ or too ‘manly’. | https://medium.com/@riddhirohatgi/lets-talk-about-toxic-masculinity-aa75ef52b374 | ['Riddhi Rohatgi'] | 2020-11-25 06:34:44.992000+00:00 | ['Toxic Masculinity', 'Gender Roles', 'Masculinity', 'Boys', 'Gender Equality'] |
How to quickly build an API with Python | If you’re here then you already have said this to yourself: I need to quickly build an API, with the least amount of code possible, but how?
“black flat screen computer monitor” by kvncnls on Unslpash
Introduction
As DevOps Engineers, we’re often faced with the need to build, among other things, automation tools [1][2] and have them exposed using an API[3] to be used later by other software components (Jira, Jenkins, services, applications,… ). So, in this tutorial, we’re going to propose building a simple API and have it automate a few tasks for us. In a second article, we’ll show how to add HTTPS support and authentication mechanisms so it can pass the security requirements of enterprises and organizations[4].
TL;DR
What I needed to start, made a Hello Wold API, something a little more complicated, and ran it in a container.
Requirements
To build our API we will be using Python 3 programming language and we’ll use the Connexion framework to handle our HTTP requests and interactions.
- Python 3
- Connexion
I presume you have already Python set up on your platform. If you don’t, I suggest these awesome tutorials to get you up and running:
- Installing Python
- Awesome Python
Connexion
In my line of work, I have grown very fond of the declarative approach as more and more tools are adopting it such as Kubernetes and Terraform; a code that it’s its own documentation, built with the end result in mind, reusable and idempotent[5].So when I first discovered Connexion, I saw its potential to take a huge chunk of the work off in a contract-first approach where the API definition is interpreted from YAML file with all the necessary data structures and validations. I understand if some users would prefer using Flask [6]in a more conventional way for advanced use cases. But for the rest of use cases, I would rather use this contract first[7], and Connexion does a very good job at it. (See also Why Connexion.)
Let’s Start
If you haven’t installed connexion yet you can do so by running:
$ pip install connexion
Hello World
Let’s start with an old fashioned Hello World :
In our app folder let’s create a new file helloworld.py :
In the code above, we have the main code that will render our specifications for the API and load the arguments, and the operation method greeting which will be executed when we run the API server.
Next, we will write the specifications of the API. For this, we will write a Swagger definition file. If you never heard of Swagger, it’s not that complicated:
Swagger is a set of rules (in other words, a specification) describing REST APIs. These specifications are human-readable and machine-interpretable. As a result, it can be used as documentation for testers and developers, but can also be used by various tools to automate API-related processes.
Now, we will create a new folder called swagger and we will add a new file swagger/helloworld.yaml :
And that’s it, we are ready to go 😀 :
To run the API server:
$ python helloworld.py
Note: If you’re faced with a warning message saying that “The swagger_ui directory could not be found.”, this is a library used to generate the swagger documentation for the defined specifications. To fix this, you can install the optional connexion swagger-ui: (Read more about optional dependencies here)
$ pip install 'connexion[swagger-ui]'
This UI is accessible at http://localhost:8080/v1.0/ui
To test the endpoint that we just created you can run:
$ curl --request POST 'http://localhost:8080/v1.0/greeting/john'
So what just happened?
The helloworld.py 's main looked for our YAML file and rendered our specifications in a spec first fashion to create the API server. Under paths we will define the endpoint that will be exposed by the API, the first method defined is a POST to /greeting/{name} which means that my endpoint will take an in-path variable called name to be used in our implementation.
This method is linked to the operation greeting in the helloworld.py using the keyword and value pair operationId:helloworld.greeting : helloworld is the name of our python script and greeting is the method name ( which conveniently takes a string parameter called name )
Log My Messages
Now that we got around the basic let’s do something that is not a Hello World, We’re going to build an API that will receive a POST request with a JSON body and write the text in a file and then return the lines count in this file, so let’s dive right to it!
In a new app folder, let’s call it logmymessages, once again we’ll create a main file called app.py:
And then let’s create the swagger specifications for this API. In a swagger folder, create a new file swagger.yaml :
To define the behavior of the endpoint we are going to create a new file called log.py where we will implement the operation api.log.write . To do so, we'll create a folder called api and inside this folder, we will create the log.py file as follows:
api/log.py:
Let’s run the API server and test our new app:
$ python app.py
We will send a POST request with the content of our message to the API server:
$ curl --request POST 'http://localhost:8080/v1.0/log' \
--header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-d '{
"message": "Hi, I am Matt. I am a radar technician",
"sender": "Matt"
}'
Output:
{
"count_messages": 1
}
We will send a second POST request with another message:
$ curl --request POST 'http://localhost:8080/v1.0/log' \
--header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-d '{
"message": "I am 90% sure Matt is Kylo Ren!",
"sender": "Stormtrooper"
}'
Output:
{
"count_messages": 2
}
If everything is working fine we should be able to see a new file created in our app folder called log.txt with two lines in it:
$ cat log.txt
[20210101-101001][Matt] : Hi, I am Matt. I am a radar technician
[20210101-101010][Stormtrooper] : I am 90% sure Matt is Kylo Ren!
For our second operation, we will try the read this file and get back the messages logged in this file by sending a GET request to our /log endpoint:
In the swagger/swagger.yaml file we will add:
And in the api/log.py file we will add:
And that’s it!
we just created a second endpoint for our API and implemented its operation method:
Let’s re-run the API server now by executing:
$ python app.py $ curl --request GET 'http://localhost:8080/v1.0/log'$ curl --request GET 'http://localhost:8080/v1.0/log'
Output:
[
{
"message": " Hi, I am Matt. I am a radar technician",
"sender": "Matt",
"timestamp": "20210101-101001"
},
{
"message": " I am 90% sure Matt is Kylo Ren!",
"sender": "Stormtrooper",
"timestamp": "20210101-101010"
}
]
Containerization
In the section, we’re going to create a docker image of our Python API and run our service in a containerized environment so we can prep our API to be deployed on different platforms.
For this we’re going to use the logmymessages example to build our docker image which is fairly a simple task to do:
First, we start by creating a requirements.txt file where we'll define all the dependencies needed for our API, and it should look something like this:
requirements.txt:
gunicorn >= 20.0.4
connexion >= 2.7.0
connexion[swagger-ui] >= 2.7.0
This will allow for our container to be shipped with all its dependencies. As you can see it only requires two things:
the connexion framework and the optional extra swagger-ui
gunicorn or Green Unicorn an open-source Python production-grade web server that we’ll use to run our API on.
In case you’re wondering what’s a requirements.txt file, it's a text file that, by convention, contains a list of all the PyPI dependencies required by a python application to build and run.[8]
Next, we’ll create the Dockerfile:
To build the image of our container we’re going to use python:3.6 as a base image, which is a Debian image preloaded with python 3.6, pip 20.
In WORKDIR we copy our app and then RUN pip to install the required dependencies.
To run the server, we use the gunicorn command, specify the binding socket and the path for the server’s main.
With the keyword HEALTHCHECK we tell the running container daemon to perform a health check every 30s, and if the check fails, the container should exit.
To build our container, in the logmymessages app folder, we run:
$ docker build -t logmymessages .
As output, we should have the log of the image being built tailed by a line Successfully tagged logmymessages:latest .
Now we can run our container by executing the following command:
$ docker run -p 8080:8080 logmymessages
The API server should be up and running and available on the same URL. you can test this by accessing http://localhost:8080/v1.0/ui to see the Swagger UI.
Conclusion
In this tutorial, we saw how to rapidly build an API service using the contract first approach and build the container image that can be deployed on any supporting platform.
In the next tutorial, we’ll try to secure our application and prepare it for deployment to production on a Kubernetes cluster. | https://medium.com/devops-stuff/how-to-quickly-build-an-api-with-python-fe03959c21d3 | ['Aymen Hammouda'] | 2020-12-20 19:44:57.742000+00:00 | ['DevOps', 'API', 'Flask', 'Docker', 'Python'] |
ICEIL Conference 2020 Amity University, New Deli, India | ICEIL Conference 2020 - Amity University, New Delhi, India
Remarks by Bernie Rhinerson, Board Trustee, San Diego Community College District
December 19, 2020
https://www.amity.edu/iceil/default.asp
Good afternoon and thank you for this invitation to participate in this remarkable conference on Entrepreneurial Opportunities and Education. Being the only panelist from the United States on this panel and possibly for this Conference, I am indeed honored to be with you.
I am here representing the San Diego Community College District in San Diego California. It is the middle of the night for me, 1:30 AM Pacific Standard Time, but I wanted to be here to share with you some insights about entrepreneurial education offered by community colleges in the United States and of course to learn from my esteemed colleagues on this panel a little about your work in India, a place I hope to visit after this crazy global pandemic we are all suffering though.
Let me begin by telling you about my role at the San Diego Community College District and my work on the national level with other community college trustees around our country through the Association of Community College Trustees, ACCT.
After a long career in the field of public relations and communications, I was elected to the Board of Trustees of the San Diego Community College District in 2012. In November, I was just reelected to my third 4 year term on the Board. I am one of five Trustees who govern on of the largest community college systems in the United States, with four colleges serving more than 100,000 students in the San Diego region. Our Colleges, Mesa College, Miramar College and City College all offer 2 year Associate Degrees and numerous career focused certificate programs. Through Mesa College we now offer a Baccalaureate Degree in Health Information Management. Our College of Continuing Education serves 40,000 students offering short term career certificate programs.
Our Board oversees the general policy direction of the district, a budget of more than $300 million and a staff of more than 5,000 faculty and support professionals. Since joining the Board in 2012, we have strongly supported the addition of more entrepreneurial education programs and education in communication skills so essential for successful entrepreneurial careers.
San Diego’s Entrepreneurial Environment
In this brief time I have with you, let me share an overview of the entrepreneurial education opportunities at our colleges and how those programs are preparing students to start their own business and to survive in the “Gig” economy.
Let me begin with an overview of the entrepreneurial environment in our region. According to a 2017 survey by the San Diego-Imperial Center of Excellence for Labor Market Research:
• San Diego/Imperial County is home to more than 26,000 startups and small businesses.
• In San Diego County, 95% of business establishments employ fewer than 50 employees. Small businesses are a primary driving economic force.
So clearly in our region, Entrepreneurship is a Viable Field for Students!
That same survey from San Diego-Imperial Center of Excellence for Labor Market Research found that more than 1,800 San Diego/Imperial County community college students who exited a Business and Entrepreneurship program experienced a 37% increase in earnings.
And in a 2019 survey of independent “Gig” economy workers in our region found that more than 30% of Gig workers surveyed wanted to receive more training on how they can market themselves, increase sales and manage finances.
Entrepreneurial Education Opportunities at SDCCD
To respond to this demand for entrepreneurial education, the San Diego Community College District offers a full range of degrees and certificates in Entrepreneurship and Small Business. Degrees range from a focused Associate Degree in Entrepreneurship at Miramar College, an Associate Degree In Entrepreneurial Small Business Management at City College, and a very unique Certificate in Cannabis Dispensary Operations from City College to serve that new and growing industry in California.
Most importantly, all of our degrees include courses in soft skills or communication skills that are so important for students to be successful in the workforce and the entrepreneurial environment.
A recent study by Burning Glass Technologies found that, on average, one in three skills requested in 25 million U.S. job postings is a baseline skill. According to studies from Harvard and Stanford, occupations with the greatest increase in employment and wage over time have been those that require both “soft” and “technical” skills.
And a April 2020 study of job postings in the San Diego region by Center for Excellence for Labor Market Research found that 21st century employability skills in online job postings could be grouped into six categories:
1. Effective Oral and Written Communication. LinkedIn Learning (2020) identified “communication” as one of the top three skills in the workplace.
2. Collaboration Across Networks. As virtual and global collaboration increases, employees must be able to work with people of different generations and backgrounds.
3. Agility and Adaptability. Employers need workers who are resilient, adaptable, and flexible to change.
4. Initiative and Entrepreneurialism. “Leadership and management” is also one of the top three skills in the workplace.
5. Accessing and Analyzing Information.
6. Critical Thinking and Problem Solving.
To prepare our students with these needed communication skills, our colleges offer these additional courses that prepare our students in these areas:
• Communication
• Problem Solving
• Literacy (Quantitative and Informational)
• Ethical Reasoning
• Knowledge of and Interaction with Cultures and the Physical World
• And more…
Our goal is to not only teach specific career job skills but also help students gain understanding and practice with essential skills such as teamwork, communication, adaptability, creativity, problem solving, conflict resolution, and more.
Examples of courses for an Entrepreneurship program student that give Communication and Listening Skill Development include:
• English 101 Reading and Composition
• Communication Studies 103 Oral Communication
• Entrepreneurship Program Courses for Additional Skill Development
• Business 119 Business Communication (topics include interpersonal communication and international/cross-cultural communication
• Business 150 Human Relations in Business (introduces students to human behavior in business settings)
Each of our four colleges has programs specifically designed to support students who want to pursue an entrepreneurial career.
At Miramar College, in addition to the program course work, students are offered
· Entrepreneurship Workshops
· Start Up Support Services
· Intensive Mentorship
· Coding Application & Web Design support
· Legal Advice & Law Workshops
· Branding & Design Clinics
See this video: https://youtu.be/__LaN2pw4_A
At City College our students have On-Campus Opportunities to lead businesses:
· Student-run food pantry
· Student-run Fantastique
· Student-run Business Resources Center
Our College of Continuing Education was the 2019 Entrepreneurial College of the Year awarded by The National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE). NACCE is the nation’s leading organization focused on promoting entrepreneurship through community colleges and represents 340+ community and technical colleges who serve more than three million students.
The College of Continuing Education has 7 learning centers across the City of San Diego offering career education. I encourage you to view an inspiring YouTube video of one of our students who recently moved to San Diego from India who took courses in Fashion Design to start her own clothing business. See: https://youtu.be/slvTAZc80Ng.
The College of Continuing Education is also fast becoming a leader in online career education. And I am very excited to announce that Our College of Continuing Education has recently entered into a partnership with Unmudl to offer a large group of career skill courses online to students globally. Now, students in India are able to take an entrepreneurial education course from our college in San Diego California or from several other community colleges within the Unmudl college network.
See: https://unmudl.com/colleges/san-diego-continuing-education-79
In particular I would call your attention to the Small Business Planning Certificate which is a two-course Certificate Program that provides students with the principles, practices, strategies, and requirements needed to form and manage a small business. See: https://unmudl.com/colleges/san-diego-continuing-education-79/courses/small-business-planning-certificate-268
Unmudl is developing a national network of community colleges to deliver job skill courses online to a global student audience. Currently the Unmudl network has 7 colleges offering a total of 233 online courses.
See: https://unmudl.com/colleges
Working to Support Entrepreneurial Education
In addition to being a Board Trustee at the San Diego Community College District, I am also a member of the Board of Directors for the National Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT). In these roles, I am working to be a strong advocate for the expansion of entrepreneurial education in our community college system and to ensure that our entrepreneurial programs include vital courses in communications to help students be successful in entrepreneurial careers.
At the national level, ACCT is working with community college boards across the U.S. to educate trustees about the importance of including entrepreneurial education as a key element our workforce training programs. We are also advocating for more Federal funding to support entrepreneurial programs and apprenticeships.
We are at a critical time in our history and in our global history when colleges must provide critical education and re-skilling to prepare students for the post pandemic economy. A recent ACCT report “Reskilling for the Pandemic Recession and Recovery” highlighted the importance of community colleges in workforce development and concluded that Colleges can improve reskilling programs by increasing financial aid, focusing on the unique needs of adult and out-of-work learners, and offering hybrid educational options.
So in conclusion, I look forward to continuing to be a passionate advocate for entrepreneurial education not only at our colleges but nationally and globally.
I believe that in the post pandemic world, the workplace will be dramatically changed and that as educational leaders we have a responsibility to help our educational programs evolve to prepare students for that future. Independent “Gig” work, small businesses, virtual online businesses will continue to grow even more after the pandemic and this will offer huge entrepreneurial opportunities for the students who are educated and prepared.
Thank you again for inviting me and best wishes to all of you for success in 2021. | https://medium.com/@bernierhinerson/iceil-conference-2020-amity-university-new-deli-india-23eac81d5032 | ['Bernie Rhinerson'] | 2020-12-18 22:41:35.614000+00:00 | ['Community College', 'Entrepreneurship', 'Higher Education', 'Workforce Development'] |
Get to know more about Uniswap | What is Uniswap?
Uniswap is an open-source decentralized exchange (DEX) platform built on the Ethereum network and allows buyers or sellers to exchange ERC-20 tokens without having to use another protocol. Uniswap can be called Automated Liquidity Protocol where there is no Order Book or centralized party to trade.
However, how can trading occur without an order book? Uniswap works with a model that requires liquidity providers to create liquidity pools. This system provides a decentralized pricing mechanism that essentially smooths out the depth of the order book. For now, the important thing to note is that users can swap ERC-20 tokens seamlessly without the need for an order book.
Since the Uniswap protocol is decentralized, there is no listing process. In essence, ERC-20 tokens can be launched as long as there is a liquidity pool available to traders. As a result, Uniswap does not charge a listing fee. In another sense, the Uniswap protocol acts as a kind of public good.
Who was created and founded Uniswap (UNI)?
The Uniswap protocol was created by Hayden Adams in 2018. However, the underlying technology that inspired its implementation was first introduced by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin.
How Uniswap Works?
Because it does not have an order book, Uniswap abandons the traditional architecture of digital exchanges. This protocol works with a design called Constant Product Market Maker, which is a variant of the model known as Automated Market Maker (AMM) or automated market maker.
Automated market makers are smart contracts that have liquidity reserves (or liquidity pools) that traders can trade in pairs. These reserves are funded by liquidity providers. Anyone can become a liquidity provider depositing the equivalent value of two tokens in the pool. Instead, traders pay a fee to the pool which is then distributed to liquidity providers according to their share of the pool.
Liquidity providers create markets by depositing the equivalent value of two tokens. This deposit can be ETH and an ERC-20 token or two ERC-20 tokens. This pool is generally made up of stablecoins, such as DAI, USDC, or USDT, but this is not a requirement. In exchange, liquidity providers get “liquidity tokens” which can be redeemed and represent their share of the entire liquidity pool.
Uniswap Token (UNI)
UNI is the original token of the Uniswap protocol which grants governance rights to its owner. This means that UNI owners can vote for changes to the protocol. We discussed earlier that protocols function like some kind of public good. The UNI token reinforces this idea.
1 billion UNI tokens have been minted in the beginning. 60% of it is distributed to existing members of the Uniswap community, while 40% will be available to team members, investors, and advisors for four years.
Part of the distribution to the community occurs through mining liquidity. That is, UNI will be distributed to people who provide liquidity to the following Uniswap pools:
• ETH/USDT
• ETH/USDC
• ETH/DAI
• ETH/WBTC
How to get Uniswap?
To buy and sell TRX can be done at an exchanger. Archidax is the best exchange platform to buy, sell, trade, and store TRX easily.
Source : f.a.s | https://medium.com/@archidax-net/get-to-know-more-about-uniswap-e0675f8f8cf5 | ['Archidax Exchange'] | 2021-07-05 04:24:16.604000+00:00 | ['Cryptocurrency News', 'Uniswap', 'Cryptocurrency Investment', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Crypto'] |
Conversations with Creatives — National Best Selling Author, Jennifer Pastiloff | Conversations with Creatives — National Best Selling Author, Jennifer Pastiloff
My newly discovered cousin
Source: selfie by the author — The first time I met my cuzzies, Jen & Charlie — May 8, 2019
I recently found out that I had a family member I never knew about.
Another cousin Facebook messaged me about Jen in 2019 and said that she lived not far from me. Not only that but that she’s also a writer, a yogi, and around my age. Why didn’t we know about each other sooner? Something about the family name being changed at Ellis island using an “a” instead of an “o.”
That one tiny letter kept us from knowing one another. Until now.
After we met, I took her best-selling book, On Being Human, with me on vacation. On the beaches of Rimini, Italy, I listened to the audiobook that she recorded. I got to know my newly discovered cousin for the first time, through her own voice, literally. And I loved it.
Here’s our conversation about creativity.
I interviewed Jen via IG Live — source: screenshot by author
Annie: What does creativity mean to you and do you feel that you’ve always been in touch with it?
Jen: Good question…when I’m feeling creative it’s when I feel connected. And it could be connected deeply to myself, to someone else, to an idea. I know the difference between being connected and disconnected because I’ve spent a lot of my life being disconnected. Creativity to me also means being uninhibited. In traditional ways, no I haven’t always been touched by creativity, but in other ways, yes. Creativity to me is being deeply connected to my imagination.
Annie: You’ve been writing since you were a kid, same as me. So do you feel like you’ve always had this creativity in you from the get-go?
Jen: Yes, from the get-go. Before my dad died I was writing stories, when I was 6, 7, 8… then I felt like there was so much pressure because everyone was like, “Jennifer is going to be a writer.” So as I got older, like in high school, I got resentful, like, “don’t tell me what I’m going to do.” I had studied poetry at NYU, my mom suggested I write for TV and I was like, “no, I want to be an actor, stop telling me what to do.”
Annie: But did you love writing? Was it just that the fact people were telling you to do it that was annoying you? You rebelled against it, even though you had a passion for writing, clearly.
Jen: Yeah, yes, yes… part of it was yes, I hate being told what to do even though I crave it. The other part was ego — there was a real thing with wanting to be an actor, even though I really didn’t want it. Wayne Dyer used to talk about this, does it feel natural to you? And can you imagine it? And this is the truth that I can tell you now, in my body now, I could never, all through my 20s, I could never visualize myself on set. And if I’m honest about that, this life I have now is so easy for me to visualize. I could always visualize myself connecting, I didn’t know what it would look like, but that should have been a red flag for me, “oh, I want to be an actor” even though I was just waiting for someone to discover me at the restaurant.
Annie: The actor thing for you, was it more that you wanted the idea of what that would look like and not the actual thing?
Jen: Yeah, it was fame and, losing my dad so young, I craved love and that feeling of “want me, want me, want me.”
Annie: So, the acting was more about getting attention. being seen… and the rest?
Jen: Well, I have impostor syndrome with creativity because I’m not an artist, in the way you are, or the traditional way. So sometimes I’m like “oh I’m not creative.” But that’s a bullshit story. Because being creative is being deeply connected to your imagination and not letting my inner asshole say, “that’s stupid” or “that’s cliché” or, “other people have done that.”
Annie: Right. You know, for me, the visual artist part of me is fairly recent. My entire life I’ve been an actor and writer and my feeling about creativity is that we are ALL born creative and it comes out in all the ways that we are. In our daily life, how we behave, in how we talk to one another, in how we dress, cook, in our… everything.
Jen: Yeah, I totally agree.
Annie: And in whatever we make.
Jen: Yeah, just make it. Whatever it is.
Annie: Exactly.
Jen holds up my artwork…
Jen: Look at this, I love this.
Annie: Thank you.
Jen: It reminds me of my Beauty Hunting.
Annie: It’s funny because you talk about beauty hunting and I used to say FTB, Find the Beauty.
Jen: I almost named the book Beauty Hunting but went with On Being Human.
Annie: Switching gears… I’m curious about your hearing loss and I know you read lips. How did you learn to read lips?
Jen: I’m not completely deaf with a capital D, I can hear sounds with the hearing aids but it sounds very muffled so I supplement with the reading of the lips. I can’t watch things without subtitles. I learned to read lips at The Newsroom (a restaurant in Los Angeles where Jen was a waitress for several years) My hearing loss kept getting worse and it was survival that got me to read lips. I didn’t even know that I was doing it.
Annie: You learned because you needed to learn, so it just happened over time?
Jen: Yeah, I actually think a lot of people, now that we are living in a masked world, are realizing how much they were relying on reading lips.
Annie: Interesting, even without hearing loss?
Jen: Yes.
Jen on the beach. Source: Jen’s Instagram
Annie: You’re working on a new book now.
Jen: Well, working. (Jen makes air quotes.)
Annie: No?
Jen: Well, I haven’t been writing. I haven’t written since my book.
Annie: Oh.
Jen: Yeah, it’s really bumming me out. I feel bad about myself so I can’t speak about writing currently.
Annie: Okay, well when you do write, what’s your ideal environment like? Do you need to shut things out?
Jen: In a perfect world, yes, I would shut everything out because that’s what I need, I can not multi-task, I can not have music on, can not have anyone talk to me. I’m fascinated by people who have music on or tv or sound…
Annie: … Yeah, I have to have some kind of sound around me.
Jen: I would clench my butthole the whole time, I need SILENCE.
Annie: And about not writing, maybe it’s because you’ve been busy lately promoting your book.
Jen: I mean, yeah, at the beginning of the pandemic I lost everything, all my in-person events. I reinvented myself and started doing everything online, coaching and we started a podcast, turned my retreats into virtual retreats, and I have a 4-year-old, so… I haven’t been able to write.
Annie: What do you need to do to make that happen?
Jen: well, it’s interesting you say that because I’m going to go on my calendar today and book out time. I need to block it out.
Annie: Do you have a deadline? Deadlines are huge.
Jen: I do better when other people give me one.
Annie: Okay, I’ll give you a deadline.
Jen: Okay.
Annie: Well, I don’t know how long it usually takes you to write, so I’ll have to get back to you with a deadline.
(Time has passed since our IG live, so, I’ve had time to come up with a deadline. Jen, your rough first draft is due June 15, 2021. I will text you. You’re welcome.)
Annie: Your book started out as a blog first, is that right?
Jen: Well, 12 years ago I wanted to write a book and really I was writing essays and keeping them on my computer. But I started a blog where I’d post a lot “the Manifest-Station.” It’s still there but I don’t write on it. I had workshops called “On Being Human” and I had an agent who found me online a long time ago because I had an online presence.
Annie: Tell me about your new podcast.
Jen: It’s called What Are You Bringing? We're best friends and we talk about what you’re bringing to life. it’s a virtual barbecue.
Annie: Will there be food?
Jen: Well, no.
Annie: Okay, I’ll still come.
Jen: I do it with my friend Alicia Easter, it’s great.
Annie: I will check it out for sure. So, let’s talk advice. What is some advice someone gave you that really stuck with you?
Jen: The one that popped into my head just now is Wayne Dyer,
“Don’t die with your music still in you.”
Annie: I love that one too.
Jen: Yeah, I've been thinking about that a lot, being intentional with how I want to live my life. How to allow myself to be self-expressed.
Annie: Don’t you feel you do that?
Jen: I do, but there are still so many ways that I don’t. Like, why am I getting in my way with this next book and with my shame loss course? It’s me getting in my own way. There’s still music I’m not letting out yet.
Annie: Do you feel successful?
Jen: Absolutely, yeah, I do. Financially I’d love to be more successful. I would love to own a home, to have a bigger place. I define success the way I personally define it is, when I lay my head down at night I get to say, I told the truth today. So, as far as that goes, do I feel successful… yes. Period.
Annie: Good. I love that, Yes. Period. Such a perfect ending to this chat. Thanks, cuz!
💌 Sign up for Annie’s monthly newsletter, What I Liked, Wrote & Drew | https://medium.com/the-innovation/conversations-with-creatives-national-best-selling-author-jennifer-pastiloff-d31031944a21 | [] | 2020-12-18 19:32:44.938000+00:00 | ['Self Improvement', 'Writing', 'Writers On Writing', 'Interview', 'Creativity'] |
Subsets and Splits
No saved queries yet
Save your SQL queries to embed, download, and access them later. Queries will appear here once saved.