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Tutorial Ansible — #3 Ansible RAW Playbook
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Playbook Keywords - Ansible Documentation
These are the keywords available on common playbook objects. Keywords are one of several sources for configuring…
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https://medium.com/netshoot/belajar-ansible-3-ansible-raw-playbooks-ecea47cf6140
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['Ghifari Nur']
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2021-01-09 07:58:13.949000+00:00
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['Automation', 'Networking', 'Ansible', 'Technology', 'Indonesia']
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2022 hospitality and travel trends
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Editor of BHN Eloise Hanson outlines her six key hospitality and travel trends set to shape the hotel sector in 2022.
Motels make a comeback
Motels have long been stereotyped as stale and beige accommodations. Though with the hospitality landscape now altered, there’s opportunity to breathe new life into outmoded buildings.
In the US, motels have made a contemporary comeback with the likes of Bunkhouse and most recently The June Motel, made popular on Netflix. Being small in size and with stylish interiors, you could argue that these properties are more aligned with boutique hotels. For instance Casetta Group has revived the historic Casa Cody and Life House has been selected to manage the Rancho Caymus Inn — both of which feature exterior corridors that are synonymous with motels despite the properties marketed as boutique hotels.
To better iterate my point, Mollie’s Motel & Diner from the team behind Soho House has revealed ambitious plans to open 100 additional sites within the next decade. The self-described “budget luxe” brand is catering to the many trends brought about by covid. Mollie’s is seeking city centre and roadside locations which can help to future-proof the brand by appealing to both the international and domestic markets. On premises, Mollie’s room types span double, twin, bunk and interconnecting for solo and group travellers, and there’s even coworking space at one of two already open sites to attract the mobile workforce.
Established names such as Motel One has also signed a 20-year lease for a hotel in New York City which marks the chain’s entry into the US market. The brand has also moved into Scandinavia with an opening in Copenhagen.
Combine healthy expansion plans with the fact that economy hotels are recovering quicker than their counterparts, I can see factors including affordability, high-end design, and the community vibe that motels instil helping to drive this particular accommodation as a popular choice.
Owners diversify portfolios
This year, we’ve seen many hotel owners and operators pivot to the extended-stay market. Sage Hospitality Group, which has a portfolio of around 100 hotels and restaurants, has recently announced the opening of its first independent long-stay product Catbird in Denver. Similarly, plans have been lodged to develop the first Hotel Indigo property with extended stay suites in Blackpool. These two examples show how the move towards long-stay options is beginning to pervade the boutique and lifestyle hotel segment whereas historically, upscale and luxury hotels have offered apartments and suites.
Coupled with this market shift is the fact that city centre properties have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic. Investor appetite in resort destinations has comparatively surged, evidenced by Hyatt’s multi-billion dollar acquisition of Apple Leisure Group. In fact, leisure demand has been so strong that groups such as Farncombe Estate, Another Place and Exclusive Collection have introduced new inventory including cabins, treehouses and cottages.
Just as with the pivot to extended stay, I think owners will re-evaluate their product offering and across different locations too. Exclusive Collection has partnered with Home House Collection to allow members access to respective properties — with Exclusive spread across the British countryside and Home House located in London. I think we’re either going to see similar partnerships emerge or owners deciding to expand across markets.
That’s because managing a diversified portfolio mitigates risk and balances reward. It’s precisely why the larger hotel chains (which are dominantly asset-light) launch new brands. Accor has just announced its latest luxury brand Emblems Collection, which takes the group’s portfolio up to more than 40 brands. IHG, Wyndham and Radisson have also all launched soft brands during the pandemic, clearly spying opportunity to support independent hotel owners who thus far have generally bore the brunt of rent deferrals and high operating costs imbalanced against low occupancies.
Just as the chains are showing interest in independent hotels, I think owners will also be weighing up whether to brand or unbrand their properties. Portfolios will offer variety — either by brand, location, or by product.
F&B gets a revamp
When hotels were forced to close their doors, some pivoted to offer takeaway and delivery services. It provided an alternative revenue stream when rooms could no longer drive the business. Amanda Ramsey, owner of the Stair Arms Hotel in Scotland, has since introduced a permanent drive through housed in an old shipping container as a result of operating a successful takeaway service six days a week during lockdown.
The closure of restaurants has also accelerated the growth of ghost kitchens by an estimated five years. There are several models in which the kitchens operate, the most common being a stand-alone site with no front of house offering. Some hotels have however seen the opportunity to outsource their F&B operations to a dark kitchen operator. For example, Graduate Hotels has partnered with food and beverage platform C3 to launch a food hall concept within select properties. The digital model will allow Graduate to offer an array of cuisines, available to either dine-in, takeaway or via delivery, from one place.
Emphasising a property’s on-site dining experience will be necessary to remain relevant and compete with the digital takeaway world. In some cases, it may be best to leave F&B concept development in the hands of restaurateurs.
As is the mindset of Robert Thompson, founder and CEO of Angevin & Co. His business has partnered with Lark Hotels to launch several hospitality projects across the States, the first being The Frenchmen Hotel in New Orleans. “We are designing hotel spaces from a restaurateur’s perspective and reengineering the food and beverage platform at each destination to elevate the guest experience,” explained Thompson. Restaurant brand developer Sam Fox is also moving into luxury hotels with the opening of The Global Ambassador in Phoenix, 2023.
It wouldn’t be the first time that leaders with a F&B background enter the hotel space. BrewDog opened two hotels in Manchester and Edinburgh this year, and FAUCHON Hospitality opened its second property in Kyoto, Japan with a third signed in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In some extreme cases, brands such as KFC even launched a themed pop-up hotel in London over the summer.
The pop-up concept has been embraced by many hotel groups. Newly launched UK brand GuestHouse recently introduced a Tipple Truck at select food festivals, and The Hoxton has opened an incubator kitchen at its site in Holborn for chefs in residence. The rotating nature of these projects lends itself to staying at the fore of food trends. Chef Mark Greenaway who runs Grazing at the Waldorf Astoria in Edinburgh has just opened a fine dining venue in London’s Covent Garden called Pivot, where the menu is reinvented each month.
When it comes to menus, the roll out of QR codes for customers to digitally browse, order and pay for their meals has seen a huge uptake. IHG Hotels & Resorts CEO Keith Barr recently called for more innovation in the F&B sector, particularly in the deployment of technology to drive a positive guest experience.
Customer-facing tech such as the ability to rate your dish with feedback sent directly to the kitchen has come into play; payment systems to accumulate orders as a digital tab with options to tip are being implemented; and with sustainability rising up the agenda, I wonder if customer’s will be able trace the ingredients used by kitchen teams, and have the choice to offset the carbon emission of their meal.
Next year, there’s real potential for hotels to be innovative, even experimental, in their F&B service and offering.
S in ESG becomes amplified
G7 and COP26 this year has pushed sustainability to the forefront of conversations. There is increasing pressure for businesses to report, track and measure their environmental and social impact as government regulations become tighter and attitudes shift.
Some of the hotel chains have upped their efforts to implement an ESG strategy (environmental, social and corporate governance). IHG has outlined five commitments which the group aims to achieve over the next decade, and Accor has appointed a chief sustainability officer to drive the company’s values.
Independent hotel groups, by virtue of having less managerial hoops to jump through, are further ahead in their sustainability journey. Exclusive Collection has recently become the first UK hotel group to achieve B Corp status, and Banyan Tree Group aligns all its brands under a “Stay for Good” program based on ESG principles. Some stand alone properties are actively pursuing social initiatives such as Lore Group’s upcoming One Hundred Shoreditch hotel, which has partnered with two local charities to offer support.
The focus on the social component of ESG has naturally been amplified by the pandemic. Consumers are shopping locally and key workers have been recognised and endorsed. In hospitality, current staffing problems has also prompted a re-evaluation of contracts and working conditions, with many employers now introducing additional entitlements such as access to a mental health counsellor and greater flexibility around shifts.
Some investment firms are even starting to pay more attention to the social aspect of ESG. CGI Merchant Group has this year launched Conscious Certified Hotels, where one per cent of hotel revenue will be donated to local organisations. “We’ve also just teamed up with a historically black school that’s building a hospitality department,” CEO Raoul Thomas said. “In that, we think we can have a recruitment pipeline of students. We’re helping to define the curriculum, to offer guest lecturers, and to evolve the students. We think it’s a great way for us to nourish and create a future pool of talent.”
To show how the S in ESG is shaping the decision making criteria for investment, Lily Wecker, vice president of Zetland Capital explained: “When we invest in a hotel or any hospitality asset… we typically look at how the operators have treated their people in the past and whether the management team has any room for improvement in terms of caring for their team members as well as the guests. It’s an integral part of our due diligence process now and our investment community treats it as a gatekeeping item before final approval.
“Since acquisition, we’ve now rolled out a requirement for all the hotels we own to complete an employee engagement survey. It’s anonymous, but the point of doing this survey is to ensure there’s enough communication across different levels and different departments around the acquisition and change of ownership, and to provide a sense of security and safety to all staff members. We do track retention rates at different levels… and we focus a lot on human resource development, promoting from within, and making sure we don’t lose people to other industries for instance.”
Wecker also mentioned a company goal to pay employees a living rather rather than minimum wage, which is being piloted at The Morrison Hotel with a view to introduce across the portfolio. Other hotel owners have made this same decision, including Red Hotels in Cornwall and Manorview Hotel Group in Scotland.
Steps have already been taken to address and improve the social arm of ESG commitments, and I expect this continue well into the new year and beyond.
Consolidation in hotel tech
Technology adoption, accelerated by the pandemic across many sectors, has set the stakes pretty high for hospitality and even more so for hotels. Customers are seeking highly personalised stays and convenient touch points (whether self-service or face-to-face) at a time when the industry is grappling with labour shortages. Digital transformation has moved from a discretionary spend to become essential infrastructure and will serve an important purpose in the route to recovery.
Some hotel brands such as PUBLIC and citizenM designed and launched their own bespoke app, whereas on the supplier side, platforms such as ALICE and Duve introduced enhanced features and capabilities — all in response to the market shifts brought about by covid.
Other tech developers are steering away from proprietary solutions. apaleo for instance created an Open Hospitality Cloud ecosystem in 2017, built from collaborations of multiple software suppliers that have agreed on a common API. Integration is one of the biggest pain points for general managers, and the ability to customise a tech stack is compromised when interfaces can’t speak to each other. If the shift towards contactless hotel stays is to become permanent, the need to easily upgrade or deploy technology will be paramount — particularly as new suppliers enter the market. Management system SIHOT has just launched an Integration Finder tool to enable hoteliers source additional functionalities and applications to enhance their internal systems.
Similarly, TripAdvisor Plus has upgraded its infrastructure to connect with partners including SiteMinder, Roiback, Derbysoft and WebHotelier. Taking this a step further, some companies such as Cendyn and Mews have merged with and acquired technology platforms to offer a more expansive suite of tools.
Life House appears to be taking the same approach. A hotel brand and management company, the group has recently completed a $60 million funding round led by new investors KAYAK and Inovia Capital to sell its software platform directly to hoteliers and operators. Although a unique example where Life House is both hotel manager and software developer, the company will leverage API-first products in the market to build the platform.
The technology solutions that hoteliers require already exist, and I believe 2022 will be the year for greater collaboration.
Hotels embrace cryptocurrencies
Several enabling factors have supported a growing interest in and the adoption of cryptocurrencies. Just as Bitcoin was born out of the financial crash of 2007–08, the economic downturn brought about by the pandemic saw the collapse of the global stock markets. With that, the price of crypto dropped. Disposable time and potentially money as a result of the lockdowns has seen user interest in crypto spike. Currently, there are around 8,000 different cryptocurrencies and tokens listed on coincapmarket.com.
Earlier this year, The Kessler Collection became the first luxury hotel group in the United States to partner with BitPay. Chief financial officer Fravy Collazo said at the time: “This move will make it easier for guests traveling globally, both in time saved from going to a local currency exchange and in money saved with a lower exchange rate.” Since then, Pavilions Hotels & Resorts has made the shift too, along with a handful of independent hotels including the Bobby Hotel in Nashville (US), The Chedi Andermatt in Switzerland, and The Cranleigh Boutique in Bowness on Windermere (UK).
The flexibility granted from independently owning and/or operating hotels largely comes in to focus here. To my knowledge, none of the top hotel chains accept cryptocurrency though I suspect this will soon change. Other hospitality asset classes such as aparthotels already accept cryptocurrency as a form of payment. In the UK, brands such as Citadines, part of The Ascott Limited, allows international students to pay for their stay in crypto. The Ascott has even issued non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which are cryptographic assets on blockchain that provide proof of ownership and scarcity for digital content, as competition prizes for its loyalty members.
The knock-on effect this can have on loyalty programmes is huge. Rohit Talwar, CEO of Fast Future explained: “The Mastercard initiative is going to accept loyalty points, so for example I might be able to bring my loyalty points in from Hyatt and convert them to crypto and use this anywhere. But you’ll see more and more brands allowing customers to take their loyalty points in a crypto. I think we’ll also see more aggregators emerge who will allow exchange between loyalty points into crypto and back again, but I think we’ll also see some new and interesting partnerships.
“For example, Singapore Airlines with their KrisFlyer program is allowing some level of conversion from crypto to their own tokens. You could start to see powerful alliances between hotel groups and airlines. We’re even starting to see some hotel brands being born as a crypto venture — whether that’s financing the property, the way they’re running the reservations business, or the way they’re running their loyalty scheme.”
As Talwar highlighted, major corporations outside of hospitality are showing greater interest in crypto. Companies such as Amazon and Walmart posted job vacancies this summer for a digital currency expert, and as industries like retail ramp up efforts to roll out a crypto strategy, others will begin to follow.
In this year’s Trendsetter webinar, Rohit Talwar (Fast Future), Lily Wecker (Zetland Capital) and Bram van der Hoek (Sircle Collection) contributed to the discussion. Watch the replay here.
Here’s my 2021 travel trend predictions — how did I get on?
|
https://medium.com/@inthospmedia/2022-hospitality-and-travel-trends-9213be416f7
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['International Hospitality Media']
|
2021-12-15 09:31:52.526000+00:00
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['Travel', 'Hotel', '2022', 'Hospitality', 'Trends']
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How to Talk About Your Ex in a New Relationship
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The difference between vulnerability and victimhood
After a relationship ends, we can struggle to find happiness in the ending. And all the hackneyed relationship advice will tell you to avoid the subject with new romantic interests. This advice certainly holds true for the first few dates. But eventually, everyone knows the topic will come up in some shape or form. Intimacy is built by revealing small truths.
What is more important is not when you talk about your past relationships. It is how. Because that “how” can either reveal your vulnerability or your victimhood. And there is a difference.
Vulnerability reaches for another and says — I am imperfect just like you. Vulnerability is the chips and dings that give a vintage chair its character.
Victimhood communicates — my imperfections have broken me. I am a chair no one can sit on now.
Perhaps you have not figured out yet how to talk about your heartache without sounding broken? Here are some ways to have that tough conversation.
“True love always makes a man better, no matter what woman inspires it.”
― Alexandre Dumas
Red pen the drama
Ever watch a baby first learning how to walk? The baby falls and is startled. The first thing the baby does is look to its caregivers to see how he should react.
If the parents run to the baby alarmed and fearful, the baby gets scared and starts crying. But if the parents smile and say, “Oopsie! Better get up and try again…” The baby laughs, gets up, and tries again.
You might be tempted to add dramatic details to that painful breakup, but it is far better to describe the past in neutral terms.
Be the baby who falls, giggles, and gets back up.
Make a gratitude list.
You are probably sick of hearing about the importance of gratitude, but studies show that it does rewire your brain for happiness.
Start by making a list of the ways your past relationship made you stronger. It could be something as mundane as your ex improved your tennis serve or more life-changing like they redefined what you truly want in a partner.
Take responsibility for the ending.
I missed a huge red flag with my ex-boyfriend — he never once talked about his ex-girlfriends with any sense of responsibility. He referred to his last girlfriend, not by her name. He just called her “the horrible woman.” And all his other relationships ended through no fault of his own.
You have probably heard platitudinous advice of — never bash your ex in a new relationship. But you can talk about your ex’s flaws as long as you describe them within the context of where you screwed up too and what you learned from it.
Covering up the pain will only draw attention to it.
Imagine you are giving a big presentation, and you are a tiny bit nervous. So nervous that before your talk, you spill your coffee on your lap. Just great, you think. Now I have to give my presentation with a gigantic crotch stain in the shape of an errant amoeba.
So you strategically hang your hands in front of the stain while you give your presentation. Your audience is unaware that you have a coffee stain, so they just think you are a pervert groping yourself.
Keeping your hands over your big crotch stain is a lot like not talking about a past hurt. You can try to cover it up, but the stain is still there.
Now, what you could have done before your presentation is made a joke about your klutziness, pointed to the stain landing fortuitously on your crotch, got a big laugh from everyone, and moved on to your presentation.
You just took your momentous screw up and made it humorous. You showed you were vulnerable. And nothing is more exquisitely human and undeniably sexy than vulnerability.
You can turn any accident into a happy one.
|
https://psiloveyou.xyz/how-to-talk-about-your-ex-in-a-new-relationship-1b766fc293e9
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['Carlyn Beccia']
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2020-12-14 16:53:39.495000+00:00
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['Self Improvement', 'Breakups', 'Life Lessons', 'Relationships', 'Love']
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AYS Daily Digest 16/8/19: Land in sight but still no allowance to dock
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SYRIA
Due to bombings by the Syrian Regime and Russian forces, 124,000 civilians have been displaced from Idlib area towards the Syrian-Turkish border during the holiday of Eid al-Adha. For more information see:
TURKEY
The situation for Syrians in Turkey remains tense. People are, reportedly, afraid to leave their houses as the risk of being arrested for not having temporary protection ID or being registered in different provinces is extremely high.
GREECE
Arrivals
As for Friday morning, twelve boats arrived to the Greek islands, carrying a total of 388 people. Five of them arrived to Samos, four to Lesvos, another two on Chios and one on Pserimos.
Arrivals increased
Infomigrant reports that the number of people coming to Greece has increased by 25% in some parts of the country.
Overcrowded Reception Centres
All of the housing facilities on the islands are highly overcrowded. In Samos Reception and Identification Centre has a capacity of 648. Currently, 3949 people are there. Numbers for other Centres are similarly inacceptable: Leros: 1253 (Occupancy)/ 860 (Capacity); Kos: 1971/816; Lesvos: 7933/3000; Chios: 2330/1014. In total that makes up to 17436 people being accommodated in R.I.C. with a capacity of 6338. Numbers from Geek Ministry for citizen protection, can be found here:
Volunteers needed
Volunteers are needed to support the work of Elliniko Warehouse in Athens from Tuesday to Friday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. One can work with them on a regular base, but they also accept sporadic or once off volunteers.
Also, IHA is in urgent need of volunteers for its community centre and warehouse outside of Thessaloniki.
Contact:
MALTA
Sole Survivor
In our Daily Digest on the 13th of August, we reported about the dingy that was found off the coast of Malta carrying one dead body and one man alive. As reported by Times of Malta, it turned out that there were originally 15 people on the boat when it started from Libya. The sole survivor, Mohammed Adam Oga, had to watch 14 people die, one of them being a pregnant women, due to lack of water and exhaustion during the 11 days he spent on the sea. “After five days two people died. Then every day two people died.” An article about him can be found here:
A video showing his rescue here:
(Disclaimer: The video shows Mohammed Adam Oga being collapsed over the dead body of his friend.)
Mohammed Adam Oga claims that during the 11 days, various ships and helicopters passed nearby but nobody came to their rescue.
Maltas Archbishop Charles Scicluna called for a moment of prayer for “our brothers and sisters who are in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, waiting for Europe to open the gates of mercy”.
BALKAN ROUTE
Racist lapses from politicians in Croatia and Serbia
Racist language is on the rise in both Serbia and Croatia. Croatian Diplomat in Berlin Elizabeta Mađarević is, via Facebook, spreading racist conspiracy theories about a so called “great replacement” of “white Europe” claiming refugees are coming to Europe for political reasons aiming at the total islamification of the continent. In Serbia, Petar Radojcic, retired lieutenant general and member of the Political Council and Democratic Party Main Committee gives similar worrying statements, saying migrants lead to a demographic destabilization of Serbia.
In this article, the author eloquently shows how the term “great replacement” was invented and coined by the French right-wing pseudointellectual Renaud Camus.
This video dismantles the arguments from Lauren Southern, an alt-right activist, about the “great replacement” in great detail.
informative video about the narratives of alt-right and the invention of the so called “great replacement”
The Border Violence Monitoring Network in collaboration with No Name Kitchen published a new report on the situation at the EU-borders in July 2019. Again, it reports of massive use of violence and pushbacks. Among other things, the report covers:
· BiH politicians’ rhetoric on Croatian push-backs · Whistle-blowers increasing pressure on Croatian authorities · Frontex presence in Hungarian push-backs to Serbia · The use of k9 units in the apprehension of transit groups in Slovenia · The spatial dispersion of push-backs in the Una-Sana Canton
It can be found here:
BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
Volunteer doctors in Bosnia and Herzegovina report people coming (back) to Tuzla with injuries consistent with beatings:
|
https://medium.com/are-you-syrious/ays-daily-digest-16-8-19-land-in-sight-but-still-no-allowance-to-dock-3a87f3db41db
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['Are You Syrious']
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2019-08-17 14:00:03.388000+00:00
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['Border Violence', 'Digest', 'Open Arms', 'Europe', 'Refugees']
|
Ironhack’s Prework: Design Practice
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This week I have been working on the UI module of the Ironhack’s Prework, it has been a rollercoaster and I am learning much more than I thought it was possible in such a short time.
With the UI module of the Ironhack’s Prework, I am moving my first steps into UI design. I knew by instinct that I would have liked it but, since I come from a totally different background, I was also a bit scared that this would be out of my league.
In this module I learnt a lot about Color Theory, Typography, UI Elements and Wireframing. At the end of the theoretical classes, the hands-on design practice started.
I was introduced to Figma, a software that I have grown to like a lot in just a few days. As I said, I am new to the world of design, and to all of its softwares, so everything was a bit mysterious to me at the beginning.
The first exercises I had to do in Figma, were like a warm up. I had to learn how to use Boolean Operations and how to create two simple designs (they look simple now, but at the moment I didn’t know where to start): the moon and a rocket.
The main challenge for me while doing these first exercises, was to understand how to identify the basic shapes that compose an image, in order to reproduce it just using circles, lines and polygons.
The next exercise consisted in copying the Airbnb Desktop landing page at the best of my capabilities. This was the given page to copy:
And here is my version of it (I tried to maintain everything as similar as possible, the only thing I had to change was the background image, because I wasn’t able to find the same one they used in the website):
I did this exercise by trial and error, since I hadn’t found the Figma tutorials yet. Now I know that many things in the design and in my method could be improved.
At this point I moved to the first real exercise: mocking 5 screenshots of an app of my choice.
The app I chose was the Airbnb app.This time, I watched all the videos of the Figma youtube playlist “New to Figma? Get started with Figma tutorials” plus some other, so I had a much clearer idea of what I was doing. Also, I got a bit overexcited about it, so those 5 screens turned into 17, because I decided to recreate all the screens needed to complete the following task: renting a room in Valencia from the 25th to the 28th of November, for 1 person and paying it with a credit card. While watching the Figma videos I discovered how to create interactions and how to build a working prototype, and I wanted to try it.
Here are the screens I designed:
Key learnings:
|
https://medium.com/@e-marsili89/ironhacks-prework-design-practice-477901a355cc
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['Elena Marsili']
|
2020-11-28 21:57:42.267000+00:00
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['Prototyping', 'UI Design', 'Airbnb', 'Ironhack Prework', 'Figma']
|
My Top 5 Reasons to Write as a Programmer
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5. Money
Your writing can generate a substantial amount of (side) income. I’ve managed to generate several thousand dollars each month writing on Medium about programming and tech:
But writing for money is an art in itself, in my opinion. It needs a special focus. The focus on making money. If you want to maximize your ROI, you need to align everything you write towards that goal. Things like reputation or education are just side effects — not the main purpose.
When writing for money, you need to make sure that your articles are constantly read by a lot of people. And I mean lots and lots of them. At least on Medium, you need high exposure of your articles but also interesting content because the time each person spends reading your articles is an important factor for the algorithm that determines your payouts. Medium publications are a great way to increase the reach of your articles, so you should try to get accepted as an author for at least one major publication!
Another option to get paid as a writer is applying for paid writer programs offered by internet businesses. Those are going to pay you a fixed amount, often between $100-$500 for one article. Here’s a list of such programs and what you can earn:
Focusing on money and ROI is not so important if you choose a paid writer program. Your focus should rather be on meeting the criteria of the program in question.
|
https://medium.com/better-programming/my-top-5-reasons-to-write-as-a-programmer-3a2c1e57a50a
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['Simon Holdorf']
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2021-01-02 11:29:48.761000+00:00
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['Programming', 'Startup', 'Productivity', 'Writing', 'Writing Tips']
|
Flying the Pipistrel Virus SW 121 in VR with Oculus Rift S
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Flying the Pipistrel Virus SW 121 in VR with Oculus Rift S
One of the aircraft included in the Premium Deluxe Edition of Microsoft Flight Simulator, the Pipistrel Virus SW 121 really shines when you opt for flying it in Virtual Reality using a headset like the Oculus Rift S. It’s a treat!
I’ve spent the days since VR for Microsoft Flight Simulator was launched flying different aircraft, while trying to tame the diamond needing polish represented by the VR option in the sim. True, it is not perfect but, as I expected, it’s the immersion that makes one want to stick with it… unless you belong to any of the religious sects that populate the flight simulation universe.
You need a good machine to run VR in Microsoft Flight Simulator but that should not come as a surprise for anyone. And yes, it’s never going — at least not any time soon — to look like your 4K monitor or other high-end display option, but which other way do you get the feeling of really being there, in the cockpit? As many have discovered, it becomes easier to fly, simply because you get the right proportions for your aircraft view and the world around you. Suddenly the runway is no longer a flat line in front of you but a real runway with dimensions that reflect the real world.
There are many other advantages in VR, some of which I mentioned in my previous article, Microsoft Flight Simulator, the Divine Proportion, and Virtual Reality, and there is another aspect that makes moving to VR a joy: the discovery of a 3D world that represents very much the one we live in. I’ve been flying the Pipistrel Virus SW 121 in VR along some of the areas in the sim, only to discover it is a fantastic sightseeing platform that VR helped me to discover. The experience led me to grow a special interest for an aircraft that on a flat screen did not feel as exciting.
As I noted above, Microsoft Flight Simulator still needs some work for its VR to work flawlessly, but it’s a good start for Asobo, despite what many say, because those screaming about how bad the sim is either don’t know what they are talking about or, as I’ve written somewhere else, about another sim experience, can be included in a special group of people. The article I refer too is titled “Virtual Skies are Full of Real Idiots”. It continues to be true now.
|
https://medium.com/outpost2/flying-the-pipistrel-virus-sw-121-in-vr-with-oculus-rift-s-e98664748468
|
['Jose Antunes']
|
2020-12-27 20:43:33.099000+00:00
|
['Aviation', 'Flight Simulator 2020', 'Virtual Reality']
|
Top 10 HR Technology Magazines
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Top 10 HR Technology Magazines
Are you looking for the top and best HR technology magazines? Or want to know about the different human resources technology magazines? Then you must read this article, give you detail knowledge about HR tech magazine.
The human resource industry has been growing rapidly with the help of technologies and these technology magazines help to to be updated with the current technologies in the human resource industry.
Top 10 HR Technology Magazines
HR Tech Outlook
HR Tech outlook
HR Tech Outlook is one of the leading publications and magazine for human resource industry.
HR Tech Outlook, a print magazine that provides knowledge network for complete guide on innovative technologies for top talent acquisition, HR management, and retention.
We can learn about latest technology used in recruitment process, payroll and other HR services and advice from top CHRO is a plus. The basic idea adopted by HR Tech Outlook is not just to focus on transactional aspects, such as, productivity and effectiveness, but to truly create a superlative experience for the employees and make their lives better.
The need of the hour demands organizations and technology vendors to gear up and cater to these expectations for a knowledgeable and aware workforce, who if taken care of, will be more than ready to give their all to the enterprise’s success.
Check Out- HR Tech Outlook
2. HR Tech Weekly
HR Tech Weekly
The HR Tech Weekly is the rapidly growing niche online media company, running full-fledged digital ecosystem incl. HR Tech Weekly shares the best-demonstrated practices and disruptive updates from global opinion leaders within hot areas of mind.
The HR Tech Weekly magazine primarly focuses on the latest trends in hr tech, recruitment, start-ups, talent, leadership, education, management in the human resource industry.
Check This Out — HR Tech Weekly
3. The HR Digest
The HR Digest
The HR Digest is a world magazine that sees human resources as a corporate function with the best potential. To our readers, it’s an intellectual sift, igniting the worldwide conversation about people and concepts that matter most.
Top 10 Free Keyword Research Tools
The magazine’s goal is to explore and connect the planet of human resources to the widest possible audience international, it’s a valuable resource for professionals who are hooked in to human resources management.
The magazine uses human resources function as a springboard to explore topics spanning compensation, employee benefits, outsourcing, recruitment and workplace culture.
Check Out — The HR Digest
4. Manage HR Magazine
Manage HR Magazine
ManageHR, through its print and digital magazines, websites, and newsletter, provides real-life knowledge and HR practices frameworks to transform the roles of its readers from HR professionals working for a business to Business managers who specialize in HR.
Our mission is to empower HR managers to step out of their traditional Silo and embrace a strategic role for their organizations, explicitly using talent to drive business value to customers and shareholders rather than just responding passively to the routine needs of businesses.
ManageHR offers its readers high quality, timely, and informative news concerning HR issues, as well as the insightful opinion and best practices advice from their peers facing similar situations. We cover all traditional responsibilities of HR departments: Managing job recruitment, selection, orientation and promotion, career development and job training, managing personnel policies, developing and managing employee benefits and wellness programs to handling work-site injuries or accidents.
Check Out — Manage HR Magazine
5. HR Gazette
HR Gazette
The HR Gazette publishes fresh perspectives on topics connected to Human Resources and improving the ways we work. Areas of focus are HR Technology, Talent Management, Recruitment, Employee Engagement, Benefits, Employment Law, and Performance, Learning, Strategy, and Leadership.
Check Out — HR Gazette
6. HR Technologist
HR Technologist
HR Technologist is the world’s leading source for HR technology news, research, product comparisons & expert views.
Technology-enabled HR is redefining how HR professionals do their job. Thousands of solutions, tools and platforms are already helping HR make workforce decisions that are driving bottom-line growth like never before.
For Chief Human Resource Officers, this presents a great opportunity — as well as a challenge.
Check Out — HR Technologist
7. HR Today
HR Today
HRO Today is the properties of SharedXpertise Media and offer the broadest and deepest reach available anywhere into the HR industry. Our magazines, web portals, research, e-newsletters, events and social networks reach over 180,000 senior-level HR decision-makers with rich, objective, game-changing content.
Our No1 strength is our reach. HR leaders rely heavily on the HRO Today’s Baker’s Dozen rankings across six different categories when selecting an HR service provider.
Check Out — HR Today
8. HR Technology News
HR Technology News
Tech News is another leading product from Key Media, global independent publisher of human resource news. HR Tech News focuses on insights and analysis of the latest in HR technology as it applies to enterprise businesses, many of whom operate on a global scale. With audiences in North America, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand. HR Tech News connects the C-suite and senior decision makers that influence adaptation of new HR technologies across the world.
Check Out — HR Technology News
Check Out — AIHR Digital
9. HR Grapevine
HR Grapevine
HR Grapevine specialises in providing top technology news and updates on the latest happenings in the human resource industry.
HR Grapevine is the leading online publisher for HR professionals. Delivering daily news, features and commentary.
Also providing networking and shared learning through its events division which hosts regular webinars, round tables and a leading annual conference. HR Grapevine brings you the best insight, in the market. It is the trusted brand the HR industry turns to for unique and inspiring content.
Content is focused into four key areas: HR Management, Compensation & Benefits, Learning and Development, and Resourcing.
Check Out — HR Grapevine
10. HRD Connect
HRD Connect
We provide invaluable insights and exclusive interviews examining the most innovative practices that help HR leaders meet the challenges they face — from corporate governance and talent management to their own career development.
Our content focuses on the key issues across core topics, including strategy & leadership, talent, rewards & benefits, digital transformation and employee engagement, producing the insight needed to drive businesses forward.
Check Out — HRD Connect
Read Also:
|
https://medium.com/@jackmathew/top-10-hr-technology-magazines-93ab9f9e3fc9
|
['Jack Mathew']
|
2021-02-12 05:58:39.526000+00:00
|
['Technology', 'Magazine', 'HR', 'Technews', 'Human Resources']
|
How to Implement Your Distributed Filesystem With GlusterFS And Kubernetes
|
Deploying Gluster Server and Heketi API
At this point, the hard part is over. All that remains is to configure and deploy the last two components — Gluster Server and Heketi API. Clearly, after all the grind you’ve done in the previous steps, you deserve some kind of uncomplicated, straightforward way to finish things up. And what’s easier than using a preconfigured Helm chart?
There are even some options for this:
Although it may seem like an obvious choice, it’s also worth noting that the second solution is actually far more simple for both understanding and deployment. So once again, I highly recommend doing your own research. Alternatively, you can also check out my own combined solution, which I made as a part of my open-source Kicksware project.
What all of these solutions have in common is that they all use Heketi as a management API, therefore all of them need to be treated with predefined storage nodes topology configuration. And although it might sound a bit overwhelming, this process actually comes down to executing one command and writing down a few IP addresses. Here’s what it looks like:
Storage cluster topology example config for Heketi API
Basically, all you need is each node’s internal IP, name, and storage device name you created in the last step. If you followed the instruction precisely, then the device name would be /dev/disk/gluster-disk .
To get the remaining parts of the puzzle, simply type this command:
$ kubectl get nodes -o wide NAME STATUS AGE VERSION INTERNAL-IP kicksware-k8s-3pkt4 Ready 38h v1.18.8 10.114.0.5 kicksware-k8s-3pkt8 Ready 38h v1.18.8 10.114.0.3 kicksware-k8s-3pktw Ready 38h v1.18.8 10.114.0.4
The name of the node is node.hostname.manage and the internal-IP corresponds to node.hostname.storage . Just put this into values.yaml file and use it when performing the deployment of your helm chart of choice.
Also, depending on the chosen method (all besides the IBM one) you may need to manually input Heketi service’s cluster-IP into Storage Class configuration and upgrade chart:
$ kubectl get services -lrelease=<RELEASE_NAME> NAME TYPE CLUSTER-IP PORT(S) AGE
gluster-heketi ClusterIP 10.245.189.193 8080/TCP 1m
Once you’ve got your storage class, simply put it in every PersistentVolumeClaim whenever you’re in need of storage provisioning, like so:
GlusterFS PersistentVolumeClaim example config
Didn’t I tell you that in the end, it would be a piece of cake! And now this is finally it. Great job!
One more thing, if you run RBAC-based Kubernetes, please, make sure to provide a proper RoleBinding for the Heketi app. Otherwise, it won’t able to load up topology and you’ll be getting this odd mistake message:
Unable to create node: New Node doesn't have glusterd running
And though it can be caused by some sort of Gluster Client install problem, it’s likely that Heketi just doesn’t have enough rights to access nodes and pods K8s native APIs.
|
https://medium.com/better-programming/how-to-implement-your-distributed-filesystem-with-glusterfs-and-kubernetes-83ee7f5f834f
|
['Timothy Yalugin']
|
2020-11-18 17:55:26.029000+00:00
|
['Kubernetes', 'DevOps', 'Containers', 'Glusterfs', 'Programming']
|
Learn to Make a Web App With ASP NET Core and Vue
|
In this article, I will teach you the basics of making your own web app, by creating a checklist app. ASP NET Core will be used to create a CRUD API and Vue will be used to create the frontend UI. Using the knowledge gained here, you should be able to apply it to start making your own web apps. You can find the complete solution in the GitHub repository.
We will first start with building the API and then move on to the Vue client.
Creating a checklist API
Start by creating a new ASP NET Core Web API project in Visual Studio.
Let’s start by creating the checklist item model. Create a folder called Models and inside create a file called ChecklistItem.cs
public class ChecklistItem
{
public int Id { get; set; }
public string Text { get; set; }
}
We have given it an Id, which will uniquely identify this item when we save it to a database, and a Text property which will contain the text that we enter for the checklist item.
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Next, we will configure the database. To help simplify this tutorial I am using an in-memory database. This is fine for testing and demonstration purposes, but for a real life app you will need to configure your own database (in terms of code, this is as simple as changing the data provider in the EF Core options).
First install the following NuGet packages:
Microsoft .EntityFrameworkCore
Microsoft .EntityFrameworkCore.InMemory
Then create a new file at the root folder of the project called AppDbContext.cs:
using ASPNETCoreVueChecklist.Models;
using Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore;namespace ASPNETCoreVueChecklist
{
public class AppDbContext : DbContext
{
public AppDbContext(DbContextOptions options) : base(options)
{
} public DbSet<ChecklistItem> ChecklistItems { get; set; }
}
}
EF Core is a object-relational mapper (ORM), which simplifies the process of interacting between C# code and the database. The AppDbContext class provides a way to access the records within the database. By providing it with a property called ChecklistItems, with a type of DbSet, this configures EF Core to look for a table in the database called ChecklistItems, with columns defined by our model.
Then to configure our app to use this AppDbContext class and to use an in-memory database, go to the ConfigureServices method of Startup.cs and add the following lines of code:
services.AddDbContext<AppDbContext>(options =>
{
options.UseInMemoryDatabase(nameof(AppDbContext));
});
Finally, we need to create the controller, which in ASP NET Core defines the endpoints for our API. Start by creating a ChecklistController.cs file within the Controllers folder:
using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Mvc;namespace ASPNETCoreVueChecklist.Controllers
{
[ApiController]
[Route("[controller]")]
public class ChecklistController : ControllerBase
{
private readonly AppDbContext _dbContext; public ChecklistController(AppDbContext dbContext)
{
_dbContext = dbContext;
}
}
}
As it stands, the controller has an ApiController attribute, which configures the controller to be used for an API (instead of a standard ASP NET MVC controller), the Route attribute states that all endpoints will be prefixed by the name of the controller (checklist), and we are injecting an instance of our AppDbContext class into the controller so that we can use it to access our checklist items.
I will now walk you through adding each of the CRUD methods to the controller, starting with Create:
[HttpPost]
public async Task<int> Create(ChecklistItem item)
{
_dbContext.ChecklistItems.Add(item);
await _dbContext.SaveChangesAsync(); return item.Id;
}
The above method has the HttpPost attribute, which means it can only be accessed by sending the Http request using the POST method. This is standard for creating records in APIs. We create a new instance of ChecklistItem using the text parameter that is passed to the method. We don’t need to worry about setting the Id ourselves as a unique Id will automatically be set when we save the item to the database. The following lines add the item to the database and then save it. We finally return the new item Id back to the client.
Next we will move on to Read. Typically with such an API, there are two read methods: one to list all items, and one to return one item that matches the supplied Id.
[HttpGet]
public async Task<IEnumerable<ChecklistItem>> Get()
{
var items = await _dbContext.ChecklistItems.ToListAsync(); return items;
}[HttpGet("{id}")]
public async Task<ChecklistItem> Get(int id)
{
var item = await _dbContext.ChecklistItems.FirstOrDefaultAsync(item => item.Id == id); return item;
}
The first method is set to return a list of all checklist items when the HTTP GET method is used on the controller (/checklist). The second is similar apart from we set it to require the Id of the checklist item in the URL (/checklist/1). This will take the Id as a parameter and search the database for an item with that Id. It will then return that single Id back to the client.
The next method is Update:
[HttpPut("{id}")]
public async Task<bool> Update(int id, ChecklistItem item)
{
var existingItem = await _dbContext.ChecklistItems.FirstOrDefaultAsync(i => i.Id == id);
existingItem.Text = item.Text;
var result = await _dbContext.SaveChangesAsync(); return result > 0;
}
Typically updating is done with the HTTP PUT method and we are setting the route to require the Id of the item we wish to update (checklist/1). First we retrieve the item that we wish to update, modify the text, then save it back to the database. The return value of SaveChangeAsync is an integer representing the number of items that got updated. Therefore by checking if the number of updated items is greater than 0, we know that the update was successful.
Finally we have the Delete method:
[HttpDelete("{id}")]
public async Task<bool> Delete(int id)
{
var item = await _dbContext.ChecklistItems.FirstOrDefaultAsync(item => item.Id == id);
_dbContext.ChecklistItems.Remove(item);
var result = await _dbContext.SaveChangesAsync(); return result > 0;
}
Similar to the previous methods, the Id of the item the is to be deleted is included in the URL, but this time we use the HTTP DELETE method. It might seem a bit peculiar, but in EF Core the way to delete items involves: first retrieving the item from the database, setting it to be removed, the saving the database (which deletes the record).
The final thing that we need to do is to go to the Startup.cs file and add a CORS policy to the Configure method. This should appear between the app.UseHttpsRedirection() and app.UseRouting() lines. This allows the web API to accept requests from our client (NOTE: the default port for new Vue apps is 8080, but if yours is different update the code to use the port of your client).
That is now our API completed. We have implemented all the CRUD operations, which can be accessed via various HTTP methods. We will now move on to creating a Vue frontend, which will be able to access these API methods.
Creating a checklist client
First make sure that you have the Vue CLI installed. If not, please visit this page. Then navigate to the root folder of your project and run the following command to create a Vue project:
vue create checklist-client
Start by creating an empty Checklist.vue file in the components folder. Then go to App.vue and update it to simply display the Checklist component.
<template>
<div id="app">
<Checklist/>
</div>
</template><script>
import Checklist from './components/Checklist.vue'export default {
name: 'App',
components: {
Checklist,
}
}
</script>
Next open up the Checklist.vue file. We’ll start by creating an input to create checklist items:
<div>
<input type="text" v-model="newItemText" />
<button
</div>
</template><script>
export default {
data() {
return {
newItemText: ''
}
},
methods: {
async onClickSave() {
await fetch('
method: 'POST',
data: this.newItemText
})this.newItemText = ''
}
}
}
</script> @click ="onClickSave"> Save export default {data() {return {newItemText: ''},methods: {async onClickSave() {await fetch(' <a href="https://localhost:5001/checklist'" class="dl ib" rel="noopener nofollow">https://localhost:5001/checklist'</a> , {method: 'POST',data: this.newItemText})this.newItemText = ''
Here we bind our input to the newItemText data property, meaning that any changes to the value will be reflected in the input and the property. We also create a save button, which calls the onClickSave method when it is clicked. Within the onClickSave method, we send a POST request to our API at the /checklist endpoint. The data is simply the text that was contained within the input field. If the request is successful, then the input text will be cleared.
Please note that the port I have used may not be the same as yours. Please check your own API project to see which port your API is running on.
At this stage, we can create new checklist items, but we can’t see them. Lets create a list of items pulled from the database. Start by creating a data property called items:
data() {
return {
newItemText: '',
items: []
}
},
And then create a loadItems method within the methods object:
This will make a HTTP GET (this is the default for fetch so we don’t need to explicitly define it) call to /checklist. We then process the response as JSON and set the resulting list of items to the items property that we just created.
We want to load this data when we first visit the page. To do this, we make use of the mounted method (this sits at the root of the Vue object. Please see the GitHub repo for more clarity), which gets called when the page first loads:
async mounted() {
await this.loadItems()
},
In addition, we should add this line (await this.loadItems()) to the end of the onClickSave method so that the list updates when we create a new item.
We will then create the list items in the markup up to display the items that we have just fetched:
<ul>
<li v-for="item in items" :key="item.id">
{{ item.text }}
</li>
</ul>
The final thing we need to do is to allow the user to delete existing items. Let’s create a method to allow us to do that:
await fetch(`
method: 'DELETE'
}) await this.loadItems()
} async onClickDelete(id) {await fetch(` https://localhost:5001/checklist/${id}` , {method: 'DELETE'}) await this.loadItems()
And then create a button on each list item that deletes that list item. The item Id is passed to the onClickDelete method, which in turn is passed as a URL parameter to the /checklist/:id endpoint.
{{ item.text }}
<button
</li> {{ item.text }} @click ="onClickDelete(item.id)"> Delete
And that’s it. Make sure both projects are running and open the Vue project in the browser. You should now be able to create new items, see a list of existing items, and delete existing items.
Conclusion
In this article I have showed you how to create a basic CRUD API using ASP NET Core, and hook it up to a Vue frontend to create a checklist web app. The GitHub repo can be found here.
I post mostly about full stack .NET and Vue web development. To make sure that you don’t miss out on any posts, please follow this blog and subscribe to my newsletter. If you found this post helpful, please like it and share it. You can also find me on Twitter.
|
https://medium.com/@emma-95833/learn-to-make-a-web-app-with-asp-net-core-and-vue-e5b7e34667b
|
[]
|
2020-12-19 22:29:36.809000+00:00
|
['Dotnet', 'Vuejs', 'Vue']
|
An Unlikely Source
|
for teaching persuasion
vulture.com
I recently watched the Netflix special by Dave Chapell called Unforgiven. Normally, I would skip over something like that because I’m not really all that into stand-up comedy. However, my oldest son sent me the clip and asked me at least three times if I had watched it yet. I kept promising, it just didn’t happen. And then it did.
I couldn’t believe I hadn’t watched it sooner.
His writing is a brilliant work of persuasion. Artful. Breathtaking. Genius. I would love to teach it as part of my persuasive writing and speaking curriculum. This is why.
It is relevant.
When I mention Dave Chappell to any of my classes, eyes immediately light up. All of the 15-year-olds know who he is and want to know what he has to say. He is a very popular part of their culture. But, when I say “persuasive writing and/or speaking”, he isn’t the first person who comes to their mind.
Each year, to teach persuasive speaking, teachers across the country turn to Malala Yousafzai. If you haven’t heard of her, she is the young Pakistani girl who was shot in the face by the Taliban when she refused to stop attending school. Don’t misunderstand, my students thought it was amazing that she was brave, and they even thought it was cool that she was the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. They couldn’t, however, relate. If someone threatens them, or not, they are happy to skip school.
I’m not suggesting that we stop teaching persuasive speeches such as Malala Yousafzai’s speech to the United Nations, any of Obama’s dazzler’s, or even Martin Luther King’s traditional favorite, I Have a Dream, but once in a while, wouldn’t it be fun to give a gritty, real-life example of persuasion rather than a polished one? It would be for me, and I think my students would love it.
Teaches many life lessons.
I teach on-level tenth graders and every day they happily remind me that they are not going to college. While it may not be something they aspire to, it could happen. For most of them, they want to learn a trade, work in the family business, or join the military. Many of them are what we might consider good students, but just as many are not.
That doesn’t mean that they aren’t good people. People, especially good ones, need life lessons. They love to hear me tell stories about the important things in life. Things like respect, kindness, and generosity. Chappelle’s, Unforgiven, does just that.
Through his own life experiences and his gift for humor, he creates a space to discuss things we might not normally talk about in polite conversation. He makes us comfortable with truths such as everyone has moments of desperation, anyone can be cheated, the importance of standing up for what is right, and most important, “never get in the way of a man and his meal”.
These truths are things I can say all day long to my students, and they listen. But, when Dave Chappell says them, they HEAR him.
Draws unlikely comparisons.
My students write persuasive papers in tenth grade. I teach them to use real-world examples as comparisons — examples that people can understand and relate to. Chapelle does this brilliantly.
He compares the predatory nature of the show business contract to the Me Too Movement. The innocence of the young artist and the experience of the lawyers who lure them in with promises that they will be taken care of. Viacom to the hustlers on the streets of New York City who tempt the unsuspecting into laying all they have on the table for that one big win.
Morality and legality, integrity and deception, over and over, in every story. He has his audience on the edge of their seats, listening attentively to story after story, like children on their grandpa’s knee.
Clear purpose
Teachers have a list of techniques for strong persuasive speaking, and Chappelle has checked every box. He knows his purpose and his audience. He adds icing to the cake with a compelling title and a fantastic hook. His story is personal, raw, authentic — and, in classic DC style, very funny.
Through an artful weaving of stories from the time he was 14 to the current day, Chappelle carries us effortlessly along, gradually revealing the purpose of his talk, and teaching us life lessons along the way.
About halfway through the routine, the audience understands that the purpose of his set is to answer the question, “Is it right?”
Right is right even if no one is doing it; wrong is wrong even if everyone is doing it.”― Saint Augustine
The audience learns throughout his routine that Chapelle has a legal and binding contract with Viacom involving his work on Comedy Central. As most are aware, he left the show after about three years to do other work. Recently, HBO and Netflix begin streaming the work he did on Comedy Central.
According to Chappelle, when he confronted HBO, they dismissed his request for justice, and to add insult to injury, asked him, “Why would we need you?”
When he confronted Netflix, they listened, stopped the streaming, and offered him a new deal. One that was legal and moral.
The contract he has with Viacom is legal. It will hold up in a court of law. No one can argue that. However, any self-respecting English teacher or writer will recognize this as plagiarism. They stole his work, AND they made it legal.
This is an important lesson for my students. They may not ever be shot like Malala, become a president like Obama, or a Civil Rights leader like King. They will, however, face potential threats to their livelihood regularly. They are much more likely to be taken advantage of by people who know more than them, have more power than them, and don’t mind exploiting a young, desperate person with a dream.
Morality cannot be legislated, but behavior can be regulated. Judicial decrees may not change the heart, but they can restrain the heartless. ― Martin Luther King Jr.
Restraining the heartless
After Chappelle presents his perspective on the contract, he agrees that it is legal, but he asks, “Is it right?”
He asks his audience to ponder the question. Then, like any quality persuasive work, he leaves you with a powerful call to action.
“Boycott me,” he commands.
He closes his appeal by reminding the audience that they are truly the ones who must decide because they are the ones who employ HBO. The audience holds the power.
Brilliant Persuasion
Dave Chappelle started his talk with a powerful story that included the line, “Never get in the way of a man and his meal.” Then, he shows us how Viacom has gotten in the way of him and his meal. He closes by asking his audience to get in the way of Viacom and their meal.
Teaching this amazingly persuasive set by Dave Chappelle would be something the students would probably never forget. It would reinforce what I teach about writing and speaking persuasively, but more importantly, it would teach good kids real lessons about life and persuade them that what is legal, isn’t always right.
|
https://medium.com/illumination-curated/an-unlikely-source-851a53194c20
|
['Brenda Karl']
|
2020-12-09 15:20:34.763000+00:00
|
['Persuasion', 'Morality', 'Education', 'Speech', 'Life Lessons']
|
Basic Attention Token: AMA with CEO of BAT and CTO of Brave while Brave hits 10 million downloads on Google play
|
Basic Attention Token: AMA with CEO of BAT and CTO of Brave while Brave hits 10 million downloads on Google play Paradigm Follow Aug 28, 2018 · 3 min read
Biweekly update 14th August — 28th August
Development
Github metrics
Social encounters
On August 16th, BAT Community hosted the first in an upcoming series of AMAs (Ask Me Anything!) with Brendan Eich in the r/BATProject subreddit. Over the course of the AMA, Brendan answered a mix of pre-submitted and live questions from Redditors about Brave and the Basic Attention Token. The full AMA can be found here.
Another AMA session was on the 22nd of August 2018 (with Brian Bondy, Brave CTO and Co-Founder). Being the CTO of a multi-platform software startup with an integrated utility token doesn’t leave much time for public appearances; this AMA provided a rare opportunity for Brian to share valuable technical insight, his near and long term vision, and to have some fun engaging directly with the community. The full AMA can be found here.
Other upcoming BAT Community AMAs: 5th September 2018 (with Johnny Ryan, Chief Policy Officer, Joel Reis and Sergey Zhukovsky, Brave iOS and Android), October 2018 (with David Temkin, Chief Product Officer, Yan Zhu, Chief Information Security Officer), November 2018 (with Jonathan Sampson, Developer Relations Specialist, Alex Wykoff, User Research and Testing), December 2018 (with Ryan Watson and Kamil Jozwiak, DevOps and QA Luke Mulks, Business Development Team, Jan Piotrowski, Business Development Team, Brad Flora, Business Development Team, and January 2019 (with Tom Lowenthal, Security and Privacy Coordinator).
BAT user shared his total number of trackers blocked, ads blocked and HTTPS upgrades under 6 months using Brave. (link)
Youtube blogger BlockWolf shared his Interview with Brave tech pps coordinator Chris Nguyen. The full interview can be found here.
Brave is in Top 5 free apps for tablets in Canada, alongside FB Messenger and Discord!
Brave for Android now has over 10 million downloads!
Finance
Token holders and the number of transactions dynamics (information from etherscan.io)
Roadmap
What’s up next?
The main things under development are Brave/BAT Ads, and Brave v1.0 (the rewrite of the browser that should be out this US fall season).
The BAT Community is undergoing a pretty big jump/transformation, the new merch previews being one indication.
There’s also the Ethereum Wallet (in Brave) that’s targeted for this month (August).
The built-in Ethereum wallet will run its own light node, so it’s not just an interface like MyEtherWallet.
Partnerships and team members
No updates
Rumors
BAT going to be on Bithumb this week. In the post on BAT’s official Reddit page.
BAT listed on trade.io. In the post on BAT’s official Reddit page.
Social media activity
|
https://medium.com/paradigm-fund/basic-attention-token-d12ad623a482
|
[]
|
2018-08-29 12:01:38.118000+00:00
|
['Cryptocurrency', 'Basic Attention Token', 'Bitcoin']
|
A day in the life of a copywriter
|
This article first appeared on the Copify Blog.
Ever wanted to spend a day in the life of a copywriter? You may be surprised to learn that copywriters don’t actually spend all day writing clever and inspiring prose. Instead, their day-to-day responsibilities can be much more varied. Freelance copywriters, in particular, are running their own business, so their responsibilities include admin duties too. If you’re just starting a career in copywriting and you’re wondering what the typical daily routine is like, take a look below.
The morning routine
Responding to emails and messages
If you already work from home, you’ll know how important it is to have a strict morning routine, whether it’s as simple as getting up at the same time each day or showering and eating before you open your laptop. Many copywriters will start with general admin tasks, like checking and responding to emails and taking a look at their calendar or content schedule for any upcoming deadlines. However, you may also find it’s beneficial to check your social media platforms now as well so you can reply to comments or publish a new post.
Another important step during the morning routine is to check any professional networks you’re signed up to, like LinkedIn. This way, you’ll never miss any new messages or job opportunities, especially if a client has reached out to you and is hoping for a timely response. Remember, punctuality and maintaining good levels of email etiquette are vital skills any copywriter should master.
Creating a to-do list
After handling any important messages or emails, a good copywriter will make a to-do list for the day ahead. A successful copywriter should already be skilled in managing their time and juggling a number of projects at once, but a to-do list will make prioritisation much easier, and it ensures nothing is forgotten about or missed.
To boost your motivation and build momentum, you might prefer to start the day with a quick and easy task. Once this is out of the way, you’ll be able to concentrate on more pressing jobs.
Finishing a job/meeting a deadline
The most important part of any copywriter’s day is the actual content creation. Therefore, if you have an upcoming deadline, you’ll need to set aside enough time to finish the job you’ve been working on. Whether this involves adding more words to complete the copy or making some final edits after a thorough proofread, this will usually be the most important task of the day. As such, it may take up the rest of the morning and even the start of the afternoon.
Some days you may be required to write SEO-optimised landing pages or an email campaign, while on others you may find yourself writing a sales brochure or copy for a digital advertisement. The joy of copywriting is that every day brings a new challenge, even if your routine stays the same.
The afternoon routine
Researching your next subject matter
After taking a lunch break, most copywriters will return to the copy they were working on before dinner. However, if you’re starting a new job, you will need to do some subject matter research before you can begin writing any new copy.
No matter the content type, to do a good job copywriters need to know as much as possible about the subject material, including specific knowledge about the service or product as well as the client. Sometimes, clients don’t supply a lot of information, so you may need to contact them again for more guidance. However, it always pays to do your own independent research as well, so make sure you set aside some time to do this when you’re creating a to-do list — even if it’s just half an hour each day.
Completing important admin tasks
Admin tasks can be mundane and feel like a real chore, but they’re important for staying on top of impending deadlines and finances.
A copywriter’s daily administrative duties can include:
• Billing clients and filling in time sheets
• Writing invoices and contracts
• Calculating quotes
• Chasing up clients who haven’t paid their invoices
• Recording any expenses
• Processing payments
• Returning phone calls
• Responding to emails
• Creating/working to a content plan for self-promotion
• Posting or scheduling posts on social media
As with most chores, the longer you put them off, the worse they become. A good copywriter will schedule time each day to keep on top of these tasks.
Submitting proposals and finding more work
Copywriting is a competitive industry, but there are plenty of clients looking for experienced and talented writers. However, it’s important to remember they won’t all come to you, which is why a successful copywriter always sets aside time to work on new proposals. Some days may be busier than others, so fitting this into your schedule can prove challenging. However, try scheduling some time alongside your admin duties, as some days you may find you have fewer administrative jobs to do.
If submitting new proposals every day isn’t a realistic goal for you, you could try joining a copywriting agency or search through job boards to find new opportunities.
Finally, relax!
Once you’ve completed your to-do list for the day, it’s finally time to relax! If you work from home, you may find it hard to completely switch off, but it’s important that you step away from your desk. Whether you enjoy exercising, reading or indulging in a good TV series, setting boundaries and sticking to your working hours is vital for a good work-life balance.
A day in the life of a copywriter
Kate Toon, a copywriter and the founder of The Clever Copywriting School, sums up a day in the life of a copywriter perfectly:
“The truth is, we don’t spend all our time writing. As we’re running our own businesses, we also need to focus on other tasks like winning new clients, managing finances, marketing ourselves and so much more.”
If you’re a copywriter and you’re looking to access a variety of writing jobs, check out Copify today. You’ll be able to gain valuable writing experience and improve your skills, which will better prepare you for future copywriting jobs.
|
https://medium.com/@jess_90990/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-copywriter-8eaef021c9de
|
['Jess Thistlethwaite']
|
2019-02-15 16:54:52.687000+00:00
|
['Copywriting', 'Copywriter', 'Blogging']
|
Java Servlets and JSP
|
So You would have heard of Client and Server. So what is Client and Server?
So a Client is a computer which is capable of receiving information or using a particular service from the service providers ( Servers ).
is a computer which is capable of receiving information or using a particular service from the service providers ( ). Similarly, a Server is a remote computer which provides information (data) or access to particular services.
What happens between the client and server is pretty simple to understand , i.e , the Client requests for something and the Server serves it as long as its present in it’s database.
So let’s start with Client Server Architecture.
So What is Client-Server Architecture?
Client Server Architecture is a computing model in which the server hosts, delivers and manages most of the resources or services or data which is required by the client. This type of architecture has one or more client computers connected to a central server over a network or internet connection.
Such an architecture is also known as a networking computing model or client/server network because all the requests and services are delivered over a network.
Now, let’s dive into Servlets.
Servlets
Servlet is a java program that runs inside JVM on the web server. It is basically used for developing dynamic web applications. You need to use the Servlet API to create servlets.
There are two packages that you must remember while using API, the javax.servlet package that contains the classes to support generic servlet (protocol-independent servlet) and the javax.servlet.http package that contains classes to support http servlet.
LifeCycle of Servlet :
Servlet class is loaded : A Servlet class is loaded when first request for the servlet is received by the Web Container. Servlet instance is created : After the Servlet class is loaded, Web Container creates the instance of it. Servlet instance is created only once in the life cycle. init() method is invoked : Step 1, Step 2, Step 3 are executed only once, when the servlet is initially loaded. The init() method is called by the Web Container on servlet instance to initialize the servlet. For e.g, Syntax : public void init(ServletConfig config) throws ServletException service() method is invoked : executed multiple times — once for every HTTP request to the servlet. The containers call the service() method each time the request for servlet is received. The service() method will then call the doGet() or doPost() method based on the type of the HTTP request. Syntax : public void service(ServletRequest request, ServletResponse response) throws ServletException, IOException destroy() method is invoked : executed when the servlet container unloads the servlet. The Web Container call the destroy() method before removing servlet instance, giving it a chance for cleanup activity.
ServletRequest Interface
ServletRequest interface is used to provide client request information to the servlet. Servlet container creates ServletRequest object from client request and pass it to the servlet service() method for processing. The child interface of ServletRequest is HttpServletRequest interface which adds the methods that relates to the HTTP protocol. It contains methods for session management, cookies and authorization of request.
Following are some of the methods of ServletRequest Interface :
String getParameter(String name) — This method returns the request parameter as String. Object getAttribute(String name) — This method returns the value of named attribute as Object and null if it’s not present. This interface also provide methods for setting and removing attributes. setAttribute(String name, Object o) — stores an attribute in this request. String getServerName() — returns the hostname of the server. int getServerPort() — returns the port number of the server on which it’s listening. Cookies getCookies() — returns an array containing all of the Cookie objects the client sent with this request String getMethod() — Returns the name of the HTTP method with which this request was made, for example, GET, POST, or PUT. HttpSession getSession() — returns the current HttpSession associated with this request or, if there is no current session and create is true, returns a new session
ServletResponse Interface
Servlet API provides two important interfaces ServletResponse and HttpServletResponse to assist in sending response to client. In HttpServletResponse, Servlet container creates the ServletResponse object and passes it to Servlet service() method and later uses the response object to generate the HTML response for client.
Following are some of the methods of ServletResponse Interface :
PrintWriter getWriter() returns a PrintWriter object that can send character text to the client. void addCookie(Cookie cookie) — Used to add cookie to the response. void addHeader(String name, String value) — used to add a response header with the given name and value. String encodeURL(java.lang.String url) — encodes the specified URL by including the session ID in it, or, if encoding is not needed, returns the URL unchanged. String getHeader(String name) — return the value for the specified header, or null if this header has not been set. void sendRedirect(String location) — used to send a temporary redirect response to the client using the specified redirect location URL.
void setStatus(int sc) — used to set the status code for the response.
Request Dispatcher Interface
Request Dispatcher can be used whenever we want to call a servlet from another servlet. It is used to forward the request to another resource that can be HTML, JSP or another servlet in the same context.
Following are the methods of Request Dispatcher Interface :
void forward(ServletRequest request, ServletResponse response) — forwards the request from a servlet to another resource (servlet, JSP file, or HTML file) on the server. void include(ServletRequest request, ServletResponse response) — includes the content of a resource (servlet, JSP page, HTML file) in the response.
RequestDispatcher rd = request.getRequestDispatcher("index.html");
rs.forward(request,response); RequestDispatcher rd = request.getRequestDispatcher("index.html");
rs.include(request,response);
sendRedirect() Method
sendRedirect() method redirects the response to another resource. This method actually makes the client(browser) to create a new request to get to the resource. The client can see the new url in the browser.
Session Management
Session Management is a mechanism used by the Web container to store session information for a particular user. There are four different techniques used by Servlet application for session management. They are as follows:
Cookies : Cookies are small pieces of information that are sent in response from the web server to the client. They are stored on client’s computer.
pCookies ck = new Cookie("username", Suyash); //Create a Cookie object
ck.setMaxAge(30*60); //Set the maximum Age:
response.addCookie(ck); //Place the Cookie in HTTP response header:
Cookie[] cks = request.getCookies(); // getting the cookie for response object.
2. Hidden form field : Hidden form field can also be used to store session information for a particular client. In case of hidden form field a hidden field is used to store client state. In this case user information is stored in hidden field value and retrieved from another servlet.
3. URL Rewriting : In URL rewriting, a token(parameter) is added at the end of the URL. The token consist of name/value pair seperated by an equal(=) sign. When the User clicks on the URL having parameters, the request goes to the Web Container with extra bit of information at the end of URL. The Web Container will fetch the extra part of the requested URL and use it for session management. The getParameter() method is used to get the parameter value at the server side.
4. HttpSession : HttpSession object is used to store entire session with a specific client. We can store, retrieve and remove attribute from HttpSession object. Any servlet can have access to HttpSession object throughout the getsession() method of the HttpServletRequest object.
protected void doPost(HttpServletRequest req,
HttpServletResponse res)
throws ServletException, IOException {
HttpSession session = req.getSession();
}
Sevlet Filter
Filter is a compontent that you can use and configure to perform some filtering tasks. It is mainly used to perform filtering tasks such as conversion, logging, compression, encryption and decryption, input validation etc. The Filter is pluggable, i.e. its entry is defined in the web.xml file, if we remove the entry of filter from the web.xml file, filter will be removed automatically and we don’t need to change the servlet. The filtering API is defined by the Filter , FilterChain , and FilterConfig interfaces in the javax.servlet package. For creating a filter, we must implement Filter interface.
Following are the methods of filter life cycle :
void init(FilterConfig filterConfig) : invoked by the web container to indicate to a filter that it is being placed into service. void doFilter(ServletRequest request, ServletResponse response, FilterChain chain) : invoked by the container each time a request/response pair is passed through the chain due to a client request for a resource at the end of the chain. void destroy() : invoked by the web container to indicate to a filter that it is being taken out of service.
Java Server Pages
Now, Java Server Pages (JSP) also follow a similar client-server architecture. However, unlike client-server , it is a 3 -tier architecture. It can be thought of as an extension to Servlet because it provides more functionality than servlet such as expression language, JSTL, etc.
A server (generally referred to as application or web server) supports the Java Server Pages. This server will act as a mediator between the client browser and a database. The following diagram shows the JSP architecture.
JSP Architecture
Here’s what happens 👇
The user goes to a JSP page and makes the request via internet in user’s web browser.
The JSP request is sent to the Web Server.
Web server accepts the requested .jsp file and passes the JSP file to the JSP Servlet Engine.
file and passes the JSP file to the JSP Servlet Engine. If the JSP file has been called the first time then the JSP file is parsed otherwise servlet is instantiated. The next step is to generate a servlet from the JSP file.
The generated servlet output is sent via the Internet form web server to users web browser.
Now in last step, HTML results are displayed on the users web browser.
jspInit(), _jspService() and jspDestroy() are the life cycle methods of JSP.
What differentiates JSP from HTML is the ability to use java code inside HTML. In JSP, you can embed Java code in HTML using JSP tags.
<HTML>
<BODY>
Hello World!
Current time is: <%= new java.util.Date() %>
</BODY>
</HTML>
Here’s how the life cycle flows in JSP :
1) Whenever container receives request from client, it does translation only when servlet class is older than JSP page otherwise it skips this phase.
2) Then the container –
Compiles the corresponding servlet program
Loads the corresponding servlet class
Instantiates the servlet class
Calls the jspInit() method to initialize the servlet instance (JSP container will do this job only when the instance of servlet file is not running or if it is older than the JSP file.)
3) A new thread then gets created, which invokes the_jspService() method, with a request (HttpServletRequest) and response (HttpServletRespnse) objects as parameters.
4) And finally, invokes the jspDestroy() method to destroy the instance of the servlet class.
JSP Life-Cycle
The scripting elements provides the ability to insert java code inside the jsp. There are three types of scripting elements:
1.Directives — JSP directives are used for controlling the processing of a JSP page. Directives provide information to the server on how the page should be processed. There are three types of directives:
page directive : The page directive defines attributes that apply to an entire JSP page.
<%@ page attribute=”value” %>
include directive : The include directive is used to include the contents of any resource it may be jsp file, html file or text file.
<%@ include file="header.html" %>
taglib directive : The JSP taglib directive is used to define a tag library that defines many tags. We use the TLD (Tag Library Descriptor) file to define the tags.
<%@ taglib uri = "http://www.myWebPage.com/tags" prefix="mytag" %>
2. Scriptlets — We can use java code in JSP using scriptlets. The JSP container moves the scriptlet content into the _jspService() method which is available to the server during processing of the request. In Scriplets there are these 3 tags :
scriptlet tag : A scriptlet tag is used to execute java source code in JSP.
<% out.print("welcome to jsp"); %>
expression tag : The code placed within JSP expression tag is written to the output stream of the response. It is mainly used to print the values of variable or method.
<%= “welcome to jsp” %>
declaration tag : The JSP declaration tag is used to declare fields and methods.
<%! int cube(int n){ return n*n*n*; } %>
Action Tags — They are used for performing an action during request processing phase of JSP life cycle. There are many JSP action tags or elements. Each JSP action tag is used to perform some specific tasks. The action tags are used to control the flow between pages and to use Java Bean.
<jsp:forward page="relativeURL | <%= expression %>" />
//used to forward the request to another resource it may be jsp, html or another resource.
<jsp:include page="relativeURL | <%= expression %>" />
//used to include the content of another resource it may be jsp, html or servlet.
<jsp:useBean id= "instanceName" scope= "page | request | session | application" class= "packageName.className" type= "packageName.className" beanName="packageName.className | <%= expression >" > </jsp:useBean>
//used to locate or instantiate a bean class.
<jsp:setProperty name="instanceOfBean" property= "*" | property="propertyName" param="parameterName" | property="propertyName" value="{ string | <%= expression %>}" />
//sets a property value or values in a bean using the setter method.<jsp:getProperty name="instanceOfBean" property="propertyName" />
//returns the value of the property.
So this was all about Servlets and JSP, Thank You so much for taking out time for reading this article, will see you guys in the next blog!!
|
https://suyashthonte0.medium.com/java-servlets-and-jsp-3050485b678d
|
['Suyash Thonte']
|
2020-12-07 03:52:34.969000+00:00
|
['Jsp', 'Java Servlet', 'Client Server Model', 'Servlet']
|
A Basic Introduction to Graph Neural Networks
|
Photo by Ben Mullins on Unsplash
Graph neural networks has gain much popularity recently. Many domains can be readily modeled as graphs, such as social networks, molecular graph structures, and recommender system. In this article, I will briefly introduce the graph neural networks.
Outline
what is graph network the general architecture of graph neural networks
1. What is graph network
Graph network is a structure that composed of vertices and edges.
Usually vertices are instances. People in social networks, products in recommender system, and institutions in organizations can all be vertices. In order to embed more information in the graph, the vertices can include many attributes as well. For example, the vertex in social network not only represents a specific person, but also have attributes about the person, such as age, sex, and height.
Edges which connect different vertices represent the relations between the start vertex and the end vertex. In social networks, people who are friends are connected by the edge. A edge connecting a customer and a product in recommender system represents the user bought the product.
A graph is formally defined as
For each edge, it connects two vertices. A adjacent matrix A is used to represent the relation among vertices. If the v1 and v2 are connected in the graph, the value of A(1,2) is 1 otherwise 0. A graph of figure 1 can be represented by an adjacent matrix of figure 2. The example shown below is an undirected graph, therefore the corresponding adjacency matrix is symmetric diagonally. A graph can also be directed whose adjacency matrix will be asymmetric.
Figure 1
Figure 2
2.The general architecture of graph neural networks
The goal of graph neural networks is to learn the representation of nodes in the graph such that the representation of nodes can save original information as much as possible.
In [1], the authors decompose graph neural networks into four components. All the variants of graph neural networks can be described in this unified framework.
A pairwise proximity function is defined over the graph, which measures how closely connected two nodes are in the graph. For example, in recommender system, the similarity between a product and a user who bought the product will be 1, otherwise 0. The result of this pairwise proximity function is treated as the ground truth. An encoder function, ENC, that generates the node embeddings with d dimensions. This function contains a number of trainable parameters that are optimized during the training phase. A decoder function, DEC, which reconstructs pairwise proximity values from the generated embeddings, i.e., cosine similarity. A loss function, L, which determines how the quality of the pairwise reconstructions is evaluated to train the model, i.e., how DEC(zi, zj) is compared to the true sG(vi, vj) values.
The pairwise proximity function and decoder function are determined by ourselves. The pairwise proximity function measures the similarity of nodes in original graph. In practice, random walk is usually used to calculate the probability of two nodes showing in the same walk route. The higher the probability, the closer two nodes are.
The encoder function is the main part of this framework. In direct encoding methods, The encoder function accepts a node as input, the node can be present in index number or in the form of one-hot encoding, and outputs a vector with dimension d as the node’s embedding:
zi is the embedding vector of node vi
In contrast, graph neural networks incorporate graph structure into the encoder function: instead of generating a fixed size vector based on its own id, graph neural networks utilize the node’s local neighborhood and generate the node’s embedding by incorporating its neighbors’ information. The nodes can be initialized with its attributes if any, otherwise the graph statistics(e.g., node degrees) or the node id. These methods are often called convolutional because they represent a node as a function of its surrounding neighborhood, in a manner similar to the receptive field of a center-surround convolutional kernel in computer vision.
The basic algorithm for this encoding phase is shown below:
the node embeddings are initialized to be equal to the input node attributes at the beginning Then at each iteration, nodes aggregate the embeddings of their neighbors, using an aggregation function that operates over sets of vectors. After the aggregation, every node is assigned a new embedding, equal to its aggregated neighborhood vector combined with its previous embedding from the last iteration. The process repeats K times. The more times the process iterates, more information from further reaches of the graph is contained in the nodes.
The decoder function evaluates how close two nodes are with their embeddings generated by the previous encoder function. The common adopted approaches for decoder function are Multi Layer Perceptron(MLP) and cosine similarity. A single number indicating the score of similarity is produced by the decoder function. The process of decoder function can be seen as the process of similarity reconstruction of two nodes in the original graph:
The objective of this process is to minimize the error of the reconstruction, which can be measured by the loss function L:
The parameters of the encoder are optimized by backpropagation to encode relevant information in the nodes’ embedding vectors for downstream tasks.
References:
[1] Representation Learning on Graphs: Methods and Applications
|
https://liming0417.medium.com/a-basic-introduction-to-graph-neural-networks-d29dc13cd0e2
|
['Ming Li']
|
2020-12-02 00:52:36.767000+00:00
|
['The Graph Network', 'Machine Learning', 'Gcn']
|
Dissidence To Britpop: Exhibit A
|
Just look at this dipshit
(Album review, Melody Maker, 14th September 1996)
KULA SHAKER
‘K’
(Parlophone Records)
I’ve just been informed by that porridge-faced wanker, Simon Mayo, that Kula Shaker are “the next Oasis”. Of course, the obvious questions don’t even get asked. Dissent is useless. Oasis are so big, such a huge commercial fact, they’ve created their own gravitational pull that sucks everyone below 30 along with them. They’re as unavoidable as Coca-Cola or bad government, they’re the indie Royal Family, a deadly virus to which there is only one cure: REMEMBER THE MUSIC’S CRAP. What Oasis have done is frighten everyone into a sudden fear of dissing “The Kids”. To question The Kids is to miss the point, to be snobby, up yer own arse, a killjoy, a misery; Oasis have hardened The Kids consensus into a towering monolith that everyone must work around, accept, try and understand, try and JOIN. They can’t all be wrong so the problem is you, right?
Well, fuck the kids. The kids will put this album at Number One. The kids are wrong. The kids are stupid. And, most importantly, “The Kids” DON’T FUCKING EXIST; the fallacy of consensus is created to pull as many tenners as possible into the slipstream, carried along by momentum and NOTHING ELSE. And this month’s high- push-product is Kula Shaker and, Mhist all chrucking fighty, they’re the worst of the lot. There’s enough woolly-minded idiocy and crass contrivance in this one record to consign the whole indie-pop scene into the abyss. But at least they’re (open yer hymn books) Real Songs Played On . . . REAL Instruments. It’s not even as if this could’ve been made at any point in the last 30 years. Kula Shaker are so scared of ’96 (is it a white thing? I dunno) and want SO BADLY to be dead and reborn in 1972 it’s fucking ALARMING. Crucially, retro-accusations are less important than pointing out how deadly dull the bulk of this LP is, in a way that only true scumcunt hippies can be: “K” makes you feel genuinely ill, queasy, too much cheesecake too soon. It shits itself in fear of the future (1973) and stinks of living death.
In order, then: Hendrix in hell forced to tutor a disinterred Northside (“Hey Dude”); Cream at their most hideous (“Knight Of The Town”); Zep at their folksy worst (“Temple of the Everlasting Light” — I’m not making these up); fucking barbershop raga that’s beneath contempt (“Govinda”); a repellent Madchester autopsy on Steve Marriott (“Smart Dogs”); a three-song burst of acoustic beardiness (“Magic Theatre”, “Into The Deep”, “Sleeping Jiva”); the two worst singles of ’96 (“Tattva”, “Grateful When You’re Dead”); what you hope is gonna be an old-skool acid track but turns out to be more of the same (“303”) and a closing fade-out (“Hollow Man”) so stomach- churningly repugnant you feel like strapping suicide bombs to your body and marching straight over to Jo Whiley’s house.
The trouble is it isn’t that easy. Turn on MTV, open the NME, turn on the radio, walk into a record shop, and you’ll be told that this is the way it is, this is what being young is, that this is a good thing, that we all feel the same way. Fuck that. This isn’t the way things are or the way they have to be — this is living in FEAR of being young, this is a bad thing, and we here all AIN’T happy as can be, all good friends and jolly good company.
Don’t be a sucker to this lame game. Time to tighten up and party.
(NEIL KULKARNI )
|
https://medium.com/@kaptainkulk/dissidence-to-britpop-exhibit-a-fbcfefdc8e8d
|
['Mister Neil Kulkarni']
|
2020-12-14 09:30:51.800000+00:00
|
['Kula Shaker', 'Britpop', 'Album Review']
|
Windows 7 Rocks; Needs Better Program Startup Control
|
I have been running Windows 7 Release Candidate for nearly a month and I love it.
The list of things Windows 7 brings closer to me and makes more fun/easier to use is kind of endless. Every day I use it, I slowly begin to think that someday I might forget the MS-DOS commands and endless, repetitive click-cycles (the kind your tech support guy repeats from memory when helping you get connected to a projector for a meeting… or get your monitor to show anything at all after the meeting is over) I have committed to memory in order to accomplish anything worthwhile on previous Windows OS’s.
One consistent item I keep wishing I had easier access to was a simple applet that helped me manage my startup programs, or manage what programs start automatically when Windows launches.
This really should be simple to find, but it’s not. In my opinion, if there is anything more detrimental to most-user’s experience with their PC is the crud of programs and their various “notifiers”, “monitors”, “updaters”, “download helpers” and otherwise annoying popup programs that do not NEED to be running, but run every single time the PC starts up.
Searching the Control Panel and Windows Help, I finally came across a link to an applet called “Start System Configuration” (which I recognize as msconfig thanks to my MS-DOS-infected brain) that can help me manage my startup programs, but the description for the applet has nothing to do with what I want to do:
“Any program that tries to start on my machine…. kill it dead.”
To access the Program Startup Killer, access Widows Help and Support, and then search for start system configuration. Ignore that it says nothing about killing off offending startup programs, just click the link to open it.
Up pops the system configuration applet. Click the startup tab and uncheck any programs you don’t want to allow to run when the machine boots. Then click “Apply”, then “OK”.
Danger: This isn’t a well-refined applet, and unchecking the wrong boxes could cause damage to your system or user experience if you don’t know what you’re doing.
|
https://medium.com/connected-well/windows-7-rocks-needs-better-program-startup-control-c5ecc5903d2c
|
['Robert Merrill']
|
2016-03-27 20:25:15.944000+00:00
|
['Windows7', 'Microsoft', 'Windows']
|
How to Use a Side Hustle to Easily Unlock Your Budget
|
As I’ve talked about many times in the past, nearly every problem in personal finance can be solved by pulling one of the two levers of personal finance.
1. The income lever
2. The saving lever
99% of money problems can be solved through some combination of making more money (the income lever) and saving more of the money you already have (the saving lever). The perfect financial plan will allow you to find the sweet spot between these two levers. If your primary objective is to give yourself as much room for error as possible or if you are trying to climb out of a financial hole, you’ll need to focus on pulling both levers as hard as possible.
However, most people won’t pull the saving lever as hard as they should. It has been my experience that it is easier to convince people that they need to make more money than it is to convince them that they need to save more of the money they already make.
Holding all other factors constant, saving more money implies spending less money. Spending less money means that people will have to reduce their current standard of living. Most people struggle with reducing their standard of living. Once someone gets used to living a certain lifestyle, it’s difficult for them to move backward.
While I firmly believe most people need to do a better job managing the money they already have, today, I will focus on pulling the income lever specifically, how side hustles can unlock your budget and help you achieve your financial goals.
Meet Amanda
To illustrate how a side hustle can unlock your budget, let’s consider a hypothetical example. Amanda is a 32-year-old account manager at a local bank. She would like to be debt-free by age 36 and be able to retire by age 59
Amanda’s income & assets
Amanda makes $45,000 per year in salary.
Her employer also offers a Defined Contribution retirement plan where Amanda and her employer each contribute 5% of her salary into a retirement account.
The current value of Amanda’s retirement savings is $20,000
Amanda owns a car; this is currently worth $15,000.
After all taxes and deductions are accounted for, Amanda’s monthly takes home pay is $2,626.
Amanda’s debts
Credit card with a $3,500 balance and a 19.99% interest rate.
Student loans with a remaining balance of $28,000 and a 5% interest rate.
A car loan with a $13,000 remaining balance and an 8% interest rate.
Amanda’s current monthly budget
Amanda decides to create a monthly budget that locks in her financial goals of being able to retire by 59 and being debt-free by 36.
Current take-home pay: $2,626.
Additional savings required to retire by 59: $631
Monthly payments required to be debt-free by 36: $1,055
Remaining income to budget: $940
With only $940 left to budget with, Amanda will not have enough money to pay for her rent ($750), other expenses related to her car ($200), and cover her other monthly living expenses ($500).
Amanda is $910 short of being able to achieve her financial goals and cover her other monthly living expenses. In this type of situation, someone has three options.
1. Cut their spending
2. Lower their goals
3. Make more money
Amanda is not spending excessively, so cutting her spending won’t be of much use in this situation.
She could free up more monthly cash by pushing back her retirement age or deciding to pay her debt off over a longer period. While lowering your financial goals is always an option to free up more cash, I like to think of that as a measure of last resort.
That leaves Amanda with one clear option. Make more money. This is where the side hustle comes into play.
|
https://medium.com/makingofamillionaire/side-hustles-can-unlock-your-budget-2713f47ca968
|
['Ben Le Fort']
|
2020-11-18 17:17:08.512000+00:00
|
['Jobs', 'Work', 'Personal Finance', 'Money', 'Personal Development']
|
7 reasons to immediately sell your car
|
1. Your car is an instant source of potential capital growth.
If you sell your “piece of junk” right now, you can earn more than 100 dollars in dividends every month!
2. Make sure to compare correctly
⭕ your car VS subway + cab
⭕ your car VS subway + public transport + cab + carsharing
3. Having your own car is like a “vacuum cleaner” for pumping out time and money*.
⭕ Traffic jams — 500+ hours/year. 20 days of your life!
⭕ Fuel — starting from $80/month.
⭕ Car insurance — from $850/year + 1 wasted day/year.
⭕ Fines — some people manage to reach up to $140/month.
⭕ Car wash — starting from $50/month + 3 wasted hours/month.
⭕ Parking — from $14/month + the time you spend searching for parking spots.
⭕ Depreciation — 10% of the cost every year.
⭕ Tire replacement — from $60/year + 2 wasted days/year.
⭕ Tire storage — from $850/year + 2 wasted days/year.
⭕ Loan payment — from $850/month.
⭕ Maintenance and minor repairs — differs, but let’s say around $45/month.
⭕ Taxes — from $70/year.
⭕ Search for additional funds to buy a new car — $7,500 every 5–10 years.
4. The car is not so comfortable anymore.
When was the last time you took the subway train? Have you seen public transport with WiFi and 2-meter ceilings? Have you taken a ride in electric buses?
5. A car = stress.
Where should I park? What if it is stolen? What if a tow truck takes it away?
6. What about the children? And the bags? And the sudden cold? And the summer house?
It is useful for children to walk more often than sit in the car. You can carry the bags or order delivery. Summer house? Why do you need a summer house?
7. A car is not “cool” anymore.
In a decent society, people who love showing off have long caused mockery or pity.
*The prices are true for a typical Russian car owner. It may vary across different countries accordingly.
Subscribe to the most non-boring investment telegram channel “Retired at 35”
|
https://medium.com/@retire-at-35/7-reasons-to-immediately-sell-your-car-ee32d9641a9c
|
['Retire At']
|
2020-12-03 19:42:48.509000+00:00
|
['Investing', 'Early Retirement', 'Cars', 'Retirement']
|
Finimo All-in-One Esport Gaming Payment Gateway Platform!
|
Finimo Token Launch to bring online payment accounts to whole new Esports gaming industries.
Ready To Get Started?
Buy FINIMO Token and simplify the way you manage your money for both business and personal accounts.
Finimo the world’s first infrastructure platform and payment gateway for esports and gaming.
Founded in 2019 by Alexander Kokhanovskyy, Finimo is a team-building and skill-growing platform that solves problems for hundreds of millions of gamers who want to find teammates, improve skills, manage teams, and earn money. And with the unlocking of Tron blockchain and smart contract technologies, Finimo is building a one-of-a-kind payment gateway for players, teams, tournaments, and sponsors.
Finimo current platform offerings Finimo token on justswap for players and investors and soon to be supported for other platforms and online games. In less than 6 months, Finimo is planing to become the most liquid recruitment marketplace on the planet, bigger than all other esports recruitment platforms combined.
✅Buy Finimo Now👉 www.finimo.io
Connect With Us-
✅Like & Share Our Official Facebook Page:- https://www.facebook.com/finimo.io
✅Like & Share Our Official Twitter Page:- https://twitter.com/finimo_io
✅Like & Share Our Official Instagram Page:- https://www.instagram.com/finimo_io/
|
https://medium.com/@finimoio/finimo-all-in-one-esport-gaming-payment-gateway-platform-1e8c03529315
|
[]
|
2020-12-15 10:26:44.656000+00:00
|
['Online Gambling', 'Smart Contracts', 'Blockchain', 'Esport', 'Tron']
|
Iniciativas contra “fake news”
|
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/ted-uneb/iniciativas-contra-fake-news-f1031dfd565b
|
['Maicon Luz']
|
2020-12-14 03:29:36.159000+00:00
|
['Education', 'Fake News']
|
Mobile Marketing Glossary: A Comprehensive List of Terms You Need to Know
|
ARPDAU, CPC, MAU, DAU, ASO… No, I’m not having a stroke, I’m just listing some terms from our mobile marketing glossary. Do you know what all of them mean?
If you work or have an interest in mobile marketing, you hear many technical terms thrown around. As new mobile marketing practices emerge, we need a way to effectively describe and communicate them. That’s why new words and terms are being invented all the time.
That’s all fine and dandy, but the challenge is keeping up with mobile marketing terminology. Let’s be honest, it can get quite confusing, no matter how knowledgeable you are. That’s why you need to go over this mobile marketing glossary. Nobody wants to look stupid in front of a coworker or in a business meeting.
If you’re a beginner and just getting into mobile marketing, this glossary is the perfect cheat sheet. Read it, learn it, and master it because you’re going to need it.
If you’re an expert in the field, you probably know many of these terms. Congratulations! But don’t be so quick to dismiss it. It’s always a good idea to refresh your memory. It will help you stay on top of your game. And who knows, perhaps you’ll find a couple of mobile marketing terms you’re not familiar with?
This mobile marketing glossary will be helpful to you regardless of your level of expertise. So, let’s take a deep dive into the mysterious and often confusing world of mobile marketing terminology. Once we’re done, you’ll know them like the back of your hand!
A/B Testing
Also known as split testing. A process of comparing two variants.
Ad Campaign
A set of advertisement messages that have a common idea and goal.
App Monetization
Making money from a mobile app through different techniques. Find out how to choose an app monetization platform here.
App Personalization
A process of personalizing the app experience in order to meet the needs of specific groups of users.
You can learn more about mobile app personalization here.
ARPU
A ratio of average revenue per user.
ARPDAU
A ration of average revenue per daily active user. Find out more about ARPU and ARPDAU here.
ASO
Stands for App store optimization. A process of optimizing the app store page to increase the visibility of an app.
If you want to learn more about app store optimization, check out our simple ASO guide.
Backlinks
Inbound links to a webpage.
Bounce Rate
Percentage of website visitors who leave the site after viewing only one page.
Churn Rate
A percentage of users who discontinued using an app.
Chatbot
A piece of AI software engaged with a real person in a mimicked conversation.
Click to Call
Mobile ads created with the goal of getting people to call a business.
CPA
Stands for cost per acquisition. It’s a metric that calculates the cost for a specific action user takes.
CPC
Stands for cost per click. The cost of one ad click in a pay-per-click campaign.
CPCV
Stands for cost per completed view. It measures the cost of one completed video view.
CPE
Stands for cost per engagement. It measures how much you pay when a user engages with an ad.
CPI
Stands for cost per install. It measures the cost of one install of a mobile app.
CTA
Stands for call to action. It is a piece of content (text, image, etc.) that encourages a user to take a specific action.
CTR
Stands for click-through rate. It is a ratio of users who click on an ad to the number of impressions (times an ad is shown).
Conversion
A conversion happens when the user completes a desired goal or takes a specific action. Usually, it’s a response to a CTA.
CPM
Stands for cost per mile. It measures how much one thousand ad clicks or views cost.
CR
Stands for conversion rate. It is the number of users who have taken a desired action.
CRO
Stands for conversion rate optimization. It is a process of increasing conversions through different methods and strategies.
Cohort Analysis
A method of studying the behavior of groups of similar users (cohorts).
DAU
Stands for daily active users. It is the percentage of unique daily users that visit a website or use an app.
Engagement Rate
It measures how much users engage with a piece of content.ž
Funnel
It is a model used in marketing that describes an assumed journey a customer takes from awareness to purchase.
Geo-conquesting
A location-based mobile marketing technique of targeting users who are in near proximity of your competitor’s location.
Geo-fencing
A location-based mobile marketing technique of setting a virtual fence around a desired location with the goal of targeting users who enter it.
Geo-targeting
A subdomain of geo-fencing. It is a technique of targeting users based on their location and demographics.
Geo-location
A process of identifying a device’s geographic location.
Impressions
The number of times an ad has been shown to the target audience, regardless of whether the users clicked on it or not.
IAP
Stands for in-app purchase. It describes a product or feature a user buys inside the app.
In-app Ads
A type of ads served inside mobile apps.
In-app Message
A type of message or notification that is displayed inside a mobile app.
Influencer
An individual who has authority in their field, great connection with their audience, and can influence people’s purchasing decisions.
Interstitial Ads
A popular type of full-screen ad format.
Incent Traffic
A type of traffic where users receive a reward for completing an action like installing an app.
Keywords
One of the key parts of search engine optimization. Keywords are the phrases people use to conduct a search.
KPI
Stands for key performance indicator. It measures a company’s progress towards achieving the desired goals.
Landing Page
A standalone web page created with the goal of conversions.
LTV
Stands for lifetime value. It is a metric that shows you revenue that each user got you in the entire lifetime of using the app.
Location-based Mobile Marketing
A marketing strategy that targets mobile users based on their geographic location using different techniques like geotargeting and geo-conquesting.
You can learn more about location-based marketing here.
MAU
Stands for monthly active users. It is a percentage of unique monthly users that visit a website or use an app.
Native App
An app that is created for use on a specific platform or device.
Non-incent Traffic
It is organic traffic achieved by advertising.
Onboarding
It is a process used to get new users familiar with a mobile app.
Organic Traffic
It is a type of non-paid traffic that comes from search engines.
PPC
Stands for pay-per-click. A type of advertising where you pay every time a user clicks on your ad.
Programmatic Media Buying
Use of automation when purchasing ads.
Push Notifications
A pop-up message from an app that appears on the user’s mobile device.
QR Code
A barcode that is scannable with mobile devices.
ROI
Stands for return on investment. It measures the net profit of an investment relative to the amount of money that was invested.
Reach
The number of users who have seen an ad.
Remarketing
A strategy of showing ads to users who have visited your website previously.
Retention Rate
It shows you how many users return to your app after installing it. Read about why you need to track user retention in mobile apps and games here.
Segmentation
The process of diving users into groups based on similar characteristics.
SEO
Stands for search engine optimization. It’s the process of optimizing a website with the goal of getting more organic traffic.
Session Intervals
The amount of time that passes between two app sessions.
Session Length
The amount of time a user spends using the app.
Targeting
It refers to selecting a group of people you want to reach with your marketing efforts.
Time of Inactivity
The amount of time that has passed from the user’s last interaction with an app.
UX
Stands for user experience. It refers to the experience a user has while using your app or website.
User Acquisition
The process of acquiring new users on a platform like an app or website.
To Summarize
Hopefully, now you have a much better grasp of mobile marketing terminology. Bookmark it and come back to it whenever you need. Our memory is a tricky thing, so it’s always good to have a reminder.
Also, we’ll keep updating our mobile marketing glossary with new terms, so check in from time to time to get the new updates.
Have we missed any important marketing terms? Let us know! If you need more clarification on a specific term you find hard to understand, reach out to us in the comments below!
Read More About Mobile Marketing
About Udonis:
In 2018 & 2019, Udonis Inc. served over 14.1 billion ads & acquired over 50 million users for mobile apps & games. We’re recognized as a leading mobile marketing agency by 5 major marketing review firms. We helped over 20 mobile apps & games reach the top charts. Want to know how we make it look so effortless? Meet us to find out.
|
https://medium.com/udonis/mobile-marketing-glossary-a-comprehensive-list-of-terms-you-need-to-know-8a612caa5b65
|
['Andrea Knezovic']
|
2019-12-03 12:51:36.350000+00:00
|
['Mobile Marketing Tips', 'Glossary', 'Mobile Marketing', 'Mobile Apps', 'Marketing Tips']
|
Leveraging Text Messaging to Improve Communications in Safety Net Programs
|
This guest post from Jennifer Wagner, Senior Policy Analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, is part of an ongoing series presenting lessons from the Integrated Benefits Initiative, which uses human-centered design and modern technology to improve access to SNAP, Medicaid, and other safety net programs. Through five small-scale pilots around the country, Code for America, Nava PBC, and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities are partnering to bring best-in-class design, technical, product, and policy expertise to show how states can build human-centered services fit for the digital age. This series provides practical guidance to state officials and others on creating and sustaining user-centered services in the social safety net.
As state and county health and human services agencies seek to modernize and improve communications with their clients, many are considering text messaging to supplement existing means of communication. Text messages are commonly used, can reach clients more quickly than traditional mail, and can notify clients of interview times, remind them about needed verification documents, and even collect information. Done well, text messaging can enhance existing forms of communication and improve the delivery of critical safety net programs. To take full advantage of this communication channel, agencies would do well to identify effective uses for text messages, obtain opt-ins from clients, and navigate privacy and security concerns.
How Can Text Messaging Improve Communication?
Health and human services agencies correspond with clients to provide interview times, request documents to verify eligibility, and send notices of changes or other actions concerning their benefits. Traditionally, they do so via the postal service, but traditional mail takes multiple days in transit and may never reach the client due to inaccurate addresses or unreliable mailboxes. As a result, many clients don’t receive important notices and lose access to critical benefit programs.
“I would prefer [text message reminders] because I always have my phone on me.” – Louisiana resident
Low-income families increasingly rely on cell phones for communication. Over 90 percent of adults with incomes below $30,000 own a cellphone.¹ And smartphone owners use text messaging more frequently than any other feature or app.² The Agriculture Department’s Food and Nutrition Service, which oversees the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps), recognizes that mobile technology — including text messaging — allows states to “provide better service and more readily reach populations that lack access to a personal computer, enhancing access for those who would otherwise be limited in their ability to access information and complete the certification process.”³
Text messaging offers functional advantages over other forms of communication: text messages are nearly instantaneous, visual, create an easy-to-reference record, and can be read at the recipient’s convenience. In the context of safety net programs, text messaging provides a means to quickly notify clients about important information about their benefits or direct them to take action in an online account. While it is best used in addition to, rather than as a replacement for, traditional means of communication, it can shorten response times and increase the likelihood that clients receive critical information.
Using Text Messaging for One-Way Communication
Agencies may wish to use text messaging for one-way communication — that is, sending information to the client without expecting a reply. This approach is most effective for short messages giving clients critical information or notifying them that action is required, such as:
· Notice of a SNAP or WIC appointment;
· Reminder that verification documents are due;
· Alert that a new notice is available in a client’s online account;⁴ or
· Information about how to renew expiring benefits.
Code for America conducted user research with clients of various benefit programs that confirms client interest in using text messaging to communicate with agencies. The majority of clients in one state said they would opt in to receive text message reminders. In general, clients wanted text messages at critical points in their case, including appointment reminders with specific details and confirmation that they had submitted the proper verification documents.
“[With] the text messages, you’re getting it right there, you’re informed of it immediately.” - Louisiana resident
Using Text Messaging for Two-Way Communication
Agencies may also wish to use text messaging for two-way communication with clients, allowing the agency to both send and receive information. Agencies could use this for gathering information from a client or for a conversation between a caseworker and client. For example:
· Clients could report a change to the agency, such as a new address;
· Clients could submit required verification documents to the agency, such as a letter from an employer;
· Clients could request that the agency reschedule an appointment;
· Caseworkers could quickly notify clients that additional documents are needed to determine eligibility (for example, if the client submitted the wrong pay stubs); or
· Caseworkers could ask questions or request clarification from clients on unclear information.
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Text Messaging
Agencies may wish to deploy text messaging gradually to test the most effective timing and content. They could identify key points in the eligibility process and measure outcomes before and after implementing text messaging or between different groups. For example, an agency could send a text message reminding Medicaid beneficiaries that they need to recertify and then compare the recertification rates:
· Before and after sending the reminder;
· Between groups that received reminders 30 days, 15 days, or 5 days before the recertification was due; or
· Between groups that received different reminder messages.⁵
Key Considerations for Text Messaging
While text messaging is routine for many individuals, it is newer to health and human services agencies. Agencies must navigate various processes and policies to ensure their messages are effective and the client’s privacy is protected.⁶ They should consult with their legal departments to ensure their texting policy conforms to federal and state laws and regulations.
Obtaining Clients’ Consent (Opting In)
Before sending any text messages, an agency must obtain the client’s consent. Through an application or renewal form or via an online account, the agency can give clients the opportunity to “opt in” to receiving text messages. The opt-in message should:
· Identify which agency will send the messages;
· State the general content of the communications (e.g., “Important notifications about your benefits”);
· Mention the frequency of the messages;
· Disclose that message and data rates may apply for receiving text messages;⁷ and
· Give clients a means to “opt out” of receiving messages in the future.
Sample Opt-In Language For one-way texting: The [state SNAP agency] invites you to receive communications through text messages with important notifications about your benefits. If you choose to participate, you will receive up to 5 messages per month. Standard messaging and data rates may apply. Participation is optional, and you may stop the messages at any time by contacting a caseworker or through your online account. Do you want to receive important notifications through text messaging? For two-way texting: The [state health agency] invites you to communicate through text messages with your caseworker about verification documents that you’ll need to submit for your case. While [state health agency] takes all the proper precautions to safeguard your personal information within its systems, text and photo messages may be read by anyone with access to your phone or by entities with access to your mobile provider network. Standard messaging and data rates may apply. Participation is optional, and you may stop the messages at any time by contacting a caseworker or through your online account. Do you want to communicate with your caseworker through text messages?
Protecting Clients’ Privacy
Agencies must take measures to protect client privacy wherever possible. People other than the client can read text messages if they have access to the client’s cellphone or see a message in passing. To protect client privacy, agencies should keep text messages short and omit unnecessary private information. For example, the message “Your benefits are about to expire! Log in to www.benefits.state to complete your renewal or call 1–800-XXX-XXXX for more information” conveys the required information with no unnecessary personal information.
Informing Clients About Security
When engaging in two-way communication with clients, agencies should inform them that text messaging is not a secure means of communication and make sure they acknowledge the potential (though small) risk associated with sending information via text message. This may be a minor concern if a client is trying to reschedule an appointment or answer a simple question about their household situation, but it is more serious if a client is transmitting documents to the agency that may contain sensitive information.
Case Study: Michigan Department of Health and Human Services
A recent pilot project in Michigan showed the potential for two-way text messaging in safety net programs. Two nonprofits, Code for America and Civilla, worked with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) to test how two-way text messaging might help both clients and caseworkers.
In a first-of-its-kind pilot, four caseworkers used an off-the-shelf tool to help 69 clients submit needed verification documents by text message. Caseworkers sent personalized text messages to clients, and clients responded by asking questions and submitting photos of the required paperwork. While small in scope, the pilot offered helpful takeaways for agencies interested in text messaging:
· Having a flexible communication channel benefits both clients and caseworkers;
· Camera phones make it easier for clients to submit documents;
· Specific, responsive guidance from caseworkers improves the accuracy of document submission;
· Faster feedback loops allow errors to be resolved in hours, instead of days or weeks; and
· Text messaging is not for everyone. The opt-in rate was 51 percent, with some clients preferring in-person interactions or expressing concerns about submitting paperwork by phone.
Outcomes of the pilot were promising: for cases involved in the pilot, the average time needed to reach an eligibility determination fell from 13 to 10 days and the approval rate rose from 53 to 67 percent. While the denial rate due to missing verification documents stayed the same (43 percent), two caseworkers had no procedural denials during the pilot.
“It would cut down on my work if I could text residents about their missing documents,” one caseworker explained; “I wouldn’t have to play phone tag or send a letter that would be irrelevant by the time it gets to them.” Another caseworker noted, “Residents come into the office all the time because they are confused about the letters MDHHS sends out. Text messaging would be so much better — it’s simple, understandable, fast, and to the point!”
New Digital Tools Guide Can Help Agencies Implement Text Messaging
Health and human service agencies likely have varying degrees of experience with customer-facing digital tools such as texting platforms; by working carefully with potential vendors, involving staff and clients in planning and implementation, and assessing results, agencies can use texting effectively to improve communication between caseworkers and clients. The guide “Launching New Digital Tools for WIC Participants” (www.cbpp.org/wicparticipanttechnology), from Social Interest Solutions, the National WIC Association, and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, can help agencies interested in implementing text messaging navigate the process. While primarily designed for agencies considering using customer-facing digital tools in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), much of it is also relevant to other programs.
The guide, which includes a checklist for drafting a request for proposals, can help agencies: evaluate the important choices to consider before purchasing digital tools; develop questions to discuss within the agency and with potential vendors; look for key features to ensure that digital tools are user-friendly for clients; incorporate digital tools into program operations; utilize data to improve digital tools over time; and communicate to vendors the types of functionality and tools that would help clients.
|
https://medium.com/code-for-america/leveraging-text-messaging-to-improve-communications-in-safety-net-programs-e03d48fbeb38
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['Dustin Palmer']
|
2019-05-08 18:33:48.201000+00:00
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['Safety Net', 'Texting', 'Government', 'Tech Design', 'Civictech']
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Which components should I use in production?
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This is the last in a series of posts about whether you should choose Ubuntu or Windows, Gunicorn or uWSGI, MySQL or PostgreSQL, and Apache or nginx. I bring it all together. The image illustrates the components I propose for a start.
My way of thinking is reflected in my seemingly unorthodox proposal of using SQLite on production. We should start with the simplest and easiest (and therefore most economical) collection of components possible, and only replace these components with something else if needed. Here are some examples of reasons for which you would want to replace a component:
Is your web site going to have many concurrent write requests? Or is the database going to have 100k or more records and/or do complicated queries? Throw out SQLite and use PostgreSQL.
Update: It can be risky to choose SQLite, as it might lead to a nightmarish migration later. Read “Which database should I use in production?” for more information.
Do you need content negotiation? Do you need to run WordPress on the same server? Use Apache. (You can also run WordPress with nginx, but it’s harder, and it’s not justified just because nginx is more fashionable.)
Are you affected by a Windows-only company policy and are so far unable to get the company to reconsider? Use Windows, Apache, and mod_wsgi.
Start simple, and only replace with something else if it’s really needed.
Related posts:
Also related:
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https://medium.com/django-deployment/which-components-should-i-use-in-production-1780c02f5906
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['Antonis Christofides']
|
2020-12-17 06:34:52.943000+00:00
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['Django']
|
The Grand Tour
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http://thelandy.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/dsc_0221.jpg?w=636 Used with Permission
“To answer your question,” the tour guide said, “it will be necessary to give some background detail.”
Pulling the microphone close to his face and clutching it with both hands as if holding something precious, and leaning toward the passengers, he started, “But because I am just a guide on this bus-tour who you probably believe is in this job because I have few employment options or little specialized knowledge that would qualify me for a high status job in the information economy, you would likely not accept what I have to say.”
Pulling himself upright as if to stand at attention and taking the microphone in his left hand, he shifted his right hand to hold it — open-palmed — over his heart. “So, before I start let me disclose that I am actually the Prime Minister of this exotic country, and I have merely posed as a tour guide to discover what visitors to our homeland want most from their stay in this place.” As he finished this statement he closed his eyes and bowed from the chin toward the tourists — who by now had stopped fiddling with their cellphones and cameras and were fixed on this suddenly-more-interesting guide for what they may have thought would be a lazy afternoon tour.
After a few seconds pause, “Now that you know I am actually a credible source of information I can answer your question, confident that you will take me seriously.”
As the tour-guide-turned-Prime-Minister paused to inhale and relaxed to a contrapposto stance before answering the visitor’s question, another tourist in the dim space near the back of this tour bus cleared her throat and said in a high-pitched voice with an accent native to this place,
“We are members of the opposition in this country. Mister Prime Minister, you have long made us feel like strangers in our own cities, and since you asked for questions and desires for our stay in this beautiful place, we will take the opportunity to present our demands.”
Hearing this, the Prime Minister stiffened, tilting his head slightly and squinting warily as he peered toward the voice. Catching his balance after the bus hit a pothole, he reached up to grab the luggage rail above the seats.
The newly-announced opposition leader slowly stood, still mostly hidden in the shadows, as several other people who were also — only moments ago — merely tourists, produced a 3-ring binder and passed it over to their spokeswoman.
Receiving the binder the spokeswoman for the opposition slowly opened it to the first page and adjusted her glasses. Clearing her throat again with an audible squeak in her voice as the bus hit a pothole in what was otherwise a very smooth road, she started in quick and distinctly enunciated speech.
“We want to be recognized as a legitimate party in perpetual opposition. We want to be able to enter the cameral chambers with messages from those we represent. We don’t actually expect to be influential because we believe that appearances matter and we believe that all developed nations must have an opposition, while this nation has never had one.”
The spokeswoman continued with the list of demands — one statement on each page of the notebook — slowly turning each page and never looking up as she went. Other members of the opposition sat silently, watching the still motionless Prime Minister as she read — transfixed — from the binder.
Finally, the speaker for this newly-announced opposition slowly closed the back cover of the binder, passed it to another individual, then pulled off her glasses and folded them deliberately before looking up at the Prime Minister — hands at her sides as if waiting in a queue with others for bread at a local bakery the bus had just passed.
After a few very long minutes of silence while the bus decelerated to navigate a series of hairpin turns on bluffs overlooking a calm bay leading to the open ocean, the Prime Minister pulled the microphone back to his face, and spoke in a voice becoming of a Prime Minister, “I have been eagerly awaiting this day and have taken this job as a tour guide just so strangers and newcomers to our country who were so far without a voice could bring to me their questions and expectations. I agree with you that all important countries must have an opposition and I welcome you to our system of government. I hereby accept all of your demands expect the one granting access to the cameral chambers.”
As the bus swerved sharply to the right to pull into the parking lot from which it had started, members of the suddenly-official but yet unnamed opposition murmured animatedly among themselves. The bus lurched to a stop at the curb at the end of the planned tour — a small compound that doubled as a souvenir stand and picnic barbecue restaurant.
While passengers on the tour rose to exit the bus, still murmuring excitedly to their compatriots, the Prime Minister returned to his role as tour guide, cautioning the exiting passengers to collect their belongings and to use care as they stepped down the narrow stairway off the bus.
Departing passengers who were now also aspiring-political-actors collected in groups just outside the bus, posing for photos with the new opposition leader, all smiling broadly in a warm and welcoming manner particular to residents of this place, giving enthusiastic thumbs-up and Churchillian V-for-victory gestures.
Last to exit were the only two authentic tourists — previously seated on the last bench of the tour bus — squinting as they emerged from the darkened interior, slowly descending to the parking lot into blindingly clear sunshine at this dawning of a new day for politics in this exotic place.
After landing with a jolt on the last and longest step to the pavement, the first tourist turned to help his companion as she followed down. They adjusted their shoulder bags and pulled their cellphones from their pockets to take a few snapshots as they limped across the lot toward the well- marked public facilities.
Turning to her companion, she mused “Quite a lovely place, don’t you think?”
“Indeed,” nodding in her direction as he scrolled through the cellphone photos he had taken on the bus ride. “We were fortunate to get seats on this bus. We should find out what tour company everyone else was with. They seemed to have things very well organized.” Holding his camera to his companion, he pointed to a photo of the Prime-Minister at the front of the bus, “And they planned for entertainment as well!”
They parted to visit their respective destinations as the smell of barbecue began filling the parking lot, still unaware that they had just received what was perhaps the best introduction imaginable to the inner workings of this aspiring and newly-modern paradise, on what turned out to be the most curious example of a party-bus, ever encountered.
|
https://medium.com/microcosm/https-images-duckduckgo-com-iu-u-http-3a-2f-2ftoysoftimespast-com-2fwp-content-2fuploads-2f2013-4506bc1c8dc8
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['Don Winiecki']
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2015-11-12 16:19:55.895000+00:00
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['Flash Fiction', 'Politics', 'Tour Bus']
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High School Horrors: Why I Hated Bus Rides as a Teenager
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High School Horrors: Why I Hated Bus Rides as a Teenager
Photo by Austin Pacheco on Unsplash
I was in my freshman year of high school and both of my parents worked, so I rode the bus home since I was too young to drive.
I took two different buses in the morning and the afternoon. My morning bus was always extremely full and it didn’t help that my stop was the last stop, so seats were extremely limited.
One time, there were literally a dozen kids standing because the bus was so full and there were no seats left. It was quite the ride.
In the afternoon, I took a bus with a bunch of kids I actually knew which made the ride so much more enjoyable. My stop was the second stop so I was never on for very long.
I was a few weeks into my freshman year when I had to see a teacher after school. I stayed as late as I could before I knew the bus would leave before booking it out of the school to catch it on time.
I shit you not, there were two seats left with one kid in each and when I asked if I could sit there, the girl just glared at me. She and the boy in the seat across from her were very clearly flirting or boyfriend and girlfriend or something because they kept looking at their phones and giggling at each other.
Usually, I wouldn’t have a problem with this, except that they had taken up the last two seats on the bus.
If you two want to flirt, just sit next to each other for fuck’s sake. I ended up sitting next to the girl, but she did not seem happy about it.
At one point, the guy smiled in my direction so I smiled back before realizing he was smiling at the other girl. I timidly shrunk in my seat and kept my nose buried in my backpack for the rest of the ride.
One of my other friends ended up having the same problem with this girl where she just glared at my friend for requesting to sit next to her.
My friend was a little less self-conscious than me and straight-up told this girl off for not being aware of her surroundings. She forever remains a legend in my mind for that move.
Later in the year, I ended up taking a different bus in the afternoon with maybe two dozen kids on it max. Although the driver had to pick up middle schoolers first so the bus was always late by twenty minutes, I preferred it so much more over the other bus.
|
https://medium.com/@vihutt/high-school-horrors-why-i-hated-bus-rides-as-a-teenager-609dc9353c4c
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['Victoria Hutt']
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2020-12-19 19:59:08.448000+00:00
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['Teenagers', 'High School', 'Schools', 'Life']
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Warning! Unsupervised Neuroscience Ahead
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The warning: Care is needed. We are experts at finding patterns in noise, and so are our algorithms.
Take clustering. The problem with clustering is that it returns clusters. I mean, I know that’s what it’s supposed to do, but that’s actually the problem. Give a clustering algorithm the phone numbers of everyone in Llandudno, ask it to find four clusters in the data, and it will. Now you have four clusters of Welsh people, and are none the wiser as to what to do with them, and neither are they. The mere existence of clusters does not mean there is actual cluster structure in the data.
Unsupervised algorithms are about making sense of data for us, the observer. What they find does not have to coincide with reality. Reality doesn’t have a ground-truth, because it does not have clean, neat carves at the joints except in special cases. And most of those special cases are from artificial systems, with the joints built in. Run a different clustering algorithm on your data, and you’ll get different clusters; run a different dimension reduction algorithm on your data, and you’ll get different dimensions. As Ulrike von Luxburg and friends have so clearly argued, clustering is an art.
The unsupervised organisation of data is just a description of that data. Just because we can cluster neurons into groups doesn’t mean there exists actual meaningful groups of neurons in the brain; just because we can cluster behaviour into discrete elements — into states, motifs, syllables, or whatever term you prefer — doesn’t mean behaviour is actually discrete. To find that it means something, we have to link that discovered organisation to reality, show it has meaning. In neuroscience, that typically means we have to link that organisation of data to something happening in the world, or elsewhere in the brain, or both.
And that acid test is passed by the best attempts at unsupervised neuroscience. In the paper from Alon and friends, they showed the neurons’ “tuning” to the hippocampus’ internal dynamics had meaning as location in space (and repeated the same trick for neurons that code for head direction in the rodent thalamus). In the study from Adam Kepecs’ lab on the orbitofrontal cortex, their discrete groups of neurons in turn each encoded a meaningful variable in the decision-making process. Even better, they re-did the whole analysis with another cohort of animals with more neurons, reusing all parameters from first cohort, and ended up with the same results. These studies could show us a mapping between the unsupervised structure of the data and the real world.
Terrific work, but those are the “easy” ways of doing unsupervised neuroscience — by relating what we found to what we already know. We already know that hippocampus has place cells, and that there is a head direction system in the rodent thalamus. We already know the neurons in orbitofrontal cortex are heavily implicated in decision making, and to work out what their groups of neurons were encoding Kepec’s lab interpreted their activity as the variables within a mathematical model of decision making. If that model is wrong, the mapping between variables and activity is of little consequence in building our confidence that the clustered neurons are really there. And others, of course, may find different answers: when Anne Churchland’s group went looking for discrete groups of coding neurons in posterior parietal cortex, for example, they found none.
The ultimate test for unsupervised neuroscience is discoveries that could not be found any other way. There are some examples of that too. For example, we took large-scaling recordings of neurons in the motor system of the venerable sea-slug Aplysia. Using a fully-unsupervised pipeline to analyse that data we discovered its motor system was doubly discrete: on one level, groups of neurons with correlated activity were laid out contiguously in the motor system, beautifully tesselating the bit of brain they were in. On another level, mass populations of neurons with clearly different dynamics were in different parts of the motor system, including a distinct population of oscillating neurons in one spot that were most likely the pattern generating network for movement — a discovered hypothesis waiting to be tested. Joshua Vogelstein and friends discovered a richly detailed map of the relationship between neural activity and the resulting behaviour of Drosophila maggots, by individually stimulating each of 1054 types of neurons, videoing the behaviour, and clustering it. They thus revealed 29 different types of behaviour and which neurons drove each. But these are discoveries of relationships, of structure; they are not yet that final step of unsupervised discovery of a theory for how a bit of brain works.
|
https://medium.com/the-spike/warning-unsupervised-neuroscience-ahead-382cf9ab13e1
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['Mark Humphries']
|
2020-11-17 17:38:42.791000+00:00
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['Machine Learning', 'Neuroscience', 'Artificial Intelligence', 'Science', 'Data Science']
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The fastest way to create a stunning responsive website using Overlay, Nuxt.js and Prismic
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I have been a developer for 3 years, with a special passion for front end topics and great interfaces. I have always been sceptical about low-code tools and their ability to generate clean code.
But during this post-Covid month of August 2020, I helped the Hublo team ship their brand new website, and tested a new workflow, that changed my mind.
At Hublo, the leader in human resources management in health care., there were two groups of stakeholders involved in the project :
The marketing team, whose goal was to be autonomous on content edition on the new website
And the core tech team, whose goal was to be able to easily maintain and reuse the code.
And the main focus : make a great new UI and branding 💎
We (me and Côme, the designer) decided to use to use the following stack :
During this project, we tested a new workflow to automate front end component creation. I decided to share it here step by step since I am deeply convinced this is the fastest way to make a fast, well ranked and scalable website.
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https://medium.com/overlay-blog/the-fastest-way-to-create-a-stunning-responsive-website-using-overlay-nuxt-js-and-prismic-17fa2eac3ba1
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['Baptiste Jan']
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2020-12-28 11:26:00.407000+00:00
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['Nuxtjs', 'Headless Cms', 'Sketch', 'Low Code', 'Figma']
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Will the halving boost the price of Bitcoin: Bulls vs Bears
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Erik Voorhes, CEO of ShapeShift, told that the halving is a sign of a healthy market. “It demonstrates a fundamental difference between Bitcoin and fiat: predictability and transparency,” he said. Moreover, it “demonstrates that predictable math can substitute for the subjective whims of politicians and bankers.”
“With fiat, nobody knows how many dollars exist, or how many will be created next year, and as the halvening demonstrates, with Bitcoin, everybody knows exactly how many Bitcoins exist, how many will be created next year, and even what the inflation schedule will look like 20 years from now.” Whether that makes number go up, Voorhes didn’t say.
The bear case: the halving is already priced in
Others disagree with the optimistic scenarios outlined above. Nic Carter, a partner at Castle Island Ventures, is one of those predicting a more bearish outlook. He told he doesn’t believe in the “halving catalyst,” and said that cutting the mining rewards in half will hurt miners, disincentivizing them from powering the network. “It’s going to make marginal miners unprofitable,” he said. “Most miner revenue still derives from issuance, so if issuance cut in half, revenue is effectively cut in half,” he added.
Carter also said the halving means that the market for ASICs (bespoke mining PCs) and other ancillary businesses-like mining pools and hosting companies-will be substantially reduced. “I don’t expect fees will compensate for the halved rewards, and it seems eminently unlikely to me that the price is going to spontaneously double to account for the reduced issuance,” he said.
“It defies sense,” he said. Instead, he thinks the halving is already “priced in”: “Information that is market-moving becomes priced in before the event occurs, if it is known,” he added.
“Information that is market-moving becomes priced in before the event occurs” — Nic Carter
David Gerard, author of Attack of the 50 Foot Blockchain is also pessimistic about the halving. “The halving has no significance,” he told . “It’s a narrative trying to give the impression that Bitcoin is going to the moon-when the price is still entirely explained by whales burning the margin traders, as it has all through 2019.” The halving’s main effect, Gerard argued, would be to make it less economic to be a Bitcoin miner. “That’s good, because proof of work crypto mining is a crime against humanity,” he added.
Joe Lallouz, CEO of New York-based blockchain company Bison Trails and founding member of the Libra Association, is on the fence. On the one hand, he said: “History doesn’t dictate the future,” adding, “Just because it’s happened every other time doesn’t mean it will happen [again].”
“Bitcoin has halvened on a predictably set schedule and it’s baked into the protocol” — Joe Lallouz
“Bitcoin has halvened on a predictably set schedule and it’s baked into the protocol,” Lallouz added. “In perfect markets or rational market scenarios, you would imagine a world where the crypto economy has already somewhat adjusted to the fact that Bitcoin will halve this year.”
Crypto’s only getting bigger-Bitcoin’s market cap in 2016 was around $8 billion, a figure that’s since increased to about $170 billion. “The more people are involved, the more likely that the crypto economy has accounted for the fact that Bitcoin is going to halve its rewards this year,” Lallouz said.
However, Lallouz qualified his remarks, noting that, “people don’t act rationally and markets aren’t perfect,” he said. That’s particularly apposite given that this is the crypto market we’re talking about-where common sense goes out of the window.
Lallouz conceded that there’s likely to be some sort of price shift like those seen historically in Bitcoin. “But with it being such a leading indicator for the crypto ecosystem,” he added, “we could see a market cap or price jump for the whole ecosystem.”
History will be written by the victors.
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed by the author are for informational purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment, or other advice.
|
https://medium.com/@decryptmedia/will-the-halving-boost-the-price-of-bitcoin-bulls-vs-bears-e83c087c003d
|
[]
|
2020-05-06 14:42:04.211000+00:00
|
['Cryptocurrency', 'Bitcoin Mining', 'Bitcoin Halving', 'Bitcoin', 'Btc']
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The Interns - Endgame
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Interns assemble!
The end of my internship is coming. It’s not the end of my contribution to The Shortcut, expect to see more blogs, podcasts and videos from me in all the usual places, but perhaps not as frequently. Still, as the end of this phase approaches, I can’t help but look back at the journey so far.
Also, I can’t help re-imagining that journey as a superhero movie franchise, for reasons.
Phase One: The solo origin movie
Three years ago…
A naive British writer and trainer moves from London to the Finnish town of Järvenpää. He adjusts to the quieter, calmer life easily, but finds himself directionless, without connections outside his immediate family. He receives strange messages in a language he doesn’t understand (it’s Finnish, and they are letters from the TE Office (Unemployment)). He follows a trail of clues that lead him to an Integration course. He struggles with the training; the teaching style and his learning style don’t match. For almost a year he battles on, making tiny steps forward in his language skill. It’s frustrating, and he experiences low self-esteem and bouts of depression, but every hero story needs conflict. The course ends, and our hero emerges, a changed man. He is determined now to find his new path in his new home country!
He still can’t speak Finnish, mind you.
In an after-credits scene of this movie, our hero is job-hunting and finds an advert for an internship at a place called The Shortcut. He applies, but even as he waits for their response, he is offered a placement at a local school. He chooses to go to the school but this is not the last we will hear of The Shortcut…
Phase Two: The catalyst for team-ups
Six months ago:
Still unemployed, but still determined, our hero goes about his life in Finland. More comfortable and confident in his surroundings than before, he even has friends that he meets up with occasionally. Time is running out, however, and the TE Office begin sending their coded messages again. This time they want him to apply to Koto-SIB which offers further language skill training, as well as job training for work in construction or catering. Neither industry really appeals, but our hero decides to apply anyway, better to be working towards something than not.
Instead, plot twist! Koto-SIB matches his background with The Shortcut’s Catalyst Program. There’s no language component this time, just a chance to learn more about entrepreneurship and the Finnish tech start-up community. The course is interesting, and while our hero thinks it unlikely he will ever found a startup, working for one appeals.
Rahul Pardasani: Agent of SHORTCUT
In the third act, our hero is called upon to use his new knowledge to contribute to The Shortcut, and writes his first blog post, “A view from a Monolith”. This is the Monolith of Founding, and his next post introduces the Monolith of Language. What mystery do these monoliths hold?
The after-credits scene is simple, Agent Pardasani approaches our hero and says, cryptically, “I want to talk to you about the Interns initiative…”
Phase Three: The Interns — Age of Content
Three months ago:
Now a fully-fledged member of The Interns, our hero works alongside Jutismita to create blog posts and podcasts for The Shortcut. It’s a fine time, he gets to write and draw, record and edit podcasts. His work is well received and he is comfortable in this role, when, suddenly The Shortcut’s Marketing lead changes! (In fact totally planned and expected, but that’s less impactful than it being sudden).
Cometh the hour, cometh Captain Emoji.
With new leadership comes new challenges. Different types of content, like the Sunday Show videos, dabbling with Tik Tok and failing hard at Injustice 2 at The Shortcut’s Game Day. Our hero is by turns baffled and excited. Mostly excited. But also baffled. There’s new skills to learn, new media to explore, and new apps to juggle, but it all gives our hero a chance to re-evaluate his skills, and re-imagine a way to put them across.
It’s not all new, though, and his blog posts about monoliths continue throughout. In the after-credits scene for this movie, and mysterious figure steps from the shadows, wearing a glove decorated with Monolith Shards. “Fine,” he says, “I’ll do it myself.”
Phase Four: The Interns — Endgame
All of the Interns have their own stories, their own path in to the Endgame. And while they may have different names in different ‘movies’, the monolith shards appear across the franchise. John encountered the Monolith of Digital Marketing, Jutismita the Monolith of Rejection, each of the Interns have their own stories to tell.
But now the mysterious villain has gathered all of the monoliths together, creating a power that no one Intern could hope to defeat!
Our hero must gather the other Interns in one final battle. Daniel and Nam bring their knowledge of video editing, Namrata her energy and multitasking, in a strange twist, Jason’s cooking comes into play… only by bringing the power of diversity can the heroes truly triumph.
And then as the dust settles, our hero’s work is done, and he is ready to hand over his podcast and videos to others… The next phase will feature the thrilling adventures of all new Interns and heroes.
Well except, as I say, I expect to be coming back for cameos, keep an eye out for more from me!
|
https://medium.com/the-shortcut/the-interns-endgame-560c57c0ef11
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['Rob Edwards']
|
2019-04-28 07:03:56.907000+00:00
|
['Stories', 'Internships', 'Avengers Endgame']
|
The Problem With Mobile Coupons
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Many kinds of mobile coupons are being used these days, especially in Korea where more than 1 trillion won is being traded via such coupons on a yearly basis.
Mobile coupons usually come in the form below with a PIN. The PIN is usually shown in barcode format so the POS terminal can conveniently enter the PIN.
Existing mobile coupons have relatively simple PIN
However, existing mobile coupons have the following issues:
1. Absence of information on ownership
Anyone who knows the PIN of the coupon can use it to exchange it for the product. This is where the issue arises. For example, if someone were to sell a mobile coupon that they do not need in a second-hand marketplace, both the buyer and the seller end up having the PIN in their possession. Every year this problem has led to fraud when buying and selling mobile coupons and various second-hand trading platforms have emerged to address this problem. One second-hand trading app has the following review:
…It’s a problem that both the seller and the buyer of the coupon have the coupon at the same time.
2. Mobile coupons are not easily created
Existing mobile coupons are used by utilizing the POS to read the barcode. Because of this, the POS payment terminal software must be updated to be able to read new mobile coupons. In addition, the POS terminal server must be linked with the mobile coupon issuer (Gifticon, Giftishow, Smartcon, etc.). There are various POS payment terminal companies to make things even more complicated, and each store’s software must be updated. All this boils down to new businesses and non-franchise businesses not being able to create coupons easily. This is why it is difficult to find mobile coupons for companies that aren’t bigger than a certain size.
3. Inability to check if a certain mobile coupon has been used
Most people keep their mobile coupons stored somewhere in the gallery of their phones as a screenshot or in their texts. Looking for a coupon when it is needed can be a nuisance. Even if the coupon is found, it’s not possible to check if the coupon had been used or not. Since it doesn’t disappear upon usage (unlike cash), it can cause plenty of confusion. Sometimes coupons are left unused and eventually get thrown away. Statistically speaking, the amount of money being sent down the drain this way amounts to billions of won per year.
Despite these problems, mobile coupons are often used to easily gift physical goods. Mobile coupons are also effective marketing tools for stores because once someone pays for or receives a gift in the form of a mobile coupon, they are compelled to visit the store and use the said coupon. These mobile coupons could be coupons that can be exchanged for a cup of coffee or a birthday cake, and they can be conveniently sent through instant messaging platforms such as KaKaoTalk or Line.
According to recent surveys, however, an increasing number of people are now using mobile coupons for something other than gifting because they are cheaper to purchase than buying the same item in-store.
|
https://medium.com/dpon/the-problem-with-mobile-coupons-8d923a77cfcd
|
['Jinhwa Choi']
|
2019-05-09 06:11:59.508000+00:00
|
['Blockchain', 'Coupon', 'Payments']
|
How to Spot Winning Arbitrage Trades on Augur
|
Today, I’ll build on some thoughts I recently wrote about prediction arbitrage.
In prediction arb, you take both sides of a trade i.e., bet on opposite outcomes, in separate prediction markets. By taking advantage of pricing gaps between the markets, you can get a nominally guaranteed profit.
In the last post, I give a simple example of arbing two markets predicting a Dwayne Johnson presidency. If you haven’t, you may want to check out that post for context. Otherwise, some of the following may not make sense.
Since prediction arb typcially requires locking up funds until the markets resolve, we need to be sure the expected return exceeds what you can get from fixed-income assets. As a benchmark, we can use the annual “risk-free” rate of return from Treasury yields i.e., interest on U.S. government debt, which is currently ~3%.
So in order to surpass this ROI, a prediction arb for a market resolving in a month would need at least a .25% spread (3% divided by 12) while a market resolving in 2 years would need at least a 6% spread.
For simplicity, I’m assuming the end return will equal the pricing gap between the markets i.e., the spread. This is putting aside transaction fees, risks of invalid resolution, risk of prolonged market reporting etc. That’s why I say that profits from prediction arb are nominally guaranteed.
Let’s take a concrete example.
As I write this, you can sell shares, i.e., bet against, Trump getting re-elected in 2020 on Augur at 37% odds and buy shares on PredictIt at ~35%. That’s a 2% “guaranteed” return, but given that the election won’t happen for over two years, that comes out lower than the “risk-free” rate of return via Treasuries.
This prompts the million dollar (or Ether?) question: in what scenarios would the price spread between prediction markets be so dramatic as to create truly profitable arb trades?
In the last post, I looked at why prediction arbitrage opportunities would exist in the first place. Understanding why they arise is essential because only then can we know where to look for them. Of the 6 reasons I listed, I think the most promising at this point in time is:
“O ne market reacting to news and other developments at a slower speed than other markets. For example, due to gas prices and low liquidity, Augur may lag behind a market like PredictIt.”
For example, let’s say the star QB of a top-tier NFL team gets a torn ACL during gameplay. A mature prediction market forecasting whether the team will win the Superbowl would price in this event in a matter of minutes, if not seconds. The price would plummet as holders of YES shares panic sold and buy support evaporated.
But on Augur, the price could take far longer to correct. This market lag effect would be further amplified if gas costs were higher than usual and/or crypto prices are falling: since Augur traders hold crypto assets they are less likely to trade when crypto prices, especially Ether, are plummeting.
In such a case, it’s worth asking if it makes sense to run arb by taking both sides of the trade or whether it’s best to just trade in the market that is lagging?
The latter offers a potentially greater and quicker return but at a higher risk, so this would depend on your risk appetite. If you were absolutely certain that the lagging market would correct and that you’d be able to close your position (or wait till resolution) then taking one side may be the best option.
Just remember that low liquidity is a double-edged sword: easier to find mispriced shares but also harder to find someone else to trade them to i.e., close your position.
An in-between option would be hedging your risk, by say, selling 10 shares against the team winning the Superbowl on Augur while buying only 5 shares on the other market.
The other perk of an arb opportunity caused by market lag is that you would not need to wait for the market to resolve to get out. You could potentially get out as soon as the market corrected.
So rather than waiting say months, you could get out and collect your returns in the span of say, hours. If you sold shares on Augur, you could immediately post a buy offer at a lower price. By looking at where prices corrected to on the faster market, you could know how to price these shares.
So putting this all together, to identify a good arb trade look for an Augur market that…
Has an equivalent market on another prediction platform like PredictIt speculating on the same outcome. Is prone to sudden price swings based on news and other developments. For example, whether Kamala Harris will be elected president will swing if/when she announces her candidacy, a scandal surfaces, or new polling numbers come out. Doesn’t expire in too long or has a significant spread that exceeds the “risk-free” rate of return from other asset classes.
Keep in mind there are many other types of arb opportunities with different causes or with different market types i.e., scalar and categorical markets. This is just one type that may have unique potential at this point in time.
Thanks for reading. To stay ahead with fresh insights on the future of prediction markets, join my newsletter The Augur Edge.
|
https://medium.com/sunrise-over-the-merkle-trees/how-to-spot-winning-arbitrage-trades-on-augur-ce44df3ec5b6
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['Ben Davidow']
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2020-05-07 22:05:43.100000+00:00
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['Trading', 'Ethereum', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Augur', 'Prediction Markets']
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Staking Counos X (CCXX)
|
Counos X is the first bankable coin offered by the Swiss Blockchain company, Counos Platform. In the first stage of offering this coin, about 18,300,000 coins have been mined. The total number of Counos X coins that can be mined are 21,000,000.
As mentioned above, Counos X is the first bankable coin. Counos Platform is the first company to create a coin that can be bought directly with your local bank. No matter where you are in the world, you can purchase Counos X through your bank or directly with your broker using the Swiss ISIN number.
Among other advantages of the Counos X (CCXX) is that if you hold Counos X in the staking wallet longer than a year, you will receive a 5% staking. If you keep Counos X longer than 6 months, your coins will increase by 2%.
In order to start staking Counos X (CCXX) at the staking wallet there are several investment plans to choose from:
If you choose a daily plan, you will be able to withdraw your profits on a daily basis. You can cancel a daily plan anytime you want; keep in mind you will not receive any profits if you cancel. The balance in your daily plan wallet cannot be less than a certain amount. This amount is specified for each daily plan investment.
If you choose an annual plan, you will be able to withdraw your profits on a yearly basis. You can cancel an annual plan anytime you want; keep in mind you will not receive any profits if you cancel before the surrender period.
But perhaps one of the most exciting and important things about Counos X is the upcoming update in its roadmap. Some features and changes are planned to be added to Counos X and its Blockchain network, which will make this coin even more valuable than before.
When the latest update of the Counos X roadmap is fully rolled out, these features will be added to this coin:
Counos Layer: Counos Layer protocol will be added on top of the Blockchain of Counos X. The source code of Counos Layer is forked from the source code of Omni Layer. This protocol will allow the creation of crypto assets such as tokens and other custom digital assets on top of the CCXX Blockchain network. Counos Layer is a software layer that can be built on top of the Blockchain network.
Certification System: with the help of this certificate issuance system, CCXX Blockchain can be used to issue all kinds of certificates such as university degrees, customs documents, transportation documents, identification documents, etc. In this certificate issuance system a piece of a Counos X coin can be used as the certificate with all of the data and information entered recorded in it, and in this way no duplicate of the certificate can exist.
Election System: this feature will allow for elections and voting mechanisms to be based on the Blockchain Counos X. Using the CCXX Blockchain network will enable elections to take place in the most reliable and transparent way possible. In this election system a piece of a Counos X coin can be used as the voting ballot, and since it is registered in the Blockchain network, no duplicate ballot can exist.
Copyright System: with the help of this system, the Blockchain network of Counos X will be used to register all types of copy rights and patents. This feature can be used to register and store all types of patents, invention patents, intellectual property rights, music rights, and any other type of copyrights. This system used a piece of Counos X coin to issue the certificate for the copyrighted material, then records the data in the Blockchain with the exact data number and date.
Decentralized Finance (DeFi): based on this decentralized finance system, assets can be gathered in a crypto pool. As such a very reliable system is created in which assets can be stored and more importantly loans can be given out. This loaning process is based on the reliability and dependability of the CCXX DeFi system.
All of these technologies and capabilities are based on Counos X coins. Since all these features need Counos X to function; for instance voting ballots, certificate documents, transactions fees for the Omni Layer protocol, and all of these systems and feature require Counos X. Thus a significantly high demand is created for Counos X. In turn, this creates value and wealth, not even counting the mere transactions and payments made by Counos X. If we take into accounts the tokens that will be created based on the Blockchain network of Counos X, a formidable financial system will be created based upon Counos X alone.
So take advantage of this amazing opportunity, and head on to the staking wallet to start staking Counos X.
|
https://medium.com/@counosplatform/staking-counos-x-ccxx-9c1df3aeaca6
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[]
|
2020-12-15 13:14:28.296000+00:00
|
['Counosplatform', 'Banking Technology', 'Blockchain Startup', 'Staking', 'Investing And Trading']
|
Stop Blaming others and start taking responsibility for your life
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When I was in junior school, my mother used to give me lunch every day. Since my mother loves to cook, she prepared new dishes every day. But the sad part was just like other kids. I preferred skipping lunch and play with my friends at lunchtime.
Every day my friends ate my lunch, and my mom thought I ate it. Until one day, I was caught red-handed when my mom showed up at school at lunchtime while my friend was enjoying my lunch. Out of nowhere, my spider-sense came into action, and I blamed everything on my friend.
When I finished my high-school, I took electronic engineering as a major. During a combined study with my friends, I realized my friend is passionate about electronics. Whenever I used to visit him, he was always busy tearing apart equipment and repairing and reinventing them. I thought, ‘I don’t love electronics like my friend.’ At that moment I realized, I don’t want to be an electronics engineer. I blamed my teachers for not igniting the flare to be an engineer. I opt for computer engineering, and I did pretty well.
When I started my first eCommerce venture, it was successful for about a year. When things started going down the drain, I began blaming customers, my marketing department, and salespeople for not working too hard.
Upon retrospection, I realized I was blaming a lot lately. And since then, I started taking responsibility for my life. No one or no situation can make me feel bad if I don’t blame others and do something about it.
Stop Blaming Others & Start acting yourself
Life is less about what happens to you and more about how you respond to it. Everyday life will present with tons of opportunities. You’ll either take them or pass them. Not everything in life will go as planned. Things will get messy. People will leave. One bad day cannot define your whole life. But a good day won’t stick with you either.
Surely, you cannot blame how life unfolds your journey. But, you can take the driving seat and control the direction of your life anytime.
I just crossed 30. It is a smart age to realize that it is a perfect time to take things seriously and stop moaning about my life. It is time to take responsibility for everything that happens to me. Not my family, nor my friends can live my life. It is I who need to make this journey. For everything that happens in my life, it is me who needs to be blamed.
The human brain has miraculous power. Your internal dialogue influences your thoughts, and thoughts become actions. And these actions have consequences. If you’re a sane person, you must have blamed others for your failures. That’s normal. People blame others because they fear people pointing fingers at them. They want to stay out of trouble and live a peaceful life.
Sadly, if you want to succeed in life, you need to start taking your life seriously. How about starting by not blaming others and doing something about your situation. Money won’t bring peace into your life. Sure, you can get short bursts of happiness. But that won’t give you peace. The real peace comes from achieving something. Peace comes from pursuing a dream.
What is your grand aim in life? What is that one thing that you kept away for some other time? If there is something that you want, get it. Work hard for it. Opportunity doesn’t knock twice. In life, you must watch out of the window and be prepared.
No matter how old you are, be it 20 or 40. You can start right now. Take out a piece of paper and write your wildest dreams. Stick this paper where you can see it every day. Take baby steps each day that brings you closer to achieving your goal. Sure, failure will hit you. And at times you’ll feel like quitting. But remember, every moment of regret is a moment of being thankful for your life. When things seem bad, and life feels low, get down on your knees and count your blessings.
Take hold of your life before someone else misuse your life, your time, and your energy. Life is too short of blaming others and acting lazy. Get up. Get going. Take responsibility for your life and create a story worth sharing with your grandchildren.
|
https://medium.com/@yousufrafi/stop-blaming-others-and-start-taking-responsibility-for-your-life-b9d4579ed551
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['Yousuf Rafi']
|
2019-10-30 07:23:30.826000+00:00
|
['Sad', 'Responsibility', 'Success', 'Life Lessons', 'Failure']
|
How to Utilise Technology to Strengthen Culture and Deliver an Impactful, Holistic Employee Wellbeing Strategy
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Registration is now open
2020 has brought physical, mental and financial wellbeing into the spotlight and employers are looking for more effective and efficient ways to support and connect employees. At a time of year when our people normally look forward to celebrations and end-of-year awards, opportunities to come together are few and far between.
However, companies that are leveraging technology to provide holistic support have been able to improve motivation, productivity and connection, whilst making employees’ money go further and enhancing their employer brand. A panel of renowned experts will discuss the lessons learnt through the crisis and its impact on the year ahead.
Webinar Agenda includes:
Strengthening company culture and developing an Employee Value Proposition that attracts and retains best-in-class employees
Providing scalable, flexible and practical support to meet employees’ immediate and long-term needs, wherever and whenever they are working
Creating impactful, company-wide communications so leaders can keep employees informed and connected wherever they might be, with an integrated, centralised, mobile-accessible platform
Speakers:
|
https://medium.com/marcus-evans-online-events/how-to-utilise-technology-to-strengthen-culture-and-deliver-an-impactful-holistic-employee-7b4bffc0513
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['Marcus Evans Online Events']
|
2020-11-27 04:27:17.224000+00:00
|
['HR', 'Recruitment', 'Webinar']
|
Is your Data Obsession Making You a Bad Marketer?
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Many years ago, I heard a quote that got stuck in my head and never left. The quote was in German, and I didn’t speak English yet. At that time, I believed everything I read, so I was sure it was a quote from George Bernard Shaw. But as I am trying to find the English version of this great Irish writer’s words, I realize it might not even really be a quote of his. Nonetheless, this quotation has come up quite often in my head, and therefore I will take it upon myself to translate the saying that could be from George Bernard Shaw:
“Tradition is like a street lamp. The stupid hold onto it, while for the smart, it brightens their way.”
This saying recently crossed my mind again in a meeting, but I had changed the words. I had thought,
“Data is like a street lamp. The stupid hold onto it, while for the smart, it brightens their way.”
No, I am not comparing data to tradition. I am saying that focusing on data for the sole purpose of “data” is a foolish idea. I see way too many people obsessing over data in today’s workforce but not using it efficiently. Data should be there to indicate directions and show where the past has led you to. We should never follow it blindly. We need to manage our obsession with data.
In Marketing and other semi-creative fields, I see people either ignoring data completely or focusing on data so much that there is no space for innovation and significant improvement. Maybe we should focus more on letting data brighten our way instead of holding on to it too tightly.
Data is a story of the past with which you can make predictions for the future, but it is all happening in a predictable linear way. What happens to creativity, to inventing new paths, that might even lead to new and overwhelming results? The unpredictable is quite challenging to grasp or even consider. I am an employee who works in the office every day and knows how fast and stressful some decisions and meetings can be. I strongly suggest that Data needs to be considered, not only with an analytical mindset but also from a creative perspective.
Don’t get me wrong. I love data, and it gives me incredible insights, but after I receive the data, I sit on my desk and allow my mind to go further. I ask myself why certain variables are indicating specific trends? Is the data leading us in a direction that aligns with our company values? Or even, what if we move into a completely new and unconventional path, and what data should we measure then?
I would like to see more experimenting, breaking barriers, and sometimes even breaking the variables we have defined. Maybe we will get new insights to improve the way we do things, to evolve. Sometimes we might even need to reconsider the system we are working in to make space for a better one. This idea applies to people in my field and everyone else who got so accustomed to blindly relying on data.
So my verdict is: Use data the way it is supposed to be used. Take a break from holding onto it and let data brighten a new path for you and your team!
|
https://medium.com/@fitoremiftari/is-your-data-obsession-making-you-a-bad-marketer-927a77f2c3b
|
['Fitore Miftari']
|
2020-12-02 19:15:21.751000+00:00
|
['Strategic Communication', 'Data Analytics', 'Creative Process', 'Marketing Strategies', 'Philosophy']
|
PCS #3 EU & NA Grand Final Stage Week 2 Matches Are Completed
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Source: PUBG Corp.
We are closing in to the end of year with many intense competitive events all around the esports scene, and PUBG Continental Series is at its best with the exciting Battle Royale dose we all crave.
In PCS #3, we are watching best 16 teams of European and North American stage each. This means that every match is a whole new story with untold possibilities to affect the results of this huge competition for $200,000 prize pool. While NA region is clearly dominated by last champion Soniqs loud and clear, Europe is witnessing a crazy competition every single match.
First week of EU matches were completed with Tornado Energy on the lead while Northern Lights and Digital Athletics were on a close pursuit for the leadership. Second week went through literally a scrambling of rankings throughout the 8-match run, and in the end we finally see a Turkish team, Digital Athletics, on the lead with 10 points of difference. Especially the second match of second day was a true celebration for Turkish fans as last two teams standing were Digital Athletics and the other Turkish team in the series, ETiGET Esports. ETiGET also showed a truly impressive performance in the second week, managing to jump to 12th place from the 16th.
Tornado Energy and Northern Lights are now on a close pursuit with 131 points both. Behind them, Team Liquid is coming up pretty strong with 125 points, definitely maintaining their position for a very possible attempt on gaining the lead position in the last week. Rest of the teams are battling for the remaining four spots to get a slice from the prize pool in the end, unless one of them decides to go on a rampage and stir up the leaderboards.
North American rankings are not as close as European rankings, though last week’s runner-up Team Veritas lost its pace very quickly and fell back to 9th place. Instead we are seeing Guadalajara Gascans with an impressive 160 points, chasing Soniqs with 25 points of difference. Third team Oath is proving stable with a smooth progress, standing solid like a gatekeeper for the top 3. Like a tradition already, the determining factor of top spots remains to be the points difference in Miramar map.
Last matches of North America and Europe will be played on 19th–20th and 21st-22nd of November respectively. These final weeks will be absolutely crazy, especially with the head-to-head positions of European teams. Make sure to tune into twitch.tv/pubg and watch the action live.
|
https://medium.com/@otoyoldiregi/pcs-3-eu-na-grand-final-stage-week-2-matches-are-completed-ee3951dd9f03
|
['Can', 'Otoyoldireği']
|
2020-11-17 09:16:38.073000+00:00
|
['Esport', 'Gaming', 'Pubg']
|
7 Trends of 2021 and Some Blazing Numbers
|
Like every year Fjord published a brilliant report which requires 30 minutes of reading, “trends of 2021”. The link for detailed report, 7 trends and some blazing figures are below.
Trend 1 Collective displacement
Helping people find their place again with the right experiences.
52% of young American adults were living with their parents by September 2020.
Trend 2 Do it yourself innovation
Enabling people to get creative with the way they live.
50% more businesses were created in June 2020 compared with the same month in 2019.
Trend 3 Sweet teamsare made of this
Reshaping your employees’ experience for a post-pandemic world.
44M, the number of daily users of Microsoft Teams saw during the early weeks of the pandemic.
Trend 4 Interaction wanderlust
Bringing joy and serendipity from the real world to the screen.
US$31 M the number raised by Mmhmm, the next generation of videoconferencing, pre-launch.
Trend 5 Liquid infrastructure
Redesigning your infrastructure to deliver delight from the first moment to the last.
5G could play an important role in enabling deployment of immersive technologies to create a next generation of brand experiences.
Trend 6 Empathy challenge
Shaping the right narratives in a world of expectation and scrutiny.
80% of the 1.1 million workers who dropped out of the US workforce in September were women.
Trend 7 Rituals lost and found
Helping people create meaningful rituals in their new, unbidden circumstances.
75% of US customers tried different stores, websites or brands during the pandemic. 60% of those expect to integrate new brands or stores into their post-pandemic lives
|
https://medium.com/@muratyaya/7-trends-of-2021-and-some-blazing-numbers-d289a352c93c
|
['Murat Yaya']
|
2021-03-24 00:00:00
|
['Innovation', '2021', 'Trends', 'Remote Working', 'Change']
|
Our next Data Visualization Foundations class will be this November!
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Enrollment is now open for Stamen’s next Data Visualization Foundations class, scheduled for November of this year at Stamen Design. This hands-on class, which we developed with dataviz expert Curran Kelleher (author of the online platform for teaching & learning data visualization vizhub.com) will teach you the fundamentals of visual communication with complex information. It’s well-suited for beginner-to-intermediate practitioners and anyone who wants to develop more dataviz literacy.
The class will take place over the weekend of November 16th and 17th, 2019, in-person at the Stamen offices in San Francisco. Sign up now, before spots fill up!
June 2019 Data Visualization Foundations Class
Hey students! This is a reminder that our classes are half-price for full-time university students. It always makes sense to supplement to your college studies with some hands-on experience using the cutting-edge tools of the trade!
So if you or your company wants to present data effectively using data visualization, needs in-depth background knowledge about the art and science of data visualization, or needs to acquire data visualization literacy, this event is for you! These are small, intimate, hands-on sessions in a studio focused on data visualization, not formal lectures in a big theater. Come, bring your data and your ideas, and you will experience custom-tailored delivery and selected content emphasis based on your individual needs.
Wait no longer, take use of this great opportunity and follow the link below to register now!
Data Visualization Foundations, November 16 & 17!
If you’d like to be notified of future Stamen data visualization or cartography classes, sign up for our announcement list.
|
https://hi.stamen.com/our-next-data-visualization-foundations-class-will-be-this-november-60d0e8a3b93f
|
['Alan Mcconchie']
|
2019-10-05 15:05:18.212000+00:00
|
['Design', 'Data Visualization', 'Workshop', 'Dataviz', 'Maps']
|
PANEL: Data and Circular Cities. Last month, Stefaan Verhulst…
|
Last month, Stefaan Verhulst, co-founder, and chief research and development officer at The GovLab, sat down for a virtual panel discussion on the value of the circular city at the Collision Conference.
Led by WIRED staff writer Daniel Oberhaus, Greg Morrisett (Cornell Tech), Tara Pham (Numina), Shaun Stewart, (New Lab), and Stefaan discussed the value of collecting and analyzing data from an area to improve the lives of the people who live there. The participants talked at length about the various ways circular data can provide value to issues such as transportation and the risks and challenges in achieving this potential.
“One of the key challenges, but also opportunities, of the current data age is how we set up processes to reuse data that is already collected,” said Stefaan. ‘Some of those datasets often reside in the public sector and so, for the last few years, we have looked at how we unlock datasets that the government is collecting in order to use it for other purposes than originally intended in a responsible manner.”
The group discussed different applications of data, the urgent and complex challenges facing cities, and the value of policies in promoting responsible data use. You can watch the full discussion in the video above.
|
https://medium.com/data-stewards-network/panel-conversation-with-stefaan-verhulst-on-circular-cities-a42a73db327e
|
['Andrew J. Zahuranec']
|
2020-07-17 18:44:21.615000+00:00
|
['Data Responsibility', 'Circular Cities', 'Events', 'Interview', 'Data Collaborative']
|
30 Days To Turning 30
|
My twenties have been one hell of a rollercoaster and I’m so glad it’s finally coming to an end. In 30 days, a new decade of my life will begin. I hope that in 10 years when I am looking back at my thirties, I shall have more to celebrate and be thankful for.
But today, I am thankful for life. That I am still here is proof that God is not done with me. That my journey is far from over. I might have failed woefully in the past years but I am not a failure. I’m capable of success. I was created to stand out and excel. My past does not define me. if anything, it has prepared me for what lies ahead. My future is bright. I’m a divine champion.
I have made a lot of mistakes, but I took the lessons from my mistakes to heart, and I’m grateful for every one of them.
I may be single, but I am genuinely happy. I may be broke, but I am content.
I am on a journey to leading a purposeful and fulfilling life through deliberate and conscious effort. And that is something worth celebrating.
I may not have traveled beyond the walls of my village, but I’m only 30. There are a lot of years ahead of me, and the world is not going anywhere, is it?
I know a lot of people had accomplished so much by the time they turned 30, but who says our timing is the same? The house, the cars, the awards, the money, the accomplishments will come. One day, at a time.
I am in no hurry to get them all. The goal is to do something every day that takes me closer to my dream.
I have never threw a birthday party in my whole life. I know 30 would be the perfect time to throw one, but 31st wouldn’t be bad either, right? God willing, there would be money in the bank and a spouse and a kid to celebrate it with.
|
https://medium.com/@AtufeLydiaSarah/30-days-to-turning-30-a720373805dc
|
['Atufe Lydia Sarah']
|
2020-03-03 19:05:03.267000+00:00
|
['Personal', 'Birthday Party', 'Birthday']
|
How to Succeed in a Coding Bootcamp
|
How to Succeed in a Coding Bootcamp
Growth Mindset is Key
My first week, I thought the bootcamp staffs’ emphasis on approaching everything with a growth mindset was overkill (we talked about it at least 5 times). But, at this stage in my bootcamp journey I almost think it could have even been emphasized more! When you’ve been staring at the same problem for 45 minutes and no closer to a proper solution, you will doubt yourself. When new syntax leaves you sweating, you will doubt yourself. New concepts take time to become comfortable. It’s only natural. The key is to remember that even though a concept or tool may be confusing to you know, it won’t always be. You will grow. It will get easier. It’s important to keep these encouraging thoughts in mind. I promise that curriculum that seems overwhelming to you on day one will be second nature by week two and I’m becoming aware that this is true of learning to code in general. Things get easier. You just have to continue persevering and the comfort will come.
Image Credit: thegoalchaser.com
Learn to Balance Collaboration with Independent Work
You will make friends. I promise. Even those of you who think you’re on the socially anxious side, you will. I began feeling close to my cohort somewhere in week 2 and I’ve only been bonding with them more and more. I think collaborating with your peers is a really crucial part of the learning process. It’s amazing how much I’ve learned from explaining things to others or from having someone explain something to me. Teamwork is part of the professional world just as much so it’s great to be practicing talking about code right now. That being said, I’ve found that working independently is crucial as well. It’s a balance but working with others can sometimes be distracting as well. If you aren’t making enough progress around others, I’d recommend finding a secluded corner on campus, putting on a good focus playlist (I like Brain Food on Spotify) and get into a flow state where you can really focus.
Image Credit: jogloblog.wordpress.com
Prioritize Your Life Outside of Bootcamp
I’m surprised at how quickly these first three weeks have flown by. It makes me realize that the hangouts with friends I have had were not the best use of my time. And, at least for me, I should have spent my break time getting to the gym or spending quality time with my significant other. Your priorities will be unique to you but there isn’t a lot of free time when you’re in an immersive program. Be intentional about what you want to do in your limited free time. Take it from me, that your bootcamp experience will fly by. You want to make sure when you walk away, you know you gave it your all and didn’t cave into distractions.
Be Aware, But Don’t Compare
There is one difficult part of the human psyche that has the capacity to derail you during this journey and that is the ego. Your ego will tell constantly whisper in your ear:
“You should know more by now.”
“Their project is so much more advanced.”
“Their code looks different, I’m clearly taking the wrong approach.”
Though I’ve found it helpful to be aware of the skillsets my classmates have (because it’s great to know who to ask for help!), it’s best to keep your mind focused on what you are learning and not to make judgements about where you should be or how your journey should look. Everyone came in with different knowledge and skill sets. Everyone learns at a different pace. Don’t waste your energy comparing yourself to your cohort mates. You need all that energy for working and learning. Trust me.
Strategically-Timed Breaks
To prevent burnout, use a productivity timer (I use Productivity Challenge Timer) and break up your coding time into Pomodoros. Work for 25 minutes and take 5 minute breaks or maybe 45 on and 15 off. This method has allowed me greater stamina for difficult work. I am able to put in more hours overall when I strategically time my breaks. Sometimes, when you get stuck, you really just need a quick walk or a coffee break and the solution will be clearer when you come back.
Image Credit: twitter.com/siegelvision
Try it yourself!
Another thing I’ve learned is to just dive into new material. Watching endless videos and tutorials will not help you as much as just getting started. Problems and questions will arise of course, but you won’t even truly understand the gaps in your knowledge until you’ve experimented and found them through trial and error.
Breadth Not Depth
For now, don’t despair if you feel like you’re becoming a sort of jack of all trades but master of none. Keep in mind that bootcamps are meant to be an intensive exposure to tools and concepts — to gain a breadth of knowledge. Don’t despair, you’ll have time for depth later. The brilliant thing is that the exposure you’ve gained will clue you in to the topics and tools that fire up your passions! So, post-bootcamp you’ll know more about what you’d like to learn more about or what kind of development you’d like to pursue.
|
https://medium.com/@gabriella.defrancesco92/how-to-succeed-in-a-coding-bootcamp-8490c8bfb3e0
|
['Gabriella De Francesco']
|
2019-04-12 18:14:52.605000+00:00
|
['Web Development', 'Codingbootcamp', 'Coding', 'Programming', 'Learning To Code']
|
3rd Wave BI: bringing the insights to business users in Qlik Sense
|
Every user has a different level of skill and their own particular goals when it comes to data. And, in an ideal world, they should be able to answer their own business questions to gain data-driven insights.
In today’s BI environment, user-driven analytics is slowly becoming the norm. But this wasn’t always the case.
The evolution of business intelligence
The concept of business intelligence originated in the 1950s, possibly even in the late 1800s, long before anyone conceived of a computerised system! Either way, the field developed to help organisations improve how they do things, from the business of war, to the continual battle of outmanoeuvring their competitors.
Business intelligence has transformed over the years, driven by the changing needs of users. Initially, a tool to help leaders improve industrial processes, it was adapted to harvest Big Data with the rise of social media and eventually to include solutions directly where users work, enabling them to drill-down into data and steer their daily decision-making.
Vizlib’s Viztips enable users to get a sneak-peak of their data before drilling down into more detail
The first wave of business intelligence
The BI transformation journey began with the first wave, which relied heavily on data science experts using slow, complex stacks to generate reports. These data experts were a select group of individuals trained and experienced in handling technical data science tools. As a result, the first wave was inevitably slow in responding to changing business requirements and limited further by a captive market including players such as IBM, SAP, Microsoft and Oracle.
The main constraint of this approach was the time it took to get your questions answered. Since the data experts were the only ones capable of getting the answers, it caused major bottlenecks in the data pipeline. Those asking the questions had to often wait weeks to get the insights they needed. Not only did follow up questions then slow down the whole analytics process further, but the leadership weren’t even asking the right questions. The result was a limited gain for organisations.
It was time for a change.
Throwing the user ‘net’ wider with the second wave
Image Credit: constellationr.com
The second wave widened the user base from only data science experts to include a new group — power users. With this iteration, analytics tools also became easier to use. Power users or business analysts could also analyse and generate reports without relying on a select few data scientists.
But the new wave had its ups and downs too. Yes, it fast-tracked the data pipeline considerably, but with a growing understanding and popularity of data, also swamped the business analysts with individual requests for insights. The average business user did not have the expertise to perform these functions themselves. Again, businesses didn’t realise as much value as they could from their BI, as these end-users frequently didn’t know what to do with the insights they received.
Then, the social media boom in the early 2000s introduced a paradigm — Big Data. A great opportunity for businesses, but only if they had the resources to leverage the growing data deluge. Organisations needed BI solutions, such as computing in the cloud, that empowered more users and brought users and data closer together.
The third wave — a power shift
Now the third wave of BI is forming, and with it, a shift from relying on slow, complex technical systems and reports (and a select group of specialists) to simpler interfaces that broaden the user base considerably. Finally, the power is being transferred to end-users to explore and analyse data themselves. And with fewer vias in the insights journey, business users can acquire vital data in time for agile decision-making and value-generating action.
Yet, for the current wave to truly reach its peak, it requires a two-way flow. Not only does BI success hinge on intuitive solutions and timely access to data, but it also requires something essential from the end-users; data literacy.
Users need to be data literate to work with data effectively; to turn insights into valuable action. And those users that aren’t, can easily become the weakest link in an organisation’s analytics pipeline, limiting the amount of value that can be extracted from data.
One approach to boost data literacy and scale-up BI in an organisation is to provide business users with intuitive, user-friendly solutions. Platforms that build their confidence to slice and dice data themselves, without jamming up business analysts and data scientists with a continual barrage of individual data queries.
Closing the insights gap with self-service analytics
Gartner defines self-service analytics as a form of business intelligence (BI) in which line-of-business professionals are enabled and encouraged to perform queries and generate reports on their own, with nominal IT support. They also reiterate the importance of using simple BI tools with basic analytic capabilities and a simplified data model, so all users have quick access to data and a better understanding of the analytic process.
Self-service analytics should enable all users to perform ad hoc analysis, queries and create reports on their own. And ideally, transform users from consuming reports constructed by data scientists to consuming data. They should feel confident and competent to get to the Why behind the data and, in the process, reveal previously undiscovered insights.
Boosting user adoption and business value with Vizlib
With Vizlib Self-Service, a value-added product for Qlik Sense, users can freely slice and dice data and extract quick insights without the risk of breaking anything or losing vital information. The power of data exploration is truly in their hands.
Vizlib Analytic Search enables quick and easy data exploration
Analytic Search for Vizlib Custom Report lets users query their dataset by typing or speaking — like googling, but within a governed dataset in Qlik Sense. No unexpected results or incorrect calculations that make little sense in their business context. This means that even the least technical users can easily deep-dive into their data confidently, relying on their own aptitude alone. (Along with simple, dynamic analytics solutions, of course!)
To get the best returns from your chosen BI solution, make sure it’s easy-to-use and intuitive. The platform should enable all data users to analyse data easily and confidently, promoting a data-driven culture. With the power in many hands, the business will inevitably generate more insights and ultimately greater business value!
|
https://medium.com/vizlib/3rd-wave-bi-bringing-the-insights-to-business-users-in-qlik-sense-97d38cb656db
|
['Lukas Pangonis']
|
2020-09-29 07:48:56.597000+00:00
|
['Data Analysis', 'Data Visualization', 'Business Intelligence', 'Qlik Sense Extension']
|
Why is it difficult to hack a Public Blockchain?
|
Why is it difficult to hack a Public Blockchain?
A Public Blockchain is a decentralized system. In such a system there are multiple nodes and each node is synced with the entire Blockchain database. To hack such a system, a hacker has to alter information in all the nodes. This is practically impossible. Even if somebody is able to hack it, the value of hacked coins goes down exponentially. Due to this the return on investment becomes very low for a hacker. In a public Blockchain the cost of transaction is high because a transaction is verified by thousands of users. Due to this a hacker has to pay a large amount of money to alter such transactions.
|
https://medium.com/@blockchaintrainer/why-is-it-difficult-to-hack-a-public-blockchain-21fd8f628b56
|
['Chintan Dave']
|
2020-11-13 18:02:03.661000+00:00
|
['Blockchain', 'Blockchain Technology', 'Blockchain Application', 'Blockchain Startup']
|
How to Tell If You Slept Well Last Night and What To Do If You Didn’t
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How to Tell If You Slept Well Last Night and What To Do If You Didn’t
Three signs of a good night’s sleep.
It’s one thing to feel well-rested, but it’s another to actually sleep well.
I’ve read a lot about the science of sleep while putting together the For The Interested newsletter each week and it turns out the signs of a good night’s sleep may not be quite what you assume.
Here are a few ways to assess just good your night’s sleep actually was…
1. Do you remember your dreams?
The less you remember your dreams, the better you slept.
I’ll spare you the full science lesson, but here’s a crash course in what happens when we sleep.
We work our way through several stages of Non-REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep highlighted by one which is the most valuable to our brain.
That stage is “as essential to our brain as food is to our body,” and it’s during that stage that our body repairs muscles, stimulates development, boosts immune functions, and builds up energy for the next day.
The Non-REM stages are followed by a REM stage, which accounts for about 20% of our sleep time and is the phase in which we dream.
REM sleep is a wild ride where you not only dream, but also your heart rate and blood pressure increase, eyes dart all over the place, and breathing becomes fast and shallow.
Some experts describe it as an actual psychotic state.
While your REM sleep and dreams serve a function —it’s when your brain processes learning and establishes memories — the reality is the more time you spend dreaming, the less time you spend in your other, most valuable sleep stage.
This is why the less you remember your dreams, the better your sleep likely was — it’s a sign you spent more time in the stage that’s most valuable.
You can read more about this concept here:
2. Did you fall asleep quickly and wake up rarely?
The quicker you fall asleep, the better your sleep was.
It’s not surprising that hours of tossing and turning before you fall asleep are not a sign of a great night’s rest, but do you know what’s a reasonable amount of time to expect it to take to drift off?
The National Sleep Foundation recently published guidance about what constitutes a good night’s sleep and here were the standards they shared:
You should be able to fall asleep in 30 minutes or less.
If you wake up in the middle of the night, it shouldn’t be for longer than 20 minutes.
You shouldn’t wake up for more than five minutes more than once a night.
85% of the time you spend in bed should be actually sleeping.
You can read more about these standards here:
3. Does everything feel better during the day?
If you’re reading this post I’m sure you already know sleep is important, but you may be surprised to see how much of your life it can impact.
One of the best ways to judge how well you’re sleeping is to gauge how well other things in your life are going.
For example, when you get a good night’s sleep, you…
Lose more weight and have a reduced appetite.
Take 10–30% longer to become physically exhausted when exercising.
Feel less depressed and anxious.
You can read more about the impact of a good night’s sleep here:
What to do if you didn’t sleep well last night…
If everything you read above has you a little worried about the quality of your sleep, here’s a quick exercise you can try tonight to fall asleep faster.
It’s based on an Army tactic developed to help soldiers fall asleep in two minutes when necessary despite stressful, chaotic conditions.
Here’s what you do…
Sit on the edge of your bed with no distractions and only a bedside light on. Relax your facial muscles. Let gravity pull your shoulders toward the ground and let your arms dangle. Breathe in and out, listening to your breath, and relaxing your legs. Clear your mind for 10 seconds. If thoughts come, let them pass. Visualize yourself lying in a canoe in a calm lake with clear blue skies above you or in a velvet hammock, gently swaying in a pitch-black room. Do this for about 10 seconds. Lie down, turn off the light, and you should fall asleep in a couple minutes.
The above method was proven to work for 96% of soldiers. It may not work for you immediately, but try it for a few days in a row and it likely will.
You can read more about it here:
Are You One Of The Interested?
Each week I share actionable ideas to improve your work, art, and life with The Interested.
Click below to see them.
|
https://medium.com/an-idea-for-you/how-to-tell-if-you-slept-well-last-night-and-what-to-do-if-you-didnt-e338553af778
|
['Josh Spector']
|
2019-10-24 21:43:33.327000+00:00
|
['Health', 'Life Lessons', 'Sleep', 'Productivity', 'Self Improvement']
|
CI/CD Ingredients for Success
|
So, what should a pipeline do?
I’m glad you asked. Each of the features I have included here are necessary to realise the benefits of a CI/CD pipeline. I have tried to be exhaustive but expect some variation.
Tests
This one is obvious, it should run some tests against your code. Wanna know if your code is working? Run some damn tests.
Packaging
It should be building some kind of deployable artifact. Again, obvious. You’re planning on deploying this, aren’t you? You need an artifact.
Security Scanning
This one raises a few eyebrows, but having personally implemented this, I have decided it is going on the “must have” list. Code and artifact scanning provide indispensable feedback. OWasp can scan your dependencies. Tenable can scan your containers. Checkmarx can take a look at your code. The specific tool isn’t what is important. What matters is the capability. You need to know when a SQL injection vulnerability pops up. Your tests might pass but your code isn’t production ready unless it’s secure.
What’s this trojan.ru file in your /tmp directory?
Don’t offload that responsibility onto an ops department or your infosec team. Own the problem and visualise it using automation. By baking security scanning into your pipeline, you’re generating vast streams of data that can be used in a crisis or in day-to-day debugging.
Deployment of Applications to ALL ENVIRONMENTS
I was once told that all deployments except production were automated because we couldn’t risk it for our production environments. Their deployments were so convoluted that they didn’t want to “risk” automating it. Deciding instead to leave it to the ever-reliable human mind.
Don’t shy away because you’re feeling nervous. If you’ve got a simple deployment process, automation is easy. If you’ve got a complex process, it’s an absolute necessity. There’s no way out: Automate, automate, automate.
Post-Deployment Checks
Once you’ve got your deployment out, how do you know it’s working? One key ingredient to a robust pipeline is a sanity check. This can take the form of a smoke test or as something more rigorous. You might issue an HTTP call to your API and check it returns with a 2xx status code. Whatever — don’t just assume your deployment was peachy because your app has started up.
Notifications
All together now - my deployment just failed!!
Regardless of whether your build has failed or succeeded, a notification should be issued by the pipeline. This should be sent to the medium that your engineers use most frequently. Don’t clog up people’s email inboxes — all they’ll do is make a rule and hide them away in a random folder. Push them through instant messaging platforms(and into any auditing solution) such as Slack or Microsoft Teams (sigh).
Good Error Messages
The best way to talk about good error messages is to start with an unclear error message:
Error: "nginx-ingress" has no deployed releases
This is obvious if you know about helm and have encountered this issue, alas, our error messages shouldn’t only be aimed at those who already know about the problem. It should be easily understood by everyone. So on the face of it, this message isn’t all that clear is it? I deployed my last release. It is deployed… I think. If you were to run helm list you’d see something like:
NAME REVISION UPDATED STATUS nginx-ingress 6 Fri May 3 11:19:45 2019 FAILED
The problem with the error message is that it offers no context or instruction. These are two completely essential ingredients. What does this mean, what is the impact, and what should you do? With these in mind, a more useful error message is something like this:
Your application can not be deployed because it is in a failed state. You can verify this using the helm list command. You should rollback to a previous working revision, using the helm rollback command.
The first sentence here provides lays out the root cause: The application is in the wrong state. It also offers diagnostic assistance should you want to verify this issue yourself. Context!
The second portion of this error message offers instruction for remediation. Instead of following some ancient confluence document, the instructions are right there in the code. A good error message can remove the need for extensive tutorials and how-to guides. It can eliminate costly googling and create living, responsive documentation in the code that won’t go stale. It’s worth spending the time getting those right.
Metrics
The last one is metrics. It is helpful to know how many deployments are failing, how many are succeeding, how long builds are taking, where the choke points are, etc. There is a wealth of information for your team to dig into and understand.
|
https://betterprogramming.pub/ci-cd-ingredients-for-success-2031cf7ad152
|
['Chris Cooney']
|
2019-06-10 18:36:39.740000+00:00
|
['DevOps', 'Programming', 'Continuous Delivery', 'Continuous Integration', 'Software Engineering']
|
Domain-Driven Design with FP in Scala
|
DDD + FP + Scala
Features of Scala and FP concepts that make it easy to implement domain models. How would this diagram look with different programming languages?
So we’ve talked about DDD and its goal of improved communication and understanding between the developers and domain experts. Now let’s assume we used Event Storming to understand business processes we want to automate, we have now a more clear picture of what we want to deliver in the first iteration and it’s just the right moment to start writing code!
Types…. Types, everywhere…..
The first thing we can do when implementing a domain model is to use types, that should be a part of the ubiquitous language and would make the implementation of the domain model more precise. Let’s see how to do that by looking first at a counterexample.
In some codebases, you can spot the following primitive type based implementation of a domain model:
case class Invoice(
companyName: String,
taxId: String,
street: String,
zipCode: String,
city: String,
country: String,
amount: BigDecimal,
currency: String,
payableUntil: ZonedDateTime
)
The values don’t have any domain meaning. They’re just strings with labels. It’ll hurt you in the long run, especially when you’ll be doing more operations on the Invoice as it’s easy to confuse the fields. You could end up with:
Invoice(
companyName = "123-45-67-890",
taxId = "",
street = "SW1A 0AA",
zipCode = "",
city = "UK",
country = "London",
amount = BigDecimal(10),
currency = "Oxford Street",
payableUntil = ZonedDateTime.now().plusWeeks(2)
)
and the project would still compile.
Types are a lie… well… if you don’t use them!
We can do better with Entities and Value Objects
Domain modeling with types is all about making the business knowledge explicit in the code. This is where DDD comes into play with concepts called Entities and Value Objects.
Entities are objects (not in OOP terms) that have a domain meaning with an identity and often a life cycle. For example Order, Customer, Shipment, Contract.
are objects (not in OOP terms) that have a domain meaning with an identity and often a life cycle. For example Order, Customer, Shipment, Contract. Value Objects represent values with a domain meaning. They lack identity and lifecycle. This is what makes them different from entities. Money, Address, or CompanyName would fall in that category.
It can happen, that in one domain some concepts can be modeled as value objects, in another one as entities. In an address book application, an address would probably be an entity, while in an invoicing system it could be a value object. There are more details regarding those constructs and you can find more about them in “The Blue Book” by Eric Evans.
Going back to our Invoice example, how we can improve it? A good starting point can be replacing all primitives with types that are more meaningful:
case class InvoiceId(value: UUID)
case class CompanyName(value: String)
case class TaxId(value: String)
case class Street(value: String)
case class ZipCode(value: String)
case class City(value: String)
case class Country(value: String)
case class Amount(value: BigDecimal)
case class Currency(value: String)
case class Invoice(
invoiceId: InvoiceId,
companyName: CompanyName,
taxId: TaxId,
street: Street,
zipCode: ZipCode,
city: City,
country: Country,
amount: Amount,
currency: Currency,
payableUntil: ZonedDateTime
)
That’s better, as now we can’t confuse any fields, as they have distinct types. We can improve that even further:
case class InvoiceId(value: UUID)
case class Company(
name: CompanyName,
billingAddress: BillingAddress,
taxId: TaxId
) case class BillingAddress(
street: Street,
zipCode: ZipCode,
city: City,
country: Country
) sealed trait Currency
case object PLN extends Currency
case object EUR extends Currency
case object GBP extends Currency case class Money(amount: BigDecimal, currency: Currency)
case class Invoice(
invoiceId: InvoiceId,
company: Company,
amount: Money,
payableUntil: ZonedDateTime
)
Side note: You might have doubts about runtime performance. Introducing so many new types, each of which will be instantiated at once with Invoice must impose some performance penalty. We’ll address this problem later.
We extracted all meaningful values to separate case classes (a.k.a. Value Objects), that are now a part of an Invoice case class (a.k.a. Entity). We gain several benefits from such design:
All terms, like billing address, currency, or tax id exist in the ubiquitous language and we use it every day to communicate with domain experts. If you show the snippet above to a non-technical domain expert, they’ll understand and validate it. They wouldn’t get what Strings or BigDecimals are since they know only about invoices, tax ids, or company names. We can add validation to every value object we extracted. Then, using function composition, we can construct a valid invoice. We’ll see how to do that in the next section. Every value object can contain behavior associated with it. What I mean is that you can define functions operating on e.g. Money, that would for example sum 2 amounts, and it’d be of type
sum: (Money, Money) => Money instead of operating on raw BigDecimals. Again: better type safety, readability, and less confusion.
It might be also worth pointing out, that Currency is an enum and can be easily implemented using Enumeratum library in Scala 2.x. What we gain is automatic type class derivation for enumeratum enums (e.g. Circe or Doobie codecs), convenience constructors ( withName , withNameOption , withNameUppercaseOnlyOption , …), or a possibility to list all enum entries. Scala 3, however, comes with the new enum construct, that might be the way to go.
Making illegal states unrepresentable
Making illegal states unrepresentable is another aspect, that might bring our implementation of the domain model closer to reality.
This concept boils down to forbidding illegal states in our application instead of performing defensive runtime checks or validations. If we try to encode such an invalid state, the compiler will raise an error. There are three primary ways to achieve that:
By using ADTs properly.
By using smart constructors.
By using type refinement.
Sounds enigmatic? Let’s see them in action.
Making illegal states unrepresentable using ADTs
Let’s imagine we have a system, that processes jobs asynchronously. It allows fetching the result of each task by ID. A naive way of modeling the task result would be:
case class JobResult[R](
result: Option[R],
progress: Double,
eta: Option[Duration],
isComplete: Boolean,
isFailed: Boolean
)
When we see such a definition, we can only assume the intentions. It’s easy to put JobResult in an invalid state. For example, what would be the meaning of:
JobResult(
result = Some(42),
progress = 47.34,
eta = Some(Duration(3, TimeUnit.HOURS)),
isComplete = true,
isFailed = false
)
Instead, we can model the job result as follows:
sealed trait JobResult
case class Done[R](result: R) extends JobResult
case class InProgress(progress: Double, eta: Option[Duration]) extends JobResult
case class Failed(error: Throwable) extends JobResult
Now it’s impossible to put the job result in an invalid state and the intentions are clearly expressed using types.
Hint: if you see booleans in your domain model, think if it makes sense to convert them to distinct types.
Making illegal states unrepresentable using smart constructors
In the past, I had an interesting discussion with a colleague about validation. When I joined the project I noticed all validations were performed inside domain services. Here’s a simplified code of the OrderService:
case class Order(customerId: CustomerId, amount: Money)
class OrderService(...) {
def fulfill(order: Order): IO[Either[Error, Unit]] = {
if (order.amount.amount > BigDecimal(10)) {
Left(Error("Order amount is too high")).liftTo[IO]
}
if (customerId.value.isEmpty) {
Left(Error("CustomerId is empty")).liftTo[IO]
}
// continue with order fulfillment
}
}
What they wanted to achieve was reasonable. We should make sure Order is valid before starting the fulfillment process. This was a requirement from the domain expert.
Unfortunately, from a technical perspective, such a defensive approach to validation is not scalable. If the number of validation rules grows, the order fulfillment function will be cluttered with validation logic. Not to mention an exploding amount of unit tests. What if we want to implement an order shipping functionality? We’d probably have to duplicate all the validations there.
What if instead of performing validation inside the OrderService, we could make sure it’s impossible to create an invalid Order in our system? So whenever an Order is constructed, it is already valid, and OrderService now:
Doesn’t have to perform Order validation.
Doesn’t have to figure out what to do if it’s invalid.
In other words, we’d make Order in an illegal state (e.g. with invalid amount) unrepresentable in our application. Any other piece of code operating on an Order, not necessarily the OrderService, could immediately assume it’s valid. Let’s try it!
First of all, let’s make the constructor private:
case class Order private(customerId: CustomerId, amount: Money)
Unfortunately, we’re still able to use the apply in companion object to construct an Order:
@ Order(CustomerId("a"), Money(BigDecimal(10), PLN)) res10: Order = Order(CustomerId("a"), Money(10, PLN))
To forbid that, we’ll make the apply method private:
object Order {
private def apply(
customerId: CustomerId,
amount: Money
): Order = new Order(customerId, amount)
}
It’s still possible to create an invalid order by creating a valid one and then copying it using copy method and setting invalid values. To prevent that, we can use a trick to define Order as sealed abstract case class . This will make copying impossible. Whether to use sealed abstract case class , or just a case class , is a matter of taste. On one hand, you forbid copying, on the other, the signature becomes longer.
Now we want to allow constructing only valid Orders. To do that, we’ll create a smart constructor, that will perform the validation:
object Order {
def create(
customerId: CustomerId,
amount: Money
): Either[ValidationError, Order] = ???
}
Implementing validation
Let’s have a look at how could we approach the implementation of the create smart constructor. A naive way to do it would be:
def create(
customerId: CustomerId,
amount: Money
): Either[ValidationError, Order] =
if (customerId.value.isEmpty) {
Left(ValidationError("customerId should be nonempty"))
} else if (amount.amount < 0) {
Left(ValidationError("Amount should be greater than 0"))
} else {
Right(Order(customerId, amount, items))
}
But it’s not scalable. With more fields and validation rules, create method would grow quickly. When introducing Value Objects, I mentioned they could perform validation on their own. With such an approach, we wouldn’t be able to create an invalid CustomerId or Money in our application.
case class CustomerId private (value: String)
object CustomerId {
private def apply(
value: String
): CustomerId = new CustomerId(value) def create(
value: String
): Either[ValidationError, Order] =
if (value.nonEmpty) Right(CustomerId(value))
else Left(ValidationError("customerid should be nonempty"))
}
Assuming that we do the same with Money, the Order create method would look as follows:
def create(
customerId: CustomerId,
amount: Money
): Either[ValidationError, Order] = Order(customerId, amount, items)
We don’t need to validate CustomerId, nor the Money when constructing an Order. We could even make the Order#apply method public again now. That’s because we pushed the responsibility of constructing a valid CustomerId and Money to the caller.
Constructing Order from primitive types
Yet, we still might want to construct an Order from primitive types. One way to implement it is by using a for-comp:
def create(
customerId: String,
amount: BigDecimal,
currency: String
): Either[ValidationError, Order] =
for {
customerId <- CustomerId.create(customerId)
money <- Money.create(amount, currency)
} yield Order(customerId, money)
In this approach, however, the execution would short-circuit on the first validation error found. If customerId is invalid, then the program wouldn’t even try to create money. The for-comprehension would immediately return a ValidationError instead. Let’s see that in action:
@ Order.create("", -10, "PLN")
res8: Left(ValidationError(customerid should be nonempty)) @ Order.create("nonemptyCustomerId", -10, "PLN")
res9: Left(ValidationError(amount should be greater than 0)) @ Order.create("nonemptyCustomerId", 42, "PLN")
res10: Right(Order(CustomerId(nonemptyCustomerId),Money(42,PLN)))
Maybe we expect such fail-fast behavior, maybe not. Oftentimes when performing validation we want to verify all the fields at once and accumulate errors, if occurred. Unfortunately, it’s not doable with Either . To achieve this, we can use another data type called Validated available in Cats.
Using Validated data type
Validated data type is very similar to Either. It has the same shape as Either: Validated[E, A] , and serves a similar purpose. Why would you consider using it if it’s the same though? The difference is that Validated performs validation with accumulating all the errors, while Either does not.
… but why? This difference in behavior between Validated and Either comes from the fact, that Validated is an applicative, and Either is a monad. That means, that you cannot flatMap Validated, but you can only compose it using applicative composition (e.g. mapN).
Side note: Functional constructs like functors, applicatives (a.k.a. applicative functors), or monads are not the goal of this article. While you’re not required to understand them as a functional programmer, it’s worth doing that, and Validated is in fact a great way to learn about applicative functors. I can recommend reading documentation about Validated, which describes what an applicative is and how it differs from a monad.
Let’s get back to the code. With Validated, the implementation would look as follows:
import cats.implicits._
import cats.data.NonEmptyList def create(
customerId: String,
amount: BigDecimal,
currency: String
): Either[NonEmptyList[ValidationError], Order] =
(
CustomerId.create(customerId).toValidatedNel,
Money.create(amount, currency).toValidatedNel
).mapN(Order.apply).toEither
We converted all smart constructors returning Eithers to Validated using toValidatedNel . The toValidatedNel helps us to convert from Either[E, A] to Validated[NonEmptyList[E], A] , as the errors will be accumulated inside the NonEmptyList. We’re using mapN , which is one of the ways to compose applicatives. In the end, we convert back to Either[NonEmptyList[ValidationError], Order] using toEither .
Let’s try it out:
@ Order.create("", -10, "PLN")
res10: Left(NonEmptyList(ValidationError(customerid should be nonempty), ValidationError(amount should be greater than 0))) @ Order.create("nonemptyCustomerId", 42, "PLN")
res11: Right(Order(CustomerId(nonemptyCustomerId),Money(42,PLN)))
As we can see all the validation errors are accumulated now.
Error accumulation with Either using cats Parallel
While it’s impossible to use just Either to achieve accumulative behavior, we can use a trick to emulate that using cats Parallel type class.
The Parallel type class, that is applicable to Monads, that could be also composed in parallel as if it was an Applicative. All Monads are applicatives. It means there’s an applicative instance available for every monad (but not the other way around), but it’s implemented in terms of flatMap (there’s so-called monad-applicative consistency law). In other words, you can do mapN on e.g. Either monad, but it’ll compose sequentially anyways i.e. with fail-fast behavior.
Parallel solves that problem by converting a Monad to Applicative under the hood. What it means in the context of Order validation is that we could implement it as follows:
def create(
customerId: String,
amount: BigDecimal,
currency: String
): Either[NonEmptyList[ValidationError], Order] =
(
CustomerId.create(customerId).toEitherNel,
Money.create(amount, currency).toEitherNel
).parMapN(Order.apply)
We use toEitherNel , that simply converts any Either[E, A] to Either[NonEmptyList[E], A] . Then, instead of mapN , we use parMapN , that does the job for us: converts Either to Validated, runs validation, and converts back to Either. Neat!
Making illegal states unrepresentable using type refinement
Type refinement is another way to make invalid states unrepresentable. For example, having Order modeled as follows:
case class CustomerId(value: String)
case class Money(amount: BigDecimal, currency: Currency) case class Order(customerId: CustomerId, amount: Money)
Let’s say, that we want customerId to be always non-empty, and money amount to be always great than 0. All other values should be forbidden. We could achieve that using so-called refined types. What it means is we can express the business constraints ( customerId != “” and Money amount > 0 ) using types and validation will be working both during compile and runtime. We’ll use fthomas/refined library for that.
For example, to make sure CustomerId is always non-empty, we’ll NonEmptyString instead of String. The same for the amount: instead of BigDecimal, we’ll use NonNegBigDecimal.
import eu.timepit.refined.types.all._ case class CustomerId(value: NonEmptyString)
case class Money(amount: NonNegBigDecimal, currency: Currency)
case class Order(customerId: CustomerId, amount: Money)
To create values of the refined types we can use the following functions:
import eu.timepit.refined.refineMV
import eu.timepit.refined.refineV @ refineMV[NonEmpty]("a")
res0: NonEmptyString = a @ refineV[NonEmpty]("b")
res1: Either[String, NonEmptyString] = Right(bb) @ refineV[NonEmpty]("")
res2: Either[String, NonEmptyString] = Left(Predicate isEmpty() did not fail.)
refineMV turns a literal value (known at compile time) into a refined type.
turns a literal value (known at compile time) into a refined type. refineV turns a runtime value into a refined type.
We can still create smart constructors that would internally use refineV , and expose our validation error types instead of the errors types coming from Refined.
|
https://medium.com/@bszwej/domain-driven-design-with-fp-in-scala-21b557f94aa5
|
['Bartłomiej Szwej']
|
2020-11-24 12:11:58.544000+00:00
|
['Programming', 'Domain Driven Design', 'Scala', 'Functional Programming', 'Software Development']
|
Not One, Not Two, But Three Turntables ¹
|
Not One, Not Two, But Three Turntables ¹
Okay, well, being as how Dubstep seems to be the theme of the day for a variety of reasons …
Phuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuh Q, Rollins!
SKisM — Rave Review
Whilst we’re on the topic of lonely hearts … (you can blame herself for that particular thematic detour)
Ylvis — Someone Like Me
But … as I do so like my sonata form synthesis ² (and not just in music)
DJ Buckaroo: Who is Ylvis (’93 old skool raver mix) — I defy even Dennett not to grin to this (Jeez … even Erik’s gotta smile at *this* one) 😉
Actually, however, the title and the pre-amble are misleading: this isn’t about three, four (or even eight ³) turntables at all … or about Dubstep … nor even love, death and/or robots … it’s about the fact that
I CAN HAZ THREE MONITORS!!!
You see the Trigger Finger and Kaoss Pad here … well, they’re not any more.
I was getting frustrated with only two monitors: the second you open even only a handful of VSTi and/or VSTfx, you can’t see the timeline or the mixer and that’s no good — so, a third monitor on which to leave open a spectral analyser, master EQ and the main synth(s) I’m working with, without cluttering my view of everything else, or losing them behind whatever other synth/fs I open up to tweak … that’d be fine, you get me?
The problem is though that my laptop wasn’t chosen for how many monitors it can support but for the specs and, above all, CPU (it’s an i5, not an i7 ⁵).
I’ve been threatening to get a (rather expensive) dock and increase the number to four (or, potentially, even five) but was persuaded by the same friend who gifted me the WiFi AP that it would be an expensive mistake to spend the money only to discover the graphics driver wouldn’t support more than two and, instead, to try a spare USB-to-VGA/HDMI/DVI converter they’d send me first — then, if it didn’t, no harm done and, if it did, I could always spend the extra money, if I wanted to.
Which (cutely impetuous though I may by nature be) I could see the sense of and, so … grumbling as I did so … I graciously agreed to take them up on their kind offer.
Well, it arrived today and
I CAN HAZ THREE MONITORS!!!
WOO! YEAH!
But this post would’ve been rather dull, if it had only been about how I now have three monitors, wouldn’t it?
So, you got some music too … and an education in musical form and how it relates to the principle of thesis/antithesis/synthesis in other dimensions as well as well — you’re welcome, you ingrates.
There look … music and technology and Philosophy — a post even Jacky can enjoy 😀
Right … all I’ve got to do now is say nothing to my benefactor about it and wait for them to enquire — at which point I can offhandedly remark “What? Oh … yeah … that. Yeah, it arrived <a long time ago>. What? Oh. Yeah. Yeah, it works. Whatever” … because ‘Gracious’ and ‘Humble’ are my middle names 😉
Nah … I’ll send them a message in a moment, thanking them and expressing my delight — it’s the least I can do (definitely cheaper than paying them for it 😉)
|
https://medium.com/@whereangelsfeartotread/not-one-not-two-but-three-turntables-%C2%B9-adbb535e0d4b
|
['Where Angels Fear']
|
2020-10-22 12:50:59.390000+00:00
|
['Technology', 'Music', 'Music Production', 'Computers', 'Computer Technology']
|
The Newspaper
|
It’s a long-accepted truth of artists and writers everywhere that the art as you complete it is never as amazing and wonderful as it was in your head. It doesn’t matter if you’re painting, singing, writing or dancing: in your mind it was perfect.
It’s the same for photography. In my last few days at the newspaper, I attempted to capture in still life the character and flavor of the place to which I devoted 18 years of my life. I only partly succeeded. I feel the images very strongly myself, but that’s because they trigger memories and emotions for me. Those memories are stirred up again this week, as my former employer begins its move out of its historic old building and into new offices, like the Chicago Tribune, St. Louis Post-Dispatch and so many others.
Sunset probably wasn’t the best time to capture a century-old building, at least not when City Hall was casting a shadow over it. I’ll let you decide if that’s symbolism.
The chandelier in the lobby makes a light rattling sound when the air system is working, but it’s too quiet to hear unless you’re on the night shift and really bored.
It’s really a lovely old brick building, located a block or two from the city’s Main Street square.
The walls are covered with framed front pages from moments in history. We walked past them every day, barely noticing them, as though we weren’t occasionally writing our own rough drafts of history.
And, of course, sometimes the history is our own.
Every newsroom still has a giant dictionary. It doesn’t matter that we all have every word in every language at our fingertips on the internet. No one would even consider mothballing the dictionary.
This sign belongs in every office everywhere.
The sports department has its own particular flavor.
As does the photography department, a specialty that has probably changed more than any other.
The photographers got their commercial drone licenses only a few months before I left. It took them months of training just short of gaining a pilot’s license, not to mention the testing. We wanted to get them little pilots’ hats to celebrate their success, but were unable to find them at the local party store. Instead…
Another relic no one would think of excising no matter how little it is used.
We may or may not have swiped some of the hats from Joe Ostermeier’s retirement party to add some fun to the police scanner. That person may or may not have been me.
This carved seal stood watch over the features department, well known as the only group that could keep a potted plant alive.
The editors’ bay kept watch over our daily numbers and the three major news networks: Fox News, CNN and MSNBC. At least until the bosses went home, and then one of them generally switched over to the Cardinals game. I leave it to you to decide which network got the boot…
The newspaper won the Robert F. Kennedy Award for an investigation uncovering how the state child-services department looked the other way in 53 cases of child abuse and neglect that culminated in the child’s death.
One of our former reporters called these “The Exorcist Stairs” and it stuck. At least for me. They were the steepest stairs I’ve ever climbed with the possible exception of my home office tower. I had to stop using them entirely while recovering from the Halloween Punch, and I’m still not sure I could safely navigate them. Fortunately, the Elevator of Questionable Sanity was usually available…
The newsroom is only peaceful at night when everyone is gone. And even then, that large screen to the side is watching over the site.
And yet there are so many empty desks.
Including mine.
|
https://elizabethdonald42.medium.com/the-newspaper-2acbd54a7a66
|
['Elizabeth Donald']
|
2020-01-15 15:16:01.375000+00:00
|
['Journalism', 'Newspaper Transformation', 'Photojournalism', 'Newspapers', 'Memoir']
|
I will produce valid gospel music,christian music,music promotion
|
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|
https://medium.com/@gabrielshegmart/i-will-produce-valid-gospel-music-christian-music-music-promotion-e0c20479fea8
|
[]
|
2020-12-17 13:07:07.537000+00:00
|
['Gospel', 'Christian Music', 'Christian', 'Video Marketing', 'Musicpromotion']
|
Chipped, cracked
|
Chipped, Cracked: Trisha Traughber 2019
Young you learn
sometimes and without trace,
explanation or final
whisper, the grown
disappear, leaving you with the smallest
crumbs — a Christmas gift from a time
someone you looked up to
traveled the world to bring you back
the small trinkets
of her exploits, and you the child
held that tea set from the Sonoran
desert heavy in your hands, tracing
the clay and the painted flowers.
Time spins her wheel, spattering
the clay, these artifacts chipped,
scattered, and you still hold them, tracing
the rough edges where a piece of the perfect
exterior had fallen, knowing that she
was out there
somewhere — that piece had splintered
from your heart
and gone.
And yet you are now
grown and so, as you trace
fingers over the earthen
expression of love left
from your simple and single-minded
childhood where love is love,
it should come as no
surprise that sometimes the grown take
flight, lift off, depart, never
to return, without a whisper even,
terminal, too short for now.
That the times of always being
somewhere, possible,
at the reach
of a child’s fingertips
would end in a phone call from one,
to another, until
the news finds you dragging your childlike
digits over the smooth earthen relic
to linger on the rough
place where something
is missing and you realize the day
you thought you would
see her again is
never, and grown or no,
you are not prepared
for the feeling of this piece
lost.
© Trisha Traughber 2019 words and image.
|
https://medium.com/the-partnered-pen/chipped-cracked-56c54796b35b
|
['Trisha Traughber']
|
2019-08-21 20:24:13.711000+00:00
|
['Life Lessons', 'Family', 'Poetry', 'Loss', 'Love']
|
Index Pairs of a String
|
Given a text string and words (a list of strings), return all index pairs [i, j] so that the substring text[i]...text[j] is in the list of words .
Example 1:
Input: text = "thestoryofleetcodeandme", words = ["story","fleet","leetcode"]
Output: [[3,7],[9,13],[10,17]]
Example 2:
Input: text = "ababa", words = ["aba","ab"]
Output: [[0,1],[0,2],[2,3],[2,4]]
Explanation:
Notice that matches can overlap, see "aba" is found in [0,2] and [2,4].
Note:
All strings contain only lowercase English letters. It’s guaranteed that all strings in words are different. 1 <= text.length <= 100 1 <= words.length <= 20 1 <= words[i].length <= 50 Return the pairs [i,j] in sorted order (i.e. sort them by their first coordinate in case of ties sort them by their second coordinate).
Solution:
A naive approach would be finding all the match of the word in the text and track the position of the hit.
After finding all the match for every word, do some sorting like interval sorting. I found it tricky.
— Better Approach —
We can use the beauty of TreeMap which does natural sorting for us. We will use the starting position as a Key(K) and value will list(List<Integer>) of endings for all the word. Before creating the output pairs, we can take Key as the first value and Sort the list make pairs with the first value.
Example:
text = "ababa", words = ["aba","ab"]
Take the word “aba” and search it in the text. It will hit the 0th position and 2nd position. so Map would be
K V
0 ->2
2 ->4
Now take “ab”, it will hit 0th and 2nd position. Update our map and it will look like below:
K V
0 ->2,1
2 ->4,3
As we see that our map is naturally ordered already. So take the keys and sort the value before making the pairs.
K V
0 ->1,2
2 ->3,4
So the final result would be:
[0,1][0,2][2,3][2,4]
Here is my java implementation:
public class IndexPairsOfString {
IndexPairsOfString indexPairsOfString;
@BeforeEach
public void init() {
indexPairsOfString = new IndexPairsOfString();
}
@Test
public void firstSimpleExample() {
int[][] result = indexPairsOfString.indexPairs("thestoryofleetcodeandme", new String[]{"story", "fleet", "leetcode"});
Assertions.assertArrayEquals(new int[][]{{3,7},{9,13},{10,17}},result);
} private int[][] indexPairs(String text, String[] words) {
TreeMap<Integer, List<Integer>> map = new TreeMap<>();
for (int i = 0; i < words.length; i++) {
String word = words[i];
List<Integer> startPos = findWord(text, word);
for (int j = 0; j < startPos.size(); j++) {
int s = startPos.get(j);
int e = s + word.length() - 1;
map.computeIfAbsent(s, k -> new ArrayList<>()).add(e);
}
}
System.out.println(map);
ArrayList<int[]> resultList = new ArrayList<>();
Iterator<Map.Entry<Integer, List<Integer>>> iterator = map.entrySet().iterator();
while (iterator.hasNext()) {
Map.Entry<Integer, List<Integer>> entry = iterator.next();
int start = entry.getKey();
List<Integer> val = entry.getValue();
Collections.sort(val);
for (int i = 0; i < val.size(); i++) {
resultList.add(new int[]{start, val.get(i)});
}
}
int[][] res = new int[resultList.size()][2];
for (int i = 0; i < resultList.size(); i++) {
res[i] = resultList.get(i);
}
return res;
}
private List<Integer> findWord(String textString, String word) {
List<Integer> indexes = new ArrayList<Integer>();
String lowerCaseTextString = textString.toLowerCase();
String lowerCaseWord = word.toLowerCase();
int index = 0;
while (index != -1) {
index = lowerCaseTextString.indexOf(lowerCaseWord, index);
if (index != -1) {
indexes.add(index);
index++;
}
}
return indexes;
}
}
You can find the source in GitHub as well.
|
https://medium.com/algorithm-and-datastructure/index-pairs-of-a-string-7b7c8306ead0
|
['Omar Faroque']
|
2019-06-03 00:43:44.048000+00:00
|
['Leetcode', 'Interview Questions', 'Data Structures', 'Index Pair', 'Algorithms']
|
My New Gig: West Coast Outreach for Kickstarter
|
After working with 10 world-class robotics startups; Qualcomm, a leader in connectivity; and Techstars, one of the largest entrepreneurial ecosystems, I didn’t think life could get more thrilling. Then, Kickstarter gave me a ring.
I got started with community building while at the University of North Texas, co-founding a nonprofit called Techmill, with the mission of developing the North Texas tech startup scene. I wanted to know more about the mechanics of building a startup, but my university didn’t have the hands-on learning I craved and my college town, Denton Tx, didn’t yet have a tech community to join. So I built one from scratch with a handful of passionate co-founders. Meetups, hackathons, coworking spaces — we did it all, with humbling support from our growing community.
Techmill Coworking Space | Banter Location
We launched with a weekly coworking meetup at our favorite coffee joint and, through completely member-based growth, grew into two coworking spaces in our college town of 100,000 people, one location completely free and open to the public. My cofounders and I developed a devotion to the idea of lean, customer-based growth in our city’s growing tech collective. After organizing events and establishing a support system for tech creatives, I discovered how much I love building ecosystems where innovators thrive. Together, our freshly formed community supported the growth of promising companies and ideas — ranging from Kubos’ open source software for satellites to DrawAttention’s decals that transform your laptop into a whiteboard. One of our members earned his spot in Techmill’s coworking space by building all of our desks and he now has his own custom furniture business, aptly named, Denton Sustainable Creators.
Techmill’s Annual Bootstrappers’ Mixer
My passion for building entrepreneurial ecosystems lead me to Techstars — working first in London and then as Program Manager in San Diego, where I helped establish the Qualcomm Robotics Accelerator, powered by Techstars. This program offered the opportunity to dive headfirst into hardware and robotics. I had my hands in everything: scouring the globe for the best robotics founders, building a bulletproof list of hardware investors, and running our dazzling robot-packed demo day. Community building and founder outreach quickly became priorities: the cherry on top of a fantastic position. At the community building level, you’re immersed in the enthusiasm-driven end of the entrepreneurship spectrum. Makers and creators share ideas left and right, pulling you into a world seen through their eyes. Founder outreach has it’s own intensity; in talks with teams and founders so close to realizing their shared vision, I acted as a connector who shared in their excitement and helped hustle the resources they needed to take the next step.
After the Qualcomm Robotics Accelerator concluded, Kickstarter came into focus as a possible next adventure. Working with the Kickstarter team would put me smack in the middle of what I love to do: seek out tech creatives and help shape their journeys as they shape our world. The decision was an easy one. Without a moment’s hesitation, I joined the Kickstarter team as the Design and Technology Outreach Lead for the West Coast.
I had been part of this community for years, as a backer — and even then, I could feel the passion and creativity of the people behind the platform. Now, I’m here at Kickstarter, surrounded by a hive of people buzzing about creators and projects — my team ever proud of the cultural and technological impact our community has on the world. Strolling through Kickstarter’s Brooklyn headquarters in the middle of a Saturday while a PancakeBot is being put together in the kitchen, it’s pretty clear that this place is a nexus of creativity.
While the rest of the D&T Outreach team is in Brooklyn, I’ll be in the wild west, based in San Francisco. I’m stoked to contribute to Kickstarter’s growing presence in the Bay Area. Traveling up and down the West Coast, you’ll find creators working on everything from codable drone kits for kids to underwater robots. Working on the West Coast will make it even easier for us to connect with creators to give them the support that they need. I couldn’t be more excited to be leading this effort.
|
https://medium.com/kickstarter/my-new-gig-west-coast-outreach-for-kickstarter-60507c34c945
|
['Clarissa Redwine']
|
2018-05-09 15:39:47.817000+00:00
|
['Startup']
|
Our 31st birthday
|
“If you’re looking for a sign, here it is.”
So much to say, yet I cannot find all the words.
I had zero expectations for my 31st birthday. Observing 2020 birthdays from March through December, I knew to set my expectations low. To say these expectations were exceeded would be a colossal understatement.
It all started the evening of December 21st when I logged onto Facebook and was asked if I wanted to create a birthday fundraiser. Just a few days earlier I had mentioned to my husband, Andrew, that I wanted to do something special to honor my late twin brother, Brandon. This seemed like an opportune moment to do so.
Facebook prompted me to select a charity and set a goal, so I sought out to raise $310 for the obvious charity of choice, the Henry Viscardi School, where Brandon attended for most of his life. The next morning I woke up, and saw that my goal was met and we had raised over $600. I was so happy!
Five days later, I am elated to share that over 200 kind hearts from the Wolfbiss-Cohen-Mechak community (and many kind strangers) have raised over $13,000. My family is so moved by the generosity and support of so many who contributed to honor, remember and celebrate Brandon on our 31st birthday.
As I mentioned in my original fundraiser note, the weeks and days leading up to mine and Brandon’s birthday are always the hardest. The anticipation of another year passing without him, after spending 27 years celebrating and wishing for his health and happiness (which I spoke about publicly a few years ago), can be unbearable. So each year my family sets out to ensure I am sufficiently celebrated and distracted when December 26th arrives.
With the pandemic this year, Andrew and I decided to head to Hudson, NY to spend a few nights to celebrate. And celebrate we did. After a fun-filled day of COVID-safe activities, we went to our hotel restaurant for dinner. We were seated in a private room, and while enjoying our dinner, a family of five was seated in the same room as us. Feeling slightly uncomfortable with the situation we proceeded to put our masks on and request to sit in a more secluded area.
As I got up, I took notice of who was actually at this table… turns out, it was Al Roker and his family.
While not everyone might recognize the co-host/weatherman from the Today Show, in the Wolfbiss household, because of Brandon, Al is the ultimate celebrity.
For some context, anyone who knew Brandon knew of his obsession with the Thanksgiving Day Parade. Those close to him and/or our family know we host a “Parade Party” at 8:45am on Thanksgiving morning with our own ribbon cutting countdown followed by popping a bottle of champagne, and the reciting of “Let’s have a parade!” (which is also what is written on Brandon’s gravestone).
What most people might not know is that on television, a similar (slightly less elaborate) ceremony is hosted by Al Roker himself, and Brandon had our family spend the days leading up to the event each predicting what Al was going to wear. (Think: Red scarf, brown jacket, blue glasses type of detail).
So tonight, I called an audible on our decision to change tables. Tears streamed down my face and my hands were shaking as Andrew convinced me I had to share Brandon’s story with Al. As the birthday cake approached and Al and his family began to join in singing happy birthday, I mustered up the courage to share all of the above with him, including video footage of our past Thanksgiving Parade celebrations. Al was engaged and kind, and asked what my brother’s name was. He and his family raised a glass to toast B with us (and I asked for permission to capture the moment).
I have always felt that memories are what keep our loved ones alive, but the signs give us the assurance to know they are okay and they are still with us. And my Mom always says, “there are no coincidences.” My sign from my beautiful brother, my other half, my twinnie, Brandon, was the ultimate gift. And it made our quite insignificant 31st, pandemic birthday, really quite special.
2021… Let’s have a parade!
|
https://medium.com/@tracybcohen/our-31st-birthday-1312d3f1e9ee
|
['Tracy', 'Wolfbiss']
|
2020-12-27 20:09:23.268000+00:00
|
['Twins', 'Grief', 'Love', 'Loss']
|
I played Google Stadia so you don’t have to. Here are my thoughts…
|
Photo by Fredrick Tendong on Unsplash
I have been playing games for as long as I remember. I started way back in the 80’s with a ZX Spectrum and now have a Playstation 4 and a Nintendo Switch. I work within the industry and see a lot of innovations come and go. Google Stadia seems interesting, very interesting.
I won’t need a power PC or the latest console hardware, just an internet connection, an optional controller and a bit of monthly money. I’m in.
How much bandwidth is required?
Google recommends 10mbps for 1080p, 35mbps to run in 4K. To push a 1080p image without sound is approx 5mbps. Google is recommending a bit more, plus we need synchronised audio with the image and handle user input.
I have more than enough so I should get a high fidelity, buttery smooth experience. Spoiler: I don’t.
Setup
There are two main ways to play Stadia on a large screen. One is using the Google Chromecast and the other a web browser. I am using a web browser. I can not talk about the Chromecast experience. One assumes it must be better than the web experience as Google offer a 4k option. Spoiler, the web option is not good.
Setup was a cinch. I already have a Google Account, as do most of us, and several PS4 controllers. You can have one month for free so trying it out won’t cost me a penny. If you do not have a Google account you’ll need to create one of those.
For hardware I am running a 2019 16" Mac Book Pro and a 50 mbps internet connection. This should be good.
Fast internet, check
From opening the Stadia web page, registering, to playing was less than 30 minutes. There is nothing to install and the only real task was connecting my PS4 controller to my MBP. Stadia recognised the controller straight away.
The Games
Roughly 20 games are offered for free, something for everyone, so no need to buy a game to try it out. I decided to try two games. An off road racing game, to see how it handled refresh rates and Hitman, to see how it handled fidelity. I have played both games on my base PS4. Neither of them rock the graphics world but both look good enough and so should be a fair test.
This could be my new way of playing and maybe, “maybe”, I won’t need the sizeable PS5.
First the racing game. I was very disappointed with this one. The graphics were muddy, the sound choppy, the resolution jumped from crystal clear to barely recognisable blur. Unplayable. If I had paid money to play this game I would have been fuming. Not a great start.
Second, Hitman.
Having played Hitman on my PS4 I immediately noticed, being the PC version, had more detail, MORE fidelity but… popins, stutter, broken sound. Not playable. The picture quality was so poor I felt I was playing a PS2 game.
I tried several other “Free” games and not one title showed any promise.
Any good news?
Loading times were significantly improved over my PS4. So an advantage there. The PS5 and XBox Series X both address loading times so even that advantage is quickly dealt with.
I immediately cancelled my Stadia subscription and will need to purchase a console in the near future to keep up with the latest games. A great premise but nowhere near ready.
Conclusion
In conclusion, don’t bother. Not yet anyway and not web browser only. 5G might make this something for the future but that future is not now.
It is a shame because I really wanted this to work. I have the bandwidth and the computing power so why did this experiment fail? I really can not answer that. It should, on paper, work really well. Stadia has been out of over 6 months and sadly it just does not work. Given the perceived time and money spent on this project perhaps it can not be done using today’s technology.
Google are big boys and they have had the time and it appears that even they can not crack the streaming question.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Google run this for a number of years then pull it as a failed experiment. Google+ anyone.
|
https://medium.com/@mal-clarke-uk/i-played-stadia-so-you-dont-have-to-here-are-my-thoughts-544101e962c2
|
['Mal Clarke']
|
2020-12-27 10:26:42.288000+00:00
|
['Google', 'Streaming', 'Stadia', 'Internet', 'Gaming']
|
When the Answers are Uncertain…
|
We get it.
Change is tough even in normal times. And change in the midst of chaos can push us over the edge. Leaving us feeling overwhelmed and stuck, unable to move forward. Do you ever wish you had a crystal ball so you could look into the future and know that everything will be okay? Sometimes what causes us the greatest stress is that the answers are uncertain; the unknown.
As a young child, I was completely oblivious to the fact that I needed glasses until I took a mandatory eye exam at my elementary school. My parents were notified and I was promptly taken to an eye doctor. And within a short period of time, I was wearing my new glasses. I remember the feeling of finally seeing things that I never knew existed. I remember how amazing it felt to see clearly. When things are uncertain, our lives feel unfocused, much like poor vision. We just feel better when we have clarity about what the future holds.
Do you ever wish you had a crystal ball so you could look into the future and know that everything will be okay?
Think about a time when you’ve had to make a difficult decision. Sometimes the most painful part of making a hard decision is all of the contemplation you do leading up to the actual decision. Weighing all of the pros and cons. Seeking advice from trusted friends. Thinking about all possible outcomes. The worst-case scenarios. But once you’ve made the decision, everything suddenly becomes clear. You can take action and move forward with your decision.
When answers are uncertain, our lives feel unfocused, much like poor vision.
But how do you do that when there are so many unknowns? Sometimes you have to learn to live with uncertainty and ambiguity. The reality is that there has always been uncertainty in life. You just weren’t as aware of it because you had your normal schedule and day-to-day life, and that made you feel more safe and secure. You may never love uncertainty and ambiguity, but you can’t allow it to prevent you from enjoying life and moving forward. Here are a few things that you can do to keep moving forward, even in times of change and uncertainty:
Focus on what you have control over.
Don’t waste your time and energy thinking about things that you don’t have any control over. You can’t control what other people do. And you can’t control outside factors that are affecting your life. But you can control how you choose to spend your time. Be creative and think outside the box to find ways to bring enjoyment to your life.
Create a gratitude list.
When you’re going through challenging times, it is easy to focus on everything negative, which isn’t healthy. Intentionally spend time each day thinking about what you are grateful and thankful for. Share those things out loud with others. You may just spark some gratitude in someone else too.
Be positive and look to the future.
When you’re in the middle of change and chaos, it might feel like it will never end. However, life experiences tell us that difficult times pass. So focus on the future, knowing that the challenge you’re dealing with will pass as well. Do your best to maintain a positive attitude. Research by Shawn Achor, author of the Happiness Advantage, shows we are more collaborative, adaptive, empathetic, and more productive with a positive mindset.
|
https://medium.com/talksense-the-leadership-edition/when-the-answers-are-uncertain-d4d9d0ad8f9b
|
['Revela Group']
|
2020-12-10 16:24:32.689000+00:00
|
['Uncertainty', 'Business Strategy', 'Change Management', 'Executive Coaching', 'Business Development']
|
How to create an RSA key pair on Android to protect data
|
Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay
In this post I will explain how to create a RSA key pair on Android and use that key pair for sign and verify data. This RSA key pair will be stored in the Android KeyStore.
What is RSA?
RSA is a public-key or asymmetric crypto system. It uses a public key for encryption and a private key for decryption. Anyone can use the public key to encrypt a message but it can be decrypted only by the private key owner.
Android KeyStore
The Android KeyStore is a storage facility for cryptographic keys and certificates. The keys stored in the KeyStore can be used for cryptographic operations but the key material will not be extracted, that means that an attacker might use a stored key but will not be able to export it outside the device. When a key is created from an app and stored in the KeyStore, the access to the key will be restricted to the app itself.
Why to use RSA?
We can use RSA to sign and verify data, for example when we transfer some data to a server. Because RSA is a public-key system, we can use the private key to sign data in our app and send the public key to the server, so the server can verify that the data sent is genuine and has not been tampered. If any malicious users know the public key, the only thing they can do is to verify the integrity of the data but they cannot change the data because they need the private key to do so.
Sign and verify process
Generate the key
To generate a new key, we have to create a KeyPairGenerator object. We have to specify the algorithm of the key we are creating, in this case RSA, and the KeyStore where the key will be stored, in this case AndroidKeyStore.
Then we create a KeyGenParameterSpec object to set all the parameters for our key (note that this class is available for Marshmallow and later versions, see KeyPairGeneratorSpec for older versions support). It is mandatory to set the key alias (name of the key) and the purpose for the key. If the purpose is sign and we try to use the key to verify it will throw an exception, so we have to know what we are going to do with the keys, in this case sign and verify. Another mandatory parameters are the digest and the signature padding (because we are going to use the key to sign).
Then we can set some optional parameters such the self-signed certificate serial number, the certificate subject (common name), the starting and expiry dates and whether the key requires user authentication to be used.
Use the private key to sign data
To sign data we have to retrieve the key from the KeyStore. First we have to request a KeyStore object and provide the type, AndroidKeyStore in this sample. We have to load an empty KeyStore, so we pass null as the InputStream argument in the load method.
Once the KeyStore has been loaded, we have to retrieve the private key passing the alias (name) of the key we have created earlier. Now we are able to use the key to sign the data. It is very important to set the algorithm when creating the Signature class instance. Because we are using a RSA key with SHA256 message digest, we have to get this Signature object, otherwise it will throw an exception. The last step is to sign the data with our private key. We can encode and store the signature in a variable as we need it for the verifying process.
Note that if the key requires authentication to be used, it will throw UserNotAuthenticatedException, so we have to ask the user to authenticate in this case.
Use the certificate to verify the signature
To verify the signature, we have to load again the KeyStore. Once the KeyStore is loaded we have to retrieve our key certificate from there, using our key alias. Finally we create a Signature class instance passing the used algorithm as argument and we verify that the signature matches our certificate.
|
https://medium.com/@abel.suviri.payan/create-rsa-key-on-android-for-sign-and-verify-9debbb566541
|
['Abel Suviri Payán']
|
2019-03-26 09:14:28.793000+00:00
|
['Android', 'Keystore', 'Rsa', 'Cryptography']
|
Airdrop Event Announcement
|
This Airdrop event is the differential distribution of CUST, the custard toner, according to the FXT’s holdings, which CUST expects to increase by nearly two times since its initial public offering and further increase the value of the token through partnerships with global asset trusts and exchanges.
FXT is a token of the real-time cryptographic money payment service, the FujiX Project, and the bank’s final review approval for the current U.S.-direction BIN has been completed.
And about 10 times the difference was exchanged for a CUST Token 1:1, and the token was recognized for its rising value.
We look forward to expanding the opportunities for FXT and CUST through this Airdrop event.
1. Opening a dedicated FXT wallet
1) In this case, the CUST is distributed according to the amount of FXT that is deposited into the wallet.
2) Please open your wallet through the link below and deposit the FXT at 23:59:59 on July 9.
https://xtock.io (The wallet will be available on July 8th.)
2. Criteria for CUST airdrop payment
1) FXT Retention Period: From the 10th of July 2019 to 23:59:59.
- The first snapshot will take place on July 10th at 00:00 sharp, and the release will not take place until the end of the retention period.
2) From the time of OO o’clock on July 10th to the time of 23:59 on July 23rd, for a total of 14 days, we will air-drop the CUST as follows.
- Interim deposit after the start of the airdrop event will not be calculated.
⊙75,000~99,999 FXT : 375 CUST
⊙100,000~1999,999 FXT : 1000 CUST
⊙200,000–499,999 FXT: 3,000 CUST
⊙500,000~999,999 FXT : 10,000 CUST
⊙1,000,000 FXT or more : 25,000 CUST
3) The airdropped CUST will be credited to the address you sent us on July 24 and will be bettered 25% on July 24th to October 24th of every month.
Thank you.
※ More: Currently, the withdrawal of FXT from CoinBene is blocked.
If FXT fails to release until the time of the Airdrop event, we will hold the FXT in CoinBene and share with you a separate policy.
|
https://medium.com/fuzex/airdrop-event-announcement-2e45549dc638
|
[]
|
2019-07-03 10:57:40.409000+00:00
|
['Airdrop', 'Events', 'Custody', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Fuzex']
|
Something Holy this Way Comes with Warm Breast on Bright Wings
|
Because the Holy Ghost over the bent World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.~Gerald Manley Hopkins in God’s Grandeur
On the third Sunday in December at our church, we sing Mary Did You Know?
It’s a beautiful song from the Christian tradition. In our New Thought circles, the last line of the chorus is changed. The original version says:
Mary, did you know that your baby boy
Would one day rule the nations?
Did you know that your baby boy
Is heaven’s perfect Lamb?
We sing, Did you know that your baby boy is the great I AM? (As does the amazing group Pentatonix in the video below.)
This refers to Moses’ encounter with God in the burning bush. When asked his name, God replied, I AM THAT I AM. I hold the metaphysical notion that in this Adventful time, this mysterious divinity is not just born in or as Jesus, or Buddha or Krisha, but in all of us.
This season would be nothing without Mary being willing to give birth to that which is Great within her. She became a symbol of the Divine Feminine and its many attributes. These include willingness, acceptance, creative incubation, maternal love, and giver of life.
This week’s Advent theme is love.
Love is a crucial ingredient in the trust and willingness it takes to carve out space (inner womb) in our selves and our busy lives to receive the Divine. And not only receive it but give birth to its nature as ourselves.
Again, this is paradoxical because our nature already is Divine. But we also talk about giving birth to the Christ Consciousness which grows within us and longs to be re-born regularly, least we not forget what we are.
Sort of a both/and. Yes, we are becoming what we already are. Even more of what we already are. In case the world has been too much with us — can I get an amen? — or we have simply gotten busy and forgotten.
What do I mean by Christ Consciousness? Paramahansa Yogananda explains it far better than I can. So I’ll let him:
It is the universal consciousness, oneness with God, manifested by Jesus, Krishna, and other avatars. Great saints and yogis know it as the state of samadhi meditation wherein their consciousness has become identified with the divine intelligence in every particle of creation; they feel the entire universe as their own body.
Getting Past Commercialism
The trappings of Christmas show up on time, if not obscenely early, every year. We can roll our eyes and dread the commercialism.
And we can use these images, songs, invitations, etc. to remind ourselves to settle into the quiet and the stillness. Carve out some time to be with ourselves, go deeper into our meditative practices, hang out with the Holy.
Take advantage of any breaks offered. Contemplate what it means to be pregnant with God, Spirit, the Divine Presence, or ____ — insert your preferred name for the great I AM.
Surrender And Allow
Yesterday, my email inbox brought me a reading as part of Lux Divina — an Advent reflection process created by Spirituality & Practice. Forgive the Christian languaging as needed; apply your own metaphysical metaphors and enjoy:
The journey inward requires surrender to this mystery in our lives, and this means letting go of our control buttons. It means dying to the untethered selves that occupy us daily; it means embracing the sufferings of our lives, from the little sufferings to the big ones, it means allowing God’s grace to heal us, hold us and empower us for life. It means entering into darkness, the unknowns of our lives, and learning to trust the darkness, for the tenderness of divine love is already there. It means [being] willing to sacrifice all that we have for all that we can become in the power of God’s love; and finally it means to let God’s love heal us of the opposing tensions within us.
~Ilia Delio, OSF, PhD., “A Reply to Richard Rohr on the Cosmic Christ,” October 16, 2017, Omega Center blog
Sister Delio refers to it as all that we can become. I resonate with the pregnancy/giving birth metaphors. The question can be asked either way: What qualities of God are you bringing forth into the word. Or what are you giving birth to?
Either way, let’s bless what poet Gerald Manley Hopkins in God’s Grandeur calls the bent World with more peace, love, joy, and harmony. If we can but be those changes we wish to see, they will ripple out beyond us and go where most needed.
Whether it’s seeds that sprout or a babe in swaddling clothes, the world so needs more of what we each bring. So friends, bring it on! Namaste!
|
https://medium.com/change-your-mind/something-holy-this-way-comes-with-warm-breast-on-bright-wings-5992cdd69fe6
|
['Marilyn Flower']
|
2020-12-19 14:47:08.198000+00:00
|
['Christmas', 'Pregnancy', 'Advent', 'Spirituality', 'Love']
|
Mother day is officially my day to parent. Parents, Mother’s Day is a funny thing
|
Parents, Mother’s Day is a funny thing .
We are told to honor our mother’s and it is also a time to mourn our mother’s death.
I’m new to the grief side of mother’s day and I’m not saying there’s any reason to deny my grief, I just try to remember that everyone has their own grief and just because Mother’s day is one more day to remember your mom it doesn’t mean you should act like her birthday or death is the day she left you.
That day is not your mother’s day.
For me it is Mother’s day but every other day is my day too.
Mother’s day for me is a celebration of my sons birth.
My mother in law passed away just after the birth of our first son.
She left behind a loving husband and 2 young sons.
It’s hard to know where to place grief.
I think what she left behind more than anything was a sense of obligation to be there for the rest of us, to be our earthly angel watching over us and guiding us when we feel lost.
For me mother’s day is a time to celebrate my sons birth, my mother in law’s birthday and also a day of mourning.
So today I will tell the world just how much I love my sons, my mother and father in law and I will enjoy a day of fried chicken, smothered mashed potatoes, gravy, corn on the cob and a strawberry banana freezer popsicle.
I didn’t see her until she was in her 80’s, after a 50 + year absence.
I don’t think she really knew who I was and that breaks my heart.
I don’t mourn the loss of my mother in law’s and husband’s physical presence but I mourn the loss of her presence in my children’s lives.
My mother passed away just shy of 10 years ago.
Her absence in her sons life will always be a reminder to me of her absence in mine.
Dishes in the sink, toys on the floor and blankets on the couch, it’s okay to celebrate, it’s all good.
My loss is not so sharp, but still there.
I have never made secret the fact that I am weird.
Over the years I have had some of the weirdest experiences in my life.
It’s one of the ways he bonds with me as a Dad and how I bond with him as his Dad.
My oldest son LOVES to tell stories about my quirks and I love to hear his as he tells me the story of how weird I am.
|
https://medium.com/@ali-12sajid/mother-day-is-officially-my-day-to-parent-parents-mothers-day-is-a-funny-thing-aa0e939f324c
|
['Hyper Loser Mix']
|
2021-01-08 11:01:02.101000+00:00
|
['Blogging', 'SEO', 'Mothers', 'Motherhood', 'Blogger']
|
Evolving interior designs with simulated annealing and genetic algorithm
|
My solution
I decided to tackle the problem similarly as human designers do — I divided the design process into two phases. First, I create a high-level plan of the space by deciding what part of the room will serve what function. These parts are called functional zones — rectangular spaces that each serve some function, like sleeping, dining, or working. Then I arrange the furniture inside these zones in relation to each other (and to a wall).
Design process — user inputs the requirements (room size, functions, furniture), the system plans the space by positioning functional zones, and furniture is arranged into zones.
The biggest advantage of this approach is, that I am dividing one big problem into two smaller ones. By planning the zones first, I get a more logical usage of space and fewer things to worry about when I am arranging furniture into zones.
User requirements
As human designers, our system has to accept user requirements and satisfy them. The user has to input the shape and features of the room (positions of doors and windows), the functions that the room has to fulfill, and furniture that is going to be placed inside the zones.
Zone planning
The purpose of the zones is to ensure an effective and functional high-level plan of the room. That includes:
The “flow” — how the human moves through the room. It has to be possible to walk between all zones and doors. This constraint includes the requirement for doors to be accessible.
The usage of the space — there shouldn’t be any space not covered by a zone or an aisle. Additionally, it is more important for some zones to be near a window than for the others. For example, the work zone should be by a window to get as much light as possible.
The sizes of the zones — zones have to be big enough to accommodate all of its furniture. Also, zones with more or larger furniture should take up more space than the ones with furniture with smaller areas.
These requirements are all taken into account in a cost function that evaluates the plan of the room. Because it is “bumpy” with lots of local optimums, I decided to use simulated annealing to avoid being trapped in a local minimum and find the best result possible.
Simulated annealing got its name from a metallurgic process when metal is quickly heated up and then gradually cooled down to gain better properties. We encode solutions into states in a state space and let the algorithm look through it. The algorithm simulates the temperature with a variable T that controls the amount of exploration. In every iteration, we generate a neighboring solution and if it is better we accept it as a new starting point. If it is worse we accept it with certain probability controlled by the temperature. At first, the temperature is high and the algorithm has circa 80 % chance at accepting a worse solution (and potentially get closer to even better solutions). Gradually, the temperature is decreased and we exploit a promising sector by mostly accepting only better solutions.
One solution represents the room with all zones having specific shapes and positions. The neighboring solution is generated from the current solution by moving or resizing a random number of zones. The distance by which can the zone change is limited. The step limit is, as well as temperature, high at the beginning of the algorithm and gradually decreases.
A simplified illustration of state space that is searched with simulated annealing. [green = relax zone, red = work zone, blue = sleep zone, orange = storage zone]
I distinguish between storage zones and the other zones. Storage zones contain only one piece of furniture (a wardrobe, or a shelf, etc.), on the contrary, other zones almost always contain more objects. That’s why storage zones have fixed sizes. They are also always positioned by a wall. This distinction helps to reduce the state space and speed up the searching process.
Simulated annealing starts with a random solution. One iteration consists of generating a new neighboring solution, its evaluation, and its acceptance or rejection. We perform several iterations for each value of the temperature (an epoch). The algorithm continues until there was no significant improvement in the cost of the solution for one epoch.
Pseudo-code of simulated annealing applied to zone planning.
Furniture arrangement
In this phase, functional zones are fixedly positioned in the room and we have to arrange the given furniture inside them.
Genetic algorithm searches the state space through evolution-like process. It maintains a group of solutions — a population consisting of individuals. In each iteration, some individuals are selected to pass on their genes. Their genomes are combined using crossover operator and newly created individuals are passed to the intermediate population. The rest of this population is composed of the best unchanged individuals of the previous population — the elite. Then, mutation operator is applied to a percentage of the intermediate population. The resulting population is the new population and next iteration starts. Selection operator chooses individuals to reproduce. The better ones have a higher chance at being selected. Crossover operator combines parts of the encoded solutions to create (hopefully) better solutions. Mutation operator introduces small random changes to a single solution. It ensures the diversity of a population (its genome).
One solution represents the positions of all furniture from one zone. Each zone is optimized separately from the others as one evolving population. The evaluation function consider:
Overhanging the room or the zone.
Overlapping of the objects or their free areas. Some objects need to have free space around themselves to serve their function (for example an area in front of the sofa). These free spaces are added to the shape of an object and are included in the overlapping penalty.
Proximity and arrangement of objects towards a wall.
Object relationships. The solution gets a penalty for not satisfying relationships between furniture.
I defined 3 types of relationships — next to, opposite to, and around. The relationship is between a parent and a child object and is mostly defined only on the child’s side. For example, a nightstand knows that it should be next to a bed. The only exception is the around relationship that has to be defined on both sides — child object has “around” relationship and parent object has “around center” relationship. Every relationship has a cost function and a function that can move the child object to the position where the spatial relationship is satisfied.
I use stochastic universal sampling as a selection operator. It is inspired by a roulette wheel with n equally spaced pointers. Each individual is evaluated by a cost function and assigned fitness (how good it is compared to others). Each individual gets a proportionally large part of the wheel to its fitness. When we spin the wheel, better individuals have a higher chance of being selected (even multiple times). At the same time, a few worse solutions will be also selected to preserve the diversity of the gene pool.
The crossover operator works with two individuals. Itchooses random parts of the chromosome which represent the positions of furniture inside the zone. Then it switches the positions of the corresponding objects.
The crossover operator takes two chromosomes and exchanges positions of random furniture.
Usually, the mutation is applied to a small percentage of the population (around 1 %) and makes simple random changes. This approach didn’t work for me, because the relationships between objects are too complex and the genetic algorithm wasn’t able to find an acceptable solution. So, I developed more complex mutations that better support “human-like” furniture arrangement:
Move a random piece of furniture in a random direction. If the object has a parent, move parent with the object.
Randomly change the orientation of a random object. If the object
has a parent, rotate them together.
has a parent, rotate them together. Move a random object to its nearest wall.
Move a random object to the object that is nearest to it.
Pick a random object and align it with another random object. Randomly choose whether to align their centers or one of its sides.
Randomly pick an object and arrange it according to one of its relationships.
I don’t use usual with elitism, crossover, and mutation rates. My intermediate populations consist of 70 % of elite and 30 % of newly-created individuals (by crossover). Then I apply mutation on 50 % of this intermediate population.
Results
I implemented the described system and run a series of experiments. I created 11 rectangular rooms, 14 L-shaped rooms, and 7 rooms with other shapes. They contain varying furniture and functions. The algorithms were run on each room 10 times and I hand-picked the best result.
The images below show some of the best results. The system was able to find an acceptable solution for almost every room (object relationships are satisfied, objects don’t overlap, all parts of the room are accessible).
|
https://medium.com/@svoboel5/evolving-interior-designs-with-simulated-annealing-and-genetic-algorithm-7c4acc83ee9e
|
['Eliška Svobodová']
|
2021-09-15 08:07:41.822000+00:00
|
['Genetic Algorithm', 'Artificial Intelligence', 'Simulated Annealing', 'Interior Design']
|
DO NOT LISTEN TO THE WOMAN PART 2
|
“And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now the Lord hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go unto my maid It may be that I may obtain children by her and Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai” Genesis 16:2KJV
A LITTLE BIT OF BACKGROUND
In the first part of do not listen to the woman I explained the importance of gender roles and how the man was built, created by the Most High for a different purpose than the woman.
Both roles are essential and complementary but what today’s society is trying to hide is the understanding that the man is the leader and the head of the woman.
CONSEQUENCES OF LISTENING TO THE WOMAN
In this second part we will take a close look at the consequences of listening to the woman and following her whims,feelings to take important decisions and make life changing choices.
Sarai was the wife of Abram, she was taken care of and provided for, and because Abram was following the Most High, he was prosperous, had cattle, and an abundance of resources.
Sarai was unable to give birth and this brings us to the crucial importance of the man’s role as well as the woman’s purpose.
BOTH ROLES ARE ESSENTIAL NOT EQUAL
The man builds civilisations, the woman comes with the man and receives his seed to preserve the continuity of life and therefore civilisations on the earth.
Because of Sarai’s inability to give birth, she felt incomplete thus confirming that the woman’s contentment and happiness come from fulfilling her role and purpose in the preservation of civilisations; no matter how much she is taken care of, how luxurious and lavish her lifestyle is, how beautiful or famous she is, eventually because of her purpose, her soul will be incomplete.
WORSHIPPING THE WOMAN HURTS BOTH GENDERS
A similar example would be the life story of a very talented athlete who never reached his full potential, because he was complacent and took his gift for granted.
The gift the Most High gave to the woman, by making her a mother and a wife is a very powerful one, it demands love, sacrifice,humility and accountability because it is a great responsibility. The man is the head and the leader of the household, but the woman is responsible for the happiness of her man, the household and the children.
Since Sarai was unable to give birth she became emotionally unstable, depressed which led her to suggest out of desperation to Abram, to impregnate his servant and egyptian slave Agar.
HEAR THE WOMAN, RESPECT HER BUT DON’T LISTEN
A man should take the time to hear the woman he deals with , his mother as well, but he should never listen to the woman when it comes to crucial matters, because the woman is an emotional thinker and is guided by fear most of the time.
Which is why after listening to them, they will often accuse you of taking their suggestion seriously, if the situation turns bad, but if it turns good which is very rare they will claim that they are the one deserving all the praise.
Accountability is a foreign term to the woman’s vocabulary which is why the so-called black man has to be accountable,and responsible, this is how we protect ourselves and the women in our lives as well.
LIFE
|
https://medium.com/@worshiper270916/do-not-listen-to-the-woman-part-2-4f8dda1263ad
|
[]
|
2020-12-18 03:03:32.288000+00:00
|
['Wisdom', 'Masculinity', 'Relationships', 'Peace', 'Knowledge']
|
The Power of Annual Reviews
|
This year I write my fifth annual review based on the above mentioned questions. Although I am not a writer or an influencer, I do it for myself. I decided to write in my free time in few years ago. Unfortunately, I could not manage to establish stable writing habits. But I read a lot of books and articles.
However, I did not produce content for the world, I make weekly journals and each year I write my Annual Review.
I like the weekly journals because, I can check what was in my head at the same time in one or more years ago. The time flies, and it is good, that I can recall my feelings.
However, the power of writing the annual reviews are broaden the horizon. I can judge my life. I see my life in helicopter view.
The most important that the thoughts are written. You can put your yourself in your shoes in the past.
I believe in the process of thinking, planning and execution. You can influence your life significantly. I am sure that education can give you a chance. I know, that a smart and hardworking person can achieve a lot. I encourage everybody to work towards the dreams.
However, I am a bit fatalist as well. And your fate is reflected in your annual reviews.
When you are reviewing your former annual reviews, you recognize some life changing events. Maybe you decided to make a career change. Or you met somebody who made a big influence on you. You established a family. You started a new hobby or healthy routines.
I enjoyed recall my last five years with the read of the Annual Reviews. I inspire everyone to write the Annual Review.Writing your thoughts is always beneficial. Because you do it only once a year, you can free up some time for it.
It is the end of December, 2020. Great time to do your first one.
|
https://medium.com/@jozsef.garab/the-power-of-annual-reviews-947c676576dd
|
['Jozsef Garab']
|
2020-12-20 21:02:46.537000+00:00
|
['Writing', 'Goals', 'Time Management', 'Productivity']
|
The Powerful Advantage of Writing on Paper
|
No Distraction
There is no disturbance. That’s the clearest reason I’ve ever returned to paper. The most embarrassing thing about writing on a computer is the ‘touch of temptation’. Just by connecting Wi-Fi, you will be connected to a fantastic Internet world. It looks like five minutes have passed, but thirty minutes have passed. The Internet connection is so time-revolutionary.
I thought computer writing was fast and efficient, but in conclusion, it took longer. Even if I turn off the Wi-Fi and start working, I am connected to the Internet from time to time. The moment the writing is blocked is dangerous. YouTube is fun, and social media, which was not interested in it. But this simple act certainly has some effect on you. It takes not only Internet access time, but also brain warm-up time, time to think about whether to enter or not, and time to focus on work again.
|
https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/the-powerful-advantage-of-writing-on-paper-461894d087e0
|
['Na Young']
|
2020-10-02 22:27:22.875000+00:00
|
['Habits', 'Writing', 'Analog', 'Paper', 'Draft']
|
What can Partners do for Mums??
|
Partner helps baby care? Or they need to support more mothers mental care?
Photo by Ana Francisconi on Unsplash
Partners can support mothers-Physically, emotionally and mentally.
The postnatal and first year is a very challenging year for parents new and seasoned. The Fathers role is teaming with Mum with care of new baby and older children supporting her through her postnatal period.
Physically- hear are a few things that can make life postnatally a bit easier. Take time after work to care of new baby and/or older children, bath time, changing diapers, feeding baby and other kids, laundry, preparing dinner or a meal for Mum. Rotating night shifts and or feeding and burping baby in middle of night.
Mentally- Watch for signs of distress with Mum and baby. Encourage Mum to call her doctor if she’s feeling pain, difficulty recovering after delivery. Be aware of the Baby Blues and postnatal depression read up on the difference and signs. Have patience, be kind and sensitive with your words.
Emotionally- Communicate with Mum on her experience of birth, postnatal recovery, breastfeeding or bottle feeding, being supportive emotionally of her postnatal body and pressure to bounce back straightaway. Encourage her with positive words of love and support. Ensuring her she’s doing a great job and support her goals to come during this challenging period.
If possible, Partner can take paternity leave for a few weeks. Or if in budget hire a day/night nurse to help family for a few nights. And if those options aren’t available for you. The most important is you as Dad being present and offering Love, Support and Care to Mum and Baby.
Photo by Claudia on Unsplash
In addition,
Postpartum is challenging for Mom especially. But, also for dad and family as well. With Mom healing, exhausted and severely sleep deprived it’s not always easy for mom to express her needs…sometimes she doesn’t know exactly what she needs. And although partner wants to help, he often doesn’t know how, where, what or when. This is especially true for first time dads.
So how can partner help postnatally without annoying mum…?
Often mums are breastfeeding, and baby is exclusively breast fed. Until baby is weaned to bottle-dad can’t yet feed baby via bottle….however!
Wash and take care of breast pump equipment. This is a great help!
Bring baby to mum for feeds and settle baby back to sleep.
If baby is bottle fed. Prepare bottles, FedEx and burp baby.
Prepare meals or order take out.
Give baby a bath
Care for baby whilst Mum is showering
Change a diaper or two…! 😉
Order needed baby supplies and pop out to store for things Mum needs.
Help with care of household and your other children. Including laundry and nursery!
Be her support and buffer with visitors, friends and family
Take mum to doctors’ appointments especially in the first months after delivering.
Encourage her with kind sincere words. Be an ear to listen when she needs to have a chat or vent and frustration and concerns.
Be a team player and parent together.
Don’t pressure mom with postnatal weight loss or any other judge mental words.
SUPPORT, COMMUNICATE, LISTEN AND BE PRESENT.
These are just a few things that partner can help with making Mum feel positive and beautiful.
|
https://medium.com/@nursing-talk/what-can-partners-do-for-mums-2531569909b9
|
['Nursing Tips']
|
2019-04-12 19:41:01.866000+00:00
|
['Family', 'Motherhood', 'Parenting', 'Fatherhood', 'Baby']
|
Designing Customer Satisfaction Survey: Best Practices for Business Growth
|
Designing Customer Satisfaction Survey: Best Practices for Business Growth
Customer development is what helps minimize and improves chances to build what consumers want. Because no businesses want to build what it’s not needed or what consumers do not need. That makes designing a customer satisfaction survey expedient.
Running and making constant analytic analysis and user research in your growth process might be challenging and time-consuming but it’s worth every investment and time. As one of Growth marketing’s sole purposes is conversion research which is hinged on consumer development and consumers’ satisfaction. It is consumer satisfaction that drives sustainable business or market growth.
In growth marketing, every step in the consumers’ journey is important. Because it is in mapping out the consumers’ journey that best decision Consumers’ journey can be informed.
What is customers satisfaction survey?
Knowing the right questions and having them structured in ways make customer give accurate answers that foster decision making on consumer satisfaction. However, consumers’ satisfaction survey dimensional and have its variant forms:
Usability evaluation
user testing
Usability evaluation is commonly used to reduce friction through heuristic analysis. Heuristics analysis is usually used to analyze the website for these purposes:
Relevancy – relevancy is a key factor determining the conversation rate. by
evaluating the landing page and assessing them for relevancy, especially if you’re driving paid traffic to that page. To evaluate the headline if its match the content and if the headline and content can resonate or help the buyers’ journey to passing through the funnel smoothly. And the call to action button does it match the value they’re going to get and is the image on the site relevant to the content.
Clarity - there’s design clarity and content clarity. However, the best way to go
about content clarity is to ask some pertinent questions like, does the site has the portrait is said to represent, and is every page of its give a vivid description of what they represent. With consumers’ squinted eyes or flip through the site within 5 seconds, can consumers tell, without mincing of the word, exactly what the website is meant for? ,
Friction – it is another thing to look out for because slows down or refrains people
from taking action. Although, many marketers have said that no site can be free of friction but it is imperative to reduce it to a minimum level so that it can foster smooth conversion.
The source of friction includes long and complicated processes and a slow loading page. Sometimes, it might be malfunctioning of either call to action button or another interface that makes it difficult for users to communicate with. For instance, in recent times, a friend sent a link to me for registration. The registration was smooth until I was to upload a document. Many clicks on the uploading interface, unfortunately, it didn’t respond. Instead of stressing myself over it, I stopped the process over friction. That’s what friction can do to the conversion journey.
User testing is about insight into the user’s mind and usability but it is the same as usability evaluation. The main benefit of user testing is to identify bottlenecks. User testing is equally as important as usability evaluation because it’s almost a penultimate of usability evaluation. You can use user testing to understand what stops people from taking a certain action. User testing won’t tell you about design modification or copy or layout to sell your product but you will find out if the existing solution has a shortcoming.
Why is the consumers’ satisfaction necessary?
The digital market is saturated and consumers’ behaviour is well sophisticated that constant research and different retention methodologies to have them stick to you. In the lean start-up, Eric Ries talks about three engines that drive the growth of a start-up as they’re associated with key performance indicators (KPI). One of the growth engines, which is a Sticky Engine, is the focus. Sticky Engine focuses on getting consumers or users to return, to keep using your product. That’s building retention, which is the main focus of every marketer. Therefore, engagement is one of the methods to make consumers or users sticky. Email marketing is one of the tools to deploy, by sending messages after each purchase to ask their reaction to the purchase, to drive Sticky Engine as explained by Dave McClure’s retention phase. .
Nevertheless, consumer satisfaction research boils down to Conversion research is one of the many processes to optimise and build retention and growth and focus head of many research methodologies employ to drive consumer or user satisfaction. It is systematic search for new and useful information about user or customer behaviour.
It’s armed with quantitative and qualitative research methods design consumer or user satisfaction. While quantitative research focuses on collecting data on user behaviour, understanding metrics and being able to analyse data qualitative research focuses on understanding the audience better, your competitions. We can use Google analytics health check for quantitative research and other data analysis strategies, either codification or segmentation of buyers or users. For instance, in a situation where survey or polls make the categories of people subscribing or buying your product obvious, then you can segment these categories and that make it easy to address them based on their needs or product functionality. It doesn’t only to optimise the site but copy. This information makes it easy to design copy according to the functionality and usage of your product to your consumers or users.
Qualitative research uses the following to garner information: customer support interview, chat transcripts analysis and UX analysis which include heuristics analysis and user testing, which have been extensively discussed above.
Ultimately, there are a number of good frameworks that help you deign good consumer satisfaction.
|
https://medium.com/@isrimmsky/designing-customer-satisfaction-survey-best-practices-for-business-growth-3bf2be5cc58f
|
['Richard Tosin Israel']
|
2020-12-20 21:58:59.267000+00:00
|
['Consumer Satisfaction', 'Consumer Behavior', 'Optimization', 'Cxl', 'Dave Mcclure']
|
In His Likeness 3
|
I allowed Lude in while Sor gave me a look asking if I’m still going with him or I’m staying. I’m torn between them two. I love Lude with my whole being but he has not being the best lover in the past few months, how sure am I that the nice smile, he put up is not just a facade that would wear off once he knows I still love him enough to bear this pain. I refuse to remain pained, I’ll go with Sor even if it costs the shatter of my heart.
Finally speaking up, “Oh Lude you’re welcome, you can make yourself comfortable and leave whenever you will, I would be going with Sor for a few days", I stated with a sense of finality giving no room for negotiation, but knowing Lude, he surely had something to say,
"How would you leave me here all alone, since when did you start going off with men other than I, you even say it like you own your life, guess what, you don’t, you lost your ownership since the night we consummated, I now own your life and I say you go nowhere, especially with this...", he stopped unable to find a word to describe Sor, and just made do with staring at him disdainfully.
All the while Lude talked, I looked at Sor to try and know what was running through his mind, and once he heard the word 'consummated’, I saw the look, I never want to see on him, HURT. It shattered me, now he knew I could never be what he wants me to be with him(it was obvious, he wanted to make me his), yes I was no longer a virgin, and as a prince, and from what I’ve known about his place, only virgins ever became crowned princesses. I wanted to tell him but not this way!!
Sor looked to me for confirmation, seeing the tears on my face, he knew it was true and all he did was walk out. I knew that was it with Sor, he would never come back, that feeling of sorrow brought me crashing to the ground.
Happy at the fact that Sor had left, Lude made it a point of duty to do nothing but mock me, "You thought you could leave with him", he said bursting into laughter, the laughter I used to find so endearing now did nothing but draw cuts on my heart. “ I already told you know one could ever love a broken wreck like you save me!", he said holding my mouth forcefully and then hitting me.
"And this is your definition of love!", I shouted back at him(for the first time in my life) not even knowing where the courage came from as I cleaned the blood stain that ran from my mouth due to the slap.
"Oh now you have the courage to shout back at me!!", he shouted back, each word representing a hit on my face.
"As much as I know no one has loved me other than you, wait you never even loved me, you just wanted me and when you got me, you drained me so I’ll be too useless for another when I find out the truth, well you’re fulfilled right, you’re happy, no matter what you say or do I’ll not be shut down anymore, understood!!" I shouted back at him refusing to be defeated or let myself feel pain, the pain of losing Sor was enough, I could not take in more else I die and I don’t want to die.
Did I just say I did not want to die, well the beating that came after could have as well being a death sentence, Lude beat me till I lost consciousness with reality, I just felt the hit but not the pain, I could not see him, I could not even see anything, hearing was out of it, it was like I was on the road to paradise wait who am I deceiving, someone like me can never go to somewhere that beautiful, and that was the last thing I thought of before I finally passed out.
To be continued...
|
https://medium.com/@adesolaadenopo/chapter-3-33a0e28cd26a
|
[]
|
2020-12-11 17:40:58.737000+00:00
|
['Christian', 'Lessons', 'Teenagers']
|
.Net 5: System.Net.Http.Json Keşif Serisi #2
|
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/devbase/net-5-system-net-http-json-ke%C5%9Fif-serisi-2-258d70fc728d
|
['Erkan Güzelküçük']
|
2020-11-05 20:46:53.533000+00:00
|
['Dotnet Core', 'Dotnet 5', 'Net5']
|
Amazon’s new Fire TV Sticks get faster and cheaper
|
Amazon is updating its $40 Fire TV Stick streaming player for the first time since 2016, giving it a much faster processor and HDR video support. The company is also launching a cheaper option called the Fire TV Stick Lite, which will sell for $30.
To go along with the new hardware, Amazon’s overhauling its Fire TV software, with fewer confusing submenus, new features for Alexa, and a bigger emphasis on user profiles.
Updated December 9, 2020 to report that Amazon has begun to roll out its new Fire TV software. The updates, however, will initially be made available only on these new devices; owners of Amazon’s higher-end streamers will likely need to wait until early 2021 to get the new user interface and other features.
[ Further reading: The best media streaming devices ]Both of the new Fire TV Sticks are shipping next week, and pre-orders are starting today. Here’s what you need to know about the new lineup:
New Fire TV Stick Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice Remote (2020) See it The third-generation Fire TV Stick (pictured above) looks identical to the previous version, but Amazon says it’s 50-percent faster. Elias Saba of AFTVNews reports that it’s using a MediaTek MT8695D quad-core processor, which is similar to what powers Amazon’s existing Fire TV Stick 4K. Speed had been a major sticking point for the old Fire TV Stick, but the new one should feel much snappier if it can match the speed of the 4K version.
The new Fire TV Stick also supports HDR video and Dolby Atmos audio decoding, just like the 4K model. The difference is that the new Fire TV Stick doesn’t support 4K video or Dolby Vision HDR. (HDR support is instead limited to HDR10 and HLG.) For those features, you’ll need either the $50 Fire TV Stick 4K or the $120 Fire TV Cube.
Fire TV Stick Lite Mentioned in this article Roku Express (2017) Read TechHive's reviewMSRP $29.99See it At $30, the Fire TV Stick Lite is Amazon’s answer to the Roku Express, which sells for $29. And like Roku’s budget streamer, the Amazon’s version makes a major compromise to hit that lower price: There are no volume or power buttons on the remote, so you’ll need a second remote to operate those functions on your TV.
Amazon The Fire TV Stick Lite ditches TV volume and power buttons for a lower sticker price.
Intriguingly, though, the Fire TV Stick Lite also includes a new remote button with a TV icon, which Amazon’s pricier streamers lack. This button takes you straight to the Fire TV’s Channel Guide, which can aggregate multiple live TV sources into one grid. Without the dedicated button, you’ll need to navigate to the guide through Amazon’s software menus.
The Fire TV Stick Lite otherwise has the same processor, HDR support, and Wi-Fi 5 support as the Fire TV Stick; both devices support Alexa voice commands through a microphone button on their remotes.
New Fire TV softwareAs for the new software, it looks like Amazon has recognized the chaos in its current interface and is taking steps to streamline it. Several submenus have been stripped away (including Your Videos, Movies, TV Shows, and Apps) in favor of a single “Find” submenu, where you can discover new things to watch. Meanwhile, your favorite apps will appear in a single strip on the menu bar, and they’ll stay persistently visible even as you scroll to other submenus.
Amazon The Fire TV menu system will look a lot different later this year.
The software will also support up to six user profiles, and if you say “Alexa, go to my profile,” you can set the device to recognize your voice and switch accordingly. Alexa itself will also be less intrusive, occupying just a part of the screen in response to voice commands, and Amazon says it will add a “hub” where you can learn what voice commands Alexa supports.
Amazon’s adding support for video calls as well, so you’ll be able to plug in a Logitech webcam for Alexa video calls. (Amazon says it will add support for other video chat services such as Zoom “over time.”)
The new software will debut on the 2020 Fire TV Stick and Fire TV Stick Lite, and Amazon plans to roll it out to other devices later this year.
Note: When you purchase something after clicking links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. Read our affiliate link policy for more details.
|
https://medium.com/@samanth03290054/amazons-new-fire-tv-sticks-get-faster-and-cheaper-959dad270f04
|
[]
|
2020-12-17 02:32:57.644000+00:00
|
['Cord', 'Music']
|
How to Make Easy Appetizers for Quick a Dinner Party
|
*Prosciutto Wrapped Figs stuffed with Honey &Herb Goat Cheese drizzled with Wildflower Honey
* Mediterranean Lamb Meatballs with a Lemon and Mint Yogurt sauce.
Stuffed Figs
Have you ever been in a situation where your 90 minutes away from having a house full of guests and there isn’t anything prepared to eat? I grew up in the age of the “pigs in the blanket” and Cheese Whiz and crackers as suitable appetizers. I wanted to create something pretty to the eye and pleasing to the palette.
I love Figs! I love anything that is fig inspired, I want everything to have figs in it; Ice cream pies, steak, anything. I mean come on guys figs are simply delicious. Yesterday while thinking of recipes to make for my Zoom cooking class I came with two recipes that pack a lot of flavor and both are easy to make.
I give the world Prosciutto wrapped Figs stuffed with Herb and Honey Goat cheese Drizzled with Wildflower honey. Can you all say yum! try really hard not to lick the screen ok! These are little delicious bombs figgie salty cheesy heaven. If you don’t eat meat, you can easily omit the Prosciutto and just add a sparkle of flake salt to give the same effect. The figs I’m using today are Brown Turkey Figs. These aren’t as sweet as my favorite Black Mission Figs but they stand up well to baking.
Below is the recipe for These lovely figs and some pictures that will give you the superb visuals needed to create something as delicious in you home!
|
https://medium.com/@cookandcuffs/how-to-make-easy-appetizers-for-quick-a-dinner-party-97af6cc91f2d
|
['Cook', 'Cuffs Keys']
|
2020-12-27 18:13:14.255000+00:00
|
['Easy Recipes', 'Dinner Parties', 'Chefs', 'Cooking', 'Cooking Classes']
|
Numerology Reading for Tuesday, February 18, 2020
|
Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash
Finding personal freedom in a time of where we are all about community and helping each other might sound selfish. This does not mean that you leave everyone high and dry while you go off exploring to find yourself. Perhaps that is a situation that could occur, however, the more realistic approach is for you to find what you like and are comfortable with and work your way out from there. If you give everything to others without ensuring that your emotional, physical and mental well-being are taken care of, then your well runs dry. Personal freedom could be making sure you eat right, get the physical activity you need, and do things that stimulate your brain (reading, puzzles, movies, etc.). Making sure that you look appealing is important as well. Not for others, for yourself. Your appearance reflects how you feel about yourself, which also gives first impressions to those you meet. Self-awareness and making yourself feel good helps you make others around you feel good, and the feeling is like ripples in water, and you never know how far it will go.
Universal Year = 4 (hard work, solid foundations, economics, thrift)
Universal Month = 6 (community, health, food, home, beauty)
Universal Day = 18 (seeking personal freedom, good will, selflessness, tolerance)
It’s Your Birthday!
If you were born on the eighteenth of the month, you are have spent time and effort working on improving and creating the ideal you. Intellectually capable and refined behavior is well-regarded, however, you might appear unapproachable and condescending. You are socially popular, and people often ask your advice, which you give wisely. A lover of music and art, you could succeed as a dramatic critic or writer.
Other possible career choices for you could include: surgeon, actor, attorney, politics, corporate executive, head of a charitable foundation
|
https://medium.com/@AlexisRose62/numerology-reading-for-tuesday-february-18-2020-9cc7d092fc68
|
['Alexis Rose']
|
2020-02-18 07:06:01.239000+00:00
|
['Birthday', 'Self Improvement', 'Numerology', 'Horoscopes', 'Inspiration']
|
Example of Denoising Dirty Documents with AutoEncoders
|
AutoEncoders is a particular neuronal network used for unsupervised task. There are a lot of goals of AutoEncoders like fraud detection, data compression, denoising images etc..
GENERATIVE MODEL
A generative model is a model that will try to learn the represents distribution of the data .
For example, in the image below, we can see that the distribution of x is modeled using 3 Gaussian distributions. Knowing the distribution we can generate new samples.
How work a AE ?
We can represent it like this :
x is the input, here it’s the pixels of the input image . Z is call the latent space, it’s a smaller dimensional space than the entrance .
For exemple, if the shape of the input image is (28,28) so there are 784 pixels, Z can be a space of only 32 . The goal of the latent space is to represent as best as possible the input intrance but in a smaller dimension .
We can compare it to the PCA . The PCA extract the more relevant information from data . To create Z we use a neuronal network (or CNN) with decreasing number of units per layer . This step is call : ENCODER
After that we have to do the opposite : From the latent space Z we want to reconstruct the original input : It’s DECODER’S step . So x̂ has the same shape of the input x.
When we fit the model, the model learn optimal weights to have the best Z ( which best represents the data) and to minimize the loss between input and the reconstruct image . If the model is perfect the output image is exactly the same as the input image.
Thanks to the encoder step, the model learn and keep the more relevant information : So it erases the noise.
Exemple
To give an example we are working on the following competition : https://www.kaggle.com/c/denoising-dirty-documents
The goal is to denoise images . For this competition we work like supervised model . We have 3 datasets :
1 ) A dataset with dirty documents (call X_train)
2) The same dirty documents but without noise (call y_train)
3) A test dataset to see how our model perform (call X_test)
We process the images of each folders
And now we are building a model who take : Dirty image in input and the corresponding own image . The model will learn a performer latent space and reconstruct an image in output as similar as possible as the input image. The latent space will keep only the relevant information of the input image, so he won’t keep the noise..
The input space is the shape of input image here : (540,420,1) , so as we see above the output space must be the same size. Here for the latent space Z we choose a (270,210,1) space (just with one MaxPooling layer to reduce the dimensional space) .
That we can see, we build a very sample CNN model . We start from an input image of shape (540,420,1) to arrive at an latent space (270,210,64) a from it we reconstruct an image of shape (540,420,1) => it’s a symetric model .
As we see previously, we want the image output look like as more as possible as the output image . To do this, we want to minimise the loss use (because each pixels is a continuous variable).
RESULTS
After training, we can apply our model result on the test set and try to generate a new image but without noise
Wow !! Impressive result .. The model can reconstruct image without noise ! Note : the third image is blurry but we can do better with a most performer model .
|
https://medium.com/@samuel-chemama/example-of-denoising-dirty-documents-with-autoencoders-5d1e81445bb8
|
['Samuel Chemama']
|
2020-12-26 20:21:04.731000+00:00
|
['TensorFlow', 'Deep Learning', 'Convolutional Network', 'Machine Learning', 'Denoising Autoencoder']
|
Managing Multiple Environments in Terraform
|
Managing Multiple Environments in Terraform
How to use Terraform workspaces to manage multiple states
Photo by John O'Nolan on Unsplash.
Terraform has revolutionised the way we look at infrastructure, and with Cloud, it is a stepping stone toward “everything as code.” That is a quantum leap in the history of computing where everything — including hardware and operating systems — is virtualised and can be defined as code.
Terraform has simplified the lives of infrastructure architects, admins, and organisations alike, and it helps in building a computing infrastructure that is ever-changing as well as more scalable and elastic than ever before.
Terraform uses a declarative, high-level, and immutable set of code to define infrastructure. Infrastructure admins would typically just declare what infrastructure they would like to have without worrying about the internal API calls.
Terraform is cloud-agnostic and can help you manage multiple cloud configurations using a single setup. You can also declare dependencies between components spread across the cloud.
One challenge with IaC is reusability. Terraform recommends you keep your code DRY (Don’t Repeat Yourself). That is especially true if you are managing multiple environments.
|
https://medium.com/better-programming/managing-multiple-environments-in-terraform-5b389da3a2ef
|
['Gaurav Agarwal']
|
2020-07-01 15:02:35.826000+00:00
|
['Terraform', 'AWS', 'Technology', 'DevOps', 'Programming']
|
What is IPO
|
IPO (initial public offering), any company issues an IPO when it is first listed on the stock market. The company raises funds from people through an IPO and in return gives them a shareholding in the company.
We get this information easily after searching about the IPO.
Only after getting the information, we start thinking, take the shareholding in a company through an IPO.
But when a little thought is made about buying an IPO, then a question comes to our mind, what will be the benefit of buying an IPO?
And these are human behavior, after knowing any thing, we definitely think what will be the benefit of this? Or how to take advantage of this?
Moreover, the business field is completely built on the concept of profit. Both the IPO issuer and the buyer think about their benefits. The company that issues the IPO has a management team, which keeps extracting the advantages and disadvantages.
See, the benefits of companies tell them by their management team itself, but a normal person has to think a lot more.
We will talk from the perspective of a normal person. Some main benefits from the shares purchased through the IPO are as follows:
1. Opportunity to go to the stock market — By investing in an IPO, you can register your presence in the stock market. If you are thinking of investing in the stock market, then the best opportunity for you will be an IPO. But before investing in an IPO, you must pay attention to some things like- Invest in far-sighted companies, do not invest in a small company, invest in a company with good management team.
Keeping these things in mind, if you invest, then you will get a lot of benefit through IPO and through stock market.
Opportunity to profit in the benefits of the company — Actually, by buying an IPO, you enter your stake in that company, so if the company will benefit then your shareholding benefit will also increase. By the way, in most good companies, the concept of earning more in a way is implemented.
Example: If the shares purchased during the Amazon IPO are sold now, it will give more than 10 times the returns.
Opportunity to become a partner in the company — You are connected to the shares of the IPO, the root of the company. You will need to be constantly updated about the ups and downs of the company. Just like the owners and promoters of the company are connected to the fluctuations in the prices of shares.
Participation in private companies and start-ups — You have already been told that the same companies bring IPO's which are not listed in the stock market, that is, not public. Accordingly, private companies and start-ups bring their own IPO's. Therefore, by investing in these IPO's, you are involved in the journey of private and startups going public.
By the way, even before some IPO's, people are very keen. Like- Reliance Jio. Actually Mukesh Ambani has announced in the 3rd AGM meeting of Jio that he will bring the IPO of Reliance Jio and Reliance Retail in the market in the coming 5 years.
Now you will also know what are the benefits of buying an IPO? So what is the delay.
Buy an IPO, invest and make a lot of money.
|
https://medium.com/@vansh-jha/what-is-ipo-5e924bb94f5c
|
['Vansh Jha']
|
2020-12-14 13:36:25.095000+00:00
|
['Financial Planning', 'Share Market Tips', 'Investing', 'IPO', 'Finance']
|
Case Study: 4 Instagram Posts that Got Me 1,000+ Followers Each
|
Case Study: 4 Instagram Posts that Got Me 1,000+ Followers Each
And 4 things each post have in common
Photo by Tim Gouw from Pexels
I get most of my followers through posts that reach an audience beyond my own. The usual number is in the hundreds per post, but occasionally, I manage to get everything right with the post and gain over 1,000 new followers.
There are four things to master: the photo, the caption, the commentability, and the right hashtags. Get these right, and you’ll get in front of new people. If your profile is in order, that will result in a wave of new followers every time you post.
Let’s look at the four posts — which I’ve included stats for — and the four things to master so that you can all accelerate the growth of your accounts.
|
https://medium.com/better-marketing/case-study-4-instagram-posts-that-got-me-1000-followers-each-21c8a2b407a9
|
['Sebastian Juhola']
|
2020-10-29 15:32:13.171000+00:00
|
['Instagram', 'Growth', 'Social Media', 'Marketing', 'Growth Hacking']
|
Dirt
|
Basil lines my window sill
floating to my nose
bright, spicy sweetness dances in the air.
I breathe it into my lungs, my heart, my soul.
I’m transported from my Brooklyn apartment.
I’m eight
standing on my Grandma’s farm,
the dusty road beneath my feet.
Oak trees sway in the wind.
Close your eyes, she says.
My mouth open.
Waiting.
A fresh, tangy, earthy delight arrives.
It’s like I’ve tasted raspberry for the first time.
Then, rows of beans need tending.
I revel in the earth,
the grassy scent a balm.
I drink in the dirt, the plants, the fresh air.
I’m a world away.
No longer caged
by concrete and brick.
I run and I run.
I am one with the earth, the sky,
the soul of my ancestors
who made their life in this dirt.
|
https://suzanbond.medium.com/dirt-a4175d47d033
|
['Suzan Bond']
|
2020-08-15 18:17:54.116000+00:00
|
['Poetry', 'Poem', 'Life Lessons', 'Poetry On Medium', 'Life']
|
COVID-19 Data Analysis with Python
|
So, we can see that graph is increasing exponentially each day. Next, we are going to see how many total cases increased each week starting from the first day which is 22nd January 2020. To do that, we have to find every 7th-day data and create a table for that. “copy()” will create a copy of the dataset so it will not change to the original dataset.
Now, we will plot the graph to see how confirmed cases per week increased. We plot two graphs, a line graph, and a log line graph. The logarithmic scale is useful for plotting data that includes very small numbers and very large numbers. So we can see all the numbers easily, without the small numbers squeezed too closely.
Alongside this, we will see how many new confirmed cases each week. We can see from the data that it is reached at a peak or not. A corona virus’s peak is the day/week on which there is the highest number of cases.
We can see that week has the lowest cases but after that, it increased drastically. Now we will plot a bar graph for visualization,
We will do same for the death dataset. we create a table for total deaths each week and count of new deaths each week.
Let’s plot both line and log line graphs for new deaths each week.
Now, we will see the top 10 countries that have the highest number of confirmed cases. We will use ‘groupby’ functionality for this. A ‘groupby’ operation involves some combination of splitting the object, applying a function, and combining the results. We can see the US has the highest number of cases.
Total cases only give the latest confirmed cases but what if we want to know when cases started increasing in each top 10 countries. To find out, we will find each week new confirmed cases.
Let’s plot the graph to understand the pattern for each week. So after the 7th week, new cases increased every week for these countries. We can see that at the end of the 14th week, a major decrease in new cases for some countries.
|
https://medium.com/analytics-vidhya/understanding-coronavirus-using-data-analysis-with-python-f6cf726cbba9
|
['Dhruvil Shah']
|
2020-05-06 12:24:10.119000+00:00
|
['Data Science', 'Data Analysis', 'Data Analytics', 'Coronavirus', 'Covid 19']
|
5 Christmas ago, I Had Never Seen Snow, but I Was Honest about it.
|
As I am planning my going back to the States to finish my Bachelor Degree for the Spring semester of 2021, I stumbled upon this video this holiday season:
https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1TK4y1j7Nr?from=search&seid=14154001697020659414
A Canadian national called Jared who spent his childhood in Hainan, the most southern province of China, now a college graduate and living in China again, has decided to transport some snow from the very north of China to Hainan for children there who never seen snow. They did it over the course of 7 days because it would take 47 hrs to drive across the whole of China if you do it non-stop. They tried out what kind of snow is easier to transport and made contact with the principal of an elementary school in Hainan about their plans.
Jared said: “I want to do this challenge not only because it is fun, but also because I still remember the feeling that I had when I finally saw snow for the very first time. That was when I returned to Canada with my family at the age of 6.”
(For those who are interested here’s the link to the video: https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1TK4y1j7Nr?from=search&seid=14154001697020659414 Starting from 22:00 is the scene when the elementary school students and school staff saw the snow and joyfully messing around with it.)
As I watching how people from the very south point of China was crazy over the snow in the video, I am reminded of me in 5 Chrismas ago. I was still in my last year of high school in Taiwan, a catholic school where we would do a series of Christmas events throughout December even though most of the students aren’t religious.
5 Christmas ago, I had never seen snow.
I never felt so strongly about Christmas the same way I did in that year. I was doing the last phase of the American college application process, and when I was in the Chrismas mass in from of the giant Chrismas tree that my school had put up in front of the auditorium, I was like: “Next Chrismas, I really want to be in somewhere where I can see the snow.”
I did not know what exactly things to expect if my dream of moving to the opposite side of the world does come true. All of that hope and imagination had turned into one single concrete wish: I want to watch snow melting on top of my palm and feel it.
It has been 5 years until now, and I did get accepted by a university in the New England area where it is half year raining and half year snow. No need to mention how glamourous and heart-racing it was when I finally get to feel snow with my hands.
Anyway, what makes me so fervent about the video of seeing a Canadian guy transferring snow to the south of China is that, I had long forgotten how I was strongly wishing for snow even when the chances of me touching it seemed so slim.
What I actually forgot is, I’ve forgotten how to be honest with myself.
When others look at my profile now, most of the time that think my greatest achievement is either getting myself into a prestigious American university despite the fact that I’m from a working-class immigrant family, or I had published a book this year. But for me, the most incredible thing I did so far is the inner work I had done in the period of college application years.
I was being honest with myself.
I was honest about what I really want and what matters the most to me. I understand and well-aware of what was my true biggest fear. At first, I hid my plan from everyone in school and even my family because I thought what I was afraid the most would be their mockery and their disappointment.
And then soon I realized what I fear the most would be regretting on quitting before trying everything I could. I could take mockery, I could stand disappointments, but I could not stand the thought that I would be the one to blame for my unhappiness.
So I was being honest in what I wanted the most, what I was capable of, and what I feared the most. That way, no matter what end result I get, at least at the end of the day I would not feel sorry for myself.
However, I’ve become so good at lying to myself over the past few years. I came up with fake dreams, fake excuses, and fake fears. Part of the reason can be moving abroad alone magnified some of my pre-existing weakness spots, still, I myself would be the person to be blamed for. All in all, no one ever forced me to make any choices, I did.
I made up some fake dreams, make plans and choices around them on a superficial level, and then “intentionally” failed at those because deep down I never cared for those. And then I told myself, “look, I have tried, but it is so hard to achieve something that will make me happy and satisfied.”
And then follow with fake dreams and fake goals, I made up fake excuses and fears around them. So I would feel less bad about my state of being not happy at all. All of these create a horrible vicious cycle that almost swallowed me whole.
Without getting sucked in by all the negative thoughts around this realization, I guess the questions that I have to ask myself now are:
Hey, what’s that snow of your life that you want to put on top of your palm now? That even just thinking about it, you are thrilled?
Do you really want to keep tricking yourself that “you don’t really like snow, you hate the frozen weather?” Do you really believe all your lies about how it is impossible for you to afford the flight to the other side of the globe?
And the very last:
Isn’t the most terrifying thing is that you know you can actually touch the snow, but instead you CHOOSE to just see in front of the TV, the watch it from the screen?
|
https://medium.com/@yuhsuanliu08/5-christmas-ago-i-had-never-seen-snow-but-i-was-honest-about-it-b4473dda2c57
|
['Yuhsuan Liu']
|
2020-12-26 07:23:06.608000+00:00
|
['University', '2020', 'Christmas', 'Dreams', 'Self Growth']
|
SIX vs HEA Dream11 Prediction Today with Playing XI, Pitch Report & Player Stats
|
Teams Overview
Sydney Sixers
- Matches Played — 6
- Matches Won — 5
- Matches Lose — 1
- (on going) — W-W-L-W-W-W
- Latest Team News — The squad includes Shadab Khan, Todd Murphy, Lawrence Neil-Smith and Nick Winter who are yet to debut for the club.
Brisbane Heat
- Matches Played — 6
- Matches Won — 2
- Matches Lose — 4
- (on going) — L-L-W-L-W-L
- Latest Team News — Mitch Swepson and Michael Neser were not available for selection due to their Australian squad requirements following Australia’s comprehensive win on the third day of the third Vodafone Ashes Test in Melbourne today. Brisbane has named an extended squad of 15 for the Sixers clash, with Nathan McSweeney and Cameron Gannon re-joining the group.
Top Picks by (H2H & Venue Stats)
Josh Philippe
- H2H Bat Average — 38
- Venue Bat Average — 37
J Vince
- H2H Bat Average — 40
- Venue Bat Average — 47
Moises Henriques
- H2H Bat Average — 30
- Venue Bat Average — 31
J Slik
- H2H Bat Average — 30
- Venue Bat Average — 38
S Abbott
- H2H Bowling strike rate — 9
- Venue Bowling strike rate — 13
Dan Christian
- H2H Bowling strike rate — 14
- Venue Bowling strike rate — 13
Tom Cooper
- Venue Bat Ave — 41
Hayden Kerr
- Venue Bowling strike rate — 10
Pitch Report — SIX vs HEA
The pitch in Sydney provides an equal amount of help for both of the departments however batters in the first inning with over 180 runs may win the match because that many run is enough to make the pressure in such batting wickets.
- Total Matches Played — 46
- Matches won by Bat first — 21
- Matches won by Bat second — 24
- Tie/No Results — 1
Probable Playing XI — SIX vs HEA
Sydney Sixers-XI
H2H Player Stats & Player by Venue Stars are also given along with playing XI
Josh Philippe (wk)
- (on going) — (83R), (5), (72R), (99*R), (23R) (13R)
- H2H — M-6, R-153, Ave-38.25
- Venue Stats — M-18, R-561, Ave-37.40
James Vince
- (on going) — (44R), (13R), (26R), (9R), (21R), (31R)
- H2H — M-5, R-200, Ave-40
- venue Stats — M-16, R-572, Ave-47.67
Moises Henriques ©
- (on going) — (76R), (73R), (26*R), (29R), (28R), (50R)
- H2H Bat — M-11, R-213, Ave-30.43
- H2H bowl — M-11, W-3, Sr-12
- Venue Stats Bat — M-40, R-750, Ave-31.32
- Venue Stats Bowl — M-40, W-8, Sr-27.63
Daniel Hughes
- (on going) — (DNB), (3R), (2R), (11R), (7R), (10R)
- H2H — M-11, R-258, Ave-25.80
- Venue Stats — M-27, R-517, Ave-25.85
Jordan Silk
- (ong going) — (0*R), (0R), (DNB), (25*R), (36R), (18*R)
- H2H — M-10, R-185, Ave-30.83
- Venue Stats — M-36, R-646, Ave-38
Daniel Christian
- (on going) — (5R, DNBWL), (5R+0W), (12R+0W), (0R+3W), (41*R)
- H2H Bat — M-11, R-200, Ave-33.33
- H2H Bowl — M-11, W-11, Sr-14.18
- Venue Stats Bat — M-9, R-93, Ave-13.29
- Venue Stats — M-9, W-7, Sr-18.66
Shadab Khan
- (on going) — Did not played yet
- H2H Bat — N/A
- H2H Bowl — N/A
- Venue Stats Bat — NA
- Venue Stats Bowl — NA
Ben Dwarshuis
- (on going) — (DNP), (DNP), (DNP), (DNB+1W), (W-2)
- H2H Bat — N/A
- H2H Bowl — M-9, W-8, Sr-23.13
- Venue Stats Bat — M-26, R-87, Ave-21.75
- Veneu Stats Bowl — M-26, W-30, Sr-17.33
Hayden Kerr
- (on going) — M-5, R-10, W-6, (W-3)
- H2H Bat — N/A
- H2H Bowl — N/A
- Venue Stats Bat — M-6, R-23, Ave-23
- Veneu Stats Bowl — M-6, W-3, Sr-10
Sean Abbott
- (on going) — (DNB+3W), (DNP), (DNB+0W), (DNP), (19R+3W), (W-2)
- H2H Bat — M-9, R-43, Ave-14.33
- H2H Bowl — M-9, W-20, Sr-9.25
- Venue Stats Bat — M-34, R-171, Ave-15.55
- Venue Stats Bowl — M-34, W-53, Sr-13.13
Lloyd Pope
- (on going) — M-2, W-2, (W-2)
- H2H Bat — N/A
- H2H Bowl — M-3, W-2, Sr-33
- Venue Stats Bat — N/A
- Venue Stats Bowl — M-7, W-6, Sr-26
Brisbane Heat-XI
H2H Player Stats & Player by Venue Stars are also given along with playing XI
Chris Lynn
- (on going) — M-6, R-139, Ave-23.16
- H2H — M-11, R-301, Ave-30.10
- Venue Stats — M-4, R-99, Ave-24.75
Max Bryant
- (on going) — M-6, R-61, Ave-10.16
- H2H — M-5, R-85, Ave-17
- venue Stats — M-2, R-1, Ave-0.50
Tom Cooper
- (on going) — M-4, R-69, Ave-17.25
- H2H Bat — M-10, R-151, Ave-25.17
- Venue Stats — M-5, R-123, Ave-41
Ben Duckett
- (on going) — M-6, R-192, Ave-32
- H2H — N/A
- Venue Stats — N/A
Sam Heazlett
- (ong going) — M-6, R-200, Ave-40
- H2H — M-6, R-54, Ave-9
- Venue Stats — M-2, R-20, Ave-10
Jimmy Peirson (c & wk
- (on going) — M-6, R-33, Ave-4.33
- H2H Bat — M-11, R-191, Ave-23.88
- Venue Stats Bat — M-4, R-61, Ave-20.33
James Bazley
- (on going) — M-6, R-44, Ave-8.80, W-9
- H2H Bat — M-2, R-5, Ave-2.50
- H2H Bowl — M-2, W-2, Sr-12
- Venue Stats Bat — N/A
- Venue Stats Bowl — N/A
Mark Steketee
- (on going) — M-3, R-42, Ave-21, W-8
- H2H Bat — M-6, R-7, Ave-2.33
- H2H Bowl — M-6, W-8, Sr-13.50
- Venue Stats Bat — M-1, R-5, Ave-5
- Veneu Stats Bowl — N/A
Xavier Bartlett
- (ongoing) — M-4, R-102, W-8
- H2H Bowl — N/A
- Venue Stats Bowl — N/A
Mujeeb Ur Rahman
- (on going) — M-6, R-3, Ave-1, W-2
- H2H Bat — M-5, R-3, Ave-3
- H2H Bowl — M-5, W-5, Sr-24
- Venue Stats Bowl — M-1, W-1, Sr-24
Liam Guthrie
- (on going) — M-5, R-17, Ave-17, W-6
- H2H Bat — N/A
- H2H Bowl — N/A
- Venue Stats Bowl — N/A
Head 2 Head Records — SIX vs HEA
Total Matches Played in the last three years — 7
- Matches won by Sixers — 5
- Matches won by Heat — 2
- Tie/No Results — 0
Top Dismissals
BOWLERSBATTERSOUTSS AbbottJ Peirson/C Lynn3/2M SteketeeD Hughes2M Ur RahmanJ Vince/D Christian2/2D ChristianM Bryant2
C & VC Selection — SIX vs HEA
Safe Options
- J Philippe
- M Henriques
- J Vince
- C Lynn
- S Abbott
Risky Options
- J Bazely
- H Kerr
- D Christian
- X Bartlett
Suggested XI — SIX vs HEA
Note — The team may change anytime after the toss for the Latest team information please join us on our official telegram channel the link is given down after the article.
Team-1
join us in our Official Telegram channel for fast team updates –
BabaCric Telegram Channel
|
https://medium.com/@babacric/six-vs-hea-dream11-prediction-today-with-playing-xi-pitch-report-player-stats-76e5eeaec6b
|
['Baba Cric']
|
2021-12-30 10:40:40.335000+00:00
|
['Cricket', 'Brisbaneheat', 'Bigbashleaguet20', 'Sydneysixers']
|
Structural Scaffolds for Citation Intent Classification in Scientific Publications
|
Source: Cohan et al. (2019)
Structural Scaffolds for Citation Intent Classification in Scientific Publications
This post is a paper summary highlighting the main ideas of the paper “Structural Scaffolds for Citation Intent Classification in Scientific Publications” by Cohan et al. (2019) arXiv Github
Introduction
Machine reading and automated analysis of scientific literature have increasingly become important due to information overload. Citations are typically used to measure the impact of scientific publications (Li and Ho, 2008)[1]. Citation Intent Classification is the task of identifying why an author cited another paper. The automatic identification of citation intent could also help users in doing research. FIGURE 1 shows an example of two citation intents. Some citations indicate direct use of a method, while others may acknowledge prior work or compare methods or results. Existing models are based on hand-engineered features, which may not sufficiently model signals in the text (e.g. linguistic patterns or cue phrases). Recent advances in Natural Language Processing (NLP) have introduced large, contextual representations that are obtained from textual data without the need for manual feature engineering. Cohan et al. (2019)[2] introduce a novel framework to include structural knowledge into citations as well as a new dataset of citation intents: SciCite.
Figure 1: Citation intent example. Source: Cohan et al. (2019)
Dataset
SciCite is five times larger, contains fewer but more general categories, and covers scientific literature from more general domains than existing datasets such as ACL-ARC (Jurgens et al., 2018)[3]. FIGURE 1 compares the datasets. The papers for SciCite were sampled from the Semantic Scholar corpus. The authors chose more general categories as some are very rare and would not have been enough for training. Citations were extracted using science-parse. The ACL-ARC dataset, which consists of Computational Linguistics papers, was annotated by domain experts in NLP. The training set for SciCite was crowdsourced using the Figure Eight platform, while the test set was annotated by an expert annotator.
Table 1: SciCite vs ACL-ARC. Source: Cohan et al. (2019)
Model
The proposed neural multitask framework consists of a main task (Citation intent) and two structural scaffolds, or auxiliary tasks: section title and citation worthiness. The input x is the set of tokens in the citation context, which are encoded by concatenating non-contextual word representations GloVe (Pennington et al., 2014)[4] with contextualized embeddings ELMo (Peters et al., 2018)[5] (Eq. 1).
Eq. 1
The encoded tokens then get fed into a bidirectional long short-term memory (Hochreiter and Schmidhuber, 1997)[6] network with hidden size d₂, which results in the contextual representation of each token w.r.t. the entire sequence (Eq. 2).
Eq. 2
Finally, an attention mechanism is added, which produces a vector representation of the input sequence (Eq. 3). w is a parameter served as the query vector for dot-product attention.
Eq. 3
The citation worthiness task is to predict whether a sentence needs a citation. The hypothesis is that language in sentences with citations is different from regular sentences in scientific work. Sentences with citations are positive samples and sentences without citation markers are negative samples. This task could also be used in a different setting (e.g. paper draft aid).
The section title task is to predict the title of the section in which the citation appears. The hypothesis here is that citation intent is relevant to its section. Contrary to the other tasks, the authors use a large number of scientific papers to generate the training data for this task.
In the multitask framework, a Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) followed by a softmax layer is used for each task (Eq. 4). The class with the highest probability is then chosen.
Eq. 4
Figure 2 shows an overview of the proposed model.
Figure 2: Model overview. Source: Cohan et al. (2019)
Preprocessing
For the citation worthiness task, citation markers were removed in order for the model to not “cheat” by simply recognizing citations in sentences. For sentence title, citations and their contexts were sampled from the corpus. Section titles were normalized with regular expressions to the following general categories: introduction, related work, method, and experiments. Titles that did not map to these were removed. The table below shows the total number of instances for each of the datasets and tasks.
Experiments
The proposed model, trained with standard hyperparameters, is compared to a strong baseline and a state-of-the-art model. The first baseline is a BiLSTM with an attention mechanism (with and without using ELMo embeddings) that only optimizes for the citation intent classification task. This is meant to show if the structural scaffolds and contextual embeddings, in fact, improve performance. The second baseline is the model used by Jurgens et al. (2018)[3], which had the best-reported results on ACL-ARC. The authors incorporate a diverse set of features (e.g. pattern-based, topic-based, prototypical argument) and train a Random Forest classifier.
Results
The results on both the ACL-ARC (FIGURE 2) and SciCite (FIGURE 3) datasets indicate that the inclusion of structural scaffolds improves performance on all of the baselines. The performance differences for the respective datasets is partly due to the different dataset sizes. Each auxiliary task contributes slightly over the baseline, while the combination of both tasks shows a large improvement on ACL-ARC and a marginal improvement on SciCite. The addition of contextual embeddings further increases performance by about 5% macro F1 on both datasets (including on the baselines).
Table 2: Results on ACL-ARC. Source: Cohan et al. (2019)
Table 3: Results on ACL-ARC. Source: Cohan et al. (2019)
Figure 3 shows an example sentence from ACL-ARC for which the correct label is Future Work. The best-proposed model predicts this correctly, attending over more of the context, while the baseline predicts Compare. The attention is stronger on “compare” for the baseline, ignoring the context of its use.
Figure 3: Example from ACL-ARC. Source: Cohan et al. (2019)
When looking at each of the categories independently, categories with more instances show higher F1 scores on both datasets (FIGURES 4 and 5). Recall seems to suffer from a limited number of training instances.
Table 4: Per category classification results on ACL-ARC. Source: Cohan et al. (2019)
Because the categories in SciCite are more general, there are more training instances for each. The recall on this dataset is accordingly higher.
Table 5: Per category classification results on SciCite. Source: Cohan et al. (2019)
Conclusion
Cohan et al. (2019)[2] show that structural properties of scientific literature can be useful for citation intent classification. The authors argue that relevant auxiliary tasks can help improve performance in multitask learning. The main contributions of this work are the following:
(i) A new scaffold framework for citation intent classification.
(ii) A new state-of-the-art of 67.9% F1 on ACL-ARC (an increase of 13.3%).
(iii) A new dataset of citation intents: SciCite.
Future Work
While the current work uses ELMo, Beltagy et al. (2019)[7] show that incorporating BERT, a large pre-trained language model, which they fine-tuned on scientific data, increases performance further. A possible extension could be to adapt the model to other domains (e.g. Wikipedia).
Further reading
SciBERT: A Pretrained Language Model for Scientific Text — Beltagy et al., 2019
ScispaCy: Fast and Robust Models for Biomedical Natural Language Processing — Neumann et al., 2019
Original post here.
References
[1]: Zhi Li and Yuh-Shan Ho. 2008. Use of citation per publication as an indicator to evaluate contingent valuation research. Scientometrics.
[2]: Arman Cohan, Waleed Ammar, Madeleine van Zuylen, and Field Cady. 2019. Structural scaffolds for citation intent classification in scientific publications. In NAACL-HLT, pages 3586–3596, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Association for Computational Linguistics.
[3]: David Jurgens, Srijan Kumar, Raine Hoover, Dan McFarland, and Dan Jurafsky. 2018. Measuring the evolution of a scientific field through citation frames. TACL, 6:391–406.
[4]: Jeffrey Pennington, Richard Socher, and Christopher Manning. 2014. Glove: Global vectors for word representation. In EMNLP, pages 1532–1543.
[5]: Matthew E. Peters, Mark Neumann, Mohit Iyyer, Matt Gardner, Christopher Clark, Kenton Lee, and Luke S. Zettlemoyer. 2018. Deep contextualized word representations. In NAACL-HLT.
[6]: Sepp Hochreiter and Jurgen Schmidhuber. 1997. Long short-term memory. Neural Computation.
[7]: Iz Beltagy, Arman Cohan, and Kyle Lo. 2019. SciBERT: A Pretrained Language Model for Scientific Text. CoRR, abs/1903.10676.
|
https://medium.com/dair-ai/structural-scaffolds-for-citation-intent-classification-in-scientific-publications-e5acd2f0ebf9
|
['Tornike Tsereteli']
|
2020-11-11 08:56:55.535000+00:00
|
['Artificial Intelligence', 'Technology', 'Machine Learning', 'Deep Learning', 'NLP']
|
Drear
|
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
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https://medium.com/house-of-haiku/drear-c7641727a77c
|
[]
|
2020-12-26 00:11:39.999000+00:00
|
['Monoku', 'Winter', 'Poetry', 'Photography', 'House Of Haiku']
|
Failure is Not A Mischievous Thing You Should Avoid
|
If you allow failure to define who you are, then you’re probably not going to push through the setbacks needed to achieve success.
When I was a junior in college, I received a call from a recruiter at one of the Big 4 accounting firms. To this day, I’m convinced that the recruiter could hear how big my smile was during our conversation.
I immediately called my parents to let them know the good news.
“I got the internship!” I yelled into the phone.
Since my freshman year of college, I’d studied with one goal in mind — to get an internship with one of the Big 4 accounting firms. 5 years before, my brother had the same one and achieved incredible success because of it.
I wanted that too.
After 3 years of hard work, countless hours in the library, and even more networking to squeeze my way into the door, I finally got the internship.
My path was now set in stone. Nearly all interns receive a full-time offer to return after graduation. When I got that call, it felt like an 18-wheeler was lifted off my shoulders.
As a junior in college, I had a great job lined up before I even graduated. As the summer quickly approached, I was incredibly proud and excited to get started.
Setbacks Prepare You for the Comeback
I went into the following summer feeling super confident. And because of it, the internship went great.
I learned a ton, met some incredible people, and gained a better understanding of what it means to contribute to a larger vision.
However, when all of my intern friends received their full-time offers at the end of the summer, I was left twiddling my thumbs.
It turns out a full-time offer wasn’t so ‘set in stone’ after all.
I felt empty inside. All of the work I put in during my three years of college was a waste. This job is what I’d been working for. And now, knowing that I didn’t get it…well, I felt like a complete failure.
However, looking back on it now, this wasn’t a failure but rather a small setback on the path to finding a better job and greater success. Had I not experienced this setback, I wouldn’t be where I am today.
A Failure is an Event, Not a Final Destination
When I got a call from the coordinator at the end of the internship, my heart dropped. I had been expecting to hear, “Devin, we want you to back!” but instead, I heard something completely different.
Rather than accepting it and moving on, I began to define myself by this failure. It ate at me, and I couldn’t let it go.
Why don’t they want me? What did I do wrong?
I racked my brain for anything and everything that I could have done better throughout the summer. I was in a perpetual state of feeling worthless, and I couldn’t escape it.
On the outside, I carried this persona of, “I didn’t want the job anyway”, but deep down I knew the truth.
I’d just spent the last three years working on getting the job, and I failed. I felt like shit, and there was no way of hiding that from myself.
After several weeks of wallowing in my sorrow, I finally jockeyed up and went to LinkedIn to start the search once again. I spent nearly 2 hours looking at jobs — some that sounded awesome and others that didn’t.
Nonetheless, as I continued to scroll, job after job, I came to a powerful realization. I’d just spent the last couple of hours looking at hundreds (probably thousands) of jobs. That gave me the perspective I needed.
This is just one job. There are loads of others out there. Another job will come.
Not getting the full-time offer I wanted was a singular fail. An unfortunate event. It was not something that defines who I am. I was still the same person, albeit a little bit stronger after going through that experience.
As a prolific entrepreneur and motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar, once said:
“Failure is an event, not a person. “— Zig Ziglar
Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash
Failure is a Subtle Sign That You’re Doing Something Right
We’ve all failed before. And chances are really good that you’re going to fail again. The tricky thing about failure is that it sometimes pushes us in the direction of quitting rather than rolling our sleeves up and working through it.
When I got that call from the internship coordinator telling me that I didn’t get the job, I was ready to throw in the towel and just live with my parents. I felt defeated after working so hard only to fall flat on my face.
However, after the initial feelings of wanting to give up, I got back into the saddle and started the search for jobs once again.
As Eric Thomas once said:
“There ain’t no shame in thinking about quitting. The shame is in quitting. So if you thought about it, there’s nothing wrong with that. But whatever you do, don’t let that thought become a reality. — Eric Thomas
Thinking about quitting is okay. Actually quitting is not — and it’s the only sure-fire way not to achieve your goals.
Failure and setback are the results of a lack of skill, not a defect with you specifically. Failure indicates that you’re on the road to mastery. You just have to keep pushing past setbacks and roadblocks to learn and grow.
Don’t be discouraged when you hit bumps in the road. Understand that these experiences are designed to help you become a stronger, more resilient person. They are not designed to make you quit or give up.
As Thomas Edison once said:
“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
If you don’t give up, you can’t ever fail. Failure is a result of quitting when things get hard. If you keep pushing forward, “failure” will just be a temporary setback on the road to success.
Final Thoughts
A failure is an event, not a final destination. It does not define who you are, only who you once were.
You will fail on your way to success. That’s a fact. Use failure as a beacon that you’re moving in the right direction. If you keep getting back up, if you keep showing up, you won’t ever actually fail.
As New York Times best-selling author Gena Showalter once said:
|
https://medium.com/live-your-life-on-purpose/failure-is-not-a-mischievous-thing-you-should-avoid-1830b7de0796
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['Devin Arrigo']
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2021-03-03 01:15:59.225000+00:00
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['Failure', 'Personal Development', 'College', 'Life Lessons', 'Self-awareness']
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Overwhelmed Moms Need a Village
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Why is parenting so exhausting” Why is parenting so lonely” Google search results that both affirmed how I feel and further depressed me. Parenting IS hard and it IS lonely and if Google is telling the truth, many of my fellow parents feel the same way and are probably desperate for support. They say parenting is supposed to take a village- it’s just that we’re missing the village.
I want to explore why isolation as a parent feels like such a devastating universal truth in this moment and whether tapping into community might be a key to alleviating some of the pain.
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I first want to acknowledge that the brunt of this burden, and the emotional labor that goes with it, is gendered. It’s mostly women who are experiencing this challenge.
just hand it to Mom, she’ll carry it! American moms are our culture’s default setting. Women still carry the brunt of the (unpaid!) emotional labor of child-rearing: managing timelines around online classes, muting and unmuting the mic for younger kids, shopping for food, keeping schedules, etc….All this while still “showing up” for work and meeting deadlines. The intensity of modern parenthood was heated before COVID and now, it has reached a boiling point.
Among the mothers who have greatly increased the time they are spending with their children, 80% report that they are experiencing more stress during the pandemic, 72% report that they are experiencing more anxiety during the pandemic, and 56% report that they are experiencing more frustrations with their kids.” In an unofficial survey of my mother friends, 85% of them are medicated for anxiety and/or depression. So, is it any wonder we are Googling for hope and connection!?
legislation or programs that honor and support the labor of care-giving. Parental leave is not required in the US! Almost 2 million women have dropped out of the workforce since COVID hit and nothing has been done to address the dearth of support for these women.
mom-fluencers can add another painful pressure to the isolation, causing many of us to “compare and despair” the reality we see in our own lives to those on our screens. Too many perspectives and not enough vetted sources of truth can have our minds racing. Is breast best? Is formula ok? Why does breastfeeding look so easy for her? What’s a waist trainer? I want to get my pre-baby body back. Should I want to get my pre-baby body back? Body positive! How do I baby proof? When do I babyproof? What about screens? Will wooden toys make my kids smarter?
child was never meant to be a solo journey of one or two parents with a child. It was meant to be aunts, grandmothers, cousins, sisters and beyond, all taking turns doing the nurturing, supporting and raising children together. Paying people to be your village of nannies, chefs, night nurses, doulas is easy if you’re extremely rich. Plus, it would allow for easy access to personal time with friends if you’ve got the paid-for village.
Hopefully, I won’t sound like too much of a community PollyAnna but, I have seen and experienced first-hand how participating in community can fill the chasm between loneliness and belonging.Let’s talk about where you might make that happen, how you might make that happen and who to look for.
In person relationships are vital yet, trickier these days (because, ya know, COVID) And, while the Internet can activate FOMO, real, fulfilling friendships can absolutely form online. Maybe they’re in your local Facebook Group, NextDoor or on Peanut or, maybe you keep seeing these moms in your neighborhood park, at school drop off or, looking as frazzled as you in the background of your children’s Zoom class.
Once, you’ve honed in on who the “who” might be — how can you strike up a thoughtful conversation?Whether you’re an introvert or extrovert, finding a way to wave, say Hi, Howdy, What’s up can lead to good things. Even Oprah had a whole magical campaign about it years ago and has been scientifically proven to lighten the load of loneliness.
Maybe this is sending a text, a DM or even inviting a fellow mom to join you for a coffee. If you’re on the shyer side, maybe sparking conversation around a shared experience at school or sending a parenting article to discuss could be a nice icebreaker on the path to greater connection.
This sounds like a tough one, especially during COVID, since we are all stretched to the limits. But! Imagine how special or appreciative you might feel if a new friend offered to watch your kids play in the park for an hour while you ran errands or, took a nap!? I think of this kind of community building as the “cup of sugar” approach. If you need something (a break), and I have it (a little extra time), why wouldn’t I share it some?
Without government infrastructure to support parents, I believe we have to work together in ways big and small to fill in the gaps for each other. AOC created an even more thoughtful and structured way to create a COVID-friendly childcare collective where you bank time with your neighbors and friends.Great Aunts were meant to be a part of the communal aspect of parenting, finding a been-there-done-that parent with children older than yours is an invaluable fill-in. They are the holders of institutional parenting knowledge and because they have done this before, can give you insights from a hindsight perspective.
The Text Me Anytime Friend: This person might live near you or across the globe. They may have kids close to your kids age. These people will make themselves known to you — they’ll model empathy about their hard times and look for the same from you. This person is probably awake rage-breastfeeding their baby at the same time you are.
Child Free Champion: Last but not least, is this hero of the village. It could be your actual blood relative, your neighbor or friend who does not have a child of their own and understands deeply how valuable support is. They’re your buddy to call for support on a walk in the park with the kids (for extra entertainment) and available for last-minute, urgent childcare needs.
Moms in 2020 are up against layers of impossibility. I believe that with some effort, community can be your path to a little less loneliness. I promise, you’re not alone!
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https://medium.com/@kopakupi/overwhelmed-moms-need-a-village-3aebb80068b6
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[]
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2020-12-05 23:47:45.679000+00:00
|
['Sexual Assault']
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Adventures in Sound Poetry: Interview with Lane Chasek
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Poetry doesn’t always age well. Several traditional forms of poetry seem to be on their last dying breath. I run a literary journal. If anyone submits a sonnet or a villanelle to us, it’s a safe bet that the form is used somehow ironically.
I’m generally in favor of poets moving beyond traditional forms. But author Lane Chasek does the world an important service by reviving one nearly forgotten form of poetry: sound poetry. Unlike most established forms of poetry, which are based on strict structural rules, sound poetry is exactly the opposite, insisting on no formal structure whatsoever. Sound poetry goes so far as to do away with syntax and semantics entirely. This enables sound poems to explore musical and theatrical elements unlike any other form of poetry.
Although sound poetry was officially invented in the 20th century, it’s also an ancient form, with its roots in oral poetry traditions. In his book, “Hugo Ball and the Fate of the Universe: Adventures in Sound Poetry,” Chasek unites the ancient form with its 20th century figureheads, and then pulls it all into the present day. His book is also a reflection on the creative process more broadly, offering a personal narrative about the struggles of a poet in the modern world.
Below is an interview I conducted with Chasek via email about the making of his new book.
What got you interested in sound poetry?
Lane Chasek: I learned about the Dada movement from a friend I used to attend poetry open mics with, and I learned about sound poetry soon after. I never attempted writing a sound poem back then, but the idea always lingered in the back of my brain until I started writing this book. This was during my freshman year of college, so that would have been 2013.
But my fascination with nonsense dates back to childhood. I used to invent long, meaningless words when I first learned to read and write, and I’d plaster those words on my bedroom walls and the pages of any notebook I could get my hands on. It was fun, but I really think this phase was my way of testing the limits of language. I was only six or seven, and the idea of words was still fresh to me. I didn’t know what they could do, so I went a little wild with them.
What was the writing process for the book? Was it different in any way from your usual writing process?
This was my first attempt at long-form nonfiction. Given the nature of the Fair-Minded Fraud & Forgery series, I always thought of this project as creative scholarship. Compared to past projects, I was surprised by how much of my time writing this book was spent . . . well, not writing. Most of it was spent researching. I’d often go weeks without writing a single word. This was agonizing at first, but this process took me to some unexpected places.
For instance, I wrote a chapter where I combine the legend of the golem with the story of how my paternal great-grandfather came to the U.S. I never thought I’d write something like this, but it makes sense: an Eastern European city, mass carnage, an unpronounceable word that can create monsters. It’s a story about needless violence, heritage, and the power of language — themes which ultimately came to dominate my book.
The original working title for the book was “Notes of an Aspiring Sound Poet.” How did the book evolve from when you first sat down to start writing it?
Initially this book wasn’t going to focus so heavily on religion or science. So at the time, Notes of an Aspiring Sound Poet made sense as a title — I was (and still am) an aspiring sound poet, and these are my notes. But as my research expanded into cosmology, religion, and thermodynamics, I realized there was more at play here than sound poetry.
When Hugo Ball and the Fate of the Universe was suggested to me, the focus of my book suddenly made more sense. Hugo Ball is sound poetry’s earliest protagonist, but beyond Ball and his work, I’d found myself writing about entropy, randomness, number theory, warfare, theology, etc. By studying sound poetry I’d opened my mind to topics that involve our fate as a species and the fate of the universe.
The book is partly about your journey in writing your first sound poem. Did writing this book help you become a better sound poet?
It hurts to say this, but no. If anything, my research and my attempt at writing sound poetry proved how much I still have to learn. Sound poetry is a deceptive topic. It looks simple, but beneath the hood there are so many intersecting webs of music, politics, theatre, and history — very daunting. I wasn’t an expert when I started this book and I’m still not an expert. I’m a sound poetry novice, and I’m fine with that.
However, one thing that’s holding me back is the performative nature of sound poetry. It’s one thing to read a sound poem, but listening to one adds new dimensions and nuances. It’s like tasting artificial watermelon flavoring versus eating an actual slice of watermelon. Theatricality, I believe, is integral to great sound poetry, and a good sound poet always has some kind of performative flare. That flare is something I haven’t developed yet.
Sound poetry is a form of language but without semantics or syntax. How can you judge a good sound poem from a bad one? Is it mostly about the performance?
That’s a tricky one. It’s hard to put into words what works and doesn’t work in a poem that doesn’t use words. But I think I’ve developed a sense of what I prefer in a sound poem. For example, I prefer Hugo Ball’s earlier sound poems to his later ones. The later ones are so jagged and cacophonous, while his earlier attempts felt like an otherworldly imitation of human language. Noise is noise, but nonsense that sounds like it might have meaning is more interesting.
Otherwise, the line between good and bad sound poetry seems to be in the performance. I’ve never read any of Jaap Blonk’s sound poems, but I’ve listened to his work and I love it. I’m not sure if I’d enjoy his work in print, but when you listen to his albums, you lose yourself in the sonic elements of the genre. For that reason alone, I think Blonk is the best starting point for anyone interested in sound poetry. I’d especially recommend the album Five Men Singing.
Your book introduces a cast of historical figures who are all distinct and fascinating. Would it be fair to say that sound poets are some of the most colorful figures in the history of poetry?
If we limit ourselves to Dada, a touch of color seems to be a defining characteristic of many artists in the movement, not just sound poets. And it makes sense — Dada was ultimately a movement for people who were fed up with what Western Civilization had been peddling for the past five centuries. The anti-structural, anti-authoritarian ethos of sound poetry and Dada attracted the disaffected, the angry, and the eccentric. In terms of today’s sound poets, I’m not sure. Every sound poet I’ve encountered has just looked and acted like a poet. The only unusual thing about them is their genre of choice.
There have always been artists who are drawn to nonsense, or pure expression without any clear meaning. Famous writers who dabbled in nonsense include Lewis Carroll, Alfred Jarry, and of course Hugo Ball. Do you know why nonsense is such an enduring quality of art?
A lot of it’s probably frustration. At least in literature, there’s this gulf between writer and reader that isn’t present in other media. You have to translate events and phenomena into words, which are imprecise. Sometimes you can’t find the right word or phrase, and even if you do, you can’t guarantee that the reader will understand what you meant. Theatre, painting, and music are more direct — the medium is the experience. Having to think about that gulf as a writer is discouraging. I often feel like a painter with my hands cut off, and that frustration is probably universal.
I think artists who embrace the nonsensical have grown tired of the limits of their medium. Nonsense is both a creative and psychological outlet for them. They want to break things. When I finally wrote a sound poem, it felt like a creative temper tantrum — uncontrollable, but oddly liberating. I didn’t care if the world understood me. I could finally write and not worry about what a hypothetical reader would think.
Hugo Ball viewed sound poetry to be a partly political art form. Can you explain the political side of sound poetry? Also, do you have any opinion about the role sound poetry — or art in general — should play in politics?
Sound poetry is (basically) language, so I’d say it’s inherently political.
Historically, though, the political dimension of sound poetry stems from the science and art of propaganda. Propaganda has always existed, but in the early 20th century, propaganda became a mobilizing, destructive force that could end millions of lives in a matter of months. To artists like Hugo Ball and Tristan Tzara, this had to be horrifying. Governments were suddenly using words and images, the domain of writers and artists, to end human lives. We take propaganda for granted now, but Dadaists back in the day probably felt disgusted and appalled. Sound poetry was Ball’s way to redeem human language: you remove meaning, you defang the language. Or at least that’s what he thought.
In our post-truth world, I’d say we’re in a crisis similar to that faced by the first Dadaists. Like Ball and company, we’re witnessing the terrifying power of language. We live in an age where a few inflammatory Tweets feel like they could tear our country apart. What can sound poetry do to solve this? Not much. Our president talks and writes nonsense all day, so what would more nonsense accomplish?
Do you think sound poetry has a future as a poetic form?
Sound poetry will be around forever, I think, but it probably won’t gain popularity anytime soon. In its purest form it just doesn’t appeal to a mass audience. It’s always been a niche genre, but I don’t mind. There’s something special about discovering a writer or performer like Jaap Blonk and only one or two of your friends really “get” what he’s doing. You can share that forever.
However, even if sound poetry isn’t popular in its own right, its children certainly are. And by children, I mean the ways in which sound poetry has influenced music. Scat singing, for example. Even if someone doesn’t know about sound poetry, they’re probably familiar with scat singing, whether it’s Mel Torme or Scatman John. But let’s face it, even jazz has become pretty niche.
I think where we’re really seeing sound poetry’s lasting effects is in the newer generation of rappers, especially the ones who get labelled as “mumble” rappers. Which isn’t a fair label. “Mumble” implies that their style is lazy just because it’s occasionally nonsensical. If there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that nonsense can be an artform. When someone complains that an artist like Lil Uzi Vert doesn’t use complex, sprawling rhyme schemes like Pharoahe Monch, I can’t help but laugh. It’s like comparing Hugo Ball to Alexander Pope. They’re different artists, they have entirely different goals. A lot of this newer music focuses on mood and the sonic experience more than the lyrics themselves. This isn’t the devolution of rap — it’s proof that the spirit of the first major sound poets is alive and well in the 21st century.
What are you working on now? What’s your next writing project?
I’ve been juggling two ideas for a while now. For the past six months I’ve been working on an autobiographical analysis of T.S. Eliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats. A lot of Eliot’s theological and political themes from works such as “The Hollow Men” and Ash Wednesday, oddly enough, feature heavily in Practical Cats, and they make an interesting backdrop for a story about exploring sexual identity in the Midwest.
Otherwise, I’ve been busy revising and organizing some of my recent poems into what will (hopefully) be a book soon. They mostly revolve around family history and collective guilt, but they all stem from a story that’s been passed down in my family for years. According to years of rumors, the sole reason my maternal great-great-grandmother left Sicily for the U.S. was because the Mafia wanted her dead. The working title is Mafioso.
“Hugo Ball and the Fate of the Universe: Adventures in Sound Poetry” is currently available in print and on Kindle.
|
https://petermclarke.medium.com/adventures-in-sound-poetry-interview-with-lane-chasek-943e38c8a364
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['Peter Clarke']
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2020-07-01 22:20:32.652000+00:00
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['New Book Release', 'Indie Publishing', 'Nonfiction', 'Interview', 'Books And Authors']
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Is the shortform content revolution upon us? Maybe.
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Is the shortform content revolution upon us? Maybe.
Michelle Legro explains(in the Creators Hub) some uses for shortform posts. She also explains how to properly construct shortform posts:
Thomas Smith suggested that Medium is creating a monetized version of Twitter. A very interesting read:
Paul Ryburn conducted an experiment of his own that’s worth checking out:
*Bonus tip from this article: Press CTRL+A while in the editor — you can see how many words your post has in the top left corner.
Thoughts on posting shortform? I’m interested to see if this picks up.
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https://medium.com/@mikemarolla/is-the-shortform-content-revolution-upon-us-maybe-7e2016ed8c07
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['Mike Marolla']
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2020-12-06 15:25:45.814000+00:00
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['Writing', 'Content Creation', 'Creative Writing', 'Future', 'Short Read']
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Investing in Utilities
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We turn on the water faucet every morning to brush our teeth and make our coffee. We click on the oven or the stovetop burner to cook our meals. We power up the heat when the air outside starts to chill or the AC on when the weather warms up. And then, like clockwork at the end of every month, we pay each of our utility bills.
Most of the time, utilities don’t come with many surprises. And, while costs always seem to go up, it’s usually a little bit at a time. But you likely already know this. Utilities are just part of life. Still, it’s possible that you’ve never considered the following: what would it look like if you invested in your utility services and they paid you like clockwork, as well?
Utility investments offer a unique way to diversify a portfolio- providing stability and returns almost as predictable as your monthly bill. Here’s why you should consider a utility-related investment product before your next billing cycle.
What qualifies as ‘utilities’?
Utilities include electricity, natural gas, and water and waste services.
American Water Works (NYSE:AWK), for example, is the largest publicly traded water and wastewater utility in the U.S. Through its subsidiaries, it services approximately active customers in 16 states. Over the last three years, it managed to grow its earnings per share by per year, over three years. This past year, its revenue grew by 4.3% to US$3.6b.
The utility sector increasingly includes wind and solar. For example, NextEra Energy (NEE), which invests in renewable energy infrastructure, has performed well overall since its market debut.
At one-point telephone and cable companies were strictly regarded as utilities. In some cases, they still are (specifically landline services). But, improved technology and a changing, increasingly competitive market is transitioning them to part of the communications sector rather than a public utility.
Utilities, including electricity, natural gas, and water and waste services, typically have monopolies in the geographic regions that they serve. In part this is because the cost of building and maintaining a power plant, a grid network required for distribution of electricity, etc., and the customer service infrastructure to collect payments and meet the needs of mass users is expensive.
While the stability of no competition and a reliable customer base generally means that utilities are less impacted by economic downturns than other companies, it also means that they are regulated.
Regulation means that a government entity at the local, regional, and/or federal level participates in oversight. Typically, oversight would include the monitoring of utility rates for customers, regional growth rates, and service reliability. It limits the ability to easily make rate increases to adjust for a profit margin, for example, requiring that price increases be both necessary and approved.
Why invest in utilities?
Utilities are not a choice investment for making fast cash, rather they are a great way to diversify your portfolio. Considered a defensive investment, utilities can be a great tool to reduce overall risk. Utilities are generally regarded as a safe investment, more correlated with bonds than stocks, for a couple of reasons.
First, because utilities participate in a regulated industry, competition is generally stable and limited. They also rarely go out of business and because they have consistent customers who don’t have other options, they tend to have consistent revenue.
Second, because they are regulated entities, they have very predictable cash flow and profits. This allows utilities to pay consistent dividends, generating steady income for investors. They also pay relatively high dividends (typically 60 to 80 percent of their annual earnings) to shareholders in part because they have little need to reinvest earnings into operations. The need for energy resources to power our refrigerators, water from our sinks, etc. is all consistent regardless of the strength of the economy.
Investing in utilities that offer wind and solar opportunities can also provide a way for investors interested in environmental, social and governance to financially support companies aligned with sustainable values.
How to invest in utilities
Because of their infrastructure requirements, however, utilities tend to carry a lot of debt. This makes them vulnerable to rising interest rates. Higher interest rates both typically lower stock prices and increase debt for utility companies.
There are a number of ways to invest in utilities, but it’s most often wise to look for a mutual fund, exchange-traded fund, or company with diversified holdings. Diversification limits some degree of risk in the case of a natural disaster that damages infrastructure, for example.
However, utility-focused ETFs and mutual funds are a good way to access this sector without investing directly in individual utility providers. A search on Magnifi suggests there are a few different ways to do this.
Magnifi is changing the way we shop for investments, with the world’s first semantic search engine for finance that helps users discover, compare and buy investment products such as ETFs, mutual funds and stocks. Try it for yourself today.
This blog is sponsored by Magnifi. The information and data are as of the publish date unless otherwise noted and subject to change. This material is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as individualized investment advice or an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities tailored to your needs. This information covers investment and market activity, industry or sector trends, or other broad-based economic or market conditions and should not be construed as investment research or advice. Investors are urged to consult with their financial advisors before buying or selling any securities. Although certain information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, we do not guarantee its accuracy, completeness or fairness. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. This content may not be reproduced or distributed to any person in whole or in part without the prior written consent of Magnifi. [As a technology company, Magnifi provides access to tools and will be compensated for providing such access. Magnifi does not provide broker-dealer, custodian, investment advice or related investment services.]
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https://medium.com/@DiscoverMagnifi/investing-in-utilities-10b304b6192a
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[]
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2020-12-02 17:12:22.722000+00:00
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['Solar Energy', 'Utilities', 'Wind']
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Getting close to the bitter end
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Getting close to the bitter end
Photo by Leon Seibert on Unsplash
I learned about Medium several months ago and really enjoyed participating…for a little while. Unfortunately for me and, evidently, many other short-form writers, the way Medium evaluates and assigns earnings changed dramatically.
Now, my work most often goes unseen and apparently worthless. Soon, it will cost me more to be here than I receive each month. At that point, I’ll be gone. If you have found any pleasure in my work, you can still find a few books of my poetry on Amazon.
I do not intend to pander to Medium by telling people what they’re doing wrong or make lists of Five Things ….or whatever the number du jour is. Most often, if I open one of those articles, they are written without authority and with writing errors.
Why bother?
So, while it was nice — briefly — it’s just not for me. I do wish I’d found it earlier, but I didn’t. Now, Medium seems to be just one more venue where clean, creative writing, if it’s poetry, is unvalued.
Long live algorithms. Without me.
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https://medium.com/@jane-woodman/getting-close-to-the-bitter-end-daee6dcb8d27
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['Jane Woodman']
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2020-12-27 20:38:35.205000+00:00
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['Ｍedium', 'Saying Goodbye', 'Algorithms']
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New IP2Proxy PX9 & PX10 packages
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Introduction
IP2Location is pleased to announce the release of the IP2Proxy PX9 and PX10 packages. These 2 packages cater to the users who are security-conscious and also online merchants looking to detect fraudulent purchases.
What’s new in IP2Proxy PX9 package?
With the release of the IP2Proxy PX9 packages, there is a new column called threat which contains a description of the types of detected threats from the listed proxies. This makes PX9 a vital tool in the arsenal of any webmaster, server administrator, forum operator, etc. The threat data can be one of the following:
SPAM — If the proxy has been detected as a source of email spam or forum spam, you will see this value in the threat column. This value is most beneficial to mail server operators, forum website operators and bloggers as it allows the detection of such proxies, making it very easy to block. There is no need to scan emails and posts for spam when you can just prevent such acts in the first place.
SCANNER — When you see this value in the threat data, you should be more alert as someone or an organization is probing your server and network for vulnerabilities. While it could be a legitimate penetration testing, it is good to take note and investigate further whenever you encounter this value. A thorough security audit of your network vulnerabilities could be in order.
BOTNET — Organized crime syndicates or hacker groups are taking over people’s computers on a daily basis via phishing, hacking and so forth. When an innocent party’s computer is hijacked without their knowledge, it is often used as part of a botnet (a group of computers on the Internet being controlled by a central server). Botnets are often used for various nefarious tasks such as performing a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks on servers owned by governments, militaries or big organizations. You can block such IP addresses by checking for this value in the threat column.
Why should you choose IP2Proxy PX10?
While PX9 can give you very good data from a security perspective, PX10 goes a step further by allowing you to detect the elusive residential proxy servers. This type of proxy servers is notoriously difficult to detect as they are actually computers being used by normal day to day folks. It could be a home computer being used by a student or housewife. It could also be any computer in a SOHO environment.
Sometimes the owners of these computers are not even aware that their machine is being used as a proxy. The proxy software could have been bundled with another software that they are using. Or it could also be one of their browser plugins.
As an online merchant, these residential proxies caused a lot of headache as fraudsters tend to use them while making purchases with stolen credit cards. This means the merchant will get saddled with lots of chargeback requests eventually. The potentially crippling financial losses means that merchants must be able to detect whenever a customer is making a purchase using a residential proxy server.
Fortunately, IP2Proxy PX10 includes detection of residential proxies, making it a highly indispensable tool in the online merchants’ fraud detection routine. By checking the proxy_type field for the value RES, they can easily filter out these IP addresses.
Conclusion
IP2Proxy with threats data and residential proxy ranges are very much needed in today’s high-threat environment. Without the power of IP2Proxy, server admins and online merchants are at the mercy of malicious parties. Please visit our website https://www.ip2location.com/database/ip2proxy to compare all IP2Proxy products.
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https://medium.com/@ip2location/new-ip2proxy-px9-px10-packages-3f76c60e09d8
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[]
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2020-08-01 00:44:37.796000+00:00
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['Residential Proxies', 'VPN', 'Proxy']
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Challenges New and Old for Returning Veterans During COVID-19
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Challenges New and Old for Returning Veterans During COVID-19
Returning home from years of military service comes with many challenges, but how much more difficult does it become during a pandemic? Christion McLeran looks into one young man’s return. Reynolds Sandbox Follow Feb 18 · 3 min read
Joseph Ten Eyck Jr. (right) photographed with his father Joseph Ten Eyck Sr. (left) in 2015, while both were wearing their uniforms.
A Return Coinciding with the World’s Lockdown
Joseph Ten Eyck Jr. is a 23-year-old, third-generation Marine veteran from Penn Valley, California, who recently returned from five years of service in May 2020.
Shipping off for boot camp a few days after his high school graduation in 2015, Joseph served as an anti-tank missileman in the Marine Corps 0352 infantry, trained to be the first line of defense against enemy tanks/vehicles through the use of TOW missiles and the Javelin weapon system.
During his time in the Marine Corps, Ten Eyck was stationed at the Twentynine Palms and Camp Pendleton bases, both in southern California as well as being involved in a deployment to Southeast Asia.
“Being in the military was a positive experience for me, but it was definitely a love-hate relationship. I always say about 40% love and 60% hate,” he said, an attitude which was pretty common among his peers.
Like many of his fellow Marines, the younger Ten Eyck was very much anticipating his return home, saying he was most looking forward to “personal freedom, growing facial hair (something he now has an abundance of), and seeing old friends,” but returning home to a pandemic isn’t what he had daydreamed about.
Above, one of the federal programs helping veterans who have struggled financially during the pandemic.
Finding Work as a Welder But Suffering from Disabilities
In May 2020, the world was just beginning to adjust to life during a pandemic, with mass lockdowns across the country and the unemployment rate among veterans at about 13% among post-9/11 veterans, according to a study by Syracuse University, over three times the normal rate.
The unemployment crisis has hit this group of our population hard as it’s hit many of us and while there has been improvement since last year, the U.S. economy is still far from where it once was.
Ten Eyck believes he was one of the lucky ones. With many of his peers struggling to find work, he was able to find work as a welder relatively quickly. “I was fortunate enough to find work within the first 10 days, I was honestly a little surprised,” he said.
Even when there isn’t a worldwide pandemic happening, adjusting back into civilian life comes with its own set of problems, emotionally, financially and physically as well. Government statistics indicate nearly a third of veterans aged 21–64 have some disability suffered during their service and unfortunately Joseph falls into this group.
While still a relatively healthy young man, he says that his job in the Marines put wear and tear on his body that is already impacting his life in negative ways, including “pretty severe tinnitus from being around so many firearms and explosives” as well as arthritis in his knees and back as a result of the duties he performed, problems that are already affecting him at work.
Looking to the future, despite these physical challenges, Ten Eyck plans on continuing the welding work he has been doing since returning home, with a future goal of starting his own welding company in the next few years.
Written by Christion McLeran for the Reynolds Hotbox
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https://medium.com/the-reynolds-media-lab/challenges-new-and-old-for-returning-veterans-during-covid-19-b90fff0c3dd3
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['Reynolds Sandbox']
|
2021-02-18 04:57:08.385000+00:00
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['Covid Diaries', 'Marines', 'Veterans', 'Rsjlab']
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How to Become Energy Atma-Nirbhar (Self-reliant)
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Technology, post-COVID grid architecture, and a tale of two speeches.
On 12 May 2020, Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India, laid out a potential path out of the COVID-19 crisis. Within minutes, “Atma-Nirbhar Bharat,” or self-reliant India, went viral.
Narendra Modi emphasised Self-Reliance as a way for India to lead the reconstruction of the Post-COVID world.
But I would like to begin by drawing attention to another recent, much talked-about speech. On the ninth of April, as Indians prepared to turn off their lights at 9 PM in response to the Prime Minister’s speech, some sections raised questions on the stability of the Electric Grid. There were worries that a sudden drop in load demand would destabilise the Electric Grid. Fortunately, and helped by staff at Load Dispatch Centres working round the clock, nothing of that sort happened. However, the event did raise pertinent questions about the architecture of our present electricity generation and distribution systems (the ‘grid’).
Like A House of Cards
Photo by Aditya Joshi on Unsplash
The process of delivering electricity to households is long and complex- and with every step comes vulnerability and uncertainty- political instability could threaten fuel supplies; changing climate patterns can dry up waterbodies and empty dams; Power plants, with their thousands of closely calibrated moving parts, can break down; and trees falling on overhead cables, or transformers blowing spectacularly, are common causes for entire localities to be blacked out.
What happens when you flip a switch depends on so many factors out of your control. And it’s scary when the availability of such an essential commodity is so vulnerable.
Solar Panels and Building Blocks
The energy supply chain, and the route from producer to consumer, sometimes spans different countries and even continents. Taking more control would require bringing the generators and the consumers of energy closer to each other. But how close can we realistically and practically get?
Today, it is possible to generate energy in your own house, and become truly and completely self-reliant!
Generators that run on diesel or gas are quite common, while alternative solutions like small rooftop wind turbines also exist. But the most promising solution is one that does not need external fuel supply, or customised sizing and manufacturing- Solar Panels!
Solar Panels are like Energy Building Blocks. Photo by Science in HD on Unsplash
Solar Panels are modular, just like building blocks. Fitting together similar building blocks, you can make a spaceship or a castle. Likewise, fitting together solar panels- be it just one panel, or one million- can create a system for any desired size and usage.
But What Happens at Night?
The obvious issue with solar panels is that they do not generate power at night. There is also another, less apparent drawback- almost all the solar panel systems installed today require a reference signal from the utility grid, and therefore do not generate power during a power failure.
The solution for both these issues is the same- Batteries. Batteries enable Solar Energy to be stored so it can be used at night or during a power outage. When installed with batteries and our very own device, Nucleus, solar energy can take care of all your energy needs.
What is Nucleus?
Nucleus is a smart controller that integrates solar panels and battery storage efficiently and inexpensively.
Nucleus- A smart gateway device that integrates batteries and solar panels
Unlike other systems, Nucleus ensures availability of clean, reliable power, 24x7. It also seamlessly fits with any type of battery system- meaning you don’t need to buy new, expensive, and customised battery banks.
With an accompanying app to monitor the status of your system, Nucleus gives you a transparent picture of your system and its functioning.
The best part? Nucleus is made with ❤ in Bangalore, so there’s no need to worry about where your system comes from, and where your data is stored!
Vocal for Local
While adopting solar energy definitely makes you self-reliant, does it fit in with the Atmanirbhar Bharat (Self-reliant India) movement?
Every component in the system, right from the Solar panels, to nucleus, down to the cables and connectors, has reliable manufacturers in India. When you choose the right installation partner, you support a local small business owner. More importantly, you contribute to generating high-value employment for local youth.
Training programs empower local youth to take up future-ready careers.
And, once your system is up and running, you can generate enough power to not only power your home, but also sell surplus power back into the grid! Yes, you read that right- not only would you become self-reliant, you also make a small contribution to your neighbours’ energy consumption, and even get paid for it. Atma-nirbhar, and more!
How can I know if I am self-reliant?
Nucleus gives you full visibility of where your power comes from. The Power Flow feature on the accompanying app shows you just that- where your power is flowing! No jargon, no technical gibberish, just an animation that speaks a thousand words!
The Powerflow animation on the Nucleus App lets you know where your energy is coming from.
What Next?
The COVID-19 crisis can act as a catalyst towards a new, decentralised energy grid and self-reliant energy consumers contributing towards the economy.
If you believe in the movement towards Self-Reliance, Solar Energy should be on the top of your list. Click here to contact us and initiate your Solar journey today!
Also, support us and our journey by following us on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Medium and Twitter.
See you on the other side, the right side of Self-Reliance!
|
https://medium.com/wenergie/how-to-become-energy-atma-nirbhar-self-reliant-49277f22a994
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['Akshay Harikumar']
|
2020-05-29 10:27:14.307000+00:00
|
['Battery', 'Clean Energy', 'Solar Energy', 'Self Reliance', 'Narendra Modi']
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Croston model : Forecasting Intermittent demand data (Time Series analysis)
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Let’s start with…
What is Forecasting ?
Forecasting is a technique that takes past data and predicts the future value for the data looking at its unique trends. For example — predicting average annual company turnover based on data from 10+ years prior. This past data is generally time based data that is nothing but “Time Series Data” and the models we build for forecasting is “Time Series Modelling”.
Time series is anything which is observed sequentially over the time at regular interval like hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly etc. Time series data is important when you are predicting something which is changing over the time using past data. In time series analysis the goal is to estimate the future value using the behaviors in the past data.
There are many statistical techniques available for time series forecast however we have found few effective ones which are listed below:
Some Techniques of Forecasting are:
Simple Moving Average (SMA)
Exponential Smoothing (SES)
Autoregressive Integration Moving Average (ARIMA)
Neural Network (NN)
Croston model
Now, let’s cut to the chase and talk more about Croston model…
Croston model is a statistical method of forecasting quantitative time series. Generally for forecasting intermittent demand.
But what is intermittent demand ?
Intermittent demand — when a product or demand experiences several periods of zero demand — is highly variable. Intermittent demand is very common in industries such as aviation, automotive, defense, manufacturing, and retail. It also typically occurs with products nearing the end of their life cycle.
Problem with intermittent demand :
Intermittent series has demand appear at random with many time periods showing no demand at all. The prominent characteristics of such series are:
The time-series contains embedded zeroes The time-series does NOT exhibit any seasonal behavior
Example of intermittent demand data,
Intermittent demand
Intermittent demand is characterized by occasional demand arrivals interspersed by time intervals during which no demand occurs. These demand patterns pose considerable difficulties in terms of forecasting and inventory control due to their compound nature as demand arrivals are coupled with demand size distribution. Thus, operational managers face a twofold forecasting problem:
(1) When the next demand will occur?
(2) Once demand is realized, what will be the respective volume?
Let’s try forecasting the intermittent data using simple exponential smoothing. Below example show simple exponential smoothing on normal data and intermittent data.
Simple Exponential Smoothing
Simple Exponential Smoothing on Intermittent data
As you can see in above two examples, consider the last observation t = 15, for normal data simple exponential smoothing predicted 35, but when we embed some zeros i.e intermittent data then the predicted value drastically fall to 18, thereby we get maximum error.
Due to the many zero values in intermittent demand time series, the usual methods of forecasting, such as exponential smoothing and ARIMA, do not give an accurate forecast. In these cases, approaches such as Croston may provide a better accuracy over traditional methods.
How does croston model solve the problem with Intermittent demand ?
Croston’s has a complex formula, however, what it output is actually very simple. The screenshot below explains what Croston’s does in a very simple way for the sake of understanding.
Above is the 12-month average vs. Croston’s vs, while below is the 5-month average vs. Croston’s.
As you can see, Croston’s removes the periods that have no demand only averaging the periods that have demand.
Working of Croston model :
Above picture shows the detail working of croston’s model.
Croston’s method is a widely used approach for intermittent demand forecasting, and is based on exponential smoothing. In particular, it involves separate simple exponential smoothing of the demand size and the time period between demands. The ratio of those estimates (sizes/intervals) may then be used as an estimate of the demand per period. Consider the following notation to explain Croston’s procedure:
The method updates the forecasts for demand size and interval only after positive demand occurs. That means, if in a period t demand is zero the method only increments the count of time periods since last positive demand. The procedure for Croston’s method is described below:
Summary :
Croston’s Method, essentially shifts the updating to only after an order occurs. n Smooths out the forecast for replenishment purposes — average usage per period n Unbiased and has lower variance than simple smoothing.
Cautions n Infrequent updating introduces a lag to responding to magnitude changes n Recommended use of smoothing for MSE of non-zero transaction periods
Conclusion:
The Croston method is a forecast strategy for products with intermittent demand. In the uni variate forecast profile, choose forecast strategy.
Croston’s can be easily emulated with exponential smoothing and any timing benefit is usually adjusted by order lot sizing, and or safety stock in supply planning. Therefore, demand history must not only be lumpy, but must also be very low in order for Croston’s to be of value. Therefore, Croston’s can be seen as a specialty forecasting method that provides value in certain limited circumstance.
|
https://medium.com/@juileetalele/croston-model-forecasting-intermittent-demand-data-time-series-analysis-6f3a2bb1654b
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['Juilee Talele']
|
2020-01-17 15:10:34.184000+00:00
|
['Crostons Model', 'Time Series Analysis', 'Forecasting', 'Data Science', 'Econometrics']
|
Behind The Scenes Vol.2 Recap
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Our second Behind The Scenes event happened on 11 November 2020. You can watch the recording here. This session is a deep dive into what it takes to build a program worthy of the perils that surround us for Interaction 21.
The discussion was led by Tin Kadoic, who started the local group in Zagreb, Croatia in 2014 and is past member of the IxDA EU Core team. The guests were Elaine Matthias and Brenda Laurel, co-chairs for this year’s edition.
Elaine Matthias is a freelance interaction designer with a background in ecommerce and event design. She has worked on the past 4 IxD conferences beginning with New York in 2017, where she resides.
Brenda Laurel is a video game designer and researcher advocating for diversity and inclusiveness in video games and a pioneer in developing virtual reality. She is the founder and chair of the graduate design program at the California College of Arts.
What is involved in the program process? What does it mean to design a program?
EM: On the practical side, we looked at the submissions through our standardized criteria. How relevant to the conference topic, how much experience do the submitter has in this particular area, how detailed are they? It took an entire weekend and a big Mural board. We talked about our vision for the conference and dove right in, doing a big card sort.
What are some interesting things that popped up in terms of strengths or weaknesses or patterns?
EM: There were a lot of commonalities between the submissions. The topics proposed were very relevant for the current times and provided a lot of different perspectives on climate change, social and racial justice, data and surveillance, misinformation. These are all issues designers are talking about and tackling really actively.
I can say that participating in peer reviews for conferences in your industry is a really important professional process, it’s the best way to learn about what your peers are thinking about.
"Participating in peer reviews for conferences in your industry is a really important professional process, it’s the best way to learn about what your peers are thinking about"
Unfortunately, a lot of the takeaways were poorly written. They were just outlined, like a bullet list, and it felt prescriptive. I want to know what can be put into action in people’s day to day, giving them something actionable to look forward to. But that was missing overall in the submissions. Or it was too prescriptive like “designers NEED to have a seat at the table”. If you can’t teach people something, you might not be ready to get up on this stage.
How does the programming work?
EM: We’re cultivating a healthy level of pessimism. We want to tap into that emotional zeitgeist. What we built into the program is an opportunity for self-reflection. We want to create a space to drive conversations about controversial topics. We really examined how to tap into the confusion and strong feelings that we are all having right now.
What does the theme mean for you?
BL: I’ve been guilty all my life to be too hopeful. This year we’re traversing the distance from hopefulness to looking at a world where things are coming apart in dramatic ways. We want the conference to mirror that traverse of emotion. Let’s look the difficulties we face right in the eyes. A lot of other conferences have a lighter tone, but this is stuff we have to attend to not only as designers but as civil human beings. The theme was an attempt to pivot to a direct gaze at the harms in the world; allowing people to get mad and angry. We’re not innocent in this, in the computer business and UX community at large. We need to look at things that are actionable. What we’re getting from this is not just dark humor but real beauty from our Keynote speakers. It’s not all grim, but it’s time to get real.
The theme was an attempt to pivot to a direct gaze at the harms in the world; allowing people to get mad and angry.
How has the conversation around this theme changed or evolved throughout the year?
BL: Those of us that were in Milan felt like Covid was chasing us home. Everybody was mindful of police violence against POC but the events around George Floyd brought that to another level. We’ve been cognizant of climate change for a long time, but the extreme fires this year have made us turn our heads. It started a kind of oppression pole. The response we got from our submissions were just as powerful as we thought they’d be.
How have the chairs thought about that topic this year?
BL: Initially when the organization got their heads around the social issues and widespread interest in these difficulties, our response was to say we can talk about these things but let’s make damn sure we’re walking the walk. We needed to find talented, enlightening people from diverse backgrounds. We worked harder at that than we’ve done in the past. We made sure to pay more attention to real diversity in the program than just say nice things about it.
We can talk about these things but let’s make damn sure we’re walking the walk.
What are you hoping the next stage is?
BL: I think of it as confrontation, not pessimism. It’s about opening our hearts and minds at the seriousness of the issues facing us. We don’t expect people to be shocked, we all know about what’s going on, but we have the opportunity to surface these concerns as seriously as we feel them. Let’s look these things straight in the face, let’s look at accountability and check ourselves frequently. How am I complicit in this? What I hope comes out of this is consciousness and bravery no matter what task we’re working on. These issues touch everything we do, and we need to be taking awareness into our work.
Have you seen patterns about how speakers are interested in online conference as opposed to in-person?
BL: For people who are used to speaking on a stage, there’s something scary about online presentation. It seems so intimidating. So we’re helping those people who haven’t had this experience, really helping them figure out lighting, pointing at the screen, helping them understand the medium.
EM: We’re getting a lot of enthusiasm about engaging with the audience in real time.
Which topics from the submissions surprised you?
BL: There’s a talk about challenges faced by psychologists and therapists with telepresence. That’s going to knock it out of the park. God knows we all need a therapist right now!
EM: There’s one about setting up frameworks for future thinking, about how to continue to process the chaos happening around us and in our work as designers without coming up with ideas out of the blue?
What’s been the biggest hurdle?
EM: Engagement is the biggest hurdle. At this point, we’re still doing a lot of planning. The speakers want to be able to pull from the audience in real time and we’ll make sure they’re prepared to do just that.
BL: For me it’s rolling around timezones. We have 3 different blocks of time to allow the max number of people to participate.
|
https://medium.com/ixda/behind-the-scenes-vol-2-recap-1dd7bb49d3fc
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[]
|
2020-12-21 20:24:29.177000+00:00
|
['Interaction Design', '2020', 'Conference', 'Montreal', 'Interaction Week']
|
My Screenplay Revealed Embarrassing Character Defects
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My Screenplay Revealed Embarrassing Character Defects
Photo by Matthew LeJune on Unsplash
The only way to survive in Los Angeles is to make friends with writers who will be brutally honest with you.
I wrote a pilot script about a down-on-his-luck snake-oil salesman in the Old West who accidentally discovers penicillin. It’s a half-hour-historical-fiction comedy. It’s what I would watch! The main character is the snake oil salesman, Delroy. Delroy really wants to seem important. In fact, he would do just about anything to seem important — even secretly drug his only friend with cocaine. Delroy is admittedly an aspect of my own personality. Inflated greatly — but still part of me. It’s fun to take the selfish, image-driven part of me to the extreme. What is the outcome of living this way?
Well, I gave one of my first drafts to a writer and a close friend.
“I feel like Delroy didn’t deserve to discover penicillin at all. I was rooting against him because he thinks he can cheat his way through life. He needs to have more recompense.”
Hard notes are like getting punched in the face. But if you have a glass jaw, you won’t survive long enough to get better.
It was a good note. And — just like most creative notes — it wasn’t about the script.
It was about me.
Writing unconsciously reveals who you are
When writing something creative, you make thousands of decisions. Should this character go here? Say that? What are they wearing? Who wins in the end?
How do you make those decisions? Randomly? No. When making those thousands of decisions, we consult our unconscious beliefs and values. When our beliefs and values are underdeveloped, our writing is bad.
That means that becoming a better writer is the same thing as becoming a better person.
Spiritual work is training for writing
My good friend — the same one who gave me the notes — has been growing spiritually for the last couple of years. He meditates, does morning pages, prays, and makes amends every single day.
When he started, I was happy for him, but I didn’t feel like I needed to do it too. I was fine, I figured. He might need that, but I’m a pretty good person (Enter: Delroy).
After a year of doing the work, I noticed something in my friend: He had become a much better writer than me.
I read his most recent script and was nearly knocked to the floor. It was better than anything either of us had ever achieved before. I realized that it reflected a deep shift in his character.
Not only that, but he started to get meetings with people in high places. It wasn’t just my opinion of him — the world was telling him: Keep going!
That was all the hint that I needed to get serious about spiritual work.
The art of getting humble
Just like Delroy, I believed that I needed to cheat my way through life on some level.
I believed that I could twist the fabric of reality in my favor. I arrogantly assumed that it wouldn’t snap back and hurt me (even though it had plenty of times before). What I really needed was a big ‘ol dose of humility.
Getting humble is the same thing as engaging in the world. For me, it means:
Reaching out and encouraging other writers Accepting where I actually am Letting go of any expectation of where I should be by now
In the script, it meant that Delroy had to get humbled — hard.
I don’t want to go into too much detail, but it meant that he literally had to give his adversary a moldy handjob to save his own life. Then, and only then, was Delroy given the right to accidentally discover penicillin.
|
https://writingcooperative.com/my-screenplay-revealed-embarrassing-character-defects-6c515836036a
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['Taylor Foreman']
|
2020-12-19 12:03:14.939000+00:00
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['Writing', 'Growth', 'Screenwriting', 'Life', 'Creativity']
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Business — A Philanthropy Approach
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I’ve been thinking about the idea of business. What is ‘business’? What do we mean when we say that word? And why does such an entity exist? The aim is usually to provide value in the form of a product or service that others are willing to pay for, and the company strives towards growth by means of generating more and more wealth. It’s a revenue-maximizing entity, as evidenced by success metrics of units sold, dollars earned in revenue, number of new employees hired. In more rare yet growing cases in which businesses understand that an organization is only as successful or strong as its culture is, success is also measured by ‘employee satisfaction’ or ‘employee happiness’.
What are the values underlying companies, and how do they get integrated (or not) into the way the company does business? The current model generally doesn’t have much soul. There’s unchecked growth for the sake of growth. As the inimitable Donella Meadows, one of the pioneers of systems thinking, said:
“Growth is one of the stupidest purposes ever invented by any culture. We’ve got to have an enough. We should always ask: ‘growth of what, and why, and for whom, and who pays the cost, and how long can it last, and what’s the cost to the planet, and how much is enough?’”
What if we looked to nature and took lessons from mycelium and their role in the forest, or ants working together as super-organisms? We quickly learn how much more prosperity and thriving is possible when we act in service to the whole. Let’s look at mycelium. Underneath the surface of a forest floor, hidden in the soil is a vast network made up of millions of miles of thin threads called mycelium. This network is known as the “Wood Wide Web” because of the way is acts like an internet network; only instead of moving electronic information around, they transport nutrients, water and chemicals to keep the trees alive and communicating with one other. They can even send warning signals. If, for example, a tree is attacked by an insect, it sends out a chemical signal that the mycelium then passes along to other nearby trees that in turn reinforce their chemical defenses, which makes it easier for them to fight off an attack when it comes.
In return, the mycelium receives sugars from the trees that get produced as a result of photosynthesis. There are synergies and mutual benefits provided by each, and a tree that produces excess sugars could redistribute it among nearby trees that are in need of more. Most of the mycelium spread throughout a forest are mycorrhizal fungi, which are fungi that live in a mutualistic partnership with trees and other plants.
The Wood Wide Web therefore shows us the value of sharing resources, efficient ways to move them, and the importance of forming close partnerships. These aspects are what make a forest so strong, self-sufficient and life-giving. There’s a constant balancing taking place.
It’s time for a new way of doing business, a new model that focuses on philanthropy not merely as a way of giving charity to the needy, but in the sense of optimizing benefits for the whole in the name of prosperity. We could be like mycelium and trees, and share and distribute resources throughout the network as needed. Why is it that philanthropy implies we have to be wealthy in order to participate?
What if we all started with philanthropy, rather than wait until we have material wealth to feel ready to do so? Who and what are we choosing to invest our time and energy in right now? With a philanthropy approach there’s a wider systems view, an understanding of our inherent interdependence and the vast potential we have to design a world that we could all get excited about living in and being part of. There’s a sense of ‘enough’, and a celebration of our interdependence, not just our acceptance of it. There’s inherently a long-term investment, beyond just our selfish desires, toward building for our children’s generation. If we could hold to the highest value of service to the whole and focus on optimizing benefits to the world, then individual benefit would naturally be achieved.
|
https://medium.com/@leemor/business-a-philanthropy-approach-8dcea040d3e
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['Leemor Chandally']
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2021-06-14 19:35:37.706000+00:00
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['Systems Thinking', 'Mycelium', 'Business', 'Philanthropy']
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Has the type of health care system or type of government mattered during the coronavirus pandemic?
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By Kent R. Kroeger (April 9, 2020)
Key Takeaways: There is no systematic evidence that the overall quality of a country’s health care system has had an impact on the spread (morbidity rate) and lethality (mortality rate) of the coronavirus. Instead, a country’s per capita wealth and exposure to the international economy (particularly international tourism) significantly increases the spread of the virus within a country. This latter finding may be partly a function of wealthier populations being more likely to have their coronavirus-related illnesses diagnosed and treated. But it is also likely that international travel is spreading the virus worldwide. As for the mortality rate, the story is more complicated: The single biggest driver of the mortality rate, so far, is simply the time since the country’s first coronavirus-related death. Once the virus has found a vulnerable host, the final outcome may be difficult to change (at least for now). As for the charge by the US intelligence community that China has under-reported the coronavirus’ severity in their country, the model reported here suggests China, given its size and characteristics, should have so far experienced 10 times the coronavirus cases they have reported and a case fatality rate twice their current estimate. If they are under-reporting, as charged by the US, China may have between 33,600 to 70,000 deaths related to the coronavirus, not the 3,339 they are currently claiming. To the contrary, it is also plausible that their aggressive suppression and mitigation efforts have successfully limited the spread and lethality of the coronavirus. The model reported here cannot determine which conclusion about China is true. Or if both conclusions have truth.
_________________________________________________________________
It’s OK to feel some tentative optimism about the coronavirus pandemic. It does appear, finally, that the virus and its associated illness — COVID19 — is peaking in many of the countries hardest hit by the virus (see Figure 1).
Figure 1: New daily COVID-19 cases in Italy, South Korea, Iran and Spain
Data Source: World Health Organization (as of 7 APR 2020)
Almost a month-and-a-half after the coronavirus reached its peak in new daily cases in South Korea (around 900 cases-a-day), the virus has peaked in Italy around March 22nd, and in Spain and Iran around April 1st.
If President Donald Trump’s advisers were correct in Monday’s White House daily coronavirus update, the U.S. may also witness its peak in new daily cases within the week.
This weekend, New York, the current locus of the US outbreak, saw a significant decline in the number of new infections and deaths.
“In the days ahead, America will endure the peak of this pandemic,” Trump said Monday.
In fact, from April 6th to 7th, the aggregate US data showed its first day-to-day drop in the number of new COVID-19 cases since late March (see Figure 2).
Figure 2: Cumulative and new daily COVID-19 cases in the U.S.
In many of US states hardest hit by the coronavirus — such as New York, Washington, and California — the number of new cases each day have leveled off or declined in the past week.
These are genuine reasons for optimism. While Trump’s hope for an economic return to near-normal by Easter was overly optimistic, the possibility it could happen in early May is not.
Europe and the U.S. were caught flat-footed by the coronavirus, but it is looking increasingly like they will escape with far fewer cases and deaths than originally anticipated by many epidemiological models.
[Of course, additional waves of this virus may still occur and we may never see a true return to normal until a coronavirus vaccine is made widely available — and by widely available I mean free to everyone.]
________________________________________________________________
In this moment of cautious cheer, my questions increasingly focus on how the world measured (and mismeasured) this pandemic and what national-level factors may have suppressed and, conversely, aided the spread of the coronavirus?
Everyone has theories. Some are convinced autocratic countries (i.e., China, Iran, Venezuela, Russia) have hidden the true impact of the coronavirus on their countries. Others have declared the coronavirus proves the importance of universal health care in containing such viruses. Still others have conjectured the number of COVID19-related deaths have been over-reported by anti-Trump forces, most likely to make Trump look bad. Conversely, the national media has unofficially declared (without conclusive evidence, as usual) that the US government has been under-counting COVID19 deaths (presumably to make the Trump administration look more effective in its coronavirus response than justified).
It is speculation at this point. It will be many months — probably years — before we know what actually happened during the 2019–20 Coronavirus Pandemic. The coronavirus pandemic is still on-going, after all, and the reality is: counting the number of people with any disease or virus is genuinely hard and prone to human error.
But we can start to address some of the controversies, if only tentatively.
If we assume that the majority of countries have exercised a fairly high level of due diligence in measuring the presence of the coronavirus within their jurisdiction, we may be able to identify those countries who have been much less than honest.
Moreover, after controlling for suspected dishonest coronavirus measurement, we may also see hints at the impact of national health care systems and containment policies on the spread and lethality of the coronavirus.
________________________________________________________________
Let us start our inquiry with this premise — there are two fundamental measures of the coronavirus: (1) the number of confirmed coronavirus cases relative to the total population (morbidity rate), and (2) the number of coronavirus-related deaths as a percent of those confirmed to have the virus (mortality rate).
For simplicity’s sake, what I am calling the mortality rate is actually the case fatality rate. In reality, the coronavirus’ mortality rate is much lower than the case fatality rate as its calculation will include undiagnosed cases experiencing only minor or no symptoms.
If universal health care were ever to show its value, now is the time. The logic is simple: Countries where citizens do not need to worry about the cost of a doctor visit, the probability these citizens get tested and treated early for the coronavirus is significantly higher.
Also, countries with universal health care may also be more likely to institute broad-based coronavirus testing, thereby identifying asymptomatic super-spreaders of the virus. Subsequently, when diagnosed with the virus, these citizens will be isolated sooner from the healthy population. Furthermore, early diagnoses of the coronavirus may also improve the chances infected individuals survive the virus.
Can we see this in the data?
________________________________________________________________
Figure 3 (below) is produced directly from World Health Organization (WHO) data. The chart shows the morbidity rate of COVID-19 (i.e., frequency of COVID-19 cases per 100K people) compared to its mortality rate (i.e., deaths per confirmed case).
I’ve segmented the chart in Figure 3 into four quadrants, each defined by countries’ morbidity and mortality rates. Countries with high morbidity and mortality rates are in the upper right-hand quadrant of Figure 3 (e.g., Italy, France, Spain, Netherlands, UK and Iran.); while countries with low morbidity and mortality rates are in the lower left-hand quadrant (e.g., Russia, Japan, Pakistan, Nigeria, and India).
Figure 3: COVID-19 Cases per 100K persons versus Number of Deaths per Confirmed Case.
What does Figure 3 tell us? In truth, not much.
Ideally, a country would want to be in the lower left-hand quadrant (Low/Low) of Figure 3, right? But a simple inspection of the quadrant reveals it is occupied mainly by countries in eastern Europe, Africa, South America and southern Asia (Russia, Ukraine, Pakistan, India, Nigeria, among others) — few of which find themselves ranked by the WHO among the countries with the best health care systems. One reason for their favorable performance so far may be that the coronavirus hasn’t significantly spread to those countries yet — after all, many are in the southern hemisphere.
Here are two fair questions to ask: Are these countries performing relatively well with the coronavirus due to favorable circumstances (fewer people traveling to and from coronavirus sources like China; climatic context; stronger containment policies — an area where authoritarian governments may have an advantage; and/or better health care systems)?
Or, are some of these countries simply not deploying the resources and expertise necessary to measure the impact of the coronavirus? Do they even have the capacity to do so?
________________________________________________________________
Figure 3 begs more questions than it answers, but it still may hint at some tentative conclusions. For example, experience tells me countries clustered around the intersection of the average country-level morbidity (34 cases per 100K people) and mortality rates (3.4%) are in the accuracy ballpark. If I am feeling generous, that list includes the US and China, along with countries like South Korea, Poland and Turkey.
The countries that raise my eyebrows are the major outliers from the center cluster: Italy, Spain, UK, France, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Indonesia and India.
The variation in the coronavirus mortality rate ranges from 12 percent in Italy to near zero percent for New Zealand (a country with 1,239 confirmed cases and only one death). What could possibly explain this difference in the coronavirus mortality rate between two advanced economies? Could it be their health care systems? WHO ranks Italy’s health care system 2nd in the world, while New Zealand’s is only 41st. Russia has a reported coronavirus mortality rate of 0.8 percent and has the 130th best health care system in the world, according to the WHO.
More in line with expectations, Germany, a country given significant positive coverage for its coronavirus response — plaudits comparable to perhaps only South Korea’s — has a reported 2.1 percent mortality rate on a base of 113,296 confirmed cases.
Why such discrepancies in reported mortality rates?
Dietrich Rothenbacher, director of the Institute of Epidemiology and Medical Biometry at the University of Ulm in Germany, credits Germany’s broad-based, systematic testing as being the reason his country’s mortality figures are hard to compare to other countries.
“Currently we have a huge bias in the numbers coming from different countries — therefore the data are not directly comparable,” Dr. Rothenbacher recently told the BBC. “What we need to really have valid and comparable numbers would be a defined and systematic way to choose a representative sampling frame.”
This is where statistics — my profession — becomes critical. As Dr. Rothenbacher asserts, Germany would not have understood the extent of the coronavirus crisis without testing both symptomatic and asymptomatic cases, just as South Korea and, sadly, only a few other countries have done.
Systematic random sampling needed to be a component of every nation’s coronavirus testing program.
It wasn’t.
In New Jersey, where I live, the office of the state’s Health Commissioner told me I couldn’t get tested for the coronavirus without meeting one of the following qualifications (…it felt like a job application):
Already being hospitalized and showing symptoms of COVID-19.
A health care worker showing symptoms and having who been exposed to others known to have the virus
having who been exposed to others known to have the virus Anyone known to be part of a cluster outbreak (one example being a recent Princeton, NJ dinner party where multiple attendees were diagnosed with the coronavirus)
And vulnerable populations (e.g., nursing home residents).
Someone like me, a 55-year-old male with no underlying health problems but showing mild flu symptoms — low-grade fever, persistent cough, and chest congestion — cannot get tested in New Jersey.
The New Jersey testing protocol is common across the U.S. given the relative scarcity of testing kits.
________________________________________________________________
Anytime the anecdotal evidence is contradictory or unclear, I turn to data modeling — even if crude — to test some of the initial hypotheses surrounding a controversy.
The challenge with the coronavirus is the availability and data quality of the key causal factors we’d like to test in a coronavirus model for morbidity and mortality rates. In the following linear models, I tested these independent variables:
Out of necessity, I limited the data analysis to countries with reliable data on all key independent measures and with populations over 3 million people, leaving the analysis with 76 countries.
[Note: The linear models, however, were not weighted by country population size. For example, China weighted the same as Serbia in the following models.]
The estimated linear models for morbidity and mortality rates are reported in the Appendix below.
Figures 4 and 5 show the model predictions for each country versus the actual morbidity and mortality rates. In the morbidity model graphic (Figure 4), I only show a selection of key countries in order to simplify the data presentation.
Figure 4: Predicted versus Actual COVID-19 Cases per 100K Persons for Selected Countries (as of 4 APR 2020).
Figure 5: Predicted versus Actual COVID-19 Deaths per Confirmed Cases (as of 4 APR 2020).
On the issue of autocratic countries (who are also U.S. adversaries), there is circumstantial evidence that Venezuela, China and Russia have fewer COVID-19 cases than we would expect given their key characteristics, even while their deviance as a group is not statistically significant.
For example, China may have 10 times the coronavirus cases they have officially reported and a mortality rate twice their current estimate. If true, China may have between 33,600 to 70,000 deaths related to the coronavirus, not the 3,339 they are currently claiming.
Likewise, Russia may have 19,500 coronavirus cases, not the 10,031 they have reported to the WHO and Venezuela may have 1,625 cases, not 167 cases.
Even if, according to the model, the reported numbers for China, Venezuela and Russia are low, we can’t rule out the possibility they are low because these countries have done a superior job containing the virus.
Perhaps the most puzzling (and saddest) case is Iran. Our model suggests Iran has experienced far more COVID-19 cases than we would expect given its characteristics. The most recent WHO numbers for Iran are 66,220 confirmed cases and 4,110 deaths.
Has Iran done an especially poor job of containing the virus or are they measuring more comprehensively than other countries? Unfortunately, my model can’t settle that point.
Final thoughts
I anticipated when I started looking at the coronavirus in 76 countries that the quality of their health care system s— starting with affordable, universal health care — would show up as a significant factor in distinguishing between countries that successfully took on the coronavirus pandemic (e.g., South Korea, Germany, Singapore, and Japan) and those less successful (e.g., Italy, Spain, France, UK and Iran).
While the number of hospital beds per 1,000 people does correlate significantly with lower mortality rates (see Appendix, Figure A.2), the overall quality of a country’s health care system did not. In fact, countries with the best compensated medical professionals actually have higher coronavirus mortality rates.
The coronavirus has hit Europe (and China) the hardest. In Italy, the high percentage of elderly helps explain its high volume of cases, but that can’t be the only explanation. And isn’t just that advanced economies have put more effort into measuring the occurrence of the virus in their communities that explains this fact. The coronavirus has found disproportionately more friendly hosts in these societies. We may have to accept that the coronavirus is one of the evolving risks associated with high disposable incomes and deeps global connections through trade and tourism.
I know this: I will never go on a cruise ship ever again.
Theories on why some countries handled the pandemic better than others are also plentiful. The most compelling analysis may have occurred while the pandemic was just starting.
Writing in early March, Chandran Nair, founder and CEO of the Global Institute for Tomorrow, may have come up with the best explanation still. “Strict and centralized enforcement of lockdowns, quarantines, and closures are the most effective way to contain the virus,” wrote Nair. “What’s emerged from the coronavirus crisis is the fact that some states are equipped to handle this type of action, and some are not — and it has little to do with development status.”
Or, more cynically, could we conclude that one of the costs of emphasizing individual freedom is that when collective action is necessary — including a strong, central state response — Europeans and Americans answer the call by hoarding toilet paper and Jim Beam?
I’m not quite there yet. For one, I don’t believe Nair fully appreciates how the modern state and elites consolidate their power during these uncertain times, and how this can leave even more people vulnerable economically and physically to the next pandemic — and there will be another one. Second, for every example of state power getting this done quickly and efficiently, there are dozens more where greed, incompetence, and arrogance lead the state to do more damage than good. Before we give the modern state more power, let us think this through some more first.
Here is what our governments and scientific community should be doing...
If this global pandemic ends relatively soon — as it appears it might — our governments and health researchers must immediately resolve themselves to understand how many people really did get infected by the coronavirus and how many actually died from its consequences.
Currently, we have a global mish-mash of epidemiological data of unknown quality or generalizability. Only probability-based sample studies can give us the real numbers and it is only with those numbers that we can really sit down and decide: What worked and what was a total waste of time and resources?
K.R.K.
Data used in this article are available by request to: [email protected]
APPENDIX: The Linear Models
Figure A.1: Linear Model for Confirmed COVID-19 Case per 100K Persons (Morbidity)
Figure A.2: Linear Model for COVID-19 Deaths per Confirmed Cases (Mortality)
|
https://kentkroeger.medium.com/has-the-type-of-health-care-system-or-type-of-government-mattered-during-the-coronavirus-pandemic-e063dd64377
|
['Kent Kroeger']
|
2020-04-09 21:46:28.906000+00:00
|
['Statistical Analysis', 'Coronavirus Update', 'Coronavirus', 'Epidemiology', 'Covid 19']
|
This Circle Taped to My Wall Is Keeping Me Calm-ish Today
|
This Circle Taped to My Wall Is Keeping Me Calm-ish Today
And other strategies I’m using to compartmentalize my election stress
The day after a tense, unfinished presidential election seems like a good time to exercise my trusty compartmentalization skills. Throughout my life, I’ve been able to box up and set aside life stressors — on a temporary basis, of course — in order to crank out something that resembles a productive workday. Here are five ways I’m doing that this week.
A couple notes: One, no one should be expected to work to their normal productivity today. And two, psychologists say compartmentalization is useful for people who are mentally healthy, but left unchecked, it can lead to emotional disconnection. It’s crucial that you find ways to express your anxieties about this election. These tips are merely meant to help you focus on the welcome respite of your job, if you see yours that way.
I’ve taped a drawing of the “circle of control” on my wall
I voted. Even though it’s not easy, it’s time to acknowledge that where things go from here is out of my hands. That’s where the “circle of control” comes in. (Here’s a primer on the “circle” — it’s a modification of the original Stephen Covey “circle of influence” from The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.) I’ve put “what happens in the weeks to come” in the outermost ring because it’s out of my control. I’ll focus on the inner ring, what I can control, which includes my attitude and how I spend my energy in the days to come.
I’m putting a hard check on my social media
I will forego commiserating on social media with people who share my anxiety in the moment, and I definitely will resist any urge to bicker about politics in the comments sections. I acknowledge that even a quick social media scroll in times like this erodes my mindset. So every time I pull out my phone, I’ll be mindful. I’ll pause and ask myself, “Is what I’m about to do the right way to spend the next two minutes (or hour)?” If I simply must do it, I’ll set some time aside after work in the evening.
I’m consuming news thoughtfully
The results of this election will run their course whether or not my face is glued to the news. Pausing my flow at work every five minutes to seek out incremental updates is, again, focusing on what is outside my circle of control. I’ll also focus my limited news consumption time on hard, objective reporting rather than opinion and commentary. I have an obligation to be an informed citizen, but I also have an obligation to put the most important things first. To me, that means prioritizing the steadiness in which I engage with my family and work.
I’m taking an observer’s view
Like most of us, I believe the outcome of this election has deep societal implications — and maybe implications personally for me and my family. But as best as I can, I’m trying not to get riled up every moment. When I think about the election, I try to view it as a dispassionate observer. I attempt to be fascinated in a political science kind of way rather than impassioned in a concerned-but-helpless citizen kind of way. It often helps.
I’m beefing up my daily meditation
I definitely don’t fit the lingering stereotype of a “person who meditates.” Yet for nearly three years, meditation has granted me a quick early-warning system when a shot of stress-inducing cortisol is about to hit my veins. I can pause, take a deep breath, and respond in a levelheaded way rather than react with emotion.
Starting today, I’ll lean on my meditation practice even more. I’m adding minutes, purpose, and focus to my morning meditations. And I’ll punctuate my days with additional short mindfulness sessions.
I can’t let anxiety infiltrate and sour my workdays. When my workdays hum along, it’s far easier for me to find peace in my personal life. Right now, that peace sounds really appealing.
|
https://forge.medium.com/i-just-taped-the-circle-of-control-diagram-to-my-office-wall-426164cdef76
|
['Shane Kinkennon']
|
2020-11-04 22:07:56.469000+00:00
|
['Mindfulness', 'Personal Development', 'Election 2020', 'Personal Growth', 'Elections']
|
Protective Laws Every Woman Must Know About!
|
Women’s safety is the world’s issue but primarily crimes against women in India is increasing every minute. Despite amending severe laws against the offenders the stats do not seem to do down. So women, maybe it is time to pull your socks and take your safety in your own hands. Here are a few protective laws that will help you do so…
Women in the world are doing wonders and hustling every day to fight the age-old misogyny of our society. However, their charts are still not in our favor. Be it inferences of sexual favors, harassment or abuse, we combat through it every day. With a constant increase in offenses against women, knowing your rights is of paramount importance. Knowing protective laws can not only help you save yourself from an unjust act but also position you to help people around you.
So we have listed down a few protective women law and how can you go ahead with basic proceedings against these acts:
Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act, 2013 (Women Redressal, Prevention, and Prohibition)
Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act is an act that intends to prevent, prohibit and redress any act accounting to sexual harassment. Use of language with any inference to sexual remark, innuendoes or touch, nonconsensual proximity, etc can account for sexual harassment at the workplace.
So if you are your known ones have been facing any such issues, make sure you educate them about the same. Let women around you know about your company’s Internal Complaints Committee and speak out loud. The sole purpose of the act is to ensure the safety of women in their workplace.
Indecent Representation of Women(Prevention) Act,1986
Indecent Representation of Women(Prevention) Act aims to prohibit indecent and obscene representation of women in an advertisement, painting, publications, writings, figures or any place else. The act is not known by a lot of people but can combat the indecent representation of women in our society.
Prohibition of Dowry Act
The Prohibition of Dowry Act is one of the most crucial laws that is helping women break the shackle of patriarchy in India. The act prohibits any transaction, be it giving or taking of dowry from either of the two families. If any person in the family does so, they can be penalized under the act.
The Dowry system is an age-old norm in India. A norm that was too normalized to be spoken against. Quite often the dowry in our society is demanded from the bride’s family by the Groom’s family. In a perspective, the norm has a strong root in society due to a lack of financial independence in women.
Regardless of the fact that the act is in force, there are a number of cases where women are seen to be tortured, beaten, harassed, and even burnt. It is a major challenge that society is grappling with but the act makes it a deterrent. Although, the only way out to help the women in need is to speak out and educate everyone around you about the same! Because the revolution begins with YOU!
Special Marriage Act, 1954
Special Marriage Act is intended to ease special forms of marriages and provides for registration to the divorce filing. In a country like India, inter-caste marriage or inter-religion marriages are still not okay with a lot of people. The struggle to get through marriage from different faith is real and the actors make it easier to help individuals ease the process.
Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act,1971
The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act aims to reduce the occurrence of illegal abortion and consequent maternal mortality and morbidity. The act clarifies the conditions under which a fetus can be aborted and the pregnancy can be ended. It also specifies who is qualified to conduct the procedure.
National Commission for Women Act, 1990
NCW i.e The National Commission for Women is a statutory body of the Government of India that was established in 1992. NCW voices out for women’s rights in India and addresses their concerns. This has been extensively helping the upliftment of women and their economic status.
Equal Remuneration Act, 1976
A much-needed act to implement ground level equality for women in India. The Equal Remuneration Act prevents gender discrimination in terms of providing remuneration. Equal pay is a right that shouldn’t be fought for. Regardless of your gender, you deserve to be compensated fairly. Being aware of these laws can not only protect your interest but also help you fight against an unjust act in society.
Protection of Women from Domestic Violence (2005)
Protection of Women from Domestic Violence is an important law every woman must know about! Domestic Violence sadly still prevails in our society, primarily because of toxic masculinity in and around us. The law provides protection to women who are in a relationship with a man (husband or live-in partner). A woman can file a complaint against her partner for causing mental, emotional, physical or even psychological hard that has caused a potential threat to her life and sanity. The law post amendment of 2005 extends to widowed women, divorced women and sisters.
Hindu Succession Act (2005)
The Hindu Succession Act protects the interest of Hindu Women to have shared in the ancestral property. The amendment made in 2005 made it clear that daughters have fair and equal rights in her ancestral property even after her marriage.
Maternity Benefits Act (2017)
The Maternity Benefit Act is known by most of us as it protects the interest of women working during pregnancy. Under this act, if a woman has worked with an employer for more than 80 days during the 12 months preceding to her expected delivery, the employer must grant special facilities to women like compensated Work from Home, Paid Maternity Leave from 12 to 26 weeks, Medical allowance, Creche facilities at the workplace.
Street Harassment/Eve Teasing
The IPC i.e. Indian Penal Code has not defined Eve Teasing or Street Harassment but it surely does protect you from it. Any act that pertains to harassing a woman in public such as passing derogatory remarks or outraging the modesty of a woman can be filed against. Section 294 & 509 of the Indian Penal Code protect women’s safety and restrains an individual to pass any such remark or gesture towards women.
Know What Authority Do The Cops Have On You
Every police station should have a lady police officer who is not below the post of a Head Constable round the time.
A woman cannot be in any circumstances be arrested by a male cop in the absence of a lady constable.
A woman cannot be arrested post-sunset and before sunrise.
A woman can be only investigated at her residency.
The medical procedure of a rape survivor can only be done by a government hospital. A rape survivor can tape her testimony at any place of her choice.
All women are entitled to avail of free legal aid.
Women’s safety is the world’s issue but primarily crimes against women in India is increasing every minute. Despite amending severe laws against the offenders the stats do not seem to do down. So women, maybe it is time to pull your socks and take your safety in your own hands. Here is some self-defense guide by Fuzia that can help you be safe.
The laws and jurisprudence are perfectly designed to protect, safeguard and empower the women of the country. They do not require any change, but their enforcement does. What our society lacks is a proper civic sense and proper enforcement of the laws. Once this is done, there certainly will be a change.
|
https://medium.com/@pr-26909/protective-laws-every-woman-must-know-about-a65a6d8150c9
|
[]
|
2020-03-11 12:52:58.963000+00:00
|
['Womens Rights', 'Women', 'Law', 'Legal', 'Safety']
|
Ranking Every Book I’ve Read During Coronavirus Self-Isolation
|
Vladyslav Bahara on Unsplash
I am an American citizen living in South Korea, and I am on week five of self-isolation due to the risk of the coronavirus. As the COVID-19 situation continues to escalate around the world, I am aware that I have experienced a lifestyle that will likely mirror that of many people in the United States for the foreseeable future. While living the realities of social distancing or self-isolation, I have discovered that it is easy to succumb to bad habits — or at least habits that don’t leave me feeling fulfilled by the end of the day.
If a usual routine of work, hobbies, and social activities has been disrupted, it is important to establish a new normal. Finding some kind of routine that feels productive is key. Personally, that has been a daily combination of reading and yoga — two things that I was terrible at making time for before the coronavirus forced me into self-isolation. Having spent the better part of five weeks reading for hours every day, I’ve managed to finish two books per week, on average. I would like to share my recent reading history in hopes that you might pick up one of these books if you find yourself with more free time than you are used to.
Disclaimer: I didn’t intentionally pick any bad books so I could rank one of them last. I don’t think that’s how normal people source their reading material. I recommend all of these books, but inevitably one has to be #10 and one has to be #1. It’s kind of like how I used to hit 9th in the batting order on my high school baseball team. That didn’t mean I was that much worse than the lead-off guy, right? I still made the team (I told myself every time I grounded out to 2nd).
On with the list!
10. Astrophysics for People in a Hurry — Neil DeGrasse Tyson
What is it about? Well, the title is pretty telling. Black holes, dark matter, light, the elements that make up the universe, etc.
You’ll like this book if: You’re the kind of person who has some space videos in your YouTube suggestions. Also, don’t be intimidated by the topic at hand. Tyson has made a career out of being your “personal astrophysicist.”
9. David and Goliath — Malcolm Gladwell
What is it about? The simple but counter-intuitive idea that being the underdog is an advantage. Also, slingshots.
You’ll like this book if: You like listening to stories. Gladwell is a master of synthesizing stories into a compelling, and often surprising, commentary. Although, I recommend some of his other books over this one (Tipping Point, Blink, Outliers).
8. The Uninhabitable Earth — David Wallace-Wells
What is it about? Climate change. The first line of the book is, “It is worse, much worse than you think.” And he’s not wrong.
You’ll like this book if: I say, “I have good news and bad news” and you’re the kind of person who wants to hear the bad news first. This book is alarming, but important.
7. But What if We’re Wrong? — Chuck Klosterman
What is it about? The idea that most everything we believe about the world could be proven wrong in 1,000 — or even 100 — years.
You’ll like this book if: You have circus brain. One chapter is about rock and roll, the next is about the NFL, and the next is about the idea that we might all be living in a simulation.
6. War on Peace — Ronan Farrow
What is it about? Frankly, a lot. This book took me the longest on the list to read, but each chapter shared a carefully reported vignette into American diplomacy abroad. This book is undoubtedly important and necessary to understand America’s changing role as a global superpower.
You’ll like this book if: You have a New York Times subscription. This is a deep dive into the decline of America’s global influence and a peek behind the curtain into the lives of some of the most important characters in modern American politics.
5. Cherry — Nico Walker
What is it about? This relentless novel is a commentary on the U.S. involvement in the Iraq war and the American opioid epidemic.
You’ll like this book if: You like the way watching Breaking Bad makes you feel. It’s impossible to put this book down, but if you pick it up I recommend pairing it with, say, an uplifting book.
4. Originals — Adam Grant
What is it about? Leveraging ideas like procrastination, pessimism, skepticism, and asking for problems instead of solutions, in order to champion innovative ideas.
You’ll like this book if: You are the kind of person who changed web browsers from Internet Explorer to Google Chrome before it was popular. And told everyone about what they were missing out on.
3. The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao — Junot Díaz
What is it about? On one hand, it is a coming of age story about a love-sick, nerdy, social outcast living in New Jersey. On the other hand, it is a tragic story about the Dominican Republic experience under dictator Rafael Trujillo. It promises to be one of the most unique and captivating books you’ll ever read.
You’ll like this book if: You like romantic novels, historical novels, American novels, foreign novels, social novels, or dramatic novels. Even if you don’t know what type of novel you like, I think you will still like this book.
2. 10% Happier — Dan Harris
What is it about? A budding newscaster’s journey from a work addiction to a surprising and hilarious journey into the world of meditation and mindfulness.
You’ll like this book if: You’ve ever wondered if meditation could help you, but you’re too skeptical to try it. Don’t worry. So was Dan Harris.
How to Write an Autobiographical Novel — Alexander Chee
What is it about? Great question. Living through the AIDS crisis, life in New York after 9/11, reading tarot cards, cater-waiting for William F. Buckley, the election of Donald Trump. If you’re wondering how those disparate topics come together into a book worthy of the #1 spot, I guess you’ll have to read it.
You’ll like this book if: You’re a human being. This is one of the best books I’ve ever read. It was also nominated as a best book by basically every magazine, newspaper, and website you can think of. So don’t just take my word for it.
I accessed every one of these books for FREE with my U.S. library card and the app Libby. I can’t recommend this app highly enough.
|
https://nickknopik.medium.com/ranking-every-book-ive-read-during-coronavirus-self-isolation-d35aac03e47d
|
['Nick Knopik']
|
2020-05-29 00:42:48.186000+00:00
|
['Covid 19', 'Books', 'Self Isolation', 'Reading', 'Coronavirus']
|
Utreexo demo release 0.2
|
At the MIT DCI, we have several computers plugged in to the wall of our currently unpopulated office. One of them runs a bitcoin core node, and serves the blockchain to other newly arriving bitcoin nodes. This machine typically uploads about 1 TB of data a month.
In January, however, vnstat shows a total monthly upload of 5.73 TiB, several times the average for the last year. I like to think of this machine as welcoming new participants to the network, many of whom are likely arriving due to some other bitcoin-related number increasing several-fold in recent weeks.
But I also know that for new users of Bitcoin, despite the terabytes of welcome streaming from this machine’s RTL8111 chip to the far reaches of the globe, it’s not a great on-boarding experience. Laptop computers can take days to sync up with the Bitcoin network, even with fast internet connections. Once they’re done, even with pruning enabled, staying on the network takes several gigabytes of storage. It’s no wonder that many who try to run a Bitcoin node give up, and instead use SPV wallets with weaker security and privacy, or worse, give up on owning UTXOs entirely, and leave their coins on an exchange.
The goal of Utreexo is to make running a full node easier, faster, and smaller, and while that’s more of an asymptote than a point on any curve, we’re getting there. Today we’ve released Utreexo demonstration 0.2, which pairs the Utreexo accumulator with a modified version of btcd (temporarily called utcd). Most of the utcd work was done by Calvin Kim, as Niklas Gögge and myself have been working on improving the accumulator and how it interacts with the bitcoin data structures. Calvin has written a post about the work as well.
This new release works more like a normal bitcoin node: it starts up, finds peers, and verifies the blockchain. There are still things it doesn’t have, like a mempool, or a way to deal with reorgs. (It currently deals with reorgs by crashing.)
It’s also not as fast as it could be, and not as small as the Utreexo design allows for, but that’s exciting: it runs at an OK speed now, and there are still many avenues for performance improvements that we’ve identified. We’re working on improving the speed of the software, and benchmarking it on different hardware, and hope to have a post about that soon.
Several MIT undergraduate researchers are joining this semester, and as the project expands, there are lots of interesting avenues for improving performance and reliability. We’d love to help more people learn about this system and try to make Bitcoin stronger while working on some interesting problems. If you’re interested, there are pre-compiled binaries to try out, the code is all open source, and we have discussions on freenode IRC, channel #utreexo. We try to be as welcoming as the server in the office, though we’re not at the terabytes per month level yet :)
|
https://medium.com/mit-media-lab-digital-currency-initiative/utreexo-demo-release-0-2-ac40a1223a38
|
['Tadge Dryja']
|
2021-02-02 01:25:01.660000+00:00
|
['Blockchain', 'Bitcoin', 'Cryptography', 'pre-compiled binaries', 'Accumulator']
|
A Terrifying Thing
|
I think
my brain is a terrifying thing
carved-up pumpkin with two watchful eyes
pot on a stove set basically on fire
come alive, come alive
can’t help but burn the rice
thoughts thrown aside
whispers leaving ears
too small for all the things
I ask for it to hold
too big for all the space
you ask for me to waste.
|
https://medium.com/meri-shayari/a-terrifying-thing-75244f9143b0
|
['Rebeca Ansar']
|
2020-12-02 21:10:04.107000+00:00
|
['Women', 'Self', 'Poet', 'Poetry', 'Poem']
|
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