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The Case for Using Covid-19 Exposure Notification Apps | The Case for Using Covid-19 Exposure Notification Apps
Last week, I got a text from the New York State Department of Health inviting me to use the state’s contact tracing app. It was the first time I’d received an invitation, and my first thought was: After eight months of Covid-19, you’re asking me to use it now? Today, the case count in the U.S. reached 16.9 million, and over 307,000 Americans have died. Transmission is rampant in a majority of states. If an app notified me every time I had a close brush with someone who tested positive for Covid-19, would it even make a difference in helping stop the spread?
I asked Michael Reid, MD, MPH, who’s heading up the contact tracing programs for both San Francisco and California and is an assistant professor at the University of California, San Francisco specializing in infectious disease. The short answer is that it’s not known for sure whether these apps help reduce transmission in the U.S.: Not enough people have adopted them, so there’s not enough data.
The long answer, though, suggests they may still play an important role in reducing transmission of Covid-19, especially once the country is ready to fully emerge from shutdown.
Reid began his explanation by clarifying that these apps are for “exposure notification,” not for contact tracing per se. “They function to complement existing contact tracing capabilities,” he says. “That’s a useful distinction to make so that one understands that they’re not replacing the need for human contact tracing.”
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Human contact tracers — which the U.S. is woefully lacking, notes Reid — identify people who test positive for Covid-19 and interview those people to find out who they’ve had close contact with. Those people are then notified about their exposure and given instructions for self-quarantining. This is a tried and true public health method for reducing transmission of infectious disease, and it’s proven to be a powerful tool for controlling Covid-19 in countries like South Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Taiwan.
But the contact tracing process has a gap that apps may help fill. When a person who tests positive for Covid-19 is interviewed by a contact tracer, they identify people who they already know, like household members and close friends and family. They can’t, however, identify people they interacted with who they don’t know, like the salesperson at the grocery, or a teller at the bank.
While working as a contact tracer, says Reid, he learned that most people don’t know who they acquired Covid-19 from, and a substantial number of cases also elicit very few contacts. Exposure notification apps can alert people if they’ve been exposed to a stranger with Covid-19 and give them “the agency to take matters into their own hands,” he says, by self-quarantining and contacting their local public health department, which can use that information to track outbreaks. These Bluetooth-based apps allow phones to communicate with other phones that they come into contact with; if one user has logged a positive test result, the other will be notified.
For this reason, explains Reid, apps could actually have even more utility in a situation like the one we’re in today, where there is more widespread transmission of the coronavirus — assuming enough people use them. “If we’re ever going to go back to work or be on school campuses, or on factory floors, then these kinds of tools could be a real asset to be able to determine who you’ve come into close contact with who you might not otherwise known.”
The big caveat, he notes, is that the most important public health interventions are still social distancing and mask-wearing.
Whether enough people will use exposure notification apps remains to be seen. A recent Reuters analysis estimated that about 6 million Americans had used the apps by mid-November and that nearly 50% of the U.S. population would have access to one of these apps by Christmas. In April, a modeling study from the University of Oxford showed that 60% of the population needs to adopt these apps to end transmission. There are numerous reasons why people may not have downloaded the apps (Nature explains them in-depth here). Privacy is one common concern; in a OneZero story published in April, my colleague Will Oremus questioned whether these “opt-in” public health apps would be treated as such by private entities like churches and schools, and another colleague, Sarah Emerson, raised concerns that marginalized groups would bear the consequences of widespread surveillance.
Reid didn’t seem too worried about the privacy issue, though. “Ironically, I think that’s a really peculiar conversation to be having, given that Google and Apple and other technology companies are scraping your data all of the time for information that they’re going to use to target you for new products that you’re going to buy,” he says. “The mechanics of exposure notification technology is such that [the data] is not being centrally housed in some department of public health data warehouse.”
After talking to Reid, two things became clear to me: First, the country needs more human contact tracers and can’t expect apps to make much of a dent in transmission on their own. Second, I should probably just download the app. At the very least, there appears to be minimal cost and risk to me, and doing so would add another layer of protection to myself and the people in my household, plus support the work of the human contact tracers as they scramble to identify where the virus is headed next.
And, looking ahead, it may very well be a tool I’ll encounter again in the future. If exposure notification apps are shown to be effective, “I think they’re going to play an important role when the next pandemic comes around,” says Reid. “And chances are it’ll come around sooner than the last one.” | https://medium.com/@rater05pakhi-41095/the-case-for-using-covid-19-exposure-notification-apps-5d081eee63a4 | [] | 2020-12-18 15:31:01.509000+00:00 | ['Public Health', 'Covid 19', 'Coronavirus', 'Technology'] |
Exploring China’s Energy Experience | Exploring China’s Energy Experience
Researcher Spotlight: Xinyu Chen, Research Associate, Harvard-China Project; Lecturer in Environmental Science and Public Policy
During Xinyu CHEN’s Ph.D. studies at Tsinghua University, he spent a year working on projects with China’s National Development and Reform Commission, which was having trouble building a plan for a modern “smart grid” that incorporated more renewable energy sources. “We found out that the problem was not with the power system itself,” says Xinyu. “The problem was actually with the interaction between different kinds of energy systems — like power and heating systems.” In Northern China, for instance, there was great capacity in place for wind power, but incorporating those systems with the region’s prevalent combined heat-and-power units proved a challenge. “My Ph.D. thesis discussed how to better design an integrated power and heating system to better accommodate wind power,” says Xinyu.
His career has continued to focus on finding the unexpected barriers to progress. In a recent paper for the journal Nature Energy, Xinyu — along with co-authors from the Harvard-China Project, Executive Director Chris Nielsen and Faculty Chair Prof. Michael McElroy — looked at electric vehicle charging in China, and found that the relevant emissions gains were dependent on how the vehicles are charged. “If you charge it during the slow charging period in off-peak hours, it is beneficial,” says Xinyu. “But if you mostly use fast-charging stations, it will probably emit more CO2 and other pollutants.” Another core factor: The type of vehicle being charged. “For the sake of reducing air pollution, electrification of buses is actually much more efficient than light-duty vehicles — despite the fact that the number of buses is much lower.”
Xinyu’s passion for science and math can be traced back to his high school years in Inner Mongolia, which culminated in his winning a national physics contest. “So when I entered college, I chose engineering as a focus, because I felt it was related to physics,” he says. He began working with the Harvard-China Project as an exchange student during his doctoral studies, returned as a postdoctoral fellow, and is now a research associate and lecturer. He is currently juggling a number of research projects: exploring how the digitization of China’s energy system could improve understanding of the implications of different energy policy designs; what the introduction of market mechanisms into the power systems would mean in real-world practice; and determining the optimal combination of energy sources to help mitigate the variability of the renewables.
Xinyu is also teaching the “Energy Economy for Developing Countries” course this past fall with Prof. McElroy. Xinyu taught a version of the class last year, he says, which was mainly focused on China. “This year, we extended the scope of the course to cover India and Africa as well,” says Chen. “We think Indian and African energy demand will continue to grow — probably at a double-digit pace — for several decades to come.” The lessons from China’s energy experience, he notes, can span borders.
By Dan Morrell | https://medium.com/harvard-china-project/researcher-spotlight-5260d3ae1726 | ['Harvard-China Project On Energy', 'Econ'] | 2019-01-16 20:52:45.797000+00:00 | ['Transportation', 'Renewable Energy', 'Economy', 'Profile'] |
Simple Calculator App in Android Studio for Beginners | We are going to design a simple functional calculator application which will perform simple arithmetic operations like addition , subtraction, multiplication and division.
Open android studio and start a new project with empty activity.
In activty_main.xml file we are going to design we have to build basic UI for the application. We will need 2 edit text fields to enter the numbers to operate on. 1 text field to display answer of the operation , 4 buttons for performing the operation and 1 for displaying the operation.
So lets design that….
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<LinearLayout xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
xmlns:app="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res-auto"
xmlns:tools="http://schemas.android.com/tools"
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="match_parent"
tools:context=".MainActivity"
android:padding="20dp"
android:orientation="vertical"
android:background="@color/pastel">
<TextView
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:text="CALCULATOR"
android:textSize="25sp"
android:layout_marginBottom="16dp"
android:textColor="@android:color/black" />
<LinearLayout
android:layout_width="match_parent"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:orientation="horizontal"
android:layout_marginBottom="20dp">
<EditText
android:id="@+id/first_no"
android:layout_width="102dp"
android:layout_height="59dp"
android:ems="10"
android:layout_marginHorizontal="50dp"
android:hint="Enter" />
<EditText
android:id="@+id/second_no"
android:layout_width="102dp"
android:layout_height="59dp"
android:ems="10"
android:hint="Enter" />
</LinearLayout>
<LinearLayout
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:orientation="horizontal"
android:layout_marginBottom="20dp">
<TextView
android:textSize="35sp"
android:id="@+id/answer"
android:layout_width="102dp"
android:layout_height="59dp"
android:layout_marginHorizontal="50dp"
android:hint="ans" />
</LinearLayout>
<LinearLayout
android:orientation="vertical"
android:layout_marginLeft="250dp"
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_marginBottom="30dp">
<Button
android:id="@+id/sub"
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:text="-"
android:textSize="25sp"
android:layout_marginBottom="16dp" />
<Button
android:id="@+id/add"
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_marginBottom="16dp"
android:text="+"
android:textSize="25sp"
tools:ignore="OnClick" />
<Button
android:id="@+id/div"
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:text="/"
android:textSize="25sp"
android:layout_marginBottom="16dp" />
<Button
android:id="@+id/mul"
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_marginBottom="16dp"
android:text="X"
android:textSize="25sp"/>
<Button
android:id="@+id/equals"
android:layout_width="wrap_content"
android:layout_height="wrap_content"
android:layout_marginBottom="16dp"
android:text="="
android:textSize="35sp"/>
</LinearLayout>
</LinearLayout>
After designing the UI , In MainActivity.java file we will write java code to give actions to the elements in order to make our app functional. First we will make reference to our elements in the activity.
public class MainActivity extends AppCompatActivity {
EditText no1 , no2;
Button add ,mul ,div , sub,equal;
TextView answer; double ans = 0; // global variable
@Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);
// for text views
no1 = findViewById(R.id.first_no);
no2 = findViewById(R.id.second_no);
// for button with operations
add = findViewById(R.id.add);
mul = findViewById(R.id.mul);
div = findViewById(R.id.div);
sub = findViewById(R.id.sub);
// for equal to button
equal = findViewById(R.id.equals);
// for answer field
answer = findViewById(R.id.answer);
}
}
We will create a global double ans variable inside mainactivity class and initialize it to zero.
Now we will make onClickListner to invoke a callback when a view (in this case button) is clicked and do something. In our case we need 4 onClickListner for our operations and 1 to display the answer.
add.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
double a = Double.parseDouble(no1.getText().toString());
double b = Double.parseDouble(no2.getText().toString());
ans = a +b;
}
});
sub.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
double a = Double.parseDouble(no1.getText().toString());
double b = Double.parseDouble(no2.getText().toString());
ans = a - b;
}
});
mul.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
double a = Double.parseDouble(no1.getText().toString());
double b = Double.parseDouble(no2.getText().toString());
ans = a*b;
}
}); div.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
double a = Double.parseDouble(no1.getText().toString());
double b = Double.parseDouble(no2.getText().toString());
ans = a/b;
}
});
equal.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
String ans1 = String.valueOf(ans);
answer.setText(ans1);
ans= 0;
}
});
The entered numbers in the edit text have to be first converted to double (use double variable as answer can also be a decimal value) variable to perform operations on them. In order to display the answer in text view we have to convert the ans variable which is in int to String.
There is still a problem if you run this code. When we to division operation by 0 the app stops working in order to avoid that we have to display a message using Toast widget.
div.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
double a = Double.parseDouble(no1.getText().toString());
double b = Double.parseDouble(no2.getText().toString());
if(b!=0)
ans = a/b;
else
Toast.makeText(getApplicationContext(),"Enter Valid Numbers",Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
}
});
If both the numbers are not entered then the app will crash so we have add condition for that :
add.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
String num1 = no1.getText().toString();
String num2 = no2.getText().toString();
if (num1.isEmpty() || num2.isEmpty()) {
Toast.makeText(getApplicationContext(),"Enter Numbers",Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
}
else {
double a = Double.parseDouble(no1.getText().toString());
double b = Double.parseDouble(no2.getText().toString());
ans = a + b;
}
}
});
This is how MainActivity.java file we look :
package com.example.calculator;
import androidx.appcompat.app.AppCompatActivity;
import android.os.Bundle;
import android.view.View;
import android.widget.Button;
import android.widget.EditText;
import android.widget.TextView;
import android.widget.Toast;
public class MainActivity extends AppCompatActivity {
EditText no1 , no2;
Button add ,mul ,div , sub,equal;
TextView answer;
double ans = 0;
@Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);
setContentView(R.layout.activity_main);
// for text views
no1 = findViewById(R.id.first_no);
no2 = findViewById(R.id.second_no);
// for button with operations
add = findViewById(R.id.add);
mul = findViewById(R.id.mul);
div = findViewById(R.id.div);
sub = findViewById(R.id.sub);
// for equal to button
equal = findViewById(R.id.equals);
// for answer field
answer = findViewById(R.id.answer);
add.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
String num1 = no1.getText().toString();
String num2 = no2.getText().toString();
if (num1.isEmpty() || num2.isEmpty()) {
Toast.makeText(getApplicationContext(),"Enter Numbers",Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
}
else {
double a = Double.parseDouble(no1.getText().toString());
double b = Double.parseDouble(no2.getText().toString());
ans = a + b;
}
}
});
sub.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
String num1 = no1.getText().toString();
String num2 = no2.getText().toString();
if (num1.isEmpty() || num2.isEmpty()) {
Toast.makeText(getApplicationContext(),"Enter Numbers",Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
}
else {
double a = Double.parseDouble(no1.getText().toString());
double b = Double.parseDouble(no2.getText().toString());
ans = a - b;
}
}
});
mul.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
String num1 = no1.getText().toString();
String num2 = no2.getText().toString();
if (num1.isEmpty() || num2.isEmpty()) {
Toast.makeText(getApplicationContext(),"Enter Numbers",Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
}
else {
double a = Double.parseDouble(no1.getText().toString());
double b = Double.parseDouble(no2.getText().toString());
ans = a * b;
}
}
});
div.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
String num1 = no1.getText().toString();
String num2 = no2.getText().toString();
if (num1.isEmpty() || num2.isEmpty()) {
Toast.makeText(getApplicationContext(), "Enter Numbers", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
} else {
double a = Double.parseDouble(no1.getText().toString());
double b = Double.parseDouble(no2.getText().toString());
if (b != 0)
ans = a / b;
else
Toast.makeText(getApplicationContext(), "Enter Valid Numbers", Toast.LENGTH_SHORT).show();
}
}
});
equal.setOnClickListener(new View.OnClickListener() {
@Override
public void onClick(View v) {
String ans1 = String.valueOf(ans);
answer.setText(ans1);
ans= 0;
}
});
}
}
Now we have simple functional calculator application.
Thank You , Happy Coding ! | https://medium.com/swlh/simple-calculator-app-in-android-studio-for-beginners-d0324ef10420 | ['Nidhi Vanjare'] | 2021-02-01 01:06:24.935000+00:00 | ['Calculator', 'Android App Development', 'Begineers', 'Java', 'Ui Ux Design'] |
Capturing and digitizing vinyl covers with IPEVO VZ-R document camera | Capturing and digitizing vinyl covers with IPEVO VZ-R document camera
Are you a vinyl collector looking for ways to digitize your vinyl covers so that you can keep a digital catalog of them, or simply, share their “vintageness” with other collectors? A conventional scanner would be the obvious chance if not for the fact that very few of them have large enough scanner bed to fit a 12” album cover. A DSLR camera or smartphone might be the next choice, however it would require some additional equipment like a tripod or a camera stand. And you’ll need a space big enough to accommodate these setups. Here’s where you’ll find IPEVO VZ-R HDMI/USB Dual Mode Document Camera as a surprisingly effective alternative.
VZ-R, with its small footprint, tall build, multi-jointed stand, swiveling camera head, and high resolution (8MP camera), is the ideal tool for capturing vinyl covers. So let’s take a look at how this little tool makes capturing and digitizing vinyl covers a breeze.
What you need:
A small desk space. VZ-R. Lamp (to provide adequate lighting). Laptop (for connecting to VZ-R and storing your images). Free IPEVO Visualizer software (features “Scan Document” function for easy scanning). Vinyl records (of course you’ll need them).
And that’s all!
Setting up and capturing:
Download Visualizer software onto your laptop. You can download it from https://www.ipevo.com/software/download/visualizer. Connect VZ-R to your laptop via the included USB cable. Place a vinyl cover under VZ-R. Grab a lamp and place it by the side of the vinyl cover. Turn VZ-R on. Launch Visualizer. The image of the vinyl cover should appear on your laptop screen. Adjust the position, height and angle of VZ-R to ensure you have the whole vinyl cover in view. VZ-R’s multi-jointed stand and swiveling head make these adjustments easy. Switch on the lamp. Look at the image on your screen. Adjust the position of the lamp so that you get an even lighting on the image. Adjust parameters such as resolution, focus, brightness, exposure or more in Visualizer to fine-tune the image. Choose “Scan Document” in Visualizer. Set the preferred aspect ratio and file format for capturing the vinyl cover.
And voila! You’re ready to digitize your vinyl covers.
Here’s a video for your reference:
So grab an IPEVO VZ-R document camera, try it out, and let us know how it works for you. | https://medium.com/ipevo/capturing-and-digitizing-vinyl-covers-with-ipevo-vz-r-document-camera-dce31ed1b95 | [] | 2020-01-17 09:49:15.566000+00:00 | ['Music', 'Vinyl', 'Photos', 'Document Camera'] |
Car Image Recognition with Convolutional Neural Network Applications | Data Description
The data was obtained from the ‘Cars’ dataset publicly available on Stanford University’s Artificial Intelligence Laboratory website. A few of the images are shown below.
Figure 2
There are 196 models in the Stanford car dataset. However, for the purposes of the classifiers built in this project, cars with multiple variants but virtually identical visual characteristics and similar cars from different model years were put in the same class. For instance, images that belong to Bentley Continental GT Coupe 2012 and Bentley Continental GT Coupe 2007 were put in the same class since the cars look similar. This brought the total number of classes down to 157.
The car_ims.tgz file contains all the images used for this project and the cars_annos.mat file contains the names of the cars corresponding to each image file. Code was written to create folders that were named after the 157 distinct classes for the train and test sets. After the directories were created, the images were copied from the unzipped car_ims.tgz file and put into the respective train and test folders. An 80/20 split was used to split the train and test data; there were 12948 train images and 3237 test images. The train images were further split using an 80/20 split for the purposes of validation.
Image Preprocessing
Since the different models make use of distinct preprocessing techniques, the image preprocessing was done on a model by model basis. For the transfer learning techniques, the images were preprocessed using their specific Keras ‘preprocess_input’ function. It was also made that the images were loaded in using the appropriate image sizes before running the preprocessing functions.
Basic CNN Model
The basic CNN model makes use of five convolutional layers with ‘relu’ activation and the ‘adam’ optimizer. Initially, there was clear evidence of overfitting and in order to reduce the amount of overfitting, dropout layers were added. Regularization in the form of ‘l1’ and ‘l2’ regularizers were also added to help prevent overfitting. In the end, there were 1,818,679 total parameters and all of them were trainable. Below is a snippet of the code:
Figure 3
The model was allowed to train for a 100 epochs with a callback option that monitored the loss. After the model stopped training for 59 epochs, the accuracy and loss curves below were obtained:
Figure 4
For this model, the test accuracy was only 15.6%. This called for transfer learning techniques to be used in the hope that they would yield higher accuracies.
Transfer Learning
Most convolutional neural networks are not trained from scratch; instead, people use models that have already been trained on another dataset and use said models to help classify the data. This method of solving problems, where knowledge gathered from solving problem A is used to solve problem B is called transfer learning. The idea is that the model will still be able to detect edges and other features based on knowledge it gained from solving a previous problem.
For the purpose of this project, five different transfer learning models have been trained and tested:
VGG16 ResNet50 ResNet101 InceptionV3 Xception
VGG-16
The first model we used to upgrade from the basic CNN model was VGG-16. This model has 16 convolutional layers that are each composed of trainable parameters. Although it’s more complex with 138 million parameters, it’s architecture is very uniform. The convolution kernels are of the uniform size 3 x 3, and it has a stride of 1. Figure 5 shows the process: two convolutional layers, followed by pooling, then another two, again followed by pooling, then three sets of three convolutional layers, each followed by pooling, all the way down to the three dense layers. It is then followed by a softmax function for output. The hidden layers all use ReLU and the three dense layers at the end are fully-connected. We used the VGG-16 model library that uses pre-trained weights, but we unfroze the last two layers before fitting on our own data set to allow for more flexibility. We also pre-processed the images for the training and test sets.
Figure 5
Figure 6
Figure 7
Our results with VGG-16 were better than the previous basic CNN model, but still not very impressive. The model had 10 epochs, and the batch size of 50 gave us a total of 259 batches.
We decided on these numbers after some trial and error. The left side of Figure 7 shows the accuracy curve where the test accuracy leveled out after about 10 epochs around an optimal value of .4963. The training accuracy continued to rise (as expected) to .8165 after 10 epochs.
The right side of Figure 7 shows the loss curve, which also levels out at a test loss just above 2, the minimum being 2.26.
An accuracy score of about 50% is unsatisfactory, but VGG-16 does have potential in other circumstances. For instance, with access to proper equipment with higher machine capability, we could pre-train all of the weights rather than a subset. This could potentially help us achieve higher accuracy scores when predicting the car images. VGG-16 has also helped pave the way for more advanced neural networks like ResNet. | https://medium.com/@patricia-schutter/car-image-recognition-with-convolutional-neural-network-applications-e791c98c9d72 | ['Patricia L Schutter'] | 2021-02-19 02:15:50.603000+00:00 | ['Data Science', 'Image Classification', 'Transfer Learning'] |
Lessons from a Lack of Accountability | A story of dropping the ball, and how not to.
(This is an excerpt from my forthcoming book The Accountability Protocol.)
Not long ago a friend of mine was driving. He had a minor traffic accident, and shared with the other driver (in the modern way) an image on his phone showing his insurance coverage. My friend also called his own insurance agent, and gave the details of the collision.
My friend might be forgiven for thinking he’d done what needed doing.
A month later, a letter arrives from the state DMV saying my friend’s driving privileges were suspended for 90 days for driving without insurance.
What?
In the process of untangling this, it turns out that many balls were dropped by many people. We’ll review a few, and learn some lessons for how we might live our own lives better and safer.
Reasonably enough, my driver friend assumed his call to his insurance agent was all he needed to do. Turns out the agent he called, didn’t have the correct policy number on file. Why? My friend recently married, and switched to his wife’s agent, but then called the OLD agent when he had his collision. (Meanwhile the NEW agent had the correct policy number… but the wrong address for my friend.) These two agents did not talk to one another. Neither of them proactively contacted my friend to say there were problems. Neither agent “officially” notified the insurance company (why is this even a separate step?) of the collision, so the other driver’s insurance company rationally assumed my friend was uninsured, and tattled to the state, who suspended his license.
My friend assumed the best and didn’t double check or follow up. Nobody did. My friend is now paying the price of having to scramble to clean things up.
Lesson One: learn the rules and moves of the game. Who is supposed to do what? Who needs to receive what information? What trouble can I get into if anyone else drops a ball? Most service providers are relative experts in their discipline and will happily answer your questions. This might sound like:
“Hey, you deal with this all the time. How does this normally play out? What should I look out for? How do you see people getting into trouble with this process? If I were your favorite niece or nephew, what advice would you give me?”
Your polite and sincere curiosity will almost always be rewarded with insider knowledge.
Lesson Two: follow up. Silence is NOT a sign that all is well. Silence only means you have no idea what’s happening. Get something in writing from the players stating that they have handled the situation. Get commitments from players that they will notify you proactively when they finish their parts. This might sound like:
“Hey, when are you likely to be done with your work on this? Could I trouble you to send me an email letting me know the status? When should I mark my calendar so I know when to start worrying if I haven’t heard anything?”
Lesson Three: track your open loops. Most of us have dozens or hundreds of these little dramas playing out in our lives all the time — far more than we can track in our heads. Did Amazon get that pair of jeans I returned? Has my tax refund shown up? When is that lawyer supposed to get back to me about the will?
Create (or re-commit) to a system of self organization. I’m a fan of Kanban boards and I use Trello or KanBanFlow; anything can work as long as you develop habits and routines to support the discipline of tracking open loops and ensuring they are closed correctly. (I meet weekly with my assistant to walk through all the cards in our shared KanBanFlow board, and I update cards on the board daily. Mostly.)
Life isn’t getting any less complex. You can take steps to simplify your life. And, you can take steps to wrestle the unavoidable complexities into control. It’s doable; it’ll save you time, money, and bother; it’ll build your reputation as a reliable person; and you’ll sleep easier at night.
(This is an excerpt from my forthcoming book The Accountability Protocol.)
Learn More
To learn more about the forthcoming book The Accountability Protocol and how to be notified when it’s available, visit this link.
Excerpts on Medium from the Book The Accountability Protocol: | https://medium.com/accountability-protocol/lessons-from-a-lack-of-accountability-87c7e8d16df9 | ['Thomas B. Cox'] | 2021-09-05 01:25:35.672000+00:00 | ['Accountability'] |
Survivor’s Diaries: Chapter Three | Survivor’s Diaries: Chapter Three
Chapter Three: Brody
A week had passed. It was a bright Saturday morning in San Francisco. The work week was a blur and I was relieved when the weekend finally arrived. Jesse texted me a couple times since our date but I was so busy with clients and schoolwork that I did not have time to talk much. I felt guilty considering the man just dropped four hundred dollars on dinner the past weekend. I made a mental note to text him later.
Today, a family friend was in town for a few weeks for business and wanted to come visit. His name was Brody. His mom and mine were best friends growing up and our families have remained close ever since, although as teenagers, I had always been much closer with his sister Brandy than him. We only became close recently, when he had reached out to me about a year ago to reconnect.
For some reason, I had always seen him as so much younger than I was, even though we were only a year and a half part. I suppose that children and adolescents weigh age gaps with much more significance than do their elder counterparts.
At first I was hesitant when he reconnected. He had a small crush on me growing up and I was concerned that this might be an attempt to reprise some of those old feelings. But he never made any advances or overtures of any kind and, as time passed, seemed to be content with the friendship we had developed. So we talked a lot, and became very close. He shared everything with me and I shared, not everything, but a lot with him. It was strange to have such a close relationship with a male friend. I usually kept men at arms length, for many reasons, but I did not sense any danger here.
I loved having him in my life. He was so full of sunshine, happiness, and life. Talking with him almost made me forget everything else. His presence was like a therapy for me.
Three knocks on the door interrupted my reverie.
“Come in!” I called, as I was doing the dishes.
“You know Fiona, you really shouldn’t leave your door unlock — OW! FUCK!” was all I heard.
I spun around and saw Brody standing in the doorway, clasping his forehead.
Wow.
He looked so different from the last time I had seen him. I was expecting a skinny, lanky, adolescent teenager with long blonde hair and instead saw a fully grown adult with much darker tresses. He also appeared about four inches taller, which explained why he hit his head on the doorframe. I just realized it had been almost five years since I had last seen him in person.
“Oh no, are you okay?” I bit my lip, trying not to laugh.
He closed the door behind him and recovered, removing his hand from his forehead, revealing a dark red mark. “Yeah, I’m fine. This literally happens all the time.”
I couldn’t help but laugh then. He then turned around to face me, beaming then wrapped his arms around me, pulling me off the ground into a vice-tight hug. “Hey, how are you it’s been so long!”
“Good,” I squeaked. He lowered me back down and pecked me on the cheek. I backed up to take a full look at him. “Gosh Brody how tall are you? You’re like a tree or something.”
He burst out laughing. Of course he did. What a stupid thing to say. I went bright red.
He recovered. “Oh Fiona I forgot how funny you are. I’m 6'4”. I’m tall but not that tall. It’s just you, girl you’re small.”
I ran my hand through my hair and laughed self-consciously. “Only compared to you.”
“I like your place. This is really nice,” he remarked, looking around. I exhaled, grateful for the change of subject.
“Thanks. I love everything about it. Except the sunsets are a bit bright.”
“That’s why they call it Sunset, I guess.”
I laughed. “Are you hungry? I made this ravioli casserole last night and ended up with way too much food.”
“Yeah, sure, that sounds great.”
“Good, it has meat in it, is that okay?”
“That’s perfect.”
I nodded and started toward the fridge. I braced as I lifted the large casserole dish from the top shelf moved it into the oven, hoping he didn’t notice how much effort that took. “So how’s the family?” I piped quickly.
“Good, good,” he chirped.
He gave me an update on his sister, how her studies were going, and his mom, how she was enjoying retirement. He gave me some gossip about the people we used to know and where they ended up.
I placed the dish in front of him and let him serve himself. He continued telling more funny stories about the crazy people at our old church and the religious lunatics that populated the town. I watched in awe as he consumed literally half the casserole. It was impressive. I really didn’t understand how some men could eat so much and stay so skinny. He was still a beanpole.
While he talked, I spent the time appreciating how much he had changed — physically at least — inside he was the same, happy-go-lucky kid.
His hair, formerly the lightest shade of blonde, was now a much darker shade of auburn, almost brown but not quite. There was also some red in it, as well as many of the erstwhile golden tones. It was still long and fine, cascading over his ears and touching his shoulders, but wavier now, not so straight, and curling at the back of his neck.
His skin was warm toned and golden, like his hair.
The eyes were the same — almond-shaped and blue. They were the one thing that hadn’t changed.
Body-wise, he was still slender and tall, but no longer lanky and gangly like a teenager. He didn’t slouch anymore and had developed a subtle and wiry but visible muscle-tone beneath his skin.
And the way he moved was different too — smoother, more graceful. Very different from the lumbering, uncoordinated gangling I had remembered, the teenager on a growth spurt.
He had grown into his frame.
Lastly, his facial features were stronger, jaw and cheek bones sharp and more pronounced. The feminine beauty was still there, in the pink lips and bronze lashes, but it was less controlling, as if the child-like mask had slipped away and a more dominant masculine version had emerged, making for a uniquely aesthetic blend of both features.
He almost looked almost like Prince Adam from Disney crossed with Jamie Cambpell-Bower.
I smiled, seeing so much of his mother’s beauty shine through. The gold everywhere — in his skin, his hair, his brows, his lashes — that was all Sarah Beth.
Except the eyes. The eyes were all Jack. Which reminded me —
“Oh my god, Fiona. This is amazing,” he said as he patted his flat stomach.
I chuckled, cleaning up, then remembering what I wanted to tell him.
“By the way, I know I already said this. . .but I was really sorry to hear about your Dad.”
Brody smiled weakly. “Thanks.”
“How are your mom and sister taking it?”
He sighed. “They are okay. Just taking it one day at a time.” Then he sneered without humor. “My mom is already getting courted by half the town.”
Of course. By that I wasn’t surprised in the least.
Sarah Beth was a goddess back in the day and remained a strikingly beautiful woman now.
I smiled weakly. “She’s a knockout. That’s going to happen no matter what. But she’s tougher than nails that Sarah Beth.”
He laughed, for real this time, “Yeah, she sure is.”
I kept smiling, resting my jaw on my wrist.
Brody looked down, running his hand through his long amber hair. Then he perked up again. “She misses you though. I told her and my sister I was going to see you and they were jealous.”
I smiled weakly. “That’s sweet of them.”
He looked up soberly. “My mom loves you something terrible, you know.”
The words hit me like a sledgehammer. A wave of guilt crashed over me. I hadn’t seen the woman in five years.
“Well, I love her something terrible too. You send her my love.”
“I will.”
He reached for my hand and held it, playing with my fingers. I smiled as he warmed them.
“Did you notice, Brody that you’re losing your Southern twang?”
He threw his head back and laughed. “Thank God, it’s about time. I thought it would never go away.”
I chuckled as I took his plate to the sink.
A few minutes of silence passed as I cleaned.
Brody spoke first.
“Fiona, I don’t know if anyone’s ever told you this but you really are a tiny thing. You’re like the size of one of my arms.”
I sighed. I had heard similar versions of this observation a lot. “Brody, do you know how many guys have told me that?”
He laughed, “I’m just saying,” stretching his arms behind his back.
“You and everyone else.”
It was true. Almost every male friend or acquaintance I knew liked to point this out to me, as if I didn’t already know.
Brody’s laughed again but his tone was somber now, no longer jocular. “I mean I just say it because I hope you’re like eating and stuff. Seems like you’re shrinking.”
I reached for an excuse that could be construed as at least partially true.
“I just work a lot, Brody, this new place I’m at has me going nonstop.”
“Okay,” he replied. I could tell he wasn’t satisfied with the answer but he didn’t push further, for which I was thankful. This was one of the things I loved about Brody. He never forced tough conversations out of me and always knew when to let something go.
Three quick raps on the door interrupted this conversation.
“Fiona, a package for you,” my landlord’s dead voice carried from the hallway.
I opened the door and picked up a medium-sized parcel sheathed in bright red wrapping paper and criss-crossed with a white satin bow.
There was a rectangular gold tag attached to the ribbon, inscribed with gold script.
For the cold nights — Jesse.
I beamed. Inside was an electric heating blanket.
I heard Brody start the dishes behind me.
“No, no, no!” I squeaked in protest, running over to the sink. “You are the guest, sit down!”
He laughed. “It’s the least I could do after eating all your food.”
I grabbed his shoulder and tried to pull him away from the sink, but he didn’t budge. He rolled his eyes.
“Hey, I’m supposed to give you a tour of the city aren’t I?” I demanded.
“Yeah, that’s right,” he said as he dried his hands.
I grabbed my jacket. “Let’s go, I need to stretch my legs. I want to get back before sundown.”
I checked my watch. Sunset was never far away this time of year in San Francisco.
“Let’s do it.”
We were supposed to stick close to my neighborhood because I didn’t want to end up in a bad area but Brody insisted on covering more ground. He pulled out a map on his phone and I was impressed by his ability to get around in a city he had never been.
The best part was just his company. I had never met someone who was so perpetually happy all the time. His sunny disposition was a balm for me, like aloe vera on a burn.
He chirped on and on about life back home as we walked and told some really funny stories about our old friends that had me keeling over several times. He had some epic college stories too which I got a kick out of. I had to admit, Brody made me laugh so hard that the muscles in my abs were aching for most of the day.
At one point we raced through Golden Gate Park and he pretended to trip so I could win.
Later, the weather was clear enough to go see the water so we did. The wind was brutal though. It blew through my hair so hard that I’m pretty sure I looked like medusa with snakes for tresses. I didn’t have an elastic to throw it back with and pouted until Brody actually offered to french braid it for me.
“You know how to french braid hair?” I beamed, impressed.
He rolled his eyes. “I grew up in a house full of women, so yes. Turn around”
I obeyed and smiled as he weaved his fingers through my hair, pulling from the sides and forming the plaits. He took a picture of the back and showed me.
“Pretty,” I remarked.
He shrugged “My hands are really big so it’s harder now. It was easier as a kid.”
We then took public transportation down to Pier 39 and Fisherman’s Wharf and walked around for a couple hours. The salty air was refreshing, as were the sounds of the waves.
We had fun people-watching the most. After all, in San Francisco there is no shortage of nudists or just plain weirdos walking around.
Before I knew it a question I wanted to ask him came out of my mouth before I could stop it.
“Do you think you’re such a nice person because you grew up in a house full of girls, like you said?”
He looked at me, surprised.
I tried to explain. “Most men aren’t like you, I mean. . .they’re just mean and cruel and. . .selfish I guess is the right word. Like right now, if this were any other guy, he would probably be pouring booze down my throat and thinking of a thousand different ways to get into my pants, I don’t know.”
Don’t ask me why I said it. It just came out. For some reason, I felt like I could be honest with Brody without fearing that he might take advantage of it.
I couldn’t read his expression. Partly because I kept looking away out of self-consciousness.
He wrapped his arms around my shoulders and pulled me into a hug, kissing the top of my head.
“I don’t know, probably,” he laughed.
“Sorry, that was a super random question.”
“No, no, it just caught me off guard. I just never thought about it. Girls have to deal with so much shit that guys don’t. Do men do that to you a lot?” He looked at me seriously.
“Not recently, more when I used to date early in college. I was just curious.”
He nodded.
I instantly regretted bringing up the topic. I didn’t want him to worry about me any more than I’m sure he already did. The placating facade came naturally to me but sometimes I wondered if people could see through it.
Thankfully, we quickly moved on to lighter topics and the seriousness was replaced by laughter once again.
The whole day passed like this. It was nice.
We were laying in a grassy park towards the end when I could see the sun starting to fall in the sky. I sighed. Time to go.
“We should probably get inside,” I said.
“Are you afraid of the dark, Fiona?” he teased.
I rolled my eyes and got up. “No, I’m not. The dark is fine.”
“Hold on, real quick,” he insisted, getting up. “Stay here, I will be right back.”
I sighed and laid back down, covering my eyes with my forearm and trying to ignore the light, which was getting stronger with ever passing second.
He returned a few minutes later with two tacos and a drink.
“Fiona, you need to eat something,” he ordered, towering over me.
I got up and peered at the offering. Chicken tacos with all the fixings. It looked really appetizing and I was starving.
“I already ate.”
He rolled his eyes. “Fiona, you are such a liar I have been with you for the past seven hours you haven’t eaten anything.”
I sighed. “I’m not sure that’s the healthies — ”
Before I knew it he was shoving one of the tacos in my mouth. I couldn’t get angry or upset with him though, the image of it was just too funny that I was laughing before he was.
When I finished eating, I met his gaze. He was looking at me funny.
“What?” I asked, suddenly self-conscious. I thought I ate with my mouth closed.
“You’re skin and bones, Fiona why aren’t you eating?”
I bristled. “I’m not skin and bones, Brody.”
My weight was a touchy subject. It was off-limits and he knew it.
“You’re awful small,” he remarked quietly, tugging at my arm.
Not this again.
“I’m only small compared to you, Brody.”
“You’re small compared to everyone, Fiona,” he replied, rolling his eyes.
“I suppose,” I sighed.
I figured it was best to agree with him rather than disagree in order to avoid a lengthy discussion on the subject. It was complicated and I didn’t want to get into it. I knew he would understand of course. Brody knew more about me than most people did. We both knew my nonexistent appetite and extremely low weight had nothing to do with an eating disorder.
I looked back at him with a hard expression on my face. “Seriously though I don’t want you running home telling your mom I’m skinny or sick or something.”
He stared back at me surprised, like I had offended him. Then his eyes narrowed. “I never divulge what you tell me, Fiona. At this point I thought you’d know that by now.”
Great. I had insulted him. Wonderful.
I quickly backtracked. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, right, I know that,” I apologized sincerely, squeezing his hand.
He nodded, looking down, like he was thinking of something he wanted to say.
I got distracted by the time as I checked my phone. Damn it. I wanted to be back my sundown. It was too late now.
His voice was shaking as he spoke. “You know, Fiona, I just wanted to say that I know you’re unhappy a lot and I hope you know that I’m here for you, always, any time.”
I looked back, shocked. I never heard him get emotional like that. The tremor in his voice had startled me.
Then I sighed, defeated. I had been fooling no one with my facade, had I.
Jesse probably already thought I was basket case already. Who knows why he was still interested. Fuck, I forgot to text him and thank him for the gift. What a rude person I was. I made (another) mental note to do that tonight.
A warmth rushed over me as the conflicts in my head subsided and my attention refocused. I smiled, squeezing his leg. “Of course I do. And I already rely on you. More than you know.”
He beamed.
I returned a weak smile and broke his gaze, holding my breath for a moment. I thought I had been doing better at holding it all together.
I was.
Wasn’t I?
Brody just said that because he knows me, because we’re close, because he know’s why I’m sad, that must be it, right? I got promoted at work, that doesn’t happen to basket cases right?
The question spilled out of my mouth before I had a chance to stop it; my voice quivered and the words came out fast. “Brody I just need to know, I need you to be honest with me. . .don’t hold back, okay,” I gulped. “Do I strike you as like a basket case or something? Do I look like I’m sick or dying or anorexic or whatever because I need to know, and I need to know now.”
I looked fiercely into his eyes and forced his gaze. As much as I was tempted to look away, I didn’t. I wanted to see every nuance of his expression when he answered; to be able to identify any trace of doubt.
He looked a little taken aback by the question, or perhaps the level of intensity in it.
He held my gaze as he answered. “No, Fiona, I don’t think you are a basket case or crazy. I just think you’re sad. I think you’re too skinny but you probably already know that. I’ve said it before.”
I nodded.
The pained expression on his face was difficult to read.
“Alright,” I sighed.
He combed through the braid in my hair till it was undone, unweaving each plait one by one. “I think you’re perfect.”
“You got my hair to hold a curl,” I beamed distractedly, marveling at a ringlet that coiled around my shoulder.
He laughed and shrugged. “Sleep on it wet it, the curls will be even tighter. House full of women, I know these things.”
I returned his smile briefly, then broke his gaze to look at the sky.
My heart sank as I noticed the sun setting in the distance, irradiating the city with bright violet light.
I suppose it would seem beautiful, to most eyes.
“We should go,” I insisted, rising abruptly.
“You don’t want to watch the sunset?” he asked incredulously.
“Not tonight.” | https://medium.com/@fionathenymph/survivors-diaries-chapter-three-64436d26815c | ['Little One'] | 2021-03-20 03:17:07.437000+00:00 | ['Trauma', 'Trauma Recovery', 'Violence Against Women', 'Fear', 'Sadness'] |
Creating a Grocery Product Recommender for Instacart | Photo by Scott Warman on Unsplash
Creating a Grocery Product Recommender for Instacart
In the ecommerce shopping experience product recommendations come in many forms: they may be used to recommend other products on one product’s page (Amazon’s “Frequently bought together” feature for instance) or they may be used on the checkout page to show customers products they may be interested in based on their total order. In this post I will detail how I made a recommender for the former case.
Further, recommendations may be more helpful if they are targeted towards a specific segment of customers, rather than made uniformly. For instance if one group of customers tends to buy a lot of nondairy milk substitutes and another group tends to buy traditional milk, it may make sense to make different recommendations to go along with that box of Cheerios. In order to make tailored recommendations I first segmented Instacart users based on their purchase history using K-Means clustering and then made recommenders based on the product association rules within those clusters. In this post I will go through that process and give samples of recommendations.
The Data and Instacart Background
Instacart is an online grocery delivery service that allows users to place grocery orders through their website or app which are then fulfilled and delivered by a personal shopper- very similar to Uber Eats but for grocery stores. In 2017 they released a year of their data composed of about 3.3 million orders from about 200,000 customers. Released in the form of a relational database, I combined the separate tables together to perform EDA, leaving me with the following:
EDA
When performing EDA there were some key questions I wanted to answer:
What are the most popular products and aisles? How “top heavy” was the assortment? That is, how much of the total ordering share do the top products make up? How large are orders?
To get a broad idea of what Instacart tends to sell we can defer to their department sales. Instacart has 21 departments at the top of their product taxonomy. Below are the unit sale shares for each of them:
Instacart seems to be a popular choice for produce. The most popular Instacart “aisles,” the next level down in their taxonomy, are their fruit and vegetable aisles, the below chart showing unit share of total sales for the top 10 aisles:
There are 134 aisles in total with 49685 products so the above chart indicates quite a “top heavy” distribution in terms of product sales with the top 3 aisles accounting for over 25% of units sold. The below chart, showing unit shares for the top 3 products follows the same trend:
Almost all of the top 30 products are produce and there is a steep drop-off in terms of share after the most popular items. It will be interesting to see if K-Means clustering may reveal distinct customer groups from this produce-heavy distribution.
Below are the descriptive characteristics of order size:
count 3.346083e+06
mean 8.457334e+01
std 1.355298e+02
min 1.000000e+00
25% 1.500000e+01
50% 3.600000e+01
75% 1.050000e+02
max 1.058500e+04
Here is a distribution chart with a cutoff at 500 units:
The chart and table indicate that Instacart may have room to improve considering order size- the right skewed distribution indicating that most orders may not be fulfilling all the grocery needs for their respective customers with half of the orders having less than 36 items. A product recommendation system would allow customers to more easily find products they want and expose customers to items they have never bought from Instacart.
PCA and K-Means Clustering
The goal for the K-Means clustering is to group customers into segments based on the products they have bought historically. To accomplish this I intended to implement K-Means on the share of units bought from the sum of each customer’s previous orders. My first step was to transform the combined table I displayed earlier into a table where each row represents a customer and the columns represent the share bought from each aisle. A sample from this table is below:
I then performed PCA to reduce the number of features for the K-Means algorithm. This would allow me to better visualize my clusters as well as help K-Means run more efficiently. In deciding on the number of components to use I referred to the variance % each component represented of the total variance and chose a cutoff after the marginal variance added leveled off:
from sklearn.decomposition import PCA
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
pca = PCA(n_components = 30)
principalComponents = pca.fit_transform(aisle_share_pivot) features = range(pca.n_components_)
plt.bar(features, pca.explained_variance_ratio_, color = 'black')
plt.xlabel('PCA features')
plt.ylabel('variance %')
plt.xticks(features)
plt.xticks(rotation = 45) PCA_components = pd.DataFrame(principalComponents)
The component this happened at according to the chart was at component 5. I then fit sci-kit-learn’s K-Means algorithm on the 6 PCA components and looked at the resulting SSE curve:
from sklearn.cluster import KMeans
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
sse = {}
labels = {}
for k in range(2,15):
kmeans = KMeans(n_clusters = k).fit(PCA_components[[0,1,2,3,4,5]])
sse[k] = kmeans.inertia_
labels[k] = kmeans.labels_
plt.figure()
plt.plot(list(sse.keys()), list(sse.values()))
plt.xlabel("Number of cluster")
plt.ylabel("SSE")
plt.show()
It seems that the curve starts to flatten at cluster 5 so I moved forward with 6 clusters. Here are those clusters plotted on a scatterplot matrix of the 6 PCA components:
Though not perfect, it does seem that I have identified 6 distinct groups that should result in differences in aisle purchase history. The best way to check this of course is to look at each cluster’s aisle share for unit purchases. Below is a heatmap for share of purchases by aisle for the top 20 Instacart aisles:
There are clear differences for the 6 clusters, with the most obvious being the relative amounts they buy fresh fruits and fresh vegetables. This makes sense given that produce makes up over 25% of Instacart unit sales. The differences for each cluster may be better brought out by looking at them each individually, which I do in the charts below:
Cluster 0 are heavy vegetable shoppers, cluster 1 seems to mainly use Instacart for beverages, cluster 2 has a more balanced palette, cluster 3 prefers packaged produce, cluster 4 are heavy fruit shoppers and cluster 5 buy fresh fruits and vegetables almost equally. Differences may also be noticed looking into the less frequently bought aisles, for instance “baby food formula” is the 8th most purchased aisle for cluster 5 but does not appear in the top 10 for any other cluster.
It is also of interest for Instacart’s business is the size of these clusters in terms of number of users and buying power. The table below shows the percent of users belonging to each cluster in the left column and the percent of unit purchases belonging to each cluster on the right.
Interestingly, cluster 5 represents about 35% of the users but almost 50% of the unit purchases. Recall that this cluster’s most bought aisles were fresh fruits and fresh vegetables but in equal amounts and also featured baby food formula in its top 10 aisles. This suggests that this cluster may contain users using Instacart for shopping for families with babies and young children, appearing to be Instacart’s most important customers. An entire project may be carrying this analysis further to isolate Instacart’s best customers! At this point, however, I move forward to creating the product recommender.
Association Rule Mining
With the 200,000 users broken up into cluster I was ready to perform basket analysis via association rule mining on orders. This worked by splitting the total orders table into 6 tables for the 6 different clusters and finding association rules between each product. Association rules specify the relationships products have with each other in terms of how likely they are to be bought together in the same order.
Three of the common rules are support, confidence and lift. Support is simply the frequency an itemset appears in a dataset and is computed by dividing the frequency by the size of the dateset (via Wikipedia):
Confidence is the proportion of transactions containing one item that also contain another item and computed by dividing the support of one or more items by the support of a subset of the numerator, via Wikipedia:
Lift is the ratio of the observed frequency of two or more items over the expected frequency. It indicates if two or more items occur more frequently than they would if they appeared together randomly. A value greater than one indicating a non-random relationship. Formula below:
I computed these metrics by cluster for all items over a minimum support of .01% using a python script employing generators. This was necessary given the size of the dataset (3.3 million orders containing about 50,000 products). The table below shows the output sorted by lift for cluster 5:
As can be seen the highest lift values of the entire dataset are of products similar to each other as can be expected.
Product Recommender
To perform the product recommendations to be displayed on a product’s page I wrote a python script that takes in user_id, product_id, desired lift cutoff and num_products to be returned. With these inputs it determines the cluster of the user (stored in a dataframe outputted from the cluster analysis), filters the dataframe containing the product association rules for that cluster and returns the specified number of products with a lift greater than the lift input, prioritizing the items with the greatest lift. If there are less items than the num_products that meet the criteria it will return all products that do meet the criteria. The code for the recommender may find in the Github repository, link at the end of the article.
In the below I show the recommender in action, showing the outputs for “organic whole milk” for the 5 clusters limited to 5 items.
cluster 0['Whole Milk Plain Yogurt', 'YoBaby Blueberry Apple Yogurt', 'Organic Muenster Cheese', 'Apples + Strawberries Organic Nibbly Fingers', 'Yo Toddler Organic Strawberry Banana Whole Milk Yogurt']
cluster 1['Beef Tenderloin Steak', 'Original Dairy Free Coconut Milk', 'Pumpkin & Blueberry Cruncy Dog Treats', 'MRS MEYERS 12.5OZ HANDSOAP RHUBAR', 'Organic Sprouted Whole Grain Bread']
cluster 2['Whole Milk Plain Yogurt', 'Organic Skim Milk', "Elmo Mac 'n Cheese With Carrots & Broccoli", 'Kids Sensible Foods Broccoli Littles', 'Apples + Strawberries Organic Nibbly Fingers']
cluster 3['Organic Nonfat Milk', 'Paneer', 'Organic Whole Milk Yogurt', 'Organic Plain Yogurt', 'Extra Light Olive Oil']
cluster 4['Puffed Corn Cereal', 'String Cheese, Mozzarella', 'Cold-Pressed Sweet Greens & Lemon Juice', 'Organic Stage 2 Broccoli Pears & Peas Baby Food', 'Superberry Kombucha']
cluster 5['Whole Milk Plain Yogurt', 'YoTot Organic Raspberry Pear Yogurt', 'Organic Atage 3 Nibbly Fingers Mangoes Carrots', "Elmo Mac 'n Cheese With Carrots & Broccoli", 'Blueberry Whole Milk Yogurt Pouch']
The above lists all contain the products with the highest lift associated with organic whole milk for each cluster. What may stick out is that cluster 1’s recommendations don’t make as much intuitive sense as the other clusters’ recommendations. This is most likely because this cluster makes up less than 1% and of unit purchases and less than 2% of users and seems to leverage Instacart specifically for non-milk beverages. Further work would be required to determine if fewer clusters would be optimal but generating non-intuitive recommendations isn’t so much of an issue considering users from this group are not likely to view a milk product anyway. For another example on a less general use product, here are the results from “Mild Salsa Roja”:
cluster 0['Thin & Light Tortilla Chips', 'Red Peppers', 'Organic Lemon', 'Organic Cucumber', 'Organic Grape Tomatoes'] cluster 2['Real Guacamole', 'Thin & Light Tortilla Chips', 'Original Hummus', 'Organic Reduced Fat 2% Milk', 'Thick & Crispy Tortilla Chips'] cluster 4['Organic Raspberries', 'Banana', 'Organic Strawberries', 'Organic Hass Avocado'] cluster 5['Thin & Light Tortilla Chips', 'Organic Large Brown Grade AA Cage Free Eggs', 'Organic Reduced Fat 2% Milk', 'Organic Large Grade AA Brown Eggs', 'Thick & Crispy Tortilla Chips']
Cluster 1 and cluster 3 did not have any items with a lift over 1 for this product.
That’s it for now! The link to the GitHub with the Jupyter Notebooks is here. | https://towardsdatascience.com/creating-a-grocery-product-recommender-for-instacart-c1b6bdf5ae13 | ['Alex Ellman'] | 2020-09-24 21:39:21.865000+00:00 | ['Association Rule', 'Clustering', 'Instacart', 'Recommendation System', 'Market Basket Analysis'] |
Yeah, I Thought Life Coaching Was Bullsh*t Too | Yeah, I Thought Life Coaching Was Bullsh*t Too
Until I Got Certified To Do It.
It grew on me. The idea of life coaching. But when I first heard about it as a profession, I called bullsh*t. Maybe it was because, at the time, I was unaware of any regulatory agencies so I figured any Tom, Richard, or Mary could call themselves a life coach. I wasn’t wrong.
But over the years, things changed. I opened my mind to the possibility that there lies real help in between therapy and business coaching. I used to think, who needs a coach for life? Um, literally everyone I f*cking know in the entire world and everyone they know and all of their cousins. And their cousins’ cousins. Fact.
It doesn’t mean everyone should feverishly search for a life coach right now, but do we really know anyone who wouldn’t benefit from someone who can help you get from where you are to where you want to be? We all think we can do it ourselves, but the proof that we can’t is basically all of humankind.
Life coaching is undergoing an explosive phase right now. I guess I hopped on the bandwagon (or rocketship) at the wrong time, but it fell into my lap.
I like to learn things. I like to add things to my repertoire. I had been thinking about life coaching and knew a few people who were doing it. I was a real estate coach and also served in an advisory capacity in several jobs I held in the past. Seemed kind of up my alley.
Then Jeff Barton, who I met here on Medium (this is also where we realized we were basically brothers), said he was thinking of taking a life coaching certification with the company co-founded by The Angry Therapist called Team JRNI. Yeah dude, let’s do it together. And off we went into the land of the unknown. To become life coaches.
The Bullsh*t Was About Ego
I would never need a life coach. I have my sh*t together. What kind of people would seek help getting their life to where they want it? Smart people. I wasn’t being smart. I was feeding my ego another flank steak. I had been to therapy. I had worked with a real estate coach who helped explode my business. I knew coaching, as a thing, worked. But there I was calling it bullsh*t.
“Anyone can do it, therefore I am too good to do it”, was the bullsh*t coming from me. Seriously, I stunk. I was like that baby at the two-year old’s birthday party sauntering around with a very low hanging diaper in the back and not because he likes low riders. Because he was packing some serious weight from active defecation. Picture. Me.
Fortunately, I was at a time in my life where I was actively reading, watching, and listening to everything I could get my hands on. And many of these life lessons wrapped inside a book, article, TED Talks, or podcast were opening my closed mind to the possibility that everyone, every single person, could benefit from someone who can see past their bullsh*t. And coming to this revelation meant I was starting to see past mine.
Photo by Laurenz Kleinheider on Unsplash
The Biggest Lesson I Learned
There are a lot of them. Plenty I’m still learning. But one thing that stands out to me is the concept of holding space. In life coaching it’s used so much as a term, it’s basically like the surname Smith , but it really resonates with me. Can you hold space for someone? It’s a lot harder than you think, especially given the annoyance of modern technology.
The reason holding space is so important in life coaching is because we aren’t there to give you advice. We are there to help you give yourself advice. We are a facilitator. A conduit. We are there to pull the best back out of you from wherever you buried it. And holding space is just like it sounds. Being completely present for someone else.
Think of the norm. You are talking to someone and they are looking around. Looking at their phone. They interrupt you to tell you all about what happened to them even though they just asked about you six seconds prior. They can’t keep still. You can see the mental checklist they are working in their head while you tell them something important. It’s maddening. That’s not holding space.
Do you remember what it feels like to have someone hold space for you? Looking you in the eye. Allowing for silence. Lacking judgment. Think of someone putting their arms out and actually holding the space around you, for you. So nothing can penetrate it. It’s yours. When someone can do it for you, it can be magical. To be truly heard and felt in a single moment.
20 Weeks Later
Yes, 20 weeks. This wasn’t a weekend certification with Uncle Herbie in the conference room at Motel 6 or on that weird website that also sold goldfish in bulk. 20 weeks of intense learning with a variety of fantastic instructors. To be honest, it was a lot. More than I thought it would be in terms of the work. But also so much more than I thought it would be in terms of the impact and realization. Remember, I thought this whole thing was bullsh*t not that long ago.
I finished the course with a newfound appreciation for life coaches. Because the ones that were instructors in my cohort were f*cking ballers. They got it. They got what I didn’t earlier. They understood how to help someone else get their life going back in the direction it was supposed to. And not from a robotic manual. Because life coaches, more than many professions, thrive by incorporating their unique personality into their business.
It’s not competitive because of that. We all come to the table with past careers and unique experiences. An odd toolbox full of the most important things that happened to us, as well as the minutia that we almost forgot about. Until someone said something that touched a nerve and we knew that we had something to offer.
I’m proud of finishing the course. 20 weeks later I walked away certified as a life coach. And now it’s my turn to explain why it’s not bullsh*t to the rest of the world who still thinks it is. How am I doing? | https://medium.com/jrni/yeah-i-thought-life-coaching-was-bullsh-t-too-2a6f9e6bd60a | ['Jonathan Greene'] | 2019-08-27 16:12:10.377000+00:00 | ['Life Lessons', 'Purpose And Calling', 'Personal Development', 'Life Coaching', 'Life Coach'] |
Swift computed properties | In this first post I will introduce Computed properties and how to use Getters and Setters, as an attempt to put on paper what I learn while i go through the Swiftlang features.
Computed properties
There are a few important things which are useful to know about before jumping in:
Think of them as pieces of code which will calculate a value every time you call them
Computed properties are always variables (never constants)
These type of properties can be used in or outside classes, structs, enums
Beware when using computed properties as their value might change each time you are calling them. Also, they can change any other value in their enclosing scope if a setter is used (more below)!!!
Defining a computed property
To start, you have to write a variable and explicitly declare the type of the property to help the compiler know what kind of value will be assigned to it.
Do not assign a default value. Instead open a bracket after the type declaration and start working on the getter.
As the value of the variable is set and retrieved through the use of setters and getters, you need to at least use the getter inside the brackets as below:
What happens in the code above:
You can see a computed property of type Int, and inside its brackets I am using a getter to return the result of x+y
Once the computed property is called the getter gets executed and the variable is assigned the result
A cleaning up note: you don’t need to write get { } as long as you do not implement a setter. This will speed you the writing
Let’s talk a bit about getters and setters:
Using get { }
The get keyword makes the computed property readable
keyword makes the computed property readable A getter allows you to read data from the computed property
Inside the brackets you write the code that will be executed once the computed property is called
Accessing the property executes the getter
Try to assign a value to the computed variable. What happened? You cannot assign a value to a computed property that doesn’t have a setter.
Using set { }
A few things to know:
The set keyword makes the computed property writeable. Without it you get this error: Cannot assign to value [your computed property’s name], it is a get-only property.
keyword makes the computed property writeable. Without it you get this error: Cannot assign to value [your computed property’s name], it is a get-only property. When you assign a value to the computed property you are calling the setter
The value is accessible inside the setter’s brackets
You can assign a local name inside the parentheses after the set keyword. This local variable will get the passed value to the computed property (as seen in the example below with newSalaryPerWeek)
If you do not provide a name for the assigned value in the setter definition, the compiler will automatically allocate the name of newValue.
Through set you can change the value of other properties in the same scope, reason why you have to be aware of all the dependencies linked to the computed property.
A bit confusing , but it’s a good example of the computed property power, as you can see below:
Why don’t I use the setter to change the value of its own computed property? Because I would get into an infinite loop of assigning the value to itself over and over again. Try this at home :)
Let’s apply this knowledge to several other computed properties, but this time inside Enums/Structs/Classes, just to see that nothing changes:
Computed properties in Enums
Below you can find two examples of working with a computed property in an Enum:
The first examples has a computed property that uses a switch statement to switch between the cases available in the Enum and return a String based on the selected case in that specific instance
The second example defines a read only computed property (because it only has a getter) which returns in this instance a specific String when called.
As these computed properties do not have a setter the get keyword can be omitted (saves time with typing).
2. Computed properties in Structs
Below we have the same example of a computed property, but this time inside a structure called Employee.
3. Computed properties in Classes
The example below uses a class with 2 stored properties and one computed property.
The computed property returns the area of the rectangle based on the stored property of width and height, however it gives us the possibility through the setter to change the values of width and height based on our input to the area of the rectangle, as can be seen below.
As this is quite important, I am mentioning again that computed properties can change any other values in their scope. This can create a lot of headaches.
Why are computed properties useful? Still trying to figure that out …
This is it for now. Part 2 will cover property observers.
Resources: | https://medium.com/@micosmin/swift-computed-properties-2a8fd9f88d6 | ['Cosmin Mircea'] | 2017-06-09 22:27:04.577000+00:00 | ['Computed', 'Set', 'Get', 'Properties', 'Swift'] |
5 Website Design Trends in 2017 Every Designer Should Follow | You cannot judge a book by it’s cover, but you can certainly judge a website by it’s design.
Web Design has progressed immensely throughout the years.
New features are always being discovered and added to the list of options for creators to use.
Infinite scrolling, banners, pop-ups, cookies, social media integration, comments — the list goes on.
With so many choices it can be difficult to determine which additions will work best for your pages.
Do not fear!
These five website design trends in 2017 are a sure-fire way to amp up your website.
2016 was a year for clarity.
2017 is the year for improvement.
Last year, we saw some modern trends become the established leaders in website design.
First and foremost, there was a huge focus on home pages.
This should come as no surprise, considering that most users get a first impression about your business through your home page.
Everyone wants to make a great first impression.
There’s a large consensus throughout the digital marketing community that home pages need to portray an accurate depiction of your company branding.
Having an attractive home page is essential to keeping users interested in your brand and on your website.
Speaking of home pages, most of them were created using flat design.
2016 was a year for minimalism.
Flat design was used across all the great websites because companies wanted a clean and sleek web design.
Something simple, but powerful.
High definition photography was another element the digital world demanded.
With smartphones equipped with cameras equivalent to DSLRs, brands had no excuse for poor quality photos.
As the year for improvement, 2017 has booted out and added on to some of these trends.
For your best bets, here are five web design trends in 2017 every designer should follow.
1. Geometric Design is the Design of the Future
While the flat design is making its dramatic exit, geometric design is making a grand entrance.
Related Article: Top 10 Fashion Logos & Clothing Brands
Flat design was so prevalent across the web in 2016 that website’s ended up looking a little too similar.
Instead of being recognised as a trendy way to style your site, the flat design looked more like a template instead of a valid creative choice.
That is why in 2017, geometric patterns, shapes, texts and lines are making their way to the top of this list.
More and more websites are using hexagons, rhombuses and squares to create patterns across their sites.
Since the utilisation of these shapes is harder to replicate, every combination comes out looking unique.
This is particularly the case for many digital agencies.
The use of geometric features across their home pages makes their aesthetic branding very distinctive.
Integrate these shapes into your website slowly and see what patterns work best for your brand.
2. Be Animated!
If high definition photos are the standard, the next level includes integrating gifs, videos and animations to your website.
Not only do they help you giggle during the long workday, but they also enrich your layout as well!
These tidbits make great contrasting elements with the existing content on your page.
When selected properly, they are also great supportive elements.
If your brand prefers to take a more subtle approach to animations, soft animations are the way to go (this is when websites seamlessly transition to the next idea during scrolling).
The goal is to integrate your next point with the previous one effortlessly.
2016 was the start of these new creative features.
Users will no longer settle for choppy transitions or default effects.
As an informed web designer, these animation decisions should be discussed at the beginning of your design journey.
3. Simple Navigation Helps the User and the Business
One of the most significant design trends to follow in 2017, simple navigation coupled with a fast load time means a happy user and a happy you.
According to SmartInsights, users spend about 71% of their time on mobile devices, which means that people want information at the speed of light.
They do not want information later; they want it now.
When someone comes across your brand, the immediacy of information is vital.
What you want to do here is to shorten their journey.
Keep navigation to 5 items or less to make things simple.
This will not only help your users stay on task when finding what they were looking for but shortening your navigation will also help with your load time!
Fewer pages mean a faster load time.
Also, as we covered earlier, a faster load time means a happy user.
So let’s spread the happiness!
4. Who Says Old School and New School cannot Hang?
One of the best touches a website can have is something hand drawn.
Related Article: US Road Trip 2013 Review
Seeing a silly stick figure or doodle on a website can bring it home for a brand because hand drawn elements are fun ways of bringing the old school into the new school.
They give off a positive and nostalgic feeling for the times before everything was digital.
Including hand drawn icons, logos, symbols, pictures and graphs are also great ways to deviate from the norm on digital platforms.
Even better, hand drawn images give your site a little more personality.
Users feel closer to something that has been sketched out because it feels rawer.
Get in touch with your inner kid and make something simple to start off.
For those who are more artistically gifted with a pen and paper, try redrawing your logo design.
Some brands that are known for including hand drawn elements into their marketing strategies are Chipotle and Starbucks.
Chipotle regularly has hand drawn elements all over their to-go bags, and they even have handwritten content in Spanish!
As for Starbucks, I am sure you are all familiar with their holiday cups.
For example, this past December they featured artists across the globe who wanted to personalise the coffee cups.
The results?
It added a beautiful touch to the sipping experience.
5. Many Faces, Typefaces to be Exact!
Typography has become one of the major key elements in website design.
We see standard types like Arial, Times New Roman and Helvetica getting an upgrade for new and improved fonts.
Typefaces are now very reflective of the brand and website on which they live.
They change colours depending on a user’s scroll, have animations, and are integrated with page effects.
Whether your company is #TeamSerif or #TeamSanSerif, experiment with new typographic choices for 2017.
Concluding our website design trends in 2017
These five website design trends in 2017 are sure to set your business on the right path for the rest of the year.
Let’s see them again:
Out with the minimal and in with the geometric!You may not have taken a photography class, but you can make it seem like you did. Add gifs and animations to your website to keep it trending in 2017.Simple navigation + less load time = happy user. We like happy users.Hand drawn details will make your website come across as more personal to your users.Experiment with typography to give your website some extra oomph.
Author Bio — Therese is a writer for Aumcore, Digital marketing agency that doubles as a Responsive Web Design Firm, and specialises in Mobile User Experience Design. | https://medium.com/inkbot-design/5-website-design-trends-in-2017-every-designer-should-follow-788b117e08ea | ['Inkbot Design'] | 2017-05-30 12:00:19.261000+00:00 | ['Branding', 'Web Design', 'Web Development', 'Trends', 'Graphic Design'] |
London and Oslo Took On Cars, But the Key was Investing in Alternatives | Cities around the world are recognizing that the dominance of automobilies isn’t sustainable. They’re a leading cause of climate change and a drain on public budgets. No matter how many streets are widened or highways extended, congestion always gets worse, and the only way to reduce it is to get people out of their cars and using other means of getting around.
However, that doesn’t mean all cities are following the same playbook to reduce car use. One of the initiatives growing in popularity is congestion pricing, essentially a way to charge drivers for using the roads. Singapore, Stockholm, London, and most recently New York City have chosen this path.
By contrast, other cities are choosing to instead regulate how cars are using urban space by limiting their use of certain roads and taking away parking spaces. For example, Paris closed the road along the Seine and repurposed it for people; Toronto gave streetcars priority on one of its main downtown streets; and Oslo removed on-street parking spaces in its city center.
Both of these approaches can be pursued successfully, but regardless of the policy, there’s a common denominator to their success: investment in alternatives. Whether cities adopt congestion pricing or regulations to restrict vehicle use, they must improve transit services, expand cycling infrastructure, and make new pedestrian spaces so residents can enjoy the streets they’re regaining the right to use. London and Oslo show how this can be done.
Lessons from London’s congestion charge
London’s congestion charge was introduced in 2003 at £5 for vehicles within the designated zone, and has since been increased to £11.50 between 7am to 6pm from Monday to Friday. There are exemptions for zero-emission vehicles, motorcycles, mopeds, people with disabilities, and a 90 percent discount for people living within the zone. The city also added an Ultra-Low Emission Zone in April 2019 which applies to diesel-powered commercial vehicles.
After implementation of the charge, congestion dropped by 30 percent and it brought in hundreds of millions of pounds that the city could use to improve alternative means of getting around the city. Since implementation, it’s estimated that there’s 30 percent less road space for cars because of the addition of bus lanes, bike lanes, and the pedestrianization of some streets around the city.
Cycling has grown 66 percent since the charge began, and while the number of people entering the city is up 23 percent, the number entering by car is down 44 percent. In recent years, congestion has worsened and vehicle speeds have slowed again, in part because they have less road space, but the focus is still on getting more people out of their cars.
An analysis by Themis Chronopoulos in 2012 of congestion pricing in London, Stockholm, and Michael Bloomberg’s failed attempt to implement it in New York City found that investing revenue from the charge in mass transit was essential to gaining public support. That helped to explain why Bloomberg’s proposal failed: since transit was controlled by the state, voters didn’t believe the vague transit improvements he promised would be realized.
Chronopoulos argues that high-income residents see the most benefit from congestion pricing because the charge will be a small percentage of their income and their drive times will improve. Low-income residents, by contrast, are far less likely to drive, and thus are not too bothered by the charge; they could even see significant benefits from transit improvements. However, middle-income residents are hit hardest and are most likely to oppose it, but transit enhancements that benefit them can make it more acceptable.
Public support for the charge in London was in large part because of the significant investment made in transit before and during the charge’s initiation period. New bus routes were added, service was expanded, larger buses went into service, boarding was improved, bus lanes were added, ticket prices were reduced, and service even increased on the Underground. This was key to getting low- and middle-class residents on board — and a similar program of investments was essential to getting Oslo residents to support the initiatives taken in that city.
Oslo replaced cars with city life
When a coalition between the Labor Party, Green Party, and Socialist Left took power in 2015, its proposal to ban cars from Oslo’s city center was met with backlash from conservative politicians and the trade association, but that didn’t stop them. Instead of an outright ban, the government began removing on-street parking, restricting vehicle use on some streets, and investing in alternatives. And now it’s reaping the gains.
In a new Car-Free Livability report, the City of Oslo detailed the success it’s had with the program, and it’s hard not to want to see similar initiatives in more cities around the world. The central area they targeted has been transformed from “car city to city life” as the 760 standard on-street parking spaces were removed, while the city worked with the Norwegian Association of Disabled to increase the number for people with disabilities from 83 to 130.
Oslo has set a goal of reducing emissions 95 percent by 2030, and reorienting the city away from cars is an important part of that. A single parking space is estimated to be worth about a million kroner ($114,000) in Oslo and the city feels that space can be put to much better use by revitalizing urban space. In its climate survey, 55 percent of residents agreed that “Oslo city centre should be as car-free as possible,” and pedestrian traffic is up 10 percent since the restrictions were implemented.
The city has expanded bike parking facilities, bike lanes, bus service, and is adding a sixth line to its metro system, but probably the most important part of the initiative has been the addition of pedestrian-friendly urban spaces to improve the city’s street life. The report is filled with examples of mini parks, seating areas, and activities that have replaced parking spaces,. It also details how it’s making it easier to hold events in large pedestrianized sites.
These changes can elicit negative reaction from groups that are used to the status quo. In Oslo, conservative and business groups opposed the initial plan; Paris had to fend off a lawsuit to reopen the highway along the Seine to cars; and a few Toronto restauranteurs tied to conservative politicians tried (and failed) to argue that giving the streetcar priority would destroy businesses. However, looking at the photos from Oslo and having lived in cities with pedestrianized spaces, it’s hard for residents not to warm to these changes.
Hanna Marcussen, Oslo’s vice-mayor for urban development and Green Party member, put it best in a recent Economist piece on the city’s initiatives. She compared the restrictions on car use to Norway’s 2004 public-smoking ban: “Many grumbled before the law was passed, but few today would clamour to let people smoke in pubs again.” The same will be true of reducing car use.
Restrict cars and expand alternatives
As the examples of London and Oslo show, both congestion pricing and vehicle restrictions can gain public support and effectively reduce car use in urban centers. However, regardless of whether cities chose to pursue one or the other, their success will depend on investing in alternatives and giving more road space to those other uses.
The curtain may well be closing on the automobile age as we recognize the numerous benefits that come with designing cities for lower speeds and reorienting spaces around people instead of vehicle thoroughfares. Now our challenge is implementation, and taking lessons from leaders like London and Oslo can instruct other cities that want to follow their examples. | https://medium.com/radical-urbanist/london-and-oslo-took-on-cars-but-the-key-was-investing-in-alternatives-b1497027879a | ['Paris Marx'] | 2019-06-03 14:51:52.068000+00:00 | ['Cities', 'Transportation', 'Cycling', 'Environment', 'Politics'] |
Will we need a health certificate to travel? | That is what a lot of people are thinking to give greater security to the transport of people.
It would be a matter of providing a Covid-19 vaccination certificate that could be carried as a paper document or as a mobile APP.
An APP called Common Pass has been created behind which are important companies like IBM and others. We would carry the app on our mobile and it would have our vaccination data and our health situation regarding Covid-19.
It is a simple and fast way to present the information in a customs or where it is necessary; And it has the advantage that our information remains with us on our mobile phone and not in a computer “cloud” beyond our control.
The idea is launched and there are already many working with it. I am sure that in a short time there will be more than one operational possibility (some APPs) that will allow us to return in a certain way to the “normality” of before with a certain security.
Unfortunately, in the early days of the pandemic, risk detection APPs did not become popular despite the fact that several were developed (even Apple and Google collaborated on one of them), and I think it was because the governments were not clear on the issue. of people’s privacy.
In this case it is not like that, privacy is with each person on their mobile, and its use can provide certain guarantees to the transport of people.
And that is just what is needed. That people regain the confidence to travel safely.
Another thing is that we should travel differently and polluting less.
It only remains to hope that governments do not get into disputes over which vaccines have more “guarantees” for people and should be included in these APPs, and that they become available as soon as possible.
We all need it, and there are many people whose work depends on it. | https://medium.com/@amadorpalacios/will-we-need-a-health-certificate-to-travel-66cd86884951 | ['Amador Palacios'] | 2021-02-02 07:55:54.514000+00:00 | ['Travel Tips', 'Travel'] |
GigaLife APK | Hi friends, GigaLife is the top Android apps with over 10.000.000 download from Google Play. This is the popular product of Smart Communications, Inc..
APK file size of this app is 138M, and we suggest you use the Wi-fi connection when download to save your 3G data. GigaLife works with Android “5.0” and higher version, so please check your system before install. Of course this is the best apps with average rate point is 3 and 177013 of 5 stars rate.
Latest update of apps is 2021–12–06, if you have any trouble with GigaLife, feel free to go Smart Communications, Inc. website and contact to developer. We hope you enjoyed this apps and rate it or share with your friends on Facebook, Twitter.
FAQs
What is GigaLife app?
As mobile users rely on their smartphone to help them in their daily life, the GigaLife App aims to gives subscribers a simple, easy, and smart way to manage their digital activities through convenient features — from balance and account details inquiry, promo and add-on registration, account reloading, viewing of …
How do you use GigaLife app?
How to Manage your Smart Bro Account via Giga Life App
Step 1: Download the Giga Life App.
Step 2: Set Up your Giga Life App. Connect your smartphone to your Pocket WiFi. Open the Giga Life App to log in. The app will automatically detect your Smart Bro MIN. Click continue to proceed.
What is the use of GigaLife?
Downloadable on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store, the GigaLife App enables prepaid subscribers to check their balance, monitor their data usage, and register to promos with just a few taps on their smartphone. They can also link all their other Smart and TNT accounts in the app.
How do I register for GigaLife?
Dial *123#….Via APP:
Download app in the Play Store or App Store.
Access the New GigaLife App.
Look for ‘MORE GIGA’ > ‘GIGA STUDY’ in the menu.
Go to ‘GIGA STUDY’ and select preferred GIGA STUDY variant.
Click SUBSCRIBE then YES to confirm registration.
How do I redeem my GigaLife points?
User will login on the GigaLife App.
Launch GigaPoints home screen.
Select the Giga or Unli promo to be redeemed.
Select Redeem on the pop-up screen to confirm redemption.
How to use GigaLife App?
Download the GigaLife App on Google Play Store or Apple App Store.
Open the GigaLife App.
Upon your first login, you’ll be asked to switch on your mobile data (if you’re connected to WiFi, turn it off) so that the app will automatically recognize your mobile number.
>>> Soccer Super Star APK | https://medium.com/@apkdownloadblog/gigalife-apk-eeb08afab291 | ['Apk Download'] | 2021-12-24 09:15:03.335000+00:00 | ['App', 'Download', 'Game', 'Mobile', 'Android'] |
Should You Wear A Suit To Your Job Interview? | Photo by Ruthson Zimmerman on Unsplash
This is the eternal question: Should you wear a suit to your job interview?
YES.
I mean why not? You have everything to gain and nothing to lose.
Here’s the deal, suits turn you into the final boss. It is your ultimate form if you wish to gain respect.
Why? Because of what it means to society.
Everyone and their mothers believe that suits are the symbol of professionalism. It is literally a staple for clothing AROUND THE WORLD. Businesspeople wear it. CEOs, bosses, owners, whatever. You see them being worn by the top ranking officials of government, so they’re definitely worth a degree of prestige.
There’s a reason why people say you can never overdress during an interview, even if you’re applying to Subway. Like seriously, first impressions MATTER.
By wearing a suit, it shows your interviewer that you took the time to prepare. It shows that you care. It shows you understand that the atmosphere of a workplace is NOT the same as at home. They need you to recognize this because YOU will be representing THEM if you’re hired. Appearances matter.
I understand, not everyone likes to wear button-down shirts and slacks, but that’s just something you’ll have to get used to. The dress code might relax a bit AFTER you get the job, but NEVER BEFORE. This is the time when you need to be on edge and be PREPARED. Wearing a suit is part of that.
Always dress well for your interview. Good luck. | https://medium.com/@wletterofficial/should-you-wear-a-suit-to-your-job-interview-1789fa36cb46 | [] | 2020-12-16 05:11:08.170000+00:00 | ['Job Interview Preparation', 'Lifestyle', 'Job Hunting', 'Careers', 'Job Interview'] |
Repurposing Architecting Skills. /5 | Image by cottonbro on Pexels [cropped]
Design as Improvisation
The genre defying musical trio, The Necks, arrive at gigs, unprepared. The’ve not rehearsed that show and walk on stage without knowing what they’re about to play. They sit at their instruments and don’t know when to or who will start. Yet one will and they’ll proceed to play extraordinary unabating music for 30 minutes. All improvised. On one remarkable occasion they simultaneously brought their playing to instant silence from driving mesmeric blowout, as if hitting a wall at high speed. No preparation.
Of course, we all know that it’s not true that The Necks haven’t prepared. They’ve done the work. They’re trained musicians. They’ve each played their instruments for over 40 years and playing together for around 30 years. They know how to play and how to play with each other. They had been preparing for that moment of spontaneous silence for 20 years. They knew each other, they knew the signs, they knew when to stop.
Design work comes from a similar position of preparedness. There’s years of preparation. Learning through study, research, experience and critical thinking. There’s often a team that have worked together. Collaborators who are able to anticipate and accomodate the other’s thoughts, or know when to make space for another team member’s voice to come to the fore. This preparation may be decades of knowledge, learning and experience.
An improvised piece of music doesn’t materialise out of nothing. A great design doesn’t materialise out of nothing.
The thing is musicians that are great improvisers have already put in the work. The lithe spontaneity of the music is the result of practice, repetition and experience. They’ve tried many things. They are willing to fail. Missteps are considered inevitable and necessary to learning and improving. Improvisation is necessarily messy. It takes time and practice. It’s identical for architects and design practice.
The key with all this work is to start. To start learning, to start practicing, to start being messy and working with others. All this work is a posture, you need to show up and you need to start.
Wrapping together the previous posts, we can see them as a series of skills enabling improvisation. Architects might start to find new possibilities in their architectural practices. The improvisational preparation is very much one of iteration and failure, building small new ideas to be called upon to be combined in new and interesting ways. Another improvisational approach might be taken to the research combining ideas from precedent in new and interesting ways. It’s design but it’s also a posture that architects might take in their work outside of design and in their architectural practices.
The question here is what preparation do you need to do in order to start to improvise constructively in your architectural practice? The trick is be prepared as best you can and be prepared to start, even we you don’t think you’re ready (spoiler: you’re never ready). Starting prepares you for the next time you start. Unless you start, it’s just silence. It’s OK if the tune doesn’t quite gel, it’s all learning. Research, practice, prepare more and start again.
This is all abstract until you identify how or what you might improvise on. You could start small and it might relate to how you communicate and work with each other in the office, then consider how it might be applied to how you work with clients, consultants, and so on. You might like to then consider other processes like marketing, business development or go big on the entire process in the delivery of a project.
I’m curious…
How will you prepare?
& then…
When will you start? | https://medium.com/@michaellewarne/repurposing-architecting-skills-5-694f768973da | ['Michael Lewarne'] | 2020-12-09 23:20:24.347000+00:00 | ['Architectural Practice', 'Repurposing Skills', 'Architectural Skills', 'Skills', 'Architecture'] |
How I Knew (Becoming Trans In Eight Episodes) | (Lena Balk, Upsplash)
1: Two Spaldeens
I was about five years old, give or take a year. It was a typical New York summer day: sunny, hazy, humid but not insufferably so. I was not much of an outdoor kid, being bookish and precociously (i.e., annoyingly) talkative, but that day I was playing outside vigorously, bouncing pink rubber Spaldeen balls against the garage door and trying to catch them as they came back. I returned to my room, physically spent but still mentally wired.
My mother came upstairs to check up on me to tell me about some new books that she bought for me. She always made sure that books were plentiful in our household. We often spent hours in the living room reading silently in each other’s presence, while my father glossed over the newspaper headlines, watched the sports report on television, and fell asleep in his chair or, more often, sprawled out on the floor.
Suddenly, inspiration struck from out of the blue. I took the two Spaldeens, shoved them under my shirt, and proclaimed: “Look Mom! I’m a girl!”
Mom chuckled weakly, amused but not too amused. At that moment, however, my father walked by in the hallway and did a double-take.
“Get them things out of your shirt, right now!” he exclaimed, scolding me through his clenched teeth. He often did this when he was angry. “You’re a boy. Stop that!”
I complied, but I was perplexed. What was the big deal?
Under all the layers of awareness, I came to realize that gender was a big deal, in two ways.
First, people — parents especially! — made it a big deal, a set of roles set in stone, whose rules are exceptionless. Boys are boys, girls are girls, no in-between, no exceptions made, no transgressions tolerated.
Second, gender was a big deal to me, but not in the way that the adult world made it out to be. It was less a role than a perception. For a split second I realized I liked looking and feeling like a girl (albeit a post-pubescent one at least 6 years older than I was), which generated a vague realization that I might not be what others understood and expected me to be.
2: The Public Humiliation
I was lucky: I was not the one who was humiliated, but a classmate. Had it been me, this narrative might have taken a different turn.
My Catholic elementary school was located one block from my home. Because I lived so close, the nuns who ran the school allowed me, and a handful of others, go home for an hour to eat, and to return at the end of recess. I thought I was lucky to be granted this privilege. My milk was not sour like my schoolmates’, having been delivered into rickety wooden bins, languishing in the summer sunlight and freezing in the winter snow. I was not limited to soggy sandwiches for lunch. I often got to eat hot soup!
This made me, and my fellow go-home-for-lunchers, the subject of ridicule. “Yeah, go home to mom-my! Go home for lunch you big fag! Enjoy your souuup!” I was nonplussed by this. You bet I’ll enjoy my “souuup”! And my fresh, non-sour milk. I am sorry you do not get to experience these little pleasures.
One day I returned, a little late, to school and, ascending the stairs to my classroom, heard intense bawling and wawling and “Please, Sister I-I-I’m sorry!” The scene when I entered: one of the boys in the class apparently was caught talking during the silent prayers that commenced afternoon religion class. The nun in charge had a spare girl’s uniform in storage and punished the boy by making him dress in the uniform and sit, for the remainder of the class, at the front of the class, bombarded with major taunts coming from the boys (and a sense of resentful embarrassment from the girls). The message was: girls are relentless, shallow gabbers, and as your offense was “acting like a girl”, you get to be one for forty-five shame and humiliation filled minutes.
I was gobsmacked by the cruel intentions of the nun who did this — what kind of life-lesson is imparted by doing something like this, which she knew would only traumatize this first-grade boy? But I was also offended and confused by what this punishment implied. Namely: why are you also humiliating the girls in the class, by insinuating they are uncontrollably loquacious, and therefore silly? Why should dressing like a girl occasion so much shame and humiliation to begin with? What is so awful about wearing a plaid jumper and knee-socks? Why did sister think that being a girl for a while was a punishment? Why did she think that being a girl was second-rate? She’s a girl herself!
The whole episode struck me, even then, at age 6, as sick and sadistic — to both the boy in the sartorial stocks and the girls who had to suffer being put-down as part of the “silly”, frivolous gender.
3: The “Guess who I am?” Game
My best friends, for as long as I can remember, have mostly been female. I usually felt uncomfortable in the company of boys when young. I cringed at their mocking, insulting brand of humor, and winced at their tendency to turn everything into a battle or contest. I realize that this may be a function not of masculinity per se, but of a peculiarly 20th century American form of masculine bluster and toxic aggression. This is a nation that elected Donald Trump, after all — a paradigm case of hollow machismo that conceals a limitless emptiness, a narcissistic demand that can never be satisfied. There are alternate conceptions of masculinity in circulation in the world at large, and more power to them. Still, I thought girls were far nicer. They were gentle.
I was hanging out one afternoon on the stoop of one of my girl friends, playing a game of “guess who I am?”, like twenty questions, where you had to figure out the identity the other player was pretending to be. I pretended to be Mickey Mantle, John F. Kennedy, and Paul McCartney; she pretended to be Wonder Woman, Jacqueline Kennedy — and Abraham Lincoln. It was fun, and then she remarked “Hey, I pretended to be a man: now you pretend to be a woman.”
Whereupon I replied “Oh, jeez, look at the time, I have to go home now!” And I sped away.
In retrospect, this reaction speaks volumes to me. The discomfort I felt about pretending to be female, in a child’s game for godsake, was not a matter of playing a role that felt alien to me — although that’s what I was telling myself over and over at the time. It was a fear that my secret would be out. The idea of being a girl both comforted and excited me. But it was not the kind of thing that I would dream of broadcasting to my friend, no less the world at large.
4: Glam Rock Commentary
While my father was strictly a Frank Sinatra/Tony Bennett guy, my mother’s taste in music was broader. She loved Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon. “Who is that?” she exclaimed when I was playing it on the living room stereo. “That’s beautiful! Not like the other crap you listen to”, meaning Led Zeppelin, the Stones, Steppenwolf, and pretty much everything else in my vinyl collection.
I was in my early teens when rock music took a turn towards the exotic and glamorous. We were watching Ed Sullivan, and a musical act came on — it may have been Hunky Dory era David Bowie but I am not sure — who was wearing velvet bell-bottoms, a fancy psychedelic silk shirt, and long well-groomed hair. “Wow, look at him”, my mother remarked. “Get a load of his get-up! I’ll bet he’d really like to put on lipstick and high-heels the way he’s decked out.” Her voice was soaked in disapproval.
I thought, however, “Well, who wouldn’t.” But I kept the thought to myself. I knew that most guys wouldn’t — but I would. And “The Secret” must be kept . . .
5: The Therapist
“Look, don’t worry. You’re not a woman trapped in a man’s body or any of that nonsense. That’s bullshit.”
Thus sayeth the psychologist conducting an intake interview for the therapy practice which I was checking out, anticipating by several decades the transphobic bile that nowadays drips from the lips of Jordan Peterson and Slavoj Žižek and thousands of Gender Critical “Feminists”.
“The Secret” was taking a toll on me. It started to seriously interfere with my peace of mind. I was sexually attracted to women, and was at that time happily married to a woman I loved deeply. I couldn’t reconcile my sexual orientation with my confusing gender identity. It generated a lot of guilt and shame. I concluded that I needed to resolve my inquietude by ridding myself of “The Secret”, not by revealing it, but by extinguishing it.
(Little did I know, then, that gender identity and sexual orientation are two different things. Unfortunately, therapists in the 1980s were not exactly clear about this matter either. Now they tell me…)
Thankfully, the therapist to which I was eventually assigned did not share the attitude of the intake-guy. Maintaining his neutrality, he got me to open up about “The Secret” to him, and to work through my guilt and shame about it. Every therapist I have had since then has likewise helped me, with considerable success, with adverse feelings about my feelings, sex/gender related or otherwise. It did not weigh as heavily on me as before. But I was still evading the crux of the problem. The secret would not snuff itself out.
I never thought that the metaphor “a woman trapped in a man’s body” was a particularly good one. I never felt contempt for my body per se, but perceived that parts of it were at odds with others — my genitalia (plus secondary sex characteristics) and my brain, respectively. Furthermore, what I longed for was to feel at ease not so much in my body but in the world, the social world, wherein I could be acknowledged as who I am and acknowledge others from my own honest and true perspective. There was a lack of fit between how I perceived myself and how the world perceived me. And that was the motive for keeping “The Secret”. For I feared that if I revealed it, the world would banish me wholesale. I would shrink to a vanishing point.
(Before)
(After)
6: The Denial Beard
Since my early 20’s until my transition, I had sported a beard. I kept the beard neat and trim and avoided the Grizzly Adams/Z.Z. Top/Thoreau look deliberately. I did not want to appear like a wild man, but a civilized, sophisticated, cultured man. While I did not want to exude toxic masculinity, I was aiming at exuding, well, masculinity.
The beard looked nice on me, but then again, I looked fine without the beard. Occasionally I’d shave it off, but almost immediately I would grow it back again. It was obsessive, and compulsive: I felt uncomfortable without the beard. I thought I did not know why I did this, but I knew full well why I did. I had kept “The Secret” so well that I was fooling myself. No, more like deceiving myself. The beard was a talisman, a kind of rabbit’s foot of masculinity. I dared not lose it, or “The Secret” would be out. But one cannot keep a secret from oneself for too long — it always comes back to nag at one’s conscience and sense of integrity. The beard was a disguise.
7: First Time Out
I was single for the first time in decades. Nothing prevented me from letting “The Secret” run out of the corral for a while before I planned to rein it back in. I revealed myself to a friend, set an afternoon date in Manhattan for coffee, and made an appointment with someone who specialized in “transformations.” Goodbye beard. And without a trace of regret…
I had brought a black V-neck dress, breast and hip forms and a waist cincher, a dark brown wig, and patent black high heeled pumps, donned them, and sat down for the makeup artist to work her magic. About a half hour later, the transformation specialist proclaimed: “there she is!”
It would be a cliché to say that “something in me snapped” or “the scales fell from my eyes”, but the thing about most clichés is that they are not so much false as they are exaggerations of a truth, and that have lost their impact from careless overuse. But something did change. I was seized by a kind of inner warmth, and a realization that I had done the right thing, a momentous thing. I was strangely calm, not nervous at the prospect of heading into the East Village and hanging out. “What do you want your name en femme to be?”, she asked. “Laura”, I replied. Always my favorite woman’s name.
As I headed toward the car, the makeup artist commented, “You’re glowing!” I certainly felt the glow.
The drive into Manhattan was uneventful; after searching for and finding a parking spot I realized that I would be publicly presenting as Laura for the first time. While I was nervous, I was determined not to let it get the best of me. I walked to the café and met my friend: I discovered that walking any distance in Manhattan in high heels is a fool’s errand. I wasn’t being “clocked” as trans, which may have been a function of the expertise of the makeup-artist, or the characteristic inattentiveness to the out-of-the-ordinary exhibited by Manhattanites — or a combination of the two. My friend said she never saw me saw me smile so brightly.
The waitress approached our outdoor table and greeted us with “What’ll it be, ladies?” It was a thrill: about time. My heart was at peace.
When we ladies parted I walked back to the car and realized that I had left my male clothes in a small suitcase at her studio. I phoned her and asked if I could dress back at her place when I returned, but she said she had another customer and that the best she could do is leave the suitcase outside her front door. This posed a problem. I was supposed to meet my father — alcoholic, crochety, and set in his ways — for his birthday dinner, in male mode. He was none too pleased with the Spaldeen incident: he would not be pleased to see me in a sexy little black dress. So I pulled into a strip-mall parking lot, sought out a space far from the stores and other cars, clambered into the back seat, and contorted myself into all sorts of positions as I switched clothing.
When I was back in male mode, I felt like I was in costume. That was when I let “The Secret” go. It took some time, and I took my time, but I realized then what I was being beckoned toward. My honest self, the woman I had perceived myself to be all along.
8: Mansplained!
Fast-forward to about a year ago, before the pandemic cloistered us and election-anxiety led to interrupted sleep. I had been socializing pretty much exclusively as a woman for about a year. I realize that I am privileged to live in a place that is not just tolerant but generally accepting toward trans women and trans men, and lucky that the worst I have thus far experienced was a group of people in a sushi joint giving me the stink-eye. I quickly ditched most of my anxiety being trans in public — although I have acquired the skill of noticing when someone is walking behind me on a nearly-empty street at night, and then grabbing my purse tightly and cranking-up my hyper awareness. You never know. Women need to know what they are up against.
There is a bar in Manhattan’s West Village that I am very fond of. The bar staff is friendly and the beer selection is exceptional. I was a bit buzzed one day when the guy sitting on the stool to my left struck up a conversation. He was beyond buzzed, well into inebriation, on his way, possibly, to delirium and unconsciousness. He seemed to be keen on me.
I make it a policy to reveal that I am trans as soon as possible. This is because I think it is fair to let any interlocutor know how it is with me, and also because I am proud to be trans and sick of keeping secrets. So I told this guy all about it. It did not seem to register. Which was fine for my tipsy self: it was a bit of a rush to find someone who perceived me as an attractive woman. I played along.
The topic turned to music. “You know who’s the best guitarist? Eric Clapton! By far! He is the best! He can play anything! And no one can copy him!”
Being a guitarist myself, I begged to differ. I learned electric guitar by copying him. He plays pentatonic blues scales: if you know them you could play pretty much anything he plays by memorizing the riffs, and by developing your vibrato and other chops. His vibrato is great but, frankly, he cannot hold a candle to the Yardbird who replaced him, Jeff Beck. Etc.
“No no no. Eric Clapton. The best. “Key to the Highway”! Can’t copy that! He can play anything! Layla! You got me on my knees!”
I suppose this could be interpreted in a number of ways. Was he comparing me to Layla? Was this a drunken expression of attraction and enchantment?
It did not matter: I interpreted it otherwise. I was being mansplained-to. Clapton was the best. Girls don’t get that. “Key to the Highway!”
This could have gone on for a while, but he lapsed into a kind of stupor, staring at the floor. I took that opportunity to close my tab, give the barmaid a kiss on the cheek, and embark out to 7th Avenue and the number 1 train. I had lost my mansplaining virginity.
I had arrived. Welcome to womanhood, girl. | https://medium.com/@lnelson10051954/how-i-knew-becoming-trans-in-eight-episodes-dd4f778cc363 | ['Laura Nelson'] | 2020-12-18 14:14:23.862000+00:00 | ['Autobiography', 'Gender Identity', 'Gender Roles', 'Transitioning', 'Transgender'] |
Misinformation and the Prospect of Catalytic War | Misinformation and the Prospect of Catalytic War
In July 1870, France declared war on Prussia after learning the Prussian king had insulted the French envoy during a meeting concerning affairs in Spain. Unknown to the French, Prussian Chancellor Bismarck had fabricated the story about the insult to provoke them into war. Bismarck knew France was militarily inferior and that a declaration would push southern German states to finally unify with Prussia. The “Ems Dispatch” ruse worked and the war was a catastrophe for France, marking the end of the Second French Empire and the birth of the German Empire.
In August 1964, the United States Navy alleged their ships had been unjustly attacked by North Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin in international waters. Some officers contended the reports were inaccurate but before the incident could be fully verified, the President ordered military retaliation. The President then requested and received near-unanimous congressional and public approval for virtually unlimited authority to wage war on North Vietnam. In 2005, declassified documents confirmed the president knew the reports were false. The war, however, quickly escalated out of the president’s control, sparking years of protest and major political divisions throughout the country before ending in an ignominious withdrawal nine years later.
These historical incidents demonstrate how war can result from misinformation and deceit as much as they can from accidents and miscalculation. All warfare may be based on deception but disinformation is poised to destabilize international affairs in an unprecedented way.
Thomas Rid is a political scientist who focuses on the nexus between technology and conflict. His latest book, Active Measures: The Secret History of Disinformation and Political Warfare, provides an exceptional historical overview of misinformation operations and the challenges they present for national security.
Within the counterintelligence portfolio, active measures are unique in their embedding of disinformation within an ostensibly legitimate and mostly truthful medium, whether it is a document, report, periodical, book, audio or video recording, or a digital posting.
Rid describes how disinformation marked the origins of the Soviet Union and how its brand of misinformation came into its own in the early Sixties in the middle of the Cold War. Soviet leadership devoted considerable funding and manpower, elevated political warfare’s organizational standing, and integrated its satellites’ intelligence capabilities. The mission of the new KGB organization, Service A, was to identify and analyze enemy fissures and failures, and then “to exploit the discovered vulnerabilities in a systematic, worldwide effort.”
And the Soviets excelled — “anti-Western campaigns were aggressive, fast-paced, and used innovative methods that evolved quickly and in unexpected frightening ways.”
The Soviets altered Army Field Manuals, leaked falsified nuclear plans for Europe, invented rumors of Nazi gold in a Czechoslovakian lake, co-opted the nuclear freeze movement, and, most notoriously, claimed AIDS was the invention of American scientists.
After the Cold War ended, Russian intelligence services withered significantly. Misinformation, instead, became the weapon of choice in the competition for power during the Nineties — a virtual information civil war. The period ended when a former KGB agent ascended to the presidency in 2000 and conscripted this new generation of seasoned operators and their sophisticated media skills into a revitalized Russian national security apparatus.
Initially, Russian information operations took the form of cyber-disruption and were once limited to the country’s “near abroad,” such as Estonia in 2007 and Georgia in 2008.
When democratic upheaval finally breached Russia’s near abroad in the form of the 2014 Maidan Revolution in the Ukraine, it began targeting the West.
Russian efforts culminated in 2016 and 2017, when it undertook election interference operations directly against the United States and the United Kingdom (Brexit), France (presidency), and Germany (federal offices).
Regarding the 2016 American presidential election, many observers have speculated why. At the personal level, many allege Russia acted to deny Hillary Clinton the presidency in revenge for her comments during anti-government protests in 2011. In terms of geopolitics, others suggested various reasons. Interference was retribution for democracy promotion in Russia’s sphere of influence or a warning to refrain from seeking regime change in Moscow or simply a reminder to treat Russia as a great power.
Whatever the reason, a few high-profile email leaks and a provocative Facebook campaign resurrected Russia as a great power competitor (despite half the population, half the economy, and half the defense budget of the United States).
In Rid’s analysis, the email hacks and fake social media accounts were entirely ineffective.
However, the power of misinformation lies in its indirect consequences.
In the main, Rid describes how the media indefensibly exaggerated the impact of the Russian Facebook campaign. Journalistic standards collapsed as reporters failed to scrutinize questionable evidence, published unverified conclusions, circulated unsubstantiated accusations, and adopted an overtly partisan tone. Misinformation had succeeded in inverting reality — what was balanced was derided as biased and what was suspect was declared plausible.
Rid’s conclusions are twofold — neither comforting.
First, misinformation succeeds because its melding of fact and fiction prompts not contemplation but consternation. Misinformation is essentially anti-information — a weapon marked by reassuring facts but concealing an emotionally inflammatory payload.
Second, the Internet accelerates, augments, and amplifies misinformation. Deposited in the obscure corners of cyberspace, seemingly dormant misinformation is instantly animated when it’s discovered. Whether the mark ratifies or refutes it, misinformation’s very acknowledgment unknowingly legitimizes it and initiates its dissemination. Inexorably, journalists will elevate its visibility, analysts will debate its validity, pundits will argue over its significance, and everyone will share it on social media.
While Cold War forgeries could be exposed and refuted, the Internet endlessly recycles misinformation from objective to subjective and back again. The antagonist then feeds the media scrum another fabrication, which has been designed to exacerbate the original confusion by “validating” one side’s interpretation. The result is a proliferation of heated emotional fissures across the body politic and the inability to separate fact from fiction.
Traditionally, active measures are the product of a state bureaucracy staffed by professionals and allocated substantial budgets, but, as with many enterprises, misinformation is being privatized and decentralized.
More ominously, anyone with Internet access can obtain and use the world’s most sophisticated cyber-weapons and undertake their own misinformation campaign.
Rid closes his history by recounting how a mysterious cadre of hackers calling themselves the Shadow Brokers penetrated the National Security Agency in 2016 and stole the country’s arsenal of cutting-edge cyber tools.
The intrusion constituted a monumental security breach and jeopardized wide-ranging signals intelligence operations around the world. Furthermore, the penetration distracted national security agencies at a critical time, namely defending the nation’s electoral system from cyber-attack.
Hackers eventually gained access to NSA’s tools and rapidly overwhelmed IT systems around the world. Ukraine’s national infrastructure, Britain’s health system, a Danish shipping giant, and an American multinational food distributor were among the theft’s many collateral victims.
And no one has figured out who the Shadow Brokers were.
Episodes such as this feed theorists’ speculation that in the future America will suffer a “cyber Pearl Harbor” or a “cyber 9/11.” Plausible fears but, at a minimum, decision-makers could take comfort knowing that in each of these precedents, the identity of the aggressor was immediately obvious and the fate visited upon the Japanese and the Taliban (at least at the outset) would deter any imitators.
However, the potential combination of cyber-weapons promising anonymity and anti-information introduces the prospect of manufactured security crises.
The greater threat is a “cyber Ems Dispatch” or a “cyber Gulf of Tonkin” whereby a third party anonymously introduces misinformation to purposely instigate or aggravate existing tensions in a volatile region (e.g. Western Pacific, Persian Gulf). The active measure sabotages decision-makers’ ability to objectively assess the situation and enrages their respective publics. The result is an armed conflict arising from circumstances falsified by a third party — a catalytic war.
Like American national security after a cyber-catastrophe, international security would never be the same after a misinformation-instigated catalytic war.
Prussian theorist Carl von Clausewitz’s simple but enduring maxim asserts war is nothing but a duel on a larger scale. If the Prussian theorist were alive today, he might concede the duelists may not know the truth behind their post-haste rush to the dueling grounds.
(Image Credits) | https://rjpmeridian.medium.com/misinformation-and-the-prospect-of-catalytic-war-9a3b4ca70cd9 | ['Jordan Prescott'] | 2020-09-19 01:04:55.889000+00:00 | ['War', 'Book Review', 'Misinformation', 'International Security'] |
Making a wearable live caption display using Azure Cognitive Services and Ably Realtime | Making a wearable live caption display using Azure Cognitive Services and Ably Realtime
How I helped my mother, who is hard of hearing, to understand me while I visit her with my mask on Jo Franchetti Follow Dec 16, 2020 · 14 min read
A flexible LED display connected to a microprocessor with a phone and a laptop and a small lipstick battery on a desk.
Live captioning of speech into text has so many useful applications and Azure Cognitive Services makes it fast and easy to build captioning into your applications. Used together with Ably Realtime, it is possible to make wearable devices which can display what you’re saying, in real time. Wearable live captions!
This article will explain how to use Azure Speech and Ably Realtime and will go through building a web app that will take data from your microphone and turn it into readable text.
Check out this video to see the demo in action:
Why would we want this?
I’ll admit to a personal desire to see more products like this on the market. The reason is my mother. She has been steadily losing her hearing over the last few years and relies heavily on lip reading and clear pronunciation. Two things which are denied to her when the people talking to her are wearing masks. Of course I also want to keep her safe, so I will always encourage everyone to wear a mask, but there must be ways that technology can make her, and many others, life easier. One of the frustrations with assistive technologies on phones is that they require her to be looking at her phone, rather than at the speaker, which can lead to her being treated differently, often poorly, by whoever is speaking to her.
Inspiration hit when I saw this product on sale (at Cyberdog, of all places)
An LED display inside a wearable mask
It is a face mask with a wearable LED display inside. The display is incredibly small, flexible, breathable and has very low power consumption. What if I could send text to the display from my phone’s microphone? It could update the mask display to show what I am saying!
So began my journey to build a wearable live captioning demo.
What is it?
The demo consists of a web app, which is used to capture microphone data and send it to Azure Cognitive Services. When it receives text back, the web app can display it to the user. It also contains a virtual representation of the hardware display to visualise what the hardware display will be showing. The app uses the Ably Javascript SDK along with their MQTT broker to send messages from the app to the wearable hardware.
The wearable part is a 32 by 8 display of neopixels (very small LEDs) connected to an Adafruit Feather Huzzah (a small, wifi enabled microprocessor) which is powered by a rechargeable USB battery.
A flexible display attached to an Adafruit Feather Huzzah connected to a USB battery and a phone displaying the app
How Does it work?
The web app is built with HTML, CSS and JS, it will run on your phone or your computer and just requires an internet connection and a microphone.
You can see and clone the code for the entire project on github, it is open source, and I’d be delighted if you used it to create your own wearable tech projects, especially if they can help make someone’s day better! Instructions on how to set up the app and its various dependencies are in there too.
Using the microphone
The getUserMedia() API has been in browsers for a while. It allows us to prompt the user for permission to use their microphone and or camera and, once allowed, get a stream of data from their media devices. This app uses just the audio, so it will only prompt for microphone permissions.
Processing the data stream
This app uses the Cognitive Services Speech service, which allows us to transcribe audible speech into readable, searchable text.
When a user clicks the “Start Listening” button on the app UI, a function called streamSpeechFromBrowser is called. This uses the Azure fromDefaultMicrophoneInput along with the fromAuthorisationToken function to authenticate with Azure and initialise a SpeechRecognizer. This is what will perform the speech recognition on the data coming from the mic. It will return an object which contains the text of what has been said.
Because the phone now has the transcription, and our microcontroller is connected to our LED display, the app needs to send the transcription to the hardware, in a format that it can understand so the code running on the hardware can convert that text into lights.
How the data is sent
To communicate between the web app and the microprocessor, a messaging protocol is required. MQTT is a lightweight publish/subscribe protocol, designed specifically for IoT devices and optimised for high latency or unreliable networks. This is perfect for this particular project where the wearer might be on a 3g connection.
In order to use MQTT, a broker is required, this is a service which is responsible for dispatching messages between the sender (or client) and the rightful receivers. The web app is the client, in this case, and the receiver is the microcontroller. This project uses the Ably MQTT broker, which comes for free with the Ably Javascript SDK. The web app can send messages using the Ably SDK and they will be automatically sent out using MQTT too.
Processing text commands
The microprocessor on the Adafruit Feather Huzzah is very small and therefore has limited processing power and memory, which means that the code that runs on it needs to be as efficient as possible. It is therefore necessary to avoid doing any complicated text parsing, string splitting or other similarly memory intensive tasks on the microprocessor. Parsing and splitting strings is especially costly, and involves larger buffers than would be ideal.
While at a glance, this may seem like premature performance optimisation, if all of the memory on the board is used parsing the messages as human readable strings, it decreases the amount of memory available to buffer incoming messages. To solve this problem, a binary message format is used to talk to the hardware. The browser app creates a specially coded message to send text strings to the device.
Where most systems would probably use JSON to serialize messages with properties, this app uses a binary format where the order and content of bytes as they are received is relevant to the hardware. For example, sending a command to scroll text across the display involves the browser sending a message that looks like this:
const textMessage = {
value: "My line of text",
mode: 1,
scrollSpeedMs: 25,
color: { r: 255, g: 255, b: 255 }
}
But rather than serializing this message to JSON, and sending it as text, it is packed down into a binary message that looks like this, byte by byte:
These messages are sent as raw bytes — the control codes in the ASCII standard are used to provide some header information in the messages.
Because the message is a raw byte stream, it is not necessary to parse the message on the hardware, it can just loop over the message bytes, and run different processes depending on the byte being looped over at the time. This takes all of the complexity of parsing text away from the microprocessor, and moves it into the TypeScript code in the web app, where it is easier to debug and test.
In the table above, the byte at offset 8 would represent a single character, but the parser on the hardware is looking out for the STX and ETX start and end of text markers. What this means is that any number of ASCII characters can be added in the space between them to form a full sentence in the message.
Displaying the results
Since the transcription from Azure Cognitive Services arrives as text, it is trivially simple to display this text to the user in a containing element within the app UI.
The microcontroller needs a way to convert the messages it receives as ASCII characters, into a format which can be shown on an 8 pixel high resolution matrix (it will support displays with a higher resolution, but not lower).
Creating a pixel “font”
The first thing to do was design some “pixel font” style alphanumeric characters and symbols | https://medium.com/microsoftazure/making-a-wearable-live-caption-display-using-azure-cognitive-services-and-ably-realtime-f4f6667a076f | ['Jo Franchetti'] | 2020-12-16 14:09:34.181000+00:00 | ['JavaScript', 'Speech Recognition', 'IoT', 'Accessibility', 'Azure Cognitive Service'] |
How Can We Get Through the Economic Storm of Transition? | Why do I focus so much on aligning economy, ecology, and the human spirit, do you ask? And why is it now, during and after COVID-19, more important than ever to do so?
Well, there are two main reasons to think about economy and ecology in one breath.
1 The unlimited growth paradigm can no longer hold its ground. The projections of the Limits to Growth Report, 30-years after the initial book was published by the Club of Rome, are alarming.
“We conclude that humanity is dangerously in a state of overshoot” — Limits to Growth, the 30-Year Update.
The most common points of criticism in 1972 were: technology and the adaptive resilience of the free market will prove you wrong. But 30 years later, all projections are still the same or worse…
We are overstepping planetary boundaries big time, as you can see in recent studies by the Stockholm Resilience Center. Nitrogen, phosphorous, climate change, biodiversity loss…
And it can be done differently. We saw the clean air above China when production was closed for a few weeks. Nature herself is very resilient.
2 Ecologists have been warning us for years that viruses will transfer from animals to humans because of our destruction of their habitats.
It’s really a logical conclusion. Viruses have unique animal hosts. We destroy the habitats of these hosts. So they find new hosts. Us, humans. New pandemics are born. We are to expect more of those…
Alternative Routes
So how can we get through the storm taking a different route? I want to address 4 points:
Jobs and Money
Food Security
Responsible Business
Real Estate Speculation
And then I want to give you some real-life transitional examples in Europe.
Jobs and Money
What if we would spend the money not on wasteful, big businesses but on the workers directly? What if we would spend all these trillions on a Universal Basic Income (UBI)?
There’s overwhelming evidence that the most efficient way to pull people out of poverty, is by giving them an income without patronizing them.
Rutger Bregman speaks about it in “Poverty isn’t a lack of character, it’s a lack of cash.”
Rutger Bregman. Ted Talk about the Universal Basic Income.
As Rutger explains, it will get people out of the scarcity mindset that causes bad decisions connected to poverty. Well, that’s what we want: an abundance mindset will define our future…
The bottom line: we can give people a safety net that ensures they won’t drop below the poverty line. It will be enough to afford basic needs: food, shelter, education. Everyone can live a less-stressed life and make better choices.
But can we afford it?
Left and right-wing politicians make different choices and calculations. But both are exploring the possibilities and the bottom line of their calculations seems to be: YES.
Europe can afford a UBI if we implement it via a negative income tax.
And please realize that we will not implement it in an unchanged society. We will transition our societies with it. A UBI will save money as well.
If we start trusting people, we need much less bureaucracy
Many social problems will decrease. Crime, health problems, addictions
Voluntary work will increase if people don’t have to worry about income
Bottom-up entrepreneurship for the transition will flourish
I just hope some of our leaders will have the guts…
And if they don’t, I hope communities will embrace their own money systems. Their own economic models and Universal Basic Incomes. Time for local, tokenized economies? Time for value instruments?
Food security
Food security is very important. At this moment our subsidy system for farmers is complex, bureaucratic, and not achieving what we want to achieve.
Industrial farming is ruining our planet and producing food that’s designed for quantity instead of nutritional value.
We can do better. Farmers are the people who know about soil, know about nature, know how to do it better. But they are stuck in the current system, too. We can help them transition.
With regenerative farming, we can ensure high-quality food production.
We should produce high-quality food by putting the focus on healthy soil
Ecological intensification will help produce enough food and make the business models work. E.g. growing edible mushrooms on organic rest streams can provide healthy proteins and provide extra income
We can restore ecosystems and unleash the abundance of nature again
Restoring water cycles will be much easier with healthy soil around
The use of mechanical energy can be minimized and renewable, so our output of calories will be bigger than our input. We will be creating more calories than we invest
So, what if we would invest our billions of subsidies to help farmers transition to regenerative farming? What if we would redirect the subsidy streams for universities towards agroecology wisdom instead of industrial farming?
Regenerative farmers can build an awesome bridge between the natural systems and our human systems, producing healthy food in the process.
It would certainly give us completely different opportunities for food security within planetary boundaries.
Responsible Businesses
What about the businesses, you ask? Are they left to fend for themselves? My first answer is yes.
It cannot be that big companies make millions of profit, years in a row. And then ask for taxpayers’ money when the going gets tough.
Businesses are responsible for their profits AND all of their costs. Including social and environmental costs. They should solve these issues within their business models.
Blue Economy shows a wealth of innovations and technologies that are systemic and aligned with the natural world. We can change the way we make our products. Make beautiful furniture from kelp, build with bamboo, make batteries from waste streams, make mobile phones without a battery, etc.
Let’s unleash all of our entrepreneurial talents and be makers instead of consumers! We can build resilient, local, active economies like never before!
Why do we need one beer brewer who owns all the pubs and gives us boring uniformity? Why not have multiple beer brewers? Challenge our taste buds? They can make their businesses work with regenerative business models!
And of course, the companies can be helped with laws. Taxing resources instead of labor? Make job creation easier like this?
When employees have a basic income, the rewarding system for employees will shift as well. Properly organizing and rewarding the purposeful, necessary jobs, so people feel proud and satisfied to fulfill them…
Stop Speculation
Our current economies are making a lot of money with speculation. Banking products are complex and speculative. Kerosine prices are kept stable with speculation as you could read in the article about KLM. And land speculation is driving our housing prices through the roof.
It’s like the game Monopoly.
Whoever is first to buy the expensive streets, will win. No doubt about it.
So what if we stopped land and real estate speculation?
Houses would become affordable again. It’s an interesting thought that cities, economists, and banks are actually experimenting with in several ways. | https://medium.com/activate-the-future/how-can-we-get-through-the-economic-storm-of-transition-7bb6b03e3526 | ['Desiree Driesenaar'] | 2020-05-15 17:54:21.516000+00:00 | ['Systems Thinking', 'Sustainability', 'Innovation', 'European Union', 'Regenerative Economy'] |
Four Common Uses Of Debt That Keep You Poor | The Price of Education
A university education has a significant impact on a student’s life and finances. Although it is part of the American dream to go to college, it is important to understand that not all schools or degrees are created equal, and how you pay for school (or how much you pay) can set your life up for financial success or can weigh you down like a ball and chain.
I believe that a lack of financial education in the general public helps to fuel the idea that everyone needs to go to college and that it is always a good financial decision to do so.
Although there is a high correlation between having a college degree and a higher net worth as shown in this article, summary statistics can be misleading.
For instance, the median net worth of 55 to 64-year-olds with college degrees is more than five times as high as those with only a high school diploma ($712k vs. $133k). However, the 25th percentile (bottom 25%) for those with college degrees is about 40% lower than the 75th percentile (top 25%) for those with only high school degrees ($221k vs. $366k), meaning that there is quite a bit of overlap in the net worth of those with college degrees and those without.
This indicates that there is a large group of college-educated people that are not able to build wealth, and are poorer than a large percentage of people with only high school diplomas. Although there are undoubtedly many reasons for this, the choices people make about where they go to school, what degree they get, and how they pay for it likely have a significant impact.
In the US, unlike Europe, our universities are not free or even cheap. College is one of the largest expenses that families have to pay for in a child’s life. But there is one significant cost savings available at US colleges — in-state public tuition is SIGNIFICANTLY lower than out-of-state or private school tuition (often 75% cheaper or more).
Even though this is well-known, there are still many small, private schools full of students who are taking loans to be there. It makes little financial sense to spend more money than you need for a college degree, so why not go to an in-state public school and reduce your debt load?
The next decision made by students is what to study. In the US, many kids grow up being told to “follow their passion” with little consideration for the financial implications. What you see is many kids getting degrees with few job prospects that end up back working in jobs that don’t require a college degree in the first place, like waiting tables or delivering packages.
Imagine the financial implication of going to school, getting a degree, racking up $30,000 in loans, then going to wait tables.
I have friends that ended up in this unfortunate situation. If you are going to work in a job that doesn’t require a college degree, it is probably not a good idea to take on student loans to get one.
You can see the range of starting salaries for various jobs that require degrees in this article. It ranges from an elementary school teacher at $44,000 per year to a software engineer at $106,000 per year. If you think about college as an investment, which one has a better return?
Not everyone needs to be a software engineer to be successful, but choosing a field that has good employment opportunities and good salaries will certainly set you up better financially. Not to mention that degrees like engineering usually have well-paid summer jobs available to help pay for school and avoid taking debt.
I was able to avoid debt for my education by studying engineering at an in-state public school, making good grades and getting scholarships, and working summer internships. The scholarships covered my tuition, and the summer jobs covered my living expenses. I didn’t have to work during the year, and I didn’t have to take on any debt.
Think about a college education as an investment, and you can try to make better financial decisions that will allow you or your children to be better prepared for life. Reducing your costs and increasing your income prospects are the way to go when thinking about higher education; you will take on less student loan debt and be better prepared early in your adult life. | https://themakingofamillionaire.com/four-common-uses-of-debt-that-keep-you-poor-203a9e533778 | ['Building Arks With Jason Clendenen'] | 2021-09-12 13:26:48.856000+00:00 | ['Real Estate', 'Debt', 'Wealth', 'Money', 'Investing'] |
The Like Switch: An Ex-FBI Agent’s Guide to Influencing, Attracting, and Winning People Over. | Hey guys, About two months later huh… I have no good reasons. Maybe because I have no one waiting for my posts. So didn’t have the motivation. Whatever but here I am back again. So today’s post would be a short summary of this amazing book “The Like Switch” by Jack Schafer
So I divided the topics into a few parts, hope you would like it. So let’s start with The F.P.D.I Formula (also known as Friendship Formula). So first of all what does stands for? FPDI means:
Frequency: How frequently you meet with a person?
Proximity: How physically close you are to a person?
Intensity: How emotionally close you are to a person? (How much good time you spend together)?
Duration: How long interactions between you and a person last?
FPDI can be measured on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being the least and 10 being the best. Let me give you some examples if it’s not making sense.
Frequency:
If you have met someone once in your lifetime the frequency between you and him/her is 1. If you meet someone once a month your frequency is 3. If you meet with someone 1–2 times a week your frequency is 5. If you meet with someone 3–4 times a week your frequency is 7. If you meet with someone every day your frequency is 10.
Proximity:
If you live in a different city or country from a person then your proximity is 1. If you and a person go to the same gym then the proximity is 3. If you’re in the same class with a person then the proximity is 5. If you have food with a person on the same table the proximity is 7. And if you sleep on the same bed then the proximity is 10.
If your meeting with someone lasts a few seconds a day the duration is 1. If your meeting with someone lasts a few minutes the duration is 3. If it lasts 30–60 minutes duration is 5. If it lasts a few hours duration is 7. And if you spend most of your day with someone your duration would be 10.
Intensity tells how much emotional connection you have with someone. If you have no emotions while having a conversation with someone your intensity is 1. If you have a serious conversation with a few jokes then the intensity is 3. If you spending a good and happy time with a friend then the intensity is 5. During a conversation, if someone compliments you from the heart and it keeps smiling for a few days then the intensity is 7. If you feel a strong emotional connection with someone, you’re laughing with them, complementing each other, sharing deep feelings, etc then the intensity is 10.
Now since you have a basic idea of The FPDI Formula. Now let’s dive into the levels of friendship:
5 levels of Friendship
Stranger
You see them almost every day. You might also know their name but you never interact with them. They can be in your class or workplace or maybe a passer-by. So most of the people around us are strangers to us. For obvious reasons, you don’t need any points to become a stranger to someone.
Acquaintance
They’re similar to strangers the only difference is that you have interacted with them once or twice. But mostly Hi, Hello. You have acquaintance almost everywhere you go. They’re mostly friends of your friend. To become someone’s acquaintance you need in total 10 points.
Friend
Now the list narrows we have very few friends (Not Facebook friends). You spend a great time with them. You feel comfortable around them. You invite each other to parties. To be a friend with someone in total you need 15 points.
Close Friend
We have a handful of close friends. We are very comfortable with them. They are there when you need them. You know them for at least one year or so. You share your secrets with each other. To become a close friend of someone you need at least 25 points.
Significant Other
Besides family members most people have only one significant other, their life partner they are the most valuable people in our life. You spend most of your time with them. You have the deepest conversation. You share everything with them. You will be needing a total of 35 points to become someone’s significant other.
If you have the required points but you still can’t connect with the opposite person. It may be because of 3 mistakes:-
Self-boasting — When you meet someone if you just talk about yourself. You won’t make any connection. You should be interested in the opposite person. Negative Body-Language — Our subconscious mind can understand what other people’s body language is saying, But we can’t express that in words. But still, we can feel whether the other person is interested in us or not. So try to keep positive body language. I’ll talk about some gestures you can show. Negative Talk — When we hear something negative our mood gets worse. And it can ruin our whole day. So we tend to avoid the people who are negative.
Friendly Gestures
Out of these four Intesity is the hardest to achieve. So there are some non-verbal gestures you can use to increase the intensity.
Flash your eyebrows — Flashing your eyebrows sends a signal that you are a non-threatening person. Head Tilt — Tilting your head right or left while talking exposes your neck and there are some important arteries that transport oxygen to your brain. That’s why exposing your neck indicates you trust the opposite person, which will make them trust you. Smile — A genuine smile can make the opposite person’s day. And smile releases endorphin in our brain which makes us like ourselves. Expressive Gestures — Simply when you meet someone, try to be open with your gestures. Move your hands while talking. Your openness will encourage the opposite person to open up. Mirroring — Mirroring simply means copying the opposite person’s body language. Mirroring makes the other person feel that he/she knows you and can trust you. Don’t copy everything otherwise you’ll appear disrespectful.
Gestures to look for
So now I’ll talk about some of the gestures you should look for to understand if the other person is interested. Before I start I want to state clearly that non-verbal is dependent on context. If someone is crossing their hand it doesn’t mean the person doesn’t wanna talk with you. Maybe they’re just feeling cold. So keep this in mind “Context is the key!”
Tone & Speed: Speaking fast: Excited or not comfortable with the conversation. Speaking slow or low voice or Saying everything in one tone: Shy or Not interested in the conversation. Forming Barriers: When we don’t feel comfortable in front of anyone, subconsciously we tend to form barriers between the person and us. For example; crossing arms, crossing legs, covering torso with something, etc. Hair Flipping & Touching: When you’re talking with a girl if she flips or touches her hair without breaking the eye contact it means she is interested in you. But if she does the same without eye contact, it means she isn’t comfortable with you. Eye Movement: If someone rolls their eyes up, it means they don’t agree with what you’ve said or they think you are stupid. If someone keeps their eyes closed for more than a second or two it means they’re feeling uneasy or anxious while talking to you. During a conversation, if a person is frequently checking the watch or looking to the exit it means the person needs an escape. Eyebrows: Furrowing eyebrows means disapproval or anger. Lip Gestures: Pursing lips means disagreement. Pressing lips means hesitating to say something or hiding something. Lean: Leaning forward — Comfortable, Leaning backward — Uncomfortable.
So this is for today, I shared these from this awesome book “The Like Switch” by Jack Schafer. You can check out the book here. | https://medium.com/@shabikdesign/the-like-switch-an-ex-fbi-agents-guide-to-influencing-attracting-and-winning-people-over-f3b2e4c39fd2 | [] | 2020-12-24 16:07:51.507000+00:00 | ['Self Improvement', 'Books', 'Self Development', 'Book Summary', 'Social Communication'] |
Stop, collaborate and listen. Do people still listen to the radio? I mean actively listen. | Stop, collaborate and listen. Do people still listen to the radio? I mean actively listen.
Anymore radio is something that happens in the background while we do anything else (drive, work, etc.).
Podcasts are quickly following that same path.
But there are a few that are so good they force you to stop what you’re doing and listen. Here’s 3 of my favorites: | https://medium.com/everything-shortform/stop-collaborate-and-listen-do-people-still-listen-to-the-radio-i-mean-actively-listen-9d988ee18b26 | ['Kevin Alexander'] | 2020-12-18 18:04:19.014000+00:00 | ['Happiness', 'Self Improvement', 'Education', 'Podcast', 'Life'] |
The ‘Wood Heat Secret’ to Blazing Success | The ‘Wood Heat Secret’ to Blazing Success
Photo by Sven Brandsma on Unsplash
This year, we started burning wood for the first time.
It’s a lovely heat.
It’s the type of heat that calls you to sit in front of it until you get a Delissio-esque heat rash across your face.
The only problem is…
It takes a little while to get going.
Not the fire itself, but the actual heat.
For example, to get my home up to a good ‘wood heat’ temperature might take a full day, or even more.
And that’s just getting it up to speed.
Anything beyond that and I’d probably feel like one of those sweaty boiler room workers on the Titanic constantly shoveling coal into the flames.
Anyway, the whole ordeal reminds me of something very important. Something everyone should remember when pursuing a goal of building a new skill.
And that something is this:
Whenever you start something new, you’re going to experience a period of ‘heating up.’ What this means is that, even though you’re putting in lots of effort (i.e., adding more wood to the fire), your progress might be slower than you want it to be.
But that doesn’t mean you’re not getting anywhere.
Think of your efforts as the wood you put in a fire. Then think of your goals as the heated home you’re striving for.
You might not get the temperature you want immediately. But the more wood you add to the fire — and the more consistently you do it — the more likely you are to get there.
So if you ever feel like you’re not making as much progress on your goals as you’d like to be, don’t worry about it.
Just keep adding more wood to your fire and soon enough you’ll have the nice, ‘heated home’ you’re looking for.
Happy burning ;) | https://medium.com/@danmanifest/the-wood-heat-secret-to-blazing-success-324a25687d3b | ['Daniel P. Donovan'] | 2020-11-10 15:53:31.363000+00:00 | ['Personal Development', 'Goal Setting', 'Success', 'Goals', 'Personal Growth'] |
Thinking Of Ditching Your Job To Work-From-Home? Here Are The 7 Things You Should Know | Photo: Getty Images
For all the changes stemming from the intrusion of Covid-19, the relocation of our offices to our living rooms and the normalization of non-working-norms is a big one. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, for some of us, it’s turning out to be just the ticket for gaining more control over when, where, and how we work — not to mention on what and for whom.
Has the experience of working from home tempted you to think of switching to a portfolio career, one in which you chart the course and call the shots? While the gig economy isn’t new, it has been thrust into the spotlight, thanks to this year’s mass experiment in working from home. With flexibility and choice as its strongest selling points, many are tempted to hop aboard the gigging juggernaut, but as seasoned giggers will tell you, the ride is often far from smooth.
I made the switch to a portfolio career — trading in a corporate job for a combination of speaking, consulting, teaching, and board director roles — at age 37. Going in, I was clear about what I wanted in my personal life and career, which was flexibility in terms of time and the ability to live on both coasts. I’ve never regretted the decision. That said, it’s certainly been a learning experience, and there are more than a few key things I wish I’d known before making the switch.
Some people like having structure and routine to their work. For me, the diversity of a portfolio of various projects and jobs was more compelling than the stability and predictability of a single role. I always took exception, however, to people asking me when I was going to go back to work “full-time,” because the first lesson you learn as a gigger is that the work can be full time — and then some.
So before you opt for a work-from-home career, run out to stock your home office and buy the celebratory champagne, know this: A gig lifestyle isn’t for everybody. For sure, there are incredible upsides, but there are also plenty of counterbalancing factors to bear in mind. Here are a few things worth considering before making the leap.
1. Your Calendar Will Fill Up Fast
You may be in for a surprise when you see how busy you can be working part-time on several different jobs. Despite my warning them in advance, many of my operator-turned-board director colleagues can’t believe how quickly their days get filled in. They often wonder how they managed to do all the things they’re doing when working a “full-time” job!
2. There’s No IT Team To Call
Many people don’t realize how much they’ll miss their support staff until the first time their computer freezes up and they have no IT team to call. You’ll need a gameplan to compensate for the lack of corporate infrastructure you’re used to. Fortunately, whether it’s virtual assistants or on-demand support services, there’s a growing plethora of support infrastructure available to freelancers and giggers.
3. You’re A Leader With No Team
If you’ll miss working with and leading a team, think long and hard about leaving that behind. For many leaders, the positive impact you can have on someone’s life and career is one of the most gratifying parts of the job. Going solo deprives you of some of that opportunity and equally means forgoing for yourself the mentorship and advice on hand daily from a boss and colleagues.
4. There Go The Perks
Ditto the validation from the boss. When you’re on your own, you have to learn how to pat yourself on the back for a job well done. You also have to watch out for your mistakes and vigilantly try to learn from them, which is harder to do in the absence of feedback. And those sales recognition coastal retreats and year-end bonuses? They’re also on you.
5. Cash Flow Is Real
Even for well-established giggers, managing cash flow can be an issue. Especially when starting out — when you’re building your portfolio — it’s a good idea to have a cushion to fall back when you know the paycheck isn’t guaranteed on the first of every month. Sending out invoices and chasing down payments is definitely one of the less-sexy sides of gigging, but it’s a reality nevertheless. So too is being fiscally prudent and managing your personal burn-rate.
6. You’re A Small Business Owner
This raises a broader point. As a gigger, you’re really less of a lone-ranger than you are a small business owner. It’s non-trivial to have to figure out your health insurance, when corporate subsidies are no more, or ensuring that your tax estimates are filed quarterly and accurately. A smart tactic is to put the proper processes in place with support from the right experts from the get go.
7. You Just May Love It
If all of the above sounds like bad news, fear not. The plus side is that the flexibility is amazing. You decide what to do and when to do it. This is your project, and you are the director. No more looking at your schedule with dread because of back-to back meetings you’re obliged to attend. Gone too are the office politics, expensive dress codes, and long commutes. It’s hard to put a price on being able to quit your desk for a half hour to shoot hoops with your kids without having to answer to anyone.
The most important thing to know before making this, or any other kind of career pivot, is exactly what you want from your life and your career at this juncture. Pick the one or two things that you’re solving for and stay relentlessly focused on them. If gigging or a portfolio career brings you closer to those things, then it may be just the ticket to a future that’s shaped around your desires, passions, and priorities.
Before you pack up your cubicle and hang your own shingle out, it’s helpful to know the realities that await and that the grass isn’t going to be entirely greener on the other side. But then again, if you subscribe to the notion that the grass is greener where you water it, then the gigging life might well be for you. | https://medium.com/@anitasands/thinking-of-ditching-your-job-to-work-from-home-here-are-the-7-things-you-should-know-c61a2a49bd62 | ['Anita Sands'] | 2020-12-07 19:07:45.686000+00:00 | ['Work From Home', 'Careers', 'Leadership', 'Gig Economy', 'Career Change'] |
Redis Keyspace Notifications for Expired Keys: | Actually, I was trying to figuring out how to listen or subscribe on expired keys in Redis, then I came across notifications events in Redis. In this article, I will give you an overview of how to configure key space notifications events.
Enable keyspace notifications:
By default keyspace notifications are disabled in Redis due to performance impact. There are two ways we can enable this either using redis-cli or redis.conf file.
Enable Using Redis-CLI:
$ redis-cli config set notify-keyspace-events Ex OK
Here we are only configured for expired events on keys so we used Ex
E: key events or events happening on keys
x: expired events
check for more events type these are the events which are present are copied from Redis documentation.
K Keyspace events, published with __keyspace@<db>__ prefix.
E Keyevent events, published with __keyevent@<db>__ prefix.
g Generic commands (non-type specific) like DEL, EXPIRE, RENAME, ...
$ String commands
l List commands
s Set commands
h Hash commands
z Sorted set commands
x Expired events (events generated every time a key expires)
e Evicted events (events generated when a key is evicted for maxmemory)
A Alias for g$lshzxe, so that the "AKE" string means all the events.
Enable Using Redis.conf:
Add line notify-keyspace-events Ex in redis.conf
See the second last line which is uncommented. We have configured this let’s see with an example.
Let’s set value and expire time as 5 sec for key redis first and subscriber for expired events
127.0.0.1:6379> SETEX redis 5 test OK
Now adding subscriber for expired events.
$redis-cli — csv psubscribe ‘__key*__:*’
Reading messages... (press Ctrl-C to quit)
"psubscribe","__key*__:*",1
After 5 seconds
redis-cli — csv psubscribe ‘__key*__:*’ Reading messages… (press Ctrl-C to quit) “psubscribe”,”__key*__:*”,1 “pmessage”,”__key*__:*”,”__keyevent@0__:expired”,”redis”
Yay !!! it’s working.
That’s it.
PS: If you like these articles please clap and share it, It motivates to write more articles. | https://medium.com/@sauravomar01/redis-keyspace-notifications-for-expired-keys-f38c18484a89 | ['Saurav Omar'] | 2019-06-08 13:07:14.587000+00:00 | ['Redis', 'Keyspacenotification', 'Keyspaceexpiredevents', 'Expire Events'] |
Tips For a Successful New Year’s Resolution (Volunteer Work & Beyond) | I love knowing where all the farms are in the city of Boston, especially when they do incredible work like this one. More: https://www.instagram.com/p/BgxGAH9gR-w/
How I Did It
Finding the right places — I’ve found that when you set a resolution or goal it’s important to have multiple ways you can achieve that goal in case the initial resource falls through. Even if you don’t have to go down a different path, it’s nice to have something in your back pocket and it helps keep you flexible. Thankfully I was already a member of Boston Cares, so finding places to volunteer weekly was pretty easy. Boston Cares has over 250 volunteer projects listed each month, and once folks go through their initial orientation, they can volunteer once a day, once a month, or once a year. Other than BC I found opportunities through referrals / networking (that’s how I found out about All Hands & Hearts) and newsletters for orgs / groups / non-profits I was interested in (found out about my Thanksgiving volunteer opp through a newsletter of an NP I volunteered with 3 years ago). I also made sure to volunteer with causes I was passionate about or interested in because that’s half of the fun.
Timing— Put. Everything. In. Your. Calendar. A food rescue with Rescuing Leftover Cuisine can take as little as 15 minutes door (donor) to door (recipient), but a lunch shift at Boston Living Center can be as long as 5 hours. However the latter becomes almost a full day of work when I factor in the time it takes to get ready and to get there via walking or public transportation. It was really important to see this against my work week, and decide whether or not a shift at BLC made sense if I had a week full of meetings and not enough downtime / regroup time post-meeting. Does your resolution require prep time? Downtime / cooling time, etc? Factor that in so it doesn’t catch you off guard.
Accountability — I know some folks like to keep their resolutions quiet, and that’s totally cool and one way of doing it, but I chose to be loud about mine. It was a conversation starter when people talked to me at networking events, and it was a great reminder to keep signing up for opportunities when people asked me what I’d be doing next. Also tying in with my above motivations, I wanted to make sure people knew the stories of these non-profits / orgs, and if they were able, to donate / volunteer with them as well. It takes a village to keep these places afloat. I also wrote a 6 month checkin post here on Medium, but I also took time to post on Twitter / Instagram / and wrote longer form posts on my Facebook page (more characters!) about the populations I was working with, what the actual volunteer work looked like, and how I felt. If you’re trying to keep yourself accountable without the noise, I’ve found that daily journaling helps (either online via Docs or on paper). Also, keeping a sticky note in a prominent place (desk / wall in the bedroom / even the bathroom) of what you want to do and why it motivates you. And then of course, using your calendar and reminders (I also use Google Keep in conjunction with my calendar for additional notes / reminders).
Consider the impact — Think about ways you can measure your progress. Is it physical or mental? Are there dollars associated, pages written, or numbers of hours you can count? With volunteering, there’s definitely an instant gratification effect. In some cases you get to meet the people you are impacting, and you can just see it in their faces, how much it means to have you there. I also will honestly say, it was a tough year for me personally, and every volunteer opportunity I went into where I wasn’t feeling like myself or not feeling great emotionally, I left with a lighter heart. It was the best medicine for me this year, hands down. But if you want to see those numbers… I go to Google Sheets. Boston Cares actually has an awesome volunteer history download with dates, # of hours volunteered, org volunteered with, etc, but since not all of my volunteer opps were with Boston Cares I adapted that spreadsheet and put those stats into Google Sheets. I also went deeper into the #’s game through research. The national average value of a volunteer hour in 2017 was $24.69. In Massachusetts it was a whopping $31.17. So using the 2017 #’s on my 2018 hours, I invested close to $8,000 in my community (and that’s not even factoring in the hours I spend in my mentorship programs or money that I raised this year). Late last year I also started doing new volunteer orientations for Boston Cares and trained over 160 people during hour long onboarding sessions before they started volunteering with BC partners. I also have some anecdotal numbers as well from friends who told me they started volunteering someplace after they heard about it through my posts, which kicks that number up too. Because I volunteer-hopped and didn’t spend my time at just one place, it was harder to track other #’s, but with Rescuing Leftover Cuisine I saved over 2,000lbs during my solo food rescues. Saving an actual ton of food was such a crazy milestone I set out to raise $2,000 for RLC (which I’m still doing!).
Give yourself some breathing room — And last but certainly not least, if there are days you can’t get to your resolution because of life / work, etc, remember that you’re human and it’s okay to take a moment. The last couple weeks of the year I got pretty sick, so while I had signed up to volunteer the week of Christmas and New Year’s, I had to suck up my competitive nature to finish strong and realize it would be super hazardous for me to go into a space while being sick (especially since the opps involved food).
Pleasant surprise after this year — receiving the Boston Cares 2018 award for Outstanding Volunteer Leadership (pictured here trying to keep a straight face with my mom), as well as a Presidential Volunteer Service Award and a Milestone Award. More: https://www.instagram.com/p/BpW2idLAtkU/
Moving Forward
As someone who is self-employed, I’m going to be totally honest with you, I lost money this year because of this resolution. I volunteered ~250 hours, and that doesn’t include my mentorship work with different programs in the area. So as far as continuing with the # of volunteer hours, the likelihood of me maintaining this kind of rigor is not realistic for me, but I am looking to find a happy medium of what I was doing before the resolution and what I did in 2018. I still plan on staying highly engaged though. Starting up a solo venture can be quite lonely, so volunteering really helped me get out of the house, and seeing some of the same non-profit workers and volunteers every week was wonderful. I also struggle with being overwhelmed with everything that’s happening in the world, and so serving others and with others has been an enormous comfort.
Not all heroes wear capes. Edwin helped me believe in humanity again. More: https://www.instagram.com/p/BhK7KG4Axv3/
Some Fun Stuff
Because we all have favorite moments…
Favorite project: Disaster relief work with All Hands & Hearts in St. Thomas. Going the first week of January 2018 set the tone of perspective and giving back for the whole year.
Toughest project: I most definitely cried during the All Hands project. Seeing the destruction from the hurricanes AND how the community banded together… I’ll just never forget it.
Lifesaver moment: Edwin from Boloco finding me on the street somewhat stranded with a cart full of Rescuing Leftover Cuisine food nd him making sure I got to where I needed to go, most definitely restored my faith in humanity.
Favorite new non-profit I’ve worked with: Rescuing Leftover Cuisine… so many of the rescues are so close to where I live and work.
Favorite person at a non-profit: Sharon from Red Cross Food Pantry — she makes me smile every time I see her, and she is an incredible hugger.
Heart squeezing moment: Tie — being at the bereavement camp, Camp Erin, and just seeing kids have fun and recognize that they’re not alone. And Little Brothers, visiting with the elderly dementia patients and hearing them tell some joyful stories over and over again, while organizing flower arrangements and playing games.
Favorite office: Big Sister Boston— I love the dreams dress they have in their front lobby (a “dress” made out of Little Sister dreams on paper like being president and following their heart) + their amazing coffee table of books by incredible authors (that happen to be women).
Favorite “Boston is so tiny” moment: Being at ReVision Urban Farm and bumping into my former bandmate from Ladies Rock Camp and girls from Kappa Gamma Chi, the Emerson College sorority that I became a (formal) honorary member of my senior year.
Favorite “What, really?!” moment: Going on the tour of United First Parish Church (Prison Book Program is housed within it) during a break, and finding out that it’s the burial site Presidents John Adams and John Quincy Adams and First Ladies Abigail Adams and Louisa Catherine Adams!
10 years of volunteering / jackets with the Boston Marathon. More: https://www.instagram.com/p/Bhour8rBe00/
Orgs / Programs
These are the orgs I worked with this in 2018! I hope you take a moment to check them out (also wrote more in depth about some of these orgs: here and here and here)! And another plug for Boston Cares, most of my volunteer opportunities I found through their Calendar program.
All Hands & Hearts (Global)
American Red Cross of Eastern Massachusetts Food Pantry (Nationwide / Dorchester)
Big Sister (National / Back Bay)
Boston Cares (Boston, but check out Points of Light affiliates which are National)
Boston Living Center (Back Bay)
Boston Marathon — Boston Athletic Association (Back Bay)
Camp Erin (National)
Community Servings (Jamaica Plain)
Daily Table (Dorchester / Roxbury)
East End House (East Cambridge)
Friday Night Supper Program (Back Bay)
Greater Boston Food Bank (Dorchester)
Hyde Square Task Force (Jamaica Plain)
Little Brothers, Friends of the Elderly (National / Jamaica Plain)
Maverick Landing Community Services (East Boston)
New England Center and Home for Veterans (Downtown Crossing)
Prison Book Program (Quincy)
Rescuing Leftover Cuisine (National)
Resilient Coders (Boston)
ReVision Urban Farming (Dorchester)
Room to Grow (Back Bay)
Rose Kennedy Greenway Conservancy (Waterfront / North End / Chinatown / Financial District)
Saturday / Sunday’s Bread (Boston / Brookline)
Shawmut Corridor Gardens (Dorchester)
Southwest Corridor Park Conservancy (Back Bay / South End)
St. Mark’s Community Education Program (Dorchester)
St. Anthony’s (Downtown Crossing)
Technovation (Global)
Saw this down the street from the citizenship class I helped with in Dorchester. More: https://www.instagram.com/p/Blyivt6h1GM/
More Ideas
If you have some more ideas on where I should volunteer in 2019, or you’re a non-profit that needs more volunteers, feel free to comment below.
I hope you have a happy, healthy 2019 and take some time to give back! | https://medium.com/@trishofthetrade/tips-for-a-successful-new-years-resolution-volunteer-work-beyond-2e95de2ca324 | ['Trish Fontanilla'] | 2019-01-10 07:05:50.705000+00:00 | ['Giving', 'Nonprofit', 'Boston', 'Resolutions', 'Volunteering'] |
TEXAS V. NEW MEXICO: | ANOTHER CHAPTER IN A REGIONAL DISPUTE, A MERE PRELUDE TO A FUTURE CRISIS
Ian W. Ferrel
ABSTRACT
On January 8, 2013, Texas filed a complaint with the U.S. Supreme Court alleging that New Mexico has failed to satisfy its obligations under the Rio Grande Compact.1 In the complaint, Texas alleges that New Mexico failed to control illegal diversions of water from the Rio Grande south of the Elephant Butte Reservoir.2 This legal challenge arises as Texas suffers from one of the worst droughts it has experienced in the last century.3 However, if the Court decides to exercise its exclusive and original jurisdiction and hear the case, it will not be tasked with a straightforward decision. The Court will have to decide a question about a complex web of rights that originates from over a century of legal compromise in a modern climatic era that continues to test and strain the integrity of the legal status quo.4 The rights to this stretch of the Rio Grande originate from a maze of legislative history, overlapping regional compromises, and preexisting rights derived under various sources of federal, state, and international law. This article will: (1) explain the history and the development of the legal structures that are the subject of this dispute, (2) describe the events that lead to Texas’ eventual plea before the U.S. Supreme Court, (3) discuss the legal issues that the Court must decide before exercising its jurisdiction, and (4) argue that the pending case on one hand highlights the need for serious reform to Southwestern groundwater law and policy, and on the other hand symbolizes a lost opportunity and serves as an example of political passion obfuscating the recognition of a fair compromise.
I. INTRODUCTION
Beginning its journey at the foot of the San Juan Mountains of Colorado, the Rio Grande travels South and East 1800 miles before it reaches the Gulf of Mexico.5 On its seaward journey, the river begins as a network of meandering streams and tributaries converging in the San Luis Valley of southern Colorado. It travels 150 miles south to the Colorado- New Mexico border; flows 400 miles through New Mexico; and serves as an international boundary as it runs 1250 miles along the Texas-Mexico border before it empties into the Gulf of Mexico.6 See App. 1 & App. 2. As it travels south, it fills a network of reservoirs, provides water for large areas of population, and provides irrigation for agriculture and water for livestock. Moreover, as its water travels south, the river provides recharge for six alluvial basin aquifers within the Rio Grande aquifer system. See App 3.
Of particular importance, the Rio Grande provides recharge for the Mesilla Bolson and Hueco Bolson aquifers. The Franklin Mountains divide the Hueco-Mesilla Bolson acquifer. To the west of the Franklin Mountains lies the Mesilla Bolson aquifer; to the east lies the Hueco Bolson aquifer. The westerly Mesilla Bolson aquifer extends from its northern-most point near Las Cruces, New Mexico south into northern Mexico and into the northwest corner of Texas, near El Paso. Whereas, the easterly Hueco Bolson aquifer begins about 7 miles to the north of the Texas-New Mexico border near Alamogordo, New Mexico. It spans to the south and to the east into Texas, and it reaches into Mexico along the Texas-New Mexico border. See App. 4 & App. 5.
Many competing interests rely upon the Rio Grande and its surrounding aquifers as vital sources of water in the arid Southwestern semidesert region. Predictably, the legal history of the rights to the river mirrors many long-fought struggles for access to its precious hydrating waters in a desiccated region. Such struggles have influenced and formed the legal structures intended to accommodate and control the demands on the Rio
Grande’s waters. These legal structures are being tested as the region adapts to a changing climate, including “shifts in precipitation and potential evapotranspiration.”7 Regional population growth will further serve to compound these effects.
Data reveal that many Southwestern state populations have consistently outpaced national averages: from 2010 to 2011, Texas and Colorado ranked in the top ten states for population growth, with Texas seeing the largest national population increase from 2000 to 2010.8 According to projections, by 2060 Texas’s population will increase 82 percent and its water demand will increase 22 percent.9 Similarly, projections forecast that by 2060 New Mexico’s population will increased almost 80 percent, and projections forecast by 2050, New Mexico’s water withdrawal will grow by 25 percent.10
As these regional demands steadily expand and with access to surface waters increasingly constrained, regional reliance on groundwater to supplement these growing demands has increased dramatically over the last half-century. See App. 6, App. 7 & App. 8.
As the Southwest continues to endure severe episodes of drought, regional water supply will continue to be strained and legal disputes will arise with greater frequency. Absent serious reform to address climate change by both the United States and global actors alike, and in light of widespread reliance on the relatively unregulated practice of groundwater extraction to meet growing regional demand, the risks posed to the Southwest’s sustainable future and its population security are immense and seemingly unavoidable. In order for the region to prepare for, mitigate and possibly, although unlikely, even avert the looming crisis, serious change to the institutional and legal framework governing water allocation and consumption in the southwestern region is drastically needed.
As stated by David Zetland, “it is basic human nature to exploit opportunity, until the cost of further action is too high.”11 Likewise, the current legal structures regulating groundwater pumping in many southwestern states provide bountiful opportunity for consumption, yet they fail to place the appropriate cost-burden upon the shoulders of the various consumers throughout the region. Rather, these costs are, and will further be, borne by society at large as increasing groundwater consumption in the arid Southwest continues.
If federal and state governments collectively do not aggressive take steps to halt the depletion of regional groundwater sources, whether or not “hydrologically connected” to more-regulated surface water supplies, southwestern groundwater, as a finite common- pool resource, may fall prey to a tragedy of the commons. And, the communities that rely on and exploit groundwater resources surrounding the Rio Grande will be devastated if such an impending calamity materializes.
With this prospectively bleak future lying ahead, the best route for the desert Southwest would be for the U.S. Supreme Court to squarely confront the perverse incentives imbedded in New Mexico and Texas’ state groundwater laws, require Texas and New Mexico, and other states generally, to implement legal doctrine inline with scientific reality (i.e. doctrine recognizing that both surface water and groundwater resources constitute a interconnected hydrological system), and demand that the law internalize the external costs and the resultant systemic risks posed by the overexploitation of groundwater resources.
Although it is unlikely for the Supreme Court to impose such sweeping actions by way of an eventual judicial opinion, the pending case Texas v. New Mexico should, at very least, serve to illustrate a problem of growing national concern — a future where the inadequate regulation of our nation’s water resources may likely lead to an era of widespread regional strife and economic injury. In this case, Texas alleges that New Mexico breached the Rio Grande Project Act and the Rio Grande Compact by extracting groundwater hydrologically connected to the Rio Grande below Elephant Butte Reservoir and the New Mexico-Texas border. Texas argues, if the Supreme Court does not stop New Mexico from illegally extracting groundwater hydrologically connected to the Rio Grande, then it will continue not to receive the amount of water it is owed under the terms of the Rio Grande Project Act and Rio Grande Compact. Texas argues, New Mexico’s alleged breach of the Rio Grande Project Act and the Rio Grande Compact has and will continue to injure Texas.
The lawsuit pending before the Supreme Court perhaps represents an attempt by Texas to bring law in line with scientific reality, and it may represent an effort to expand or establish (depending on one’s perspective) the current scope of an interstate compact in order for law to at least partially internalize some of the external costs caused by regional reliance on groundwater pumping. In this regard, Texas’ plea to the Supreme Court should be applauded because it raises serious questions and highlights important concerns about the scope and sustainability of the legal structures governing water use in the lower Rio Grande basin.
However, from a more myopic perspective, this controversy serves as more than just a bleak illustration of a potential tragedy of the commons. Rather, it serves as an illustration of a lost opportunity. A lost opportunity that will likely cost the state of New Mexico hundreds of millions of dollars in future economic output. Furthermore, the dispute serves as an example of how political belligerence can obfuscate a fair-minded recognition of an equitable and reasonable compromise.
I. HISTORY OF THE LEGAL FRAMEWORK GOVERNING RIGHTS TO THE RIO GRANDE: THE RIO GRANDE PROJECT & THE RIO GRANDE COMPACT
In general, legal rights to the disputed stretch of the Rio Grande derive from the interaction of three sources of law: the Rio Grande Compact of 1938;12 the Rio Grande Project of 1905;13 and the 1906 Treaty between the United States and Mexico.14 If the U.S. Supreme Court hears the pending case, it must untangle the various rights espoused in these provisions.
Presently, these three agreements are integrated into the Rio Grande Compact of 1938 (the “Compact”), which regulates allocation of water from the Rio Grande between Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas.15 The three states ratified the Compact in 1938, though not until Congress consented to it and President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed it into law in 1939 did the Compact gain the force of law. When passed into law, the Compact (1) created an oversight commission to regulate consumption of water between the states according to the Compact’s provisions; (2) specified a system of water debts and credits to allocate water consumption between the states; and (3) established a series of gauge stations to ensure the states would fulfill their water-delivery obligations to one another.16 The agreement, however, was silent on how to apportion flows from the tail waters of Elephant Butte Reservoir as it runs almost 100 miles before crossing into Texas.17 See App. 9. Rather, the Compact incorporated prior rights generated by a series of compromises that took place in the early twentieth century.
A. The Rio Grande Project
These compromises imbedded themselves into the Rio Grande Project (the “Project”). The Project was enacted after El Paso, Texas, and Juarez, Mexico, suffered severe water shortages at the end of the nineteenth century.18 Resulting from concern about the Rio
Grande’s continued ability to supply water to both El Paso and Juarez, “[t]he United States imposed an embargo on the use of public lands for diversion and storage of water from the Rio Grande and its tributaries in Colorado and New Mexico.”19 This embargo remained in force until 1925.20
In response to the water shortages in the late nineteenth century, a group of New Mexican citizens as well as residents from El Paso and Juarez independently undertook plans to develop dams along the Rio Grande. A group in New Mexico proposed building a dam in Elephant Butte, New Mexico. Similarly, a group in El Paso and Juarez proposed building an international dam just north of the cities’ shared metropolitan area.21
Neither of these proposals could go forward, however, without severely impacting the other’s respective regional interests. On one hand, if a dam were built in Elephant Butte, the farmland in southern New Mexico, El Paso, and Juarez would fallow because the spring snowmelt would no longer flood their fields and fertilize their crops. On the other hand, the proposed international dam would not fill if an upstream dam was built simultaneously, and once filled, the international dam would create a reservoir
covering a large portion of southern New Mexico.22 Unsurprisingly, years of legal and political squabbling ensued.23 With the embargo still in force and the conflict between the competing proposals festering, both proposals wallowed and eventually the two parties abandoned their respective dam proposals.
In 1902, however, Congress passed the Reclamation Act,24 allowing the U.S. Reclamation Service, now titled the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (herein after collectively referred to as “Reclamation”) to search for a location to build a large dam along the Rio Grande.25 With both the Elephant Butte and the international dam plans floundering, Congress, the states, and Mexico eventually struck a compromise.26 Reclamationproposed to build a dam in Elephant Butte, New Mexico.27 In exchange for ceasing plans to build the international dam, it proposed building an irrigation system to provide farmers in southern New Mexico and western Texas with adequate water supplies to fertilize their lands.28 New Mexico, Texas, and Mexico agreed to the proposal, and in 1905, Congress approved the construction of the Project.29 The following year, the United States and Mexico entered into the 1906 Treaty, which obligated the United States to deliver 60,000 acre-feet of water annually to Mexico from the Project.30
In doing so, Congress authorized Reclamation to begin building the Elephant Butte Dam and tasked Reclamation with operating an apportionment system to distribute water from the Project. Douglas R. Littlefield, a leading historian on the Rio Grande, summarized the effect of the Treaty thusly:
The allocation mandated by Congress was that the Reclamation Service would divide the waters within the Rio Grande Project based on surveys of irrigable land in New Mexico and Texas [and] . . . [f]ollowing those studies, the Reclamation Service established that the equitable apportionment of Rio Grande waters within the Rio Grande Project would be supplies sufficient for 88,000 acres in southern New Mexico and 67,000 acres in western Texas.31
The U.S. government would recoup the cost needed to build the irrigation system by charging farmers fees to access and use the irrigation system.32
As these plans unveiled, farmers from New Mexico and Texas each established irrigation districts to coordinate payments between the farmers and the U.S. government for construction, operation, and maintenance of the irrigation system.33 Two irrigation districts emerged: the El Paso County Water Improvement District №1 (“EPCWID”) in west Texas, and the Elephant Butte Irrigation District (“EBID”) in southern New Mexico.34 Thereafter, the districts entered into contracts with the U.S. government to share the costs of the Project based on the ratio of land acreage allocated for irrigation: 88,000 acres for southern New Mexico (approximately 57 percent), and 67,000 acres for Texas (approximately 43 percent).35 See App. 10. This compromise remains in force today, though the passage of an interstate water compact between Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas and several recent disputes serve to complicate the nature of the rights to this segment of the Rio Grande.
B. The Rio Grande Compact of 1938
The 1895 embargo, coupled with the restrictions imposed by the Project, created resentment among the party states themselves and toward the federal government. These states desired the right to more freely access the Rio Grande’s water and to build reservoirs outside of the Project.36 As a result of these sentiments, Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas began to negotiate a regional water compact to equitably distribute water from the Rio Grande. Eventually, after a temporary Rio Grande Compact of 1929, the states reached an agreement, Congress ratified the agreement, and the Rio Grande Compact of 1938 resulted.37
The Compact, however, did not address the apportionment of the 100-mile stretch of the Rio Grande between Elephant Butte Dam and the New Mexico-Texas border.38 Instead, the history of the negotiations surrounding the Compact suggests that the omission was intentional, reflecting unwillingness on the part of Texas to see the Compact override existing rights arising under the Project. During the final days of negotiation among the three states, representatives for Texas questioned the proposed Compact’s silence regarding distribution of water from this stretch of river.39 In response to a letter from a Texas representative seeking clarity on the issue, Clayton, commissioner for the State of Texas, responded, “the question of the division of the water released from Elephant Butte Reservoir is taken care of by contracts between the districts under the Rio Grande Project and the Bureau of Reclamation.”40
When the states ratified the Compact in 1938 and Congress consented to it in 1939, by virtue of its silence, the Compact adopted the Project’s allocation scheme between New Mexico and Texas water districts. Ironically, as Texas currently challenges New Mexico’s consumption of Project water allocated to Texas, Mr. Clayton included in his response to Mr. Smith of Smith and Hall, a law firm retained by lower river water users, “there will never be any difficulty about the allocation of this water”.41
With the passage of the Compact, it empowered Reclamation as the Project manager to operate the Project as a single entity and to distribute water stored in Elephant Butte Reservoir to the Project irrigation districts.42 Additionally, the Compact tasked commissioners from each Compact state with the management of each state’s share of Project water under the terms of the Compact. This operational structure more or less remains in force today and each state’s commissioner manages their respective state’s share pursuant to the Compact.43 However, beginning in the late 1970s Reclamation’s managerial position began to erode as it yielded significant operational control of the Project water to state officials and the Project irrigation districts. This fundamental shift in Reclamation’s managerial control contributed significantly to the emergence of the current dispute over the operation of the Project and Texas’ eventual plea before the U.S. Supreme Court, a dynamic discussed in further detail below.
Nonetheless, in Colorado and New Mexico, each state’s State Engineer serves as the Compact commissioner.44 Whereas, the Texas Compact commissioner is not the State Engineer, but is appointed by “[t]he governor, with the advice and consent of the [Texas] senate.”45 Each state’s Compact commissioner serves a central role in representing the interests of each Compact state and in coordinating the management of the Project between the EPCWID, EBID and Reclamation.
III. POST-COMPACT CONFLICT LEADING THE 2008 OPERATING AGREEMENT
Despite Mr. Clayton’s assurances upon the eve of the Compact, a series of difficulties concerning the allocation of the water from the Rio Grande surfaced in the decades since the Compact’s passage into law. Although few problems emerged in the 1940s during the initial years of the Compact with Project storage in 1949 reaching “815,700 acre-feet, including 130,000 acre-feet of credit water,” a severe drought struck the region in 1951 and lasted until 1978.46 In response to increasing surface water scarcity, farmers in the Project irrigation districts began to supplement surface water with underground well water.47 See generally App. 6, App. 7 & App. 8.
During this period of drought and along with Rio Grande farmers growing development of groundwater pumping capacity, Reclamation unilaterally developed two curves charting the relationship between the annual volume of water released from the Elephant Butte and Caballo reservoirs to (1) the amount of water annually delivered to Mexico (“D2 curve”); and to (2) the amount of water diverted to Project beneficiaries (“D2 curve”). Reclamation used the two curves to project water delivery and diversion to Project farmlands, irrigation districts, and to Mexico. The D1 curve projected water
deliveries “to the U.S. farmlands and water diverted to Mexico.”48 Whereas, the D2 curve projected “diversions to canal systems in the [Project] irrigation districts and Mexico.”49 Of these yearly releases, 57% would be delivered for the EBID in New Mexico and 43% would be delivered for the EPCWID in Texas. 50 See App. 10 & App. 11.
The D2 curve, besides projecting diversions available per release of Project water, also recorded historic diversions and releases from the last major regional period of drought in 1951 to 1978. The D2 curve, therefore, serves as an important proxy, measuring groundwater use from and around the Project during the regions last major period of drought. And, in light of the current period of drought, beginning 2003, this proxy serves a particularly significant function because it exhibits New Mexico’s increased groundwater exploitation from the Project and the surrounding hydrologically- connected lands. See App. 12 & App. 13.
Until the late 1970s, Reclamation operated the Project as a single entity, utilizing the D1 and D2 curves as guidance for its Project opperations.51 However, a series of events led to Reclamation’s relinquishment of much of its managerial control over the Project. First, in the wake of Reclamation’s highly publicized Teton Dam failure and amidst growing national criticism of Reclamation, particularly highlighted by President Jimmy Carter’s “hit list” of Reclamation water projects and his criticism of the Bureau’s wasteful spending, Reclamation’s budget was cut several times in the late 1970s.52 These cuts continued, to an even greater extent, under President Reagan into the 1980s.53
As a result of these various budget-cuts, the federal government “ultimately relegated [Reclamation] to specifying only the releases from the Caballo Reservoir and forced the two irrigation districts to manage the diversions.”54 Second, during the years of 1979 and 1980 the EPCWID and EBID paid off their federal construction loans for the Project. Having squaring up with the federal government, the irrigation districts became emboldened with more independence towards the future management of their respective Project operations. 55
In regards to these various events, an operating agreement between Reclamation and the irrigation district became the primary means by which Reclamation would distribute Project waters among the irrigation districts.56 Although Reclamation used the D2 curve as its basis for allocation among the Project districts, in the absence of an operating agreement, and although Reclamation proposed that the D2 curve be incorporated into an operating agreement between Project parties, the Project districts refused assent to Reclamation’s proposal.57
With no operating agreement in place, a lawsuit, City of El Paso v. Reynolds, emerged from the void in 1983.58 This case arose after the EBID, pursuant to New Mexico statute, submitted “326 applications for permits to appropriate up to 296,000 acre-feet of water annually from the Lower Rio Grande and Hueco Basins.” 5960 However, the New Mexico State Engineer denied all of EBID’s applications “on the ground that Article XVI, §§ 2 and 3 of the New Mexico Constitution preclude[d] utilization of New Mexico groundwater outside the borders of the state.”61 Thereafter, the City of El Paso filed suit against the New Mexico State Engineer, the New Mexico Attorney General, and the New Mexico District Attorney.62 EBID, the City of Las Cruces, and Stahmann Farms, Inc. also intervened as defendants.63 The City of El Paso claimed that Article XVI, §§ 2 and 3 of the New Mexico Constitution violated the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution.64
After a trial, the U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico held in favor of El Paso. Specifically, the court held Article XVI, §§ 2 and 3 of the New Mexico Constitution, expressly prohibiting the extraterritorial transportation of groundwater, was facially discriminatory and failed under the court’s application of strict scrutiny.65 The court elaborated that the subject provisions of New Mexico constitution were not narrowly tailored to serve a legitimate local, state purpose and adequate alternatives existed which would not discriminate against out-of-state interests to such a degree.66
After the District Court’s judgment, El Paso settled the litigation and agreed it would endeavor to use alternative Texas water resources before seeking water resources from New Mexico. 67 Though this lawsuit seemingly highlighted the apparent need for
an operating agreement between Reclamation and the Project irrigation districts, a period of plentiful water arrived in 1979 and lasted until 2002, thus relieving demands on the parties to formulate a mutually acceptable operating agreement.
Despite the relief provided by Mother Nature, the pressure to negotiate an operating agreement resurfaced in 1997. Apprehensive that EPCWID and EBID, having satisfied their construction-loan debts, would assert legal control of their respective portions of the Project, the Bureau of Reclamation filed a quiet title suit in the U.S. District Court of New Mexico to determine its legal rights in the Project.68 In response, EPCWID filed a counterclaim alleging that the Bureau failed to account for New Mexico’s groundwater pumping and that this failure resulted in an inequitable allocation of Project water.69
The case was sent to mediation; but, the mediation failed to result in a settlement as the negotiations collapsed and U.S. District Court dismissed the dispute without prejudice.70 In disposing of the suit, the Court decided it would defer to a state stream adjudication in New Mexico for a resolution of the parties’ legal rights in the Project.71 The U.S District Court retained jurisdiction in the event the parties decided their respective interests were not being properly accommodated in the stream adjudication.72
With no operating agreement in place and after the dismissal by the U.S. District Court, “the attorney general of Texas and New Mexico and their respective state legislatures got involved, potentially escalating the [dispute towards] litigation in the U.S. Supreme Court.”73 During the posturing that ensued, the New Mexico and Texas legislatures appropriated “millions of dollars to support the probable pending litigation.”74 Despite the collapse of formal negotiations in 2001 and the legal posturing between the states’ legislatures, over the next several years informal negotiations took place between the “irrigation districts and technical representative of [Reclamation]…” about a possible resolution to the conflict.75 These informal negotiations occurred “under the auspices of The National Science Foundation and the Science and Technology Center for Sustainability of semi-Arid hydrology and Riparian Areas.”76 What arose from these informal negotiations were two important issues: carry-over storage and New Mexico groundwater pumping.77
During these years of informal negotiations, a period of drought returned after 24 years when the Project districts received water levels fully meeting their respective demands. With no formal operating agreement in place, Reclamation utilized an independent “ad hoc” method of water allocation, without the Project irrigation districts’ consent: the Bureau allocated water to Mexico’s based on usable water in Project storage, and the surplus diversion was allocated to the EPCWID and EBID districts based on their
Project entitlement, 43% to the EPCWID and 57% to the EBID.78 Thereafter, during the years between 2006 and 2008 both Project-districts challenged and began to litigate the Bureau’s “ad hoc” operation of the project in Federal District court.79
However, in 2006, Texas appointed Pat Gordon, a youthful Texas tax attorney, as its Rio Grande Compact commissioner.80 Even though all Project parties were at an impasse and it seemed unlikely that these disputes would be resolved, Pat Gordon was able to bring the parties to the table.81 As a result of Pat Gordon’s tactful persuasion, an operating agreement was finally reached in 2008.82 The operating agreement incorporated the D3 curve, a curve developed by EBID in 2006. The D3 curve “tied EPCWID and Mexico allocations to project releases.” 83 The D3 curve would adjust the D2 curve in order to address the short falls seen in the diversion ratio — the ratio of total project diversions over total project releases — during the years of 2003 to 2007, years where the D2 curve feel short of predicting total project diversions as per historic releases. See App. 13.
The parties agreed that the D3 curve would be incorporated into the proposed operating agreement and that it would govern Project allocations until December 31, 2050.84 After decades without a formal operating agreement, on February 14, 2008 a settlement of the disputes between Reclamation, EBID and EPCWID resulted in an operating agreement, and the three parties and 14 New Mexican and Texas farmers signed the agreement. 85 On August 25, 2008, EBID, EPCWID agreed to dismiss their respective lawsuits. 86 The terms of the operating agreement established that EPCWID and Mexico would receive allocations per the D1 and D2 curves. EBID would receive allocations per the new D3 curve, a curve intended to protect EPCWID from New Mexico’s groundwater pumping by delivering surplus water only after ensuring that EPCWID and Mexico received their respective allocation entitlements.87
Importantly, EBID agreed to the allocation method prescribed in the operating agreement because, instead of compensating EPCWID for New Mexico’s groundwater depletions accruing since 1938, the date of the Compact, it would only require New Mexico reduce its groundwater pumping to a baseline reflecting the water shortages of 1951–1978.88 Thus, the operating agreement “grandfathered in thousands of acre-feet of New Mexico groundwater pumping.”89 On the other hand, the operating agreement appealed to EPCWID because it received protection against prospective New Mexican groundwater pumping.90 The operating agreement assured EPCWID that it would receive allocations pursuant to the D3 curve at the New Mexico-Texas border, and it gave the district the right to carryover storage. 91
With an operating agreement finally in place and with both the EBID and EPCWID gaining something from the bargain, it seemed as if the decades-long dispute to formulate an operating agreement finally resulted with an amicable compromise.
However, regional politics soon muddied the water; and, in the words of Thomas Maddock III, “stupidity is the reigning King.”92 (emphasis added).
The State of New Mexico, led by its attorney general Gary King, became displeased with the compromise incorporated in the 2008 operating agreement. And, in August of 2011, New Mexico filed suit in the U.S. District Court of New Mexico, initiating State of New Mexico v. U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, et. al.93 In its complaint, New Mexico named the United States; the Department of Interior; Kenneth Salazar, the Secretary of the Department of Interior; the Bureau of Reclamation; Michael Connor, the Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation; and, Filiberto Cortez, the Manager of the El Paso Field Division of the Bureau of Reclamation in El Paso, Texas as defendants.94
The lawsuit requested declaratory and injunctive relief against defendants and claimed that, by assenting to the 2008 operating agreement, the defendants illegally and wrongfully authorized the reallocation of more than 150,000 acre-feet of water annually away from New Mexico, water that New Mexico claimed it was entitled under historic Project operations.95 New Mexico argued that such reallocation harmed its sovereign taxing power, its police power and its power to manage public water supplies.96 New Mexico also challenged the long-term carry over storage provision of the 2008 operating agreement. 97
New Mexico sought declaratory relief under the Declaratory Judgment Act, challenging Defendants’ implementation of the 2008 Operating Agreement as a final agency action under the Administrative Procedure Act and the Rio Grande Compact. It argued for an injunction of the implementation of the 2008 operating agreement because it claimed the agreement violated the Water Supply Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and section 8 of the federal Reclamation Act.98
More specifically, New Mexico claimed that 2008 operating agreement was improperly implemented in violation of the Water Supply Act of 1958, “on the grounds that is seriously affects the purposes for which the Rio Grande Project was authorized, surveyed, planned, or constructed or affects a major operational change of the Rio Grande Project without approval by Congress.” 99
New Mexico claimed that 2008 operating agreement was improperly implemented in violation of the National Environmental Policy Act because the agreement amounted to a major federal action that significantly affected the environment without proper review of its environmental effects, and that it was implemented “without appropriate consultation with New Mexico, without adequate public review of the action proposed and without any consideration of alternative actions, as required by NEPA.”100
New Mexico also alleged that 2008 operating agreement violated the Reclamation Act because it altered vested New Mexico state water rights and because it significantly changes the proportionate Project delivery requirements based on percentage of irrigable land entitled to the EBID from its historic 57% to approximately 38%.101 As a result of this reallocation of water, New Mexico claimed that it has lost millions of dollars worth of water, while unfairly benefiting Texas. 102 In an out-of-court statement made by Gary King several months after filing the above-discussed complaint, he declared that this new allocation would cause New Mexico $183 million in damages, while unfairly benefiting Texas.103
In response to the complaint, EPCWID filed motion to dismiss on October 11, 2011.104 The Federal defendants responded with a motion to dismiss on June 28, 2012.105 EBID also filed a cross-claim against Federal government alleging that it authorized the illegal release of water from the Project to Mexico in violation of the 2008 agreement.106 As of the date of this article, the Court has not ruled on the above motions.
In a brief published by representatives from EBID on April 27, 2012, the irrigation district criticized New Mexico and its Attorney General’s actions in filing suit.107 EBID argued that the Reclamation’s historic allocation method does not contemplate New Mexico’s groundwater pumping and that the 2008 operating agreement remedies and internalizes such pumping.108 EBID criticized the Attorney General for offering no alternative allocation scheme and that the scheme in place “prior to 2006 was simply not defensible.”109
EBID also challenged the Attorney General’s claims of monetary loss resulting from the operating agreement and responds that, in fact, since the implementation of the operating agreement agricultural production in Dona Ana County, as measured by receipts from non-livestock farming, increased every year since the operating agreement, except for 2008, a year were prices and demand for pecans — one of the primary crops of the Lower Rio Grande region — were relatively low.110 See App 14.
EBID further complained that it “has received no support from New Mexico” with its cross-claim against the federal government.111 And, finally, EBID trumpeted that “the [New Mexico Attorney General] is starting a war with no clear objective or exit strategy and the impact of any damages would be against EBID members.”112
III. TEXAS V. NEW MEXICO: PENDING U.S. SUPREME COURT CASE
In light of the abovementioned suit and Texas’ frustration with the New Mexico stream adjudication’s determination of its Project rights (particularly in light of Texas’ own adjudication of rights to the Rio Grande above Fort Quitman, Texas), on January 8, 2013, Texas filed a motion for leave to file complaint accompanied by a complaint and a brief in support thereof with the U.S. Supreme Court.113
In its plea, Texas alleges that New Mexico “has ignored and undermined Texas’ rights to water from the Rio Grande Project, and has breached and continues to breach its obligations and responsibilities under the Rio Grande Compact….”114 Texas maintains that New Mexico breached the Compact by “fail[ing] to control and prevent the proliferation of post-Compact pumping of water hydrologically connected to the Rio Grande, and….[by] acquiesc[ing] in surface water diversions and failing to prevent non- permitted diversions of surface water.”115 The rights and obligations arising from the Compact are now the central issue in the dispute between Texas and New Mexico.
Texas’ complaint raises the question of whether the Compact applies to the extraction of groundwater “hydrologically connected” to the Rio Grande.116 Texas claims New Mexico has breached the terms of the Compact, and Texas frames its argument in terms of New Mexico’s breach of the Compact’s purpose and intent: Texas alleges that “New Mexico has, contrary to the purpose and intent of the Rio Grande Compact, allowed and authorized Rio Grande Project water intended for use in Texas to be intercepted and used in New Mexico.”117 Texas claims New Mexico has allowed its citizens to intercept and withdraw “Rio Grande Project return flows and other
underground water that is hydrologically connected to the Rio Grande….”118 Texas asserts that New Mexico’s actions violate the United States’ “superior rights, including the right to deliver that water to Texas.”119
Texas, therefore, requests the U.S. Supreme Court interpret Texas and New Mexico’s rights under the Compact; and, it asks the Court to “declare the rights of the State of Texas to the waters of the Rio Grande pursuant to and consistent with the Rio Grande Compact and the Rio Grande Project Act.”120 Texas prays for the Court to issue a “Decree commanding the State of New Mexico, its officers, citizens and political subdivisions, to: (a) delivery the water of the Rio Grande in accordance with the provisions of the Rio Grande Compact and the Rio Grande Project Act; and (b) cease and desist all actions which interfere with and impede the authority of the United States to operate the Rio Grande Project.”121 Texas asks the Court to “[a]ward the State of Texas all damages and other relief, including pre- and post- judgment interest, for the injury suffered by the State of Texas as a result of the State of New Mexico’s past and continuing violations of the Rio Grande Compact and the Rio Grande Project Act[.]”122 And, finally, Texas requests the Court “[g]rant all other such costs and relief, in law and equity, that the Court deems just and proper.”123
In support of it plea, Texas explains that a recent ruling by a New Mexico court in a stream adjudication and the ongoing litigation over the 2008 operation agreement support the Court’s exercise of jurisdiction: (1) Texas quarrels that its rights are not being adequately addressed in the New Mexico state stream adjudication, State of New Mexico v. Elephant Butte Irrigation District, and (2) Texas claims New Mexico’s initiation of State of New Mexico v. U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, et. al., wherein New Mexico challenged the 2008 operating agreement, constitutes grounds compelling U.S. Supreme Court review; and, (3) Texas argues that New Mexico’s actions have violated Texas full faith and credit pursuant to Article IV, §1 of the U.S. Constitution.124
In State of New Mexico v. Elephant Butte Irrigation District, Judge James Wechsler recently ruled in favor of New Mexico’s motion to dismiss a claim asserted by the U.S. to groundwater, and the court denied the United States’ motion for summary judgment, in which it asked the adjudication court to define Project water as “(1) all the surface water in the lower Rio Grande, and (2) water in the ground hydrologically connected to surface waters in the lower Rio Grande.”125 In doing so, Judge Wechsler held that the rights of the Project are limited only to surface water and do not encompass hydrologically connected groundwater.126
Concerning this state water adjudication, Texas claims, in its plea to the U.S. Supreme Court, that New Mexico has failed to remedy harm to Texas and Project beneficiaries caused by New Mexico’s interception of return flow to the Project and by New Mexican groundwater pumping.127 Texas argues that, instead of addressing Texas’ concerns about the unsustainable groundwater pumping throughout southern New Mexico, New Mexico’s actions in the adjudication represent an attempt by New Mexico “to make permanent its unlawful actions….”128 Texas, in critique of New Mexico’s actions, claims that New Mexico “is asserting and advancing novel theories of law that are contrary to rights held by the United States for the Rio Grande Project as well as the Rio Grande Compact.”129
As alluded to earlier, Texas underscores that New Mexico’s actions in its own stream adjudication are even more troubling in light of Texas’ own stream adjudication of the Rio Grande above Fort Quitman. An adjudication that concluded in 2007. Texas highlights this in its complaint, specifying that, “[c]onsistent with the provisions of the Rio Grande Project Act and the Rio Grande Compact, the State of Texas has adjudicated the Rio Grande above Fort Quitman, Texas, entering into a final decree in 2006 binding on the United States and EPCWID.”130 Texas explains that, “[in furtherance of the 2006 decree, it] issued a Certificate of Adjudication in 2007 allowing for diversions of water
sufficient to meet Rio Grande Project and Rio Grande Compact diversions and use rights in Texas.”131 Texas contends that this Certificate of Adjudication presumes that New Mexico will comply with the Rio Grande Project Act and the Compact.132 “Absent New Mexico’s compliance with the Rio Grande Project Act and the Rio Grande Compact[,]” Texas elucidates that “….the judicial decree has no practical effect, and cannot serve as a source of legal stability to those in Texas who obtain water from the Rio Grande Project.”133 Arguing that New Mexico has not afforded Texas’ adjudication and final
decree full faith and credit, Texas alleges in it complaint New Mexico’s actions have violated the U.S. Constitution. 134
In reference to State of New Mexico v. U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, et. al., Texas contends that in challenging the 2008 operating agreement, “New Mexico is advancing novel interpretations of the Rio Grande Compact in an effort to wrest operational control of the Rio Grande Project from the United State..”135 New Mexico’s actions in challenging the 2008 operating agreement, as Texas argues, represent an effort to sabotage Reclamation, EBID and EPCWID’s “attempt to address at least a portion of the problem created by New Mexico’s unlawful use of Rio Grande Project water…”136
Early in 2013, just weeks after Texas filed its complaint, representatives for the parties to the dispute began publishing statements to the press. Pat Gordon, a Texas representative on the Rio Grande Commission and the man who spearheaded the effort to formulate the 2008 operating agreement, claimed that New Mexico has allowed its
citizens to sink more than 2,500 wells that draw water from the Rio Grande below Elephant Butte.137 On the other side of the dispute, New Mexico assistant attorney general Sarah Bond asserted that Texas’ plea for U.S. Supreme Court review is groundless because farmers in both New Mexico and Texas have long relied on groundwater pumping during droughts. She contends that “[n]one of the actions of New Mexico farmers or river pumpers have been in violation of the Compact.”138 Likewise, New Mexico attorney general Gary King released a statement proclaiming, “Texas is trying to rustle New Mexico’s water and is using a lawsuit to extort an agreement that would only benefit Texas while destroying water resources for hundreds of thousands of New Mexicans.”139
After Texas’ plea to the U.S. Supreme Court, New Mexico filed a response brief in opposition to Texas’ motion on March 11, 2013.140 In it, New Mexico argues that Texas failed to allege that New Mexico violated the express terms of the Rio Grande Compact, that the Supreme Court should not exercise jurisdiction because ongoing litigation offers adequate alternative fora to resolve the claims raised by Texas, and that Texas has failed to join the United States, who New Mexico argues, is an indispensible party to the suit.141 Further, New Mexico dismisses, as frivolous, Texas’ claim New Mexico’s actions in the stream adjudication violate the Full Faith and Credit Clause of the U.S. Constitution.142
Colorado, a signatory state of the Rio Grande Compact, also filed a motion in opposition for leave to file complaint on March 11, 2013.143 In its motion, Colorado takes “[no] position [and does not respond to] Texas’ specific allegations.”144 Colorado states that “[it] cannot determine whether and to what extent Texas’ Brief in Support of
Motion For Leave to File Complain and Complaint raise an actual controversy for [the Supreme Court] to consider.” But, Colorado opposes Texas motion by stating, “[i]t is Colorado’s position that states should avoid litigation of compact issues whenever possible.”145
Thereafter, on March 22, 2013 Texas filed a reply brief addressing New Mexico’s response.146 In summary, Texas argues, “New Mexico seeks to avoid [the Supreme Court’s] interpretation and enforcement of the Rio Grande Compact,” and Texas then goes on to present “at least four reasons” why the Supreme Court should reject New Mexico’s opposition: (1) Texas argues that New Mexico’s response demonstrates that the two parties hold “fundamental differences regarding the interpretation of Texas’ rights and New Mexico’s obligations under the Compact”; (2) Texas characterizes New Mexico’s response as principally addressing the case’s merits and contested issues of fact, which Texas claims “are not part of the criteria for assessing a motion for leave to file a complaint”; (3) Texas asserts that the U.S. Supreme Court is the only appropriate forum to “resolve the issues tendered and the relief sought by Texas”; and, (4) Texas contests New Mexico’s claim that Texas failed to join the United States, who New Mexico argues is an indispensable party.147 Additionally, Texas retorts New Mexico’s assertion that Texas’ Full Faith and Credit Clause argument is groundless. Several parties have also filed briefs of amicus curiae. Hudspeth County Conservation and Reclamation District №1, the City of El Paso, and EPCWID each filed an amicus brief in support of Texas’ motion for leave to file complaint; and the City of Las Cruces has filed an amicus brief opposing Texas’ motion for leave to file complaint.148 Additionally to note, the Supreme Court usually puts a lot of stock into the Solicitor General’s position in terms of interstate water disputes, however, although the Court has invited the Solicitor General to file a brief expressing the views of the United States, thus far the Solicitor General has not accepted the Court’s invitation.149
IV. LEGAL ANALYSIS OF THE PENDING CONTROVERSY BEFORE THE U.S. SUPREME COURT
In deciding whether to exercise jurisdiction and hear the case, the U.S. Supreme Court must decide three issues. First, it must decide whether the dispute at issue here is really between two states. Second, the Court must consider the “nature of the interest of the complaining State”.150 And, third, the Court must consider “the availability of an alternative forum in which the issue tendered can be resolved.”151 Each issue is discussed, in turn, below.
A. Actual Dispute Between Two Sovereigns?
Pursuant to Article III of the U.S. Constitution, “[t]he judicial power shall extend to all cases, in law and equity, arising under this Constitution, the laws of the United States, and treaties made, or which shall be made, under their authority….to controversies between two or more states….” and pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1251(a), “[t]he Supreme Court shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction of all controversies between two or more States.”152 To exercise jurisdiction as provided under these provisions, the Court must find that a genuine controversy exists between two or more states, and it must find that the controversy is between two sovereigns, rather than a dispute between private parties.
i. Texas’ Arguments
Concerning the first issue, whether the dispute is really between two states, Texas argues that this condition is satisfied. Specifically, Texas quotes language from a previous 1983 ruling involving a dispute between Texas and New Mexico, arguing that the Court’s jurisdiction “extends to a suit by one State to enforce its compact with another State or to declare rights under a compact.”153 In line with this language, Texas further contend that “it is necessary for the Court to exercise its original jurisdiction here to declare and enforce the rights of the State of Texas under the Rio Grande Compact.”154
In support of the above arguments, Texas references three previous U.S. Supreme Court cases as supporting authority. First, in the 1983 ruling Texas v. New Mexico, Texas sought the Court’s exercise of its original jurisdiction to resolve a dispute concerning the Pecos River Compact.155 Article III(a) of the Peco River Compact provided that New Mexico shall “not deplete by man’s activities the flow of the Pecos River at the New Mexico-Texas state line below an amount which will give to Texas a quantity of water equivalent to that available to Texas under the 1947 condition.”156 Congress ratified the Compact in 1949.157 As the above-quoted provision suggests, the Compact did not explicitly identify a division of water between the two States, rather it required New Mexico to deliver the equivalent of the water it received “under the 1947 condition.”158 A dispute arose after the two States’ appointed representatives to the Pecos River Commission, one from Texas and one New Mexico, could not agree to the date on which the dispute arose in order to calculate damages owed to Texas.159 Thereafter, Texas sought a decree from the Supreme Court commanding that New Mexico comply with the Compact and deliver water it owed to Texas.160 The Supreme Court exercised jurisdiction over the case and in doing so it opined: [t]here is no doubt that this Court’s jurisdiction to resolve controversies between two States U.S. Const. Art. III, § 2, cl. 1; 28 U.S.C. § 1251(a)(1), extends to a properly framed suit to apportion the waters of an interstate stream between States through which it flows.161 Citing the following excerpt language from a 1907 case, Virginia v. West Virginia, the Supreme Court continued, “[our jurisdiction] also extends to a suit by one State to enforce its compact with another State or to declare rights under a compact.”162
Texas then cites a 1995 case, Kansas v. Colorado, as authority supporting its plea for the Supreme Court.163 In this case, Kansas sued Colorado to enforce provisions of the Arkansas River Compact.164 Particularly, Kansas claimed that Colorado violated Article IV-D, which stated:
This Compact is not intended to impede or prevent future beneficial development of the Arkansas river basin in Colorado and Kansas by federal or state agencies [sic] Provided, That the waters of the Arkansas river, as defined in Article III, shall not be materially depleted in usable quantity or availability for use to the water users in Colorado and Kansas under this Compact by such future developments or construction.165 (emphasis added).
Additionally, in this case, the parties operated under a 1980 Operating Plan which expressly stated, “[a]doption of this resolution does not prejudice the ability of Kansas or of any Colorado ditch to object or to otherwise represent its interest in the present or future cases or controversies before the Administration or in a court of competent jurisdiction.”166 Even though Colorado objected to the Supreme Court’s exercise of jurisdiction, the Supreme Court decided to exercise its jurisdiction.167
Texas finally cites Oklahoma and Texas v. New Mexico, where Oklahoma and Texas brought an action against New Mexico after a dispute arose over the interpretation of the Canadian River Compact.168 New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas entered into the Canadian River Compact in 1951 and Congress consented to it in 1952.169 The dispute concerned the interpretation of the term “conservation storage” in the Compact, and the Supreme Court decided to exercise its jurisdiction.170
ii. New Mexico’s Arguments
New Mexico, on the other hand, argues that the Supreme Court should not exercise jurisdiction because “Texas’ claims are not based on the express terms of the Compact.”171 New Mexico cites a 1981 case, Maryland v.
Louisiana, for the proposition that the Supreme Court “has construed its jurisdiction as obligatory ‘only in appropriate case.’”172 Then, New Mexico cites Louisiana v. Texas, a 1900 case, for the following language as support for its position: “[t]his Court’s original jurisdiction is of so delicate and grave a character that it was not contemplated that it would be exercised save when the necessity was absolute and the matter in itself properly justiciable.”173 In Maryland v. Louisiana, “several States, joined by the United States, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), and a number of pipeline companies, challenge the constitutionality of Louisiana’s tax on the ‘first-use’ of any natural gas brought into Louisiana which was not previously subjected to taxation by another State or the United States.”174 Although New Mexico cites this case for the proposition that the Supreme Court should only exercise its “jurisdiction as obligatory only in appropriate cases,” the Supreme Court actually decided to affirmatively exercise its original jurisdiction.175 (internal quotation marks omitted)
Louisiana v. Texas, the second case New Mexico cites as authority for the Supreme Court to exercise caution in its exercise of its original jurisdiction, is a case rendered before the Supreme Court expanded the Interstate Commerce clause during the New Deal to its current regulatory breadth in its famous 1942 Wickard v. Filburn decision.176 In Louisiana v. Texas, the Supreme Court refused to invalidate a trade embargo imposed by Texas on trade with Louisiana in an effort to stop the proliferation of yellow fever.177
New Mexico then cites three cases between states where the Supreme Court refused to exercise its original jurisdiction. First, New Mexico cites the 1976 case, Arizona v. New Mexico.178 In this case, Arizona sought the Supreme
Court’s exercise of jurisdiction to determine whether an electrical energy tax imposed by New Mexico violated the interstate commerce clause.179 The Supreme Court declined to exercise its original jurisdiction because it ruled a proceeding in a state court afforded parties an adequate alternative forum for the resolution of the dispute.180
Second, New Mexico cites a 1981 case, California v. West Virginia, for support of its argument that the Court should deny Texas’ request.181 In this case, California sought Supreme Court review of a breach contract concerning athletic contests between two of the States’ universities.182 Here, the Supreme Court refused to exercise jurisdiction and denied California’s motion.183
Third, New Mexico cites a 1988 case, Louisiana v. Mississippi, for support.184 In this case, “Louisiana intervened in a dispute between private parties over the ownership of land on an island in the Mississippi River, claiming that the land was in that State.”185 Louisiana sought Supreme Court review pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1251(a).186 The Supreme Court denied Louisiana’s request.187
New Mexico then references Pennsylvania v. New Jersey, stating that the “Court’s original jurisdiction is reserved for those exceptional circumstances where there where there is a direct controversy between two states regarding assertion of their sovereign interests.”188 In this 1976 case, the Supreme Court refused to exercise jurisdiction when Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maine, Massachusetts, and Vermont sought Supreme Court review over a New Hampshire “beggar-thy-neighbor” tax.189
iii. How will the Supreme Court likely rule?
Analyzing this first prong, Texas looks like it will satisfy the preliminary question whether the controversy is in fact between two sovereigns. Although New Mexico has a colorable argument that Texas has not breached the express terms of the Compact, New Mexico seems to focus this argument towards the next two issues to be discussed (whether the dispute between the States is serious and dignified and whether there exists an available and adequate alternative forum to resolve the dispute). Further, the cases that New Mexico cites under this first prong are all factually distinguishable from the present controversy, and they are not cases involving interstate river compacts. Moreover, the Supreme Court seems treat interstate water disputes as the prototypical type of case that generally fulfills this prong.
B. Does the Nature of the Interest of Texas’ Claims Present with the Requisite Seriousness and Dignity so as to Compel the Supreme Court’s Exercise of Jurisdiction?
Under the second prong of the its test, the Court considers the “nature of the interest of the complaining State.”190 In its consideration, the Court focuses on the “seriousness and dignity of the claim.” 191 The Court will exercise jurisdiction only if the Court deems the dispute a serious dispute between States and only if the Court deems dignified the grievances adduced by the complaining state.
i. Texas’ Arguments
Under this prong, Texas argues that disputes of the type it complains are “the archetypal dispute that can only be resolved by [the Supreme Court].”192 And, Texas goes on to cite language from the 1983 Texas v. New Mexico asserting, “[t]he model case for invocation of this Court’s original jurisdiction is a dispute between States of such seriousness that it would amount to a casus belli if the States were full sovereign.”193 Texas then claims, “New Mexico’s prior and ongoing violations of the Rio Grande Compact, if not remedied, will continue to cause direct, immediate, grave and irreparable injury to Texas.”194 Texas further asserts, “if Texas and New Mexico were fully sovereign, New Mexico’s intentional violations of the Rio Grande Compact would amount to a casus belli. An injury of this kind implicates this Courts jurisdiction.”195
While describing New Mexico’s actions in terms of Texas’s claim that New Mexico has breached the Compact, Texas couches its argument in terms of the Compact’s “purpose and intent.” Likewise, it argues that New Mexico’s actions equate to a breach of the Compact because New Mexico’s actions have breached the purpose and intent of the Compact. Thusly, Texas explains that “[a] fundamental purpose of the Rio Grande Compact is to protect the Rio Grande
Project and its operations under the conditions that existed in 1938 at the time the Rio Grande Compact was executed.”196 Texas then lists what it sees as the fundamental premises under which Texas entered into the Rio Grande Compact: (a) the operation of the Rio Grande Project by the United States, and the Rio Grande Project’s allocations to Texas, were recognized and protected by the Rio Grande Compact; (b) New Mexico was required to make deliveries into Elephant Butte Reservoir to ensure that the United States could continue to operate the Rio Grande Project, and thereby provide for deliveries of water from the Rio Grande Project as had been previously authorized; and
C)New Mexico would not allow the Rio Grande project water allocated by the United States to Texas to be intercepted above the Texas state line for use in New Mexico.197
With these fundamental premises in mind, Texas then argues that “[u]nless the United States’ operation of the Rio Grande Project is Protected….Rio Grande Project deliveries of water to southern New Mexico, Texas and Mexico cannot be assured, and the rights of Texas under the Compact cannot be protected.” In support of its claim that New Mexico has violated the “purpose and intent” of the Compact, it its Complaint, Texas lists various provisions of the Compact, noting that their “terms reflect the interconnected nature of the Rio Grande project and the Rio Grande Compact.” In essence, Texas attempts to bring the Project into the purview of the Compact by highlighting the interrelated nature of both the Project and the Compact.
Texas continues its allegations by maintaining that New Mexico’s actions have interfered with the operation of the Project and upset the purpose and intent of the Compact to protect the Project. It elaborates its argument professing, “the Rio Grande Compact is predicated on the understanding that delivery of water at the New Mexico–Texas state line would not be subject to additional depletions beyond those that were occurring at the time the Rio Grande Compact was executed.”198 Texas contends that New Mexico’s unauthorized diversions of surface water and hydrologically connected groundwater have injured Texas.199 Texas suggests that New Mexico’s extraction of Rio Grande water has altered the basic circumstances that exist when Texas entered into the Compact in 1938.200 Therefore, Texas argues that New Mexico has violated the Compact and its purpose and intent, and Texas emphases that “[t]he relationship between the Rio Grande Project authorization and the Rio Grande Compact present unique issues that only this Court can resolve.”201
ii. New Mexico’s Arguments
New Mexico, however, retorts with several arguments: New Mexico argues that Texas has not alleged a violation of the express terms of the Compact; New Mexico argues that the Texas’ claims do not arise under the Compact, but rather under the Project; and, as Project rights, New Mexico contends they are appropriative rights “protected from injury under state law.”202
In support of its claim that Texas has not alleged a violation of the express terms of the Compact, New Mexico argues that its delivery obligations
only require water be delivered into Elephant Butte Reservoir, not to the New Mexico-Texas state line.203 In support of this contention, New Mexico insists that “the Compact drafters knew how to craft a state line delivery obligation and did so for Colorado. ‘The obligation of Colorado to deliver water in the Rio Grande at the Colorado-New Mexico State Line, measured at or near Lobatos….’ is clear.”204 New Mexico then, by way of comparison, cites the language of Art. III of the Compact. New Mexico emphasize that the Compact only requires New Mexico deliver water into Elephant Butte Reservoir, not to the New Mexico- Texas state line. 205
Then, New Mexico declares, “the plain language of the Compact describes the injuries the States agreed were reserved to raise in the future.”206 New Mexico thereafter quotes Art. XI of the Compact, which follows:
New Mexico and Texas agree that upon the effective date of this Compact all controversies between said States relative to the quantity or quality of the water of the Rio Grande are composed and settled; however, nothing herein shall be interpreted to prevent recourse by a signatory state to the Supreme Court of the United States for redress should the character or quality of the water, at the point of delivery, be changed hereafter by one signatory state to the injury of another. (emphasis added)
New Mexico contends that because Texas has not alleged a change in the “character or quality of the water, at the point of delivery….to the injury of another…”, therefore, Texas has failed to plead a cognizable Compact breach. 207 Moreover, New Mexico insists that Texas’ complaint requests the U.S. Supreme Court to “insert new terms into the Rio Grande Compact.”208 New Mexico explains that the Compact was silent about Project rights, and New Mexico attests that, under the Reclamation Act, Texas’ rights amount to appropriative rights arising under New Mexico State law and Reclamation law.209 Thus, New Mexico reiterates that Texas’ rights are not within the purview of the Compact. In further support of its contention, New Mexico quotes §383 of the Reclamation Act:
Nothing in this Act shall be construed as affecting or intended to affect or to in any way interfere with the laws of any State or Territory relating to the control, appropriation, use, or distribution of water used in irrigation, or any vested right acquired thereunder, and the Secretary of the Interior, in carrying out the provisions of this Act, shall proceed in conformity with such laws….210
New Mexico then proceeds with its argument by citing language in the case City of Albuquerque v. Reynolds for the case’s proclamation that New Mexico state law embraces the doctrine of prior appropriation as the method of determining the validity of a water right.211
Thereafter, New Mexico attacks Texas’ contention that the Compact’s purpose “is to protect the Rio Grande Project and its operations under the conditions that existed in 1938 at the time the Rio Grande Compact was executed.”212 Arguing that the Compact contains no provision requiring its signatories to “assure maintenance of a 1938 condition at the Texas-New Mexico state line[,]” New Mexico further attacks the polemic set forth in Texas’ plea. 213
New Mexico references language from several provisions included in the temporary Rio Grande Compact of 1929.
Then, New Mexico draws attention to the absence of these provisions in the 1938 Compact. New Mexico uses these omissions as support for its contention that Texas has not alleged a violation of the express terms of the Compact. Likewise, New Mexico also employs use of the inclusio unius est exclusio alterius cannon of statutory interpretation to support its argument. In the temporary Compact, New Mexico points out that it “explicitly references flows ‘between Elephant Butte Reservoir and the lower end of the Rio Grande Project.’”214 New Mexico then presents that no such provision exists in the subsequently enacted 1938 Compact. Following the same line of reasoning, New Mexico stresses that Art. VII (b) of the 1929 temporary Compact “contained a broad and general protection of the status quo in each state.” New Mexico quotes the following language from that provision:
The commission…shall equitably apportion the waters of the Rio Grande as of conditions obtaining on the river and within the Rio Grande Basin at the time of the signing of this compact…215 (emphasis added)
In accordance with its reading of the prior-discussed provisions, New Mexico argues that there is “no comparable provision in the 1938 Compact.” 216
New Mexico continues criticizing Texas’ reading the Compact as too broad and in attempt to impermissibly read “purpose and intent” into the express terms of the Compact.217 New Mexico cites language from Texas v. New Mexico as support:
Congressional consent transforms an inter-state compact….into a law of the United States. One consequence of this metamorphosis is that, unless the compact to which Congress has consented in somehow unconstitutional, no court may order relief inconsistent with its express terms. 218 With the above principals in mind, New Mexico cites Art. XII of the temporary 1929 Compact:
New Mexico agrees with Texas, with the understanding that prior vested rights above and below Elephant Butte Reservoir shall never be impaired hereby, that she will not cause or suffer the water supply of the Elephant Butte Reservoir to be impaired by new or increased diversion or storage within the limits of New Mexico unless and until such depletion is offset by
increase drainage return.219
New Mexico stresses that the 1938 Compact contains no such provision and that the absence of such language as included in the 1929 Compact supports its contentions that Texas arguments attempt to impermissibly alter the express provisions contained in the Rio Grande Compact.220
New Mexico couches its argument in the plain language of the Compact
and it attempts to draw the Court’s attention to the changes in the 1938 Compact as compared to the temporary 1929 Compact. New Mexico cites these changes as support for its professed reading of the Compact and its claim that Texas has failed to allege an express breach of the Compact’s terms. Whereas, Texas suggest the Court read the Compact’s terms more broadly with an eye towards the purpose and intent underlying the Compact. In its response to New Mexico’s above arguments, Texas contends that New Mexico’s arguments in disagreement with Texas’ reading on the Compact only further highlight the need for the Court’s exercise of jurisdiction. Specifically, Texas argues that the divergence in each state’s reading of the Compact only further highlights the fundamental differences each state has in it interpretation of the Compact.221
iii. How will the Supreme Court likely rule?
Generally speaking, how the Court determines this issue will likely be outcome determinative in whether it decides to exercise jurisdiction. And, the arguments presented by New Mexico under this prong, in my mind, represent its strongest. Since New Mexico can point to the plain language of the Compact as requiring it deliver water only to Elephant Butte Reservoir, it has a strong argument that the Project is simply exempt from the Compact’s express terms. If New Mexico can convince the court on this point, it can then argue state law and the Reclamation Act govern the contracts entered into by the irrigation districts, not the Compact.
However, if Texas can successfully convince the Court to accept its arguments regarding the fundamental purpose and the intent of the Compact then Texas arguments may very well operate to satisfy this prong. Moreover, since Texas, in its Complaint, “requests the U.S. Supreme Court interpret Texas and New Mexico’s rights under the Compact.”222 The Court may decide to exercise jurisdiction despite New Mexico’s arguments concerning the plain language of the Compact, because Texas seeks the Court’s review to clarify the parties’
divergence in interpretation of the Compact Accordingly, in its response to New Mexico’s motion, Texas contends that New Mexico’s response brief goes beyond matters appropriate for the Supreme Court to consider determining whether to exercise jurisdiction, as it impermissibly ventures into disputed factual matters. Texas explains that New Mexico’s response in fact highlights the need for Supreme Court intervention because it highlights the very problem for which Texas seeks review. In this regard, Texas may satisfy this prong since it does appear from my reading of New Mexico’s response that it ventures into factual and interpretational disputes.
New Mexico’s motion, moreover, specifically references New Mexico state law. New Mexico contends that “New Mexico law protects the United States’ Project water rights users” under state statutes and the New Mexico
constitution.223 New Mexico continues, by declaring, “New Mexico law has
never varied on this point, and continues to protect senior rights from impairment by junior water rights users.” 224 However, as I will discuss, New Mexico state law, in terms of groundwater pumping and well permitting, only arguably protects senior water right holders if the law is viewed only through a short-term lens. However, when viewed from a more global, long-term perspective, New Mexico state law in fact promotes the exhaustion of groundwater supplies by imbedding perverse incentives within the regulatory structure governing groundwater consumption.
Overall, this issue may essentially come down to what particular method and what particular scope of compact interpretation the majority of the Court is willing to employ. If the majority of the Court is unwilling to look beyond the
plain language of the Compact, it may likely rule that Texas has failed to satisfy this prong. However, if the majority of the Court is willing to look beyond the plain language of the Compact and into the purpose and intent of the Compact, and if the majority recognizes the inadequate protection New Mexico state law affords surface water rights holders in New Mexico against the adverse effects caused by groundwater pumping, then it will likely rule in favor of Texas under this prong.
C. Availability of an adequate alternative forum?
Under the third prong of the Court’s test, it must decide whether the claims brought by Texas against New Mexico are capable of being adequately addressed in an alternative forum.225 To exercise jurisdiction, the Court must decide that an alternative forum does not exist to provide “full relief” for Texas.226 More specifically, the Court must decided (1) whether the Rio Grande Compact Commission is capable of resolving the disputes between Texas and New Mexico, (2) whether the case New Mexico v. United States currently pending in a New Mexican Federal District Court offers an adequate forum for resolution of the dispute, and (3) whether the Lower Rio Grande Stream Adjudication has provided Texas with an adequate forum to resolve the disputed issues presented in its complaint. As one might expect, Texas argues that the commission and these two proceedings do not provide adequate forums to resolve the disputed issues presented in its complaint. And, on the other hand, New Mexico argues that despite the Rio Grande Commission’s gridlock and inability to resolve the dispute, the two ongoing cases offer appropriate fora to resolve the issues presented in Texas’ complaint and may vindicate Texas’ interests. (emphasis added).
i. Texas’ Argument
Texas argues that the Rio Grande Compact Commission and two pending cases do not provide adequate alternative fora to resolve its disputes with New Mexico.227 It support of its position, Texas relies heavily on language from a
decision rendered by the Court in a compact dispute between Texas and New Mexico from 1987.228 Texas cites a portion of the Court’s opinion stating that “[t]there is no doubt that this Court’s jurisdiction to resolve controversies between two States….extends to a suit by one State to enforce its compact with another State or to declare rights under a compact.”229
Texas continues by contending that the Court has clarified in the past that “[a] Compact is, after all, a contract,” and “[a] court should provide remedy if the parties intend to make a contract and the contact’s terms provide a sufficiently certain basis for determining both a breach has in fact occurred and the nature of the remedy called for.”230 Then, with reference to U.S. Const. art. III, §2, cl.2 and 28 U.S.C. § 1251(a), Texas asserts that the Supreme Court “is the only court [where] Texas is permitted to seek such a remedy.”231
Texas argues that the “Rio Grande Compact Commission is not an adequate alternative forum for resolution of the dispute that gives rise to this lawsuit.”232 Texas contends, “[w]hile Article XII of the Rio Grande Compact
provides the Commission with powers to ‘administer’ the provisions of the Compact, it does not endow in the Commission the power to provide a remedy for breach of the Compact.”233 Asserting that the Compact Commission does not provide an adequate dispute resolution mechanism capable of addressing the concerns it raises in it Complaint, Texas further argues for Supreme Court resolution of the dispute. 234
“Instead, [Texas argues,] Article XI recognizes that the States retain their rights to seek adjudication of allegations of breach of the Rio Grande Compact.”235 Texas then quotes Article XI of the Compact as follows:
New Mexico and Texas agree that upon the effective date of this
Compact all controversies between said States relative to the quantity or quality of the water of the Rio Grande are composed and settled; however, nothing herein shall be interpreted to prevent recourse by a signatory state to the Supreme Court of the United States for redress should the character or quality of the water, at the point of delivery, be changed hereafter by one signatory state to the injury of another.236
Under Texas’ reading of Article XI, the Court is the only adequate forum to resolve its dispute with New Mexico. Texas asserts that the Court has held in the past that “[b]y ratifying the Constitution, the States gave this Court complete judicial power to adjudicate disputes among them….and this power included the capacity to provide one State a remedy for a the breach of another.”237
Texas explains further that in Texas v. New Mexico, a similar commission as the Rio Grande Compact Commission was contained in the Pecos
River Compact, which provided a similar mechanism of resolving disputes as provided in the Rio Grande Compact.238 In that case, New Mexico asserted that the commission was the sole arbiter pursuant to the Pecos River Compact, and it argued that the Court therefore lacked jurisdiction.239
However, Texas contends that the Court did not agree with New Mexico’s position and it cites a portion of the Court’s oppinion as support:
In the absence of an explicit provision of other clear indications that a bargain to that effect was made, we shall not construe a compact to preclude a State from seeking judicial relief when the compact does not provide an equivalent method of vindicating the States’ right.240
“[T]he same reasoning applies to the present case,” Texas proclaims, explaining that the Rio Grande Compact contains no “explicit provisions or other clear indications” precluding the Court to provide relief.241 Contending that the States retain their ability to seek judicial relief from the Court, Texas maintains that Article XI of the Compact “evidences the intent of the parties to the Compact to seek relief in this Court.”242
Even if the Rio Grande Compact Commission presents an opportunity to resolve its disputes, Texas explains that, in fact, the Commission is currently incapable of resolving the dispute.243 For the Commission to act it needs a
unanimous vote.244 Currently, a unanimous vote is unattainable and, therefore, Texas argues, “resolution of the dispute through the Commission is not possible because the States are in a stalemate over threshold legal questions regarding the proper interpretation of the Compact.”245
Alleging that the Lower Rio Grande Stream Adjudication and the New Mexican Federal District Court do not offer adequate alternative forums, Texas continues its argument. In support of its argument concerning the Lower Rio Grande Stream Adjudication, Texas claims, “New Mexico has asserted and advanced novel theories of law that are contrary to the Rio Grande Compact.” Since Texas “is not otherwise subject to the jurisdiction of New Mexico state court[,]” Texas professes that the adjudication does not offer an adequate alternative forum since Texas “is not a party to the adjudication.” 246
Concerning the Federal District Court case, Texas argues, “New Mexico has raised significant issues associated with the Rio Grande Compact and its interpretation.”247 Texas then asserts, “[n]either the State of Colorado nor the State of Texas is a party to this litigation, and the State of Texas is not otherwise subject to the jurisdiction of that count.” Thusly, Texas argues that the Federal District court does not offer an adequate forum. In support of its positions, Texas excerpts a portion of the Court’s prior opinion stating, “no one State can control the power to feed or starve, possessed by a river flowing through several States.”248 Texas concludes by avowing, “since no single state can unilaterally resolve Rio Grande Compact water allocations, this dispute is only capable of resolution in this Court.”249
ii. New Mexico’s Argument
In response to the issue of whether there exists adequate alternative fora to resolve the disputes raised in Texas’ complaint, New Mexico insists that “Texas’ interests may be vindicated in ongoing cases in the Federal District Count and in the Lower Rio Grande Adjudication.”250 (emphasis added). New Mexico summarizes a portion of Texas’ complaint, which states: “neither forum can serve as an alternative to an original action before this Court because it is not a party to either action, and neither court has jurisdiction.”251 New Mexico retorts that Texas did not use the proper test.252 Rather, New Mexico avers, “…this Court has sometimes stated that an alternative forum must have jurisdiction over the parties to the dispute.”253 However, New Mexico maintains that “[the Court] has since clarified that the more pertinent inquiry is whether the other forum has jurisdiction over the issues involved.”254 New Mexico therefore claims “if the issues posed in an original complaint “can be resolved effectively by other litigation in other courts, if need be by other parties…, discretionary denials of original jurisdiction seem appropriate.”255 (emphasis added).
New Mexico then references the Court’s decision in Arizona v. New Mexico as support for it position.256 In this case, the Court denied Arizona’s plea to the Court for it to exercise jurisdiction to determine the constitutionality of a New Mexico tax on electricity “generated in state but sold to out-of-state
customers.”257 Arizona requested the Court exercise jurisdiction and hear the case. But, since three Arizona utilities had already challenged the tax in New Mexico state court, “the Court was ‘persuaded that the pending state-court action provides an appropriate forum in which the issues tendered here may be litigated.”258
New Mexico explains that the Court’s rationale in this decision was supported by the fact that “if the utilities prevailed, Arizona’s interests would be vindicated…”, if not, Arizona could then petition the Court, and “[e]ither way, Arizona’s interests would be protected.”259 Applying such a rationale to the present dispute, New Mexico argues, “the issues Texas seeks to raise before this Court have been raised by other parties in other fora with jurisdiction over those issues.” Therefore, New Mexico requests that the Court deny Texas’ motion.
New Mexico, thereafter, continues along this same line of argument. New Mexico argues that the claims presented by Texas are claims within the purview of the Project and not within the Compact. First, New Mexico addresses the Federal District Court proceeding. New Mexico asserts that Texas, in its complaint, concedes that New Mexico’s water delivery obligations only require New Mexico to deliver water to Elephant Butte Reservoir.260 Then, New Mexico criticizes Texas for then going “on to plead a cause of action arising from what happens to the water after it is delivered to Elephant Butte and before it goes to the state line.” New Mexico, alluding to its prior discussion about the issues the Court has jurisdiction over, declares “this issue does not arise from the Compact, it arises from the Project.”261
New Mexico then summarizes the challenge it filed to the 2008 operating agreement in New Mexico v. United States.262 New Mexico asserts that EPCWID is the sole party in Texas that is a Project beneficiary, EPCWID is a party to the suit, and EPCWID “is a political subdivision of the State of Texas.”263 Since Texas is not a project beneficiary and since a political subdivision of Texas represents Texas’ interests in the suit, New Mexico argues that it would be improper for the Court to exercise jurisdiction.
New Mexico then addresses the Lower Rio Grande Adjudication. New Mexico argues, “United States’ claims to Rio Grande Project Water are properly before the Lower Rio Grande Adjudication Court pursuant to 43 U.S.C. §666.” New Mexico then cites language contained in Texas’ complaint where Texas claims “that New Mexico has ‘allowed and authorized Rio Grande Project water intended for use in Texas to be intercepted and used in New Mexico’ to the
detriment of the Project.”264 (emphasis added). New Mexico contends Texas’ complaint addresses Project claims not Compact claims, and it argues since its complaint raises issues concerning the Project that the state adjudication is the proper forum for resolution of such issues.
Moreover, since the U.S., a holder of a Project right, consented to joinder in the adjudication pursuant to the McCarran Amendment265 and since it filed a statement of claim in the adjudication, New Mexico argues that the U.S. has been given an opportunity to seek redress for any injury caused by groundwater pumping in the state adjudication.266 Further, New Mexico argues that under the 1902 Reclamation Act, it has been the consistent policy of courts to defer to state water laws. 267 New Mexico claims that the adjudication “has considered the United States’ claim that state law is inadequate to protect the Project from injurious groundwater pumping.”268 But, New Mexico asserts, “the adjudication court held that the United States could not identify any actual conflict between reclamation law and state law remedies, and it has adequate remedies from any claimed injury to Project rights from junior groundwater pumpers.”
In summary, New Mexico criticizes Texas’ plea to the Court as “an attempt to circumvent the Lower Rio Grande Adjudication for the purpose of asserting before this Court the United States’ claim to water for the Project.” New Mexico claims Texas is essentially attempting to step into the shoes of the United States by asserting United State’s Project rights. Therefore, New Mexico argues that the Court should deny Texas motion because it has not joined the United State and because the U.S. has not consented to joinder.
iii. How will the Supreme Court likely rule?
Under this prong, it seems that the Court will likely side with Texas, despite New Mexico’s insistence that its own courts will provide adequate relief for Texas. And, the Court may likely characterize New Mexico’s actions as an attempt to “control the power to feed or to starve, possessed by a river flowing through several States.”269 Correspondingly, New Mexico’s arguments under this prong seem unpersuasive considering the New Mexico judges that control New Mexico courts are elected officials from the state of New Mexico. New Mexico’s claim that its Court will provide adequate relief for Texas is laughable considering Texas’s interests directly conflict with New Mexico’s. Along the same line of reasoning, Texas requests the Supreme Court exercise jurisdiction because it believes the New Mexico courts have and will further express prejudice towards Texas’ respective interests. In this light, Texas’ request seems reasonable, as Texas seeks to avoid being handcuffed by New Mexico’s substantive rules of water law. Overall, New Mexico’s presents relatively disingenuous arguments under this prong and the Court will therefore likely side with Texas.
VI. ANALYSIS OF U.S. SUPREME COURT’S LIKELY POSTJURISDICTIONAL DECISION
If Court decides to exercise jurisdiction and hear the case, it will then likely appoint a special master to determine the factual issues in question. The special master will hear arguments from the parties and then the special master will issue a memorandum concerning the factual issues of the case along with a recommendation of how to dispose of the case to the Supreme Court.
In rendering this post-jurisdictional report, the special master will likely be persuaded by the apparent and obvious conflict of interest imbedded within the current managerial structure of the Rio Grande Project. As referenced earlier, Reclamation yielded significant managerial control of the Project to the states and to the irrigation districts beginning in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Significantly, this meant that the New Mexico State Engineer controlled the permitting of new wells in the region. This change in managerial structure undermined some of the bedrock assumptions underlying the Project and thereafter underlying the Compact.
One of the most basic assumptions underlying the Project and the Compact was that Reclamation would operate the project as a single entity. Namely, it would “administer the stored surface and drain water throughout the
Project without regard to the state line…” and it would retain ownership and control of all of the Project operations.270 However, when Reclamation yielded its managerial control of the 100-mile stretch of the Rio Grande below Elephant Butte Reservoir to the irrigation districts and to state authority, the changed operational structure created a perverse incentive/conflict of interest for New Mexico.
Although “Reclamation retained ownership and control of the of the Elephant Butte and Caballo dams, the two reservoirs and the diversion dams[,]” it relinquished most of its managerial control of the Project.271 As a result, (1) “the administration of the Project changed after the districts paid off their construction debts to the United States in 1979–1980 and it is now operated as two units” and (2) the New Mexico State Engineer began to control the permitting of pumping around and adjacent to this 100-mile stretch of the Rio Grande.272
In the wake of this shift in managerial power, New Mexico began to generously offer groundwater permits with great frequency. Excessive well permitting paired with New Mexico’s judicial doctrine titled the Templeton Doctrine created an even greater perverse incentive. Although New Mexico law generally recognizes both surface water and groundwater form an interconnected system, the advent of a judicially made law created an obvious legally imbedded perverse incentive in an era of increased groundwater pumping. New Mexico courts developed an equitable doctrine, coined the Templeton Doctrine from the opinion rendered in Templeton v. Pecos Valley Artesian Conservancy District.273 This doctrine allows irrigators who cannot satisfy their water demand using solely surface water to pump groundwater to supplement their surface water rights.274 The Templeton Doctrine was crafted to “address the situation where junior wells intercept groundwater that was previously discharged to the surface, thereby depriving the senior water appropriator(s) of their water rights.”275 The New Mexico Supreme Court recently described the doctrine as follows:
To address this circumstance, the Court in Templeton fashioned an equitable remedy to allow senior surface water appropriators impacted by junior wells, to timely reassert their priority by drilling a supplemental well. Through this well the senior surface water right owner can supplement existing surface
supply, if any, by drawing upon the groundwater that originally fed the surface water supply.276
Therefore, rather than limit the groundwater pumping by junior wells in areas hydrologically connected to a senior surface water right holder’s appropriative right, the Templeton doctrine truly creates race to the bottom and a potential for a tragedy-of-the-commons-like scenario. This doctrine paired with New Mexico’s statute that mandatorily exempts domestic wells from any permitting requirement combined with the State Engineer’s willingness to grant groundwater permits, even further highlights the perverse incentives created by Reclamation’s yielding of Project managerial control.277
If the special master recognizes this pretty obvious perverse incentive imbedded within the current legal structure regulating the consumption of water from and around the Rio Grande, then the special master will likely be sympathetic to Texas’ arguments. Texas, however, risks presenting itself as hypocritical. In other words, Texas argument may not pass the smell test in light of its own state judicial doctrine.
Under Texas law, judicial doctrine treats surface water and groundwater as distinct units within dissociated hydrological systems, when in fact groundwater and surface water form a unitary and hydrologically interdependent system. Moreover, under Texas law landownership includes a cognizable property interest “in groundwater in place that cannot be taken for public use without adequate compensation guaranteed by article I, section 17(a) of the Texas Constitution.” 278 Therefore, Texas’ own state law closely resembles New Mexico’s Templeton Doctrine, and in fact it goes even further by establishing that landownership contains such a strong property right in groundwater.
Overall, these apparent weaknesses of State law only further highlight the sad state of affairs for the desert Southwest. For too long, the availability of groundwater to supplement waning supplies of surface water has been taken for granted. And, judicial doctrine has been slow if not completely unable to establish sustainable regulatory mechanisms to curb the overexploitation of regional groundwater. In this light, Texas’ pending case before the Supreme Court helps to highlight the obvious failings of many state laws regulating groundwater pumping. However, as the current drought continues to linger, groundwater supplies will be further depleted if Southwestern states do not take aggressive action. And, in this regard, Texas’ plea to the Supreme Court likely will foreshadow an era where the inadequacies in regional groundwater law become painfully apparent to the region’s economies and its citizenry.
V. CONCLUSION
Overall, lost opportunity and needless cost will likely ultimately define the pending dispute between Texas and New Mexico. In retrospect, at first the parties to the 2008 Operating Agreement proposed to re-examine and give the parties an opportunity to renegotiate the allocation method contained within the agreement every 5 years. However, perhaps partially due to the parties’ almost thirty-year inability to assent to an operating agreement, the parties agreed to reexamine the Operating Agreement only every 50 years. In the eyes of Thomas Maddock III, this was a flaw in the agreement and a missed opportunity.279
This long-term, 50 year commitment likely also contributed to New Mexico’s anger over the 2008 Operating Agreement’s redistribution of its historic Project entitlements. On the other hand, the Operating Agreement did grandfather in thousands of acre-feet of New Mexico’s illicit groundwater pumping occurring since 1938, by grandfathering in thousands of acre-feet of groundwater pumping by requiring New Mexico only restore baseline conditions of the 1951–1978 water shortages. In light of these favorable terms, New Mexico’s actions seem puzzling a best, but more likely extremely misguided.
Thereto, if Texas prevails, New Mexico will owe Texas the cumulative unauthorized groundwater pumping that has accrued since 1938, plus interest, instead of only forcing New Mexico to return to its 1951–1978 baseline. These potential damages become even more concerning to New Mexico since the Supreme Court has allowed “water interest” to accrue in previous interstate compact damage awards.280 Since New Mexico has allowed around 2,500 wells to be drilled since 1938, the damages award plus interest will be enormous if Texas prevails. Plainly speaking, if Texas prevails, New Mexico will never be able to pay this quantity of water back to Texas. This suit will potentially cost New Mexico taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars and New Mexico farmers will suffer because New Mexico’s agricultural industries will be devastated if New Mexico’s Project water allocations are reduced by such a degree.
In the end, it is hard not to ask: what the potential benefits New Mexico sought through its challenge of the 2008 operating agreement? This question is very hard to answer. Both, Texas and New Mexico will spend tens, if not hundreds, of millions of dollars on litigation expenses, and for what gain? The litigation risks posed to New Mexico include potentially devastating economic consequences for New Mexico and defending this lawsuit will create huge expenses, expenses that New Mexican citizens will ultimately bear. After decades of expensive negotiations and legal squabbling finally resulted in the 2008 Operating Agreement, an agreement where both Texas and New Mexico gained something from its bargain, it seems as though New Mexico’s political belligerence blinded its recognition of an amicable resolution.
While this suit certainly offers an example of how regional political passions can lead to seemingly reckless actions, on a larger scale this dispute highlights the overall inadequacies of many regional and national water policies, and it likely foreshadows an era where the legal status quo will be incapable of protecting supplies of the most important and necessary element for human survival. For too long, American and the Southwestern law has treated water as essentially a free good, presumed available in essentially endless supplies. But, in the words of U.S. Senator Mark Udall, “[i]t’s tough to know the true value of water until it’s gone.”281
Even though the United States currently stands atop the globe as its economic powerhouse and although many communities in the desert Southwest have become thriving societies with decorated metropolises supported by robust economies, the future success of America and its Southwest region is not a foregone conclusion. In fact, great civilizations have collapsed because of drought and resource mismanagement. For example, several great Bronze Age civilizations collapsed because of regional climate change. These once thriving civilizations including, “the Hittite empire, the Pharaohs of Egypt, the Mycenaean culture in Greece, the copper producing kingdom located on the island of Cyprus, the great trade emporium of Ugarit on the Syrian coast and the Canaanite city-states under Egyptian hegemony” all disappeared in a short period spanning from the middle of 13th to the late 12th century BCE.282 Of particular and relevant concern, several recent studies of fossil pollens contained in sediments removed from the bottom of the Sea of Galilee indicate that these once great Bronze Age civilizations collapsed because of climate change and regional water scarcity.283 Because of drought and the inability of these Bronze Age civilizations to adapt to a changing climate, regions, which at one point were the fulcrums of the world’s most advanced societies, could no longer support such empires. These empires simply vanished, and scientific data suggests that they vanished because of increased water scarcity.
While comparing the plight of modern America civilization to a civilization from the 12th and 13th century may seem far-fetched or even absurd, in light of the overwhelming scientific consensus that climate change is real, the lessons from history should serve to highlight modern society’s continuing need for legal structures and institutions that can capably, sustainably and adaptively manage resources, particular water resources. Modern society demands leaders, institutions, and legal structures that do not run from or ignore, but rather comport with scientific rea | https://medium.com/@ianwferrell/texas-v-new-mexico-832814a931eb | ['Ian Ferrell'] | 2020-12-10 00:15:12.527000+00:00 | ['Water', 'Lawsuit', 'United States', 'Western', 'Rio Grande'] |
The 10 Best Places to Have Sex in Public (and Not Get Arrested) | The 10 Best Places to Have Sex in Public (and Not Get Arrested)
You know you want to risk it, you just don’ want to get caught.
Photo by Marvin Meyer on Unsplash
I dated a guy recently who was one of those “I’m up for anything — anytime, anywhere” types. We both got a thrill out of doing things that were risque and adventurous and sex was no different.
Camping out in the woods one weekend in an unestablished campground, we found ourselves walking down to the nearby river to cool off after we set-up camp.
As we waded around in the knee-high water, I eyed a large, flattish rock in the middle of the river that looked big enough to hold us both. I suggested to him that we move over to it and he waded over with me. Before I knew it, my dress was pulled up and he was behind me and inside me, while the river thrashed wildly all around us.
Despite the fact that we could be caught by other campers who may have ventured by, we took a risk and had sex on a rock in the middle of the river.
Sometimes the risk is worth the reward. Having sex in public places can be worth the risk if you know how to choose your location wisely and you and your partner can maximize your stealth abilities.
It doesn’t take a lot of pre-planning to have sex in public, but it does require some general rules to follow which allow you to go undetected for risk-free penetration.
There are a few things to consider before you begin thinking about having sex in public. One is your clothing. For women, dresses and skirts make a great option because they can allow easy access and can also be rearranged in a hurry if you are caught. For men, unzipping your pants and leaving them up can allow for easy adjustments, and wearing a longer shirt, sweatshirt, or coat that could hide your boner if you don’t have time to zip up can also be useful.
Another point to consider is the time of day. Nighttime is always easier for hiding in the shadows than during the day, but sometimes you will not have the option to have sex at night. Therefore, if you must have your tryst during the day, be aware of how visible you may be to others.
Finally, the last thing to think about is the “getting caught factor.” In some situations, it won’t be detrimental to get caught unawares by a stranger while you are in the throes of having sex, but there are definitely people who could catch you and the outcome would be much more devastating. Spouses or partners catching their significant other with their lover, a police officer citing you on indecent exposure charges, or a professional career where you may be exposed later at work might be reason enough to error on the side of caution. Understanding your possible “getting caught factor” will help you decide if this is the right risk for you.
10. Parked car
This is a great one for beginners who are trying out public sex for the first time. The risk is all in the location of where you choose to park. Nighttime is usually the safest bet. Find a place where little traffic or pedestrians are going to walk by. Alleyways, remote roads, and deserted parking lots can all allow you enough privacy to get the job done.
Things to consider: You need to be aware of your surroundings. Deserted business parking lots might seem like a safe bet, but if you are caught by late-night security drive-bys or the police (especially if you are the only car in the lot), you will be given a talking to and asked to leave.
9. Parking garage
Slightly more risky than a car parked in a remote location is a car parked in the middle of the city. This one can be a lot of fun at night or even during the day, again given the fact that you know how much pedestrian and car traffic might be present. Parking garages tend to have a lot of lights on during the night but can be pretty deserted during the day, depending on their location. If you have tinted windows, a large SUV with fold-down seats, a van with an area to lay down or you just want to try for foreplay instead, the parking garage can be a great option.
Things to consider: Some parking garages have security patrols or cameras.
8. Public restroom
One of the best options for the daytime is a public bathroom. It is private, single bathrooms allow you to lock the door for safety, and going into one will not attract too much attention. You may have to compete with strange looks when you come out with your partner, but it beats getting caught with your pants down.
Things to consider: Bathrooms can be smelly and not very clean. I do not recommend port-a-potties either — for obvious reasons.
7. Park
Any location outside is a great option for sex in public. It allows you the ability to hide more easily and can be fun when it comes to wandering around to find a perfect location. This is a good option for daytime sex because most parks are closed at night and you run the risk of someone seeing you if you are walking around with your flashlight phone lit up like a Christmas tree. Parks with woods tend to have areas that are remote and more private than large open parks with playgrounds and soccer fields. Choose your park wisely.
Things to consider: Parks can be busy, especially during nice weather. The last thing you want is a child or family coming upon you while you are in a compromising position. Make sure you are well-enough off the beaten path before you pull down your pants.
6. Hiking trail
Nature can be both wildly romantic and downright dirty for having sex. A hiking trail provides a great location where you can wander off the trail (if it’s safe of course) and find a nice place to get down. They can also be very remote and free of strangers, so this is a good daytime option for those who find themselves looking to get laid in Mother Nature. Not to mention a trail empty of other hikers with a waterfall nearby will make it all the more memorable.
Things to consider: Trails can be busy with foot traffic or unsafe to travel off. Be sure to be aware of your surroundings; if there are many people around or you are not in a location that affords you the ability to go off-trail, don’t risk it.
5. Hot springs
Keeping with our nature theme, hot springs can be a very romantic and arousing time to have sex. Established hot springs can give you some privacy or if you are with others, you can usually sit near your partner in the steaming water to at least get a little frisky.
Things to consider: As with any kind of sex in water, hot tubs and hot springs can be just that — hot. Sex in water is difficult enough because of lubrication, so be aware.
4. Hotel rooftop
Hotels have many different places where you and your partner can sneak away from the prying eyes of others and have sex. A hotel rooftop is private, remote, and sexy as hell. Peering out on the city while you are in the middle of sex is thrilling and erotic. It will make for a memorable experience for you both and you won’t have to worry about making too much noise.
Things to consider: Accessing a hotel rooftop can be tricky. Some hotels don’t have rooftop access as well, so play it safe and save this one for one of those rare occasions when you can both find the access and not get caught.
3. Balcony
A balcony railing is a great place to hold on, to lean on, or to be tied to in an act of kinky dominance. Balconies make great places to have sex because they can be private or public. A balcony can allow you to be outside during the day or night and not attract too much attention to yourself if you do it right. A man standing behind a woman would not look too obvious during the day if there weren’t a large number of people who could view the balcony. A balcony at night provides a good deal of privacy if it has walls on either side or is dark enough to hide you.
Things to consider: Some balconies have very little privacy during the day. If you decide to have sex on a balcony, check to make sure it isn’t too busy or visible.
2. Nude beach
If you are fortunate enough to live near a nude beach and you don’t mind a little sand in your shorts, this is a great option for public sex. Not only do you have other individuals who are more open-minded to that sort of thing nearby, but you have the luxury of not looking odd or out of place by being naked. A blanket or two can provide you with some privacy and keep you from getting too sandy in places you don’t want to try and deep clean later.
Things to consider: You shouldn’t assume that because you are at a nude beach that everyone there wants to watch you have sex. Still error on the side of caution and try to find a secluded or private area where there won’t be a lot of people meddling into what exactly you are doing.
1. Sex club
Finally, a place where you will be appreciated and encouraged to bare it all and get it on. A sex club is a fantastic place to explore your voyeuristic or exhibitionist side. If you want to be watched, a sex club is the place for you to have sex in public. Some sex clubs also have private rooms where can copulate without having to perform in front of others if that is not your thing. However, if you find the idea arousing, you will not only be able to have sex in a safe and comfortable environment, but you’ll also be able to watch others. It’s a win-win situation for public sex.
Things to consider: Most sex clubs have memberships and cost money to join. I also realize they are also not as prevalent as parks, parking lots, and restrooms. But they sure are fun. | https://medium.com/sexography/the-10-best-places-to-have-sex-in-public-and-not-get-arrested-9ef2d61645de | ['M. Howard'] | 2020-10-05 14:49:37.992000+00:00 | ['Sex', 'Sexuality', 'Travel', 'Relationships', 'Risk Taking'] |
Can the US survive socialism and is it White Supremacist? | Can the US survive socialism and is it White Supremacist?
While Democrats will have you believe they are of help to minorities, given the results of their “progressive” policies- which can be seen in the inner cities- we immediately realize we have to look at every policy two fold- intention and effect.
Socialism, an emerging trend in the Democratic party, is often advertised as for the minorities and for the poor. The hated capitalist system is seen as having let down non- whites. (Which of course can be easily proven wrong as the people at the top of the economic ladder are Asians.)
Looking at socialism through the “intention and effect” lens we get a different perspective. We assume here that the effect was not known among the proponents. There are cases in which the real intention is different from advertised intention. This is not uncommon in the democratic party, especially after the influence of Saul Alinsky on it-who was an inspiration to both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
Socialism is viewed increasingly favorably among the younger generations with up to 70% of millennials willing to vote for a socialist while it still remains unfavorable among the general population with only 43% viewing it favorably. For socialism to work the majority of people in the community should accept it. Private property is ensured by those in the community and can therefore can be taken away by the same.
First socialism has to be defined. It is commonly defined as “an economic system in which the government owns the means of production”. If socialism is implemented we can expect the government to nationalize large industries like HealthCare, energy and banks. While small business’s fate would uncertain there would be a certain degree of risk for it- like robbery and looting- if their rights are not ensured- which can be done by the state and local governments. Practically, if a robber who robs a business like a small shop is not arrested and convicted by a court, survival of small business would be difficult.
If socialism is implemented we can expect a situation similar to Venezuela. A severe economic crisis marked by hyperinflation and shortage of even basic necessities like food. While socialism would be a massive federal overreach, the degree to which the federal government can implement real socialism is questionable. The individual states- at least the red ones- can ensure the rights of small businesses in their respective states. This can keep the economy of the country afloat.
Most likely, if the red and blue states follow vey different paths, there would be an exodus from the blue states to the red ones. This will be similar to the Cuban Mariel boatlift or the Vietnamese Mass Boat People exodus. The economic effects of it will be similar to the past- as a result of competition from people from blue states, housing costs will increase and wages will reduce in the red states. This can be dealt with easily by cutting regulation.
A federal law stating that states turn over control of millions of small businesses from their owners to the federal government would be extremely hard to implement even with the support of the local police force. Even their cooperation would be uncertain- at least in the red states.
The above scenario completely rules out secession and also assumes the balance of the supreme court shifts left within the years
Venezuela still hasn't returned to capitalism, why? Because it is under an authoritarian regime established under Chavez and passed onto Maduro which can’t be removed even though the support among the people is extremely low. What can be done to prevent this in the US? One interesting observation is that there were gun ‘buy backs’ and confiscation of firearms in Venezuela. This resulted in a disarmed population. By comparison the US has the highest estimated gun ownership rate and citizens not as comfortable to surrender their firearms to the government. If guns were still retained by the people after socialism is implemented the chance that irreversible damage would be done is unlikely.
How would socialism take over and can it be reversed? Once a openly socialist candidate comes to power the stock market will drop in speculation of poor economic policies. This will immediately be felt among voters. Once socialist policies nationalizing industries are adopted, the economy would likely fall into a recession similar to the one in 2008. This would further increase the disapproval of the socialist candidate. This would be felt across the world unlike countries like Cuba or Venezuela because the US economy is the largest in the world. The effect would be several times compounded as the economy of the US is dependent on other countries as well. By this time, the socialist would have lost almost all approval. If the citizens are armed till this time(very likely), the socialist candidate would be replaced in the next election. If the citizens aren’t armed(unlikely) the socialist could impose martial law and tyranny by using the military and the SWAT teams of the FBI, IRS, etc.- which will serve the purpose the Gestapo served in Nazi Germany.
The military is having ‘woke’ training with Critical Race Theory and obsession over race, gender, etc. right now. | https://medium.com/@realron/is-socialism-white-supremacist-in-effect-17b4dda70b43 | ['Ron J'] | 2021-09-08 11:43:49.643000+00:00 | ['Dictatorship', 'White Supremacy', 'Bernie Sanders', 'Authoritarianism', 'Socialism'] |
50 On Page SEO Strategies to Increase SAAS Organic Ranking | Ever since the beginning of websites, the one question that has been perplexing the owners of these website is how to improve the ranking of their websites and get them listed on the first page of any search engine. Now the same question is giving willies to the SaaS providers as well. SaaS (Software as a Service) has got many service providers scratching their hands in order to find some infallible strategies to improve their SaaS organic ranking. Though there are a hatful of tips and tricks to achieve considerable ranking but not all of them are legitimate because there are some black hat methods as well which are not recommended at all. Following such techniques can put your services in jeopardy and might lead to total disaster. Here, we are focusing on legitimate methods only. There are myriad factors that influence ranking of SaaS. Among the most decisive factors, one is keywords. Keywords are an indispensable part of improving ranking of your services. Keywords can be utilized in many ways. We will discuss all these ways in this article. Another important aspect is the quality and authenticity of your content. If you search for SEO strategies to improve your SaaS organic ranking, you will come across only 30 techniques at the most on any particular website, but here we provide you an exhaustive list of such techniques so that you have all the relevant and imperative information available under one roof.
Following are the 50 On Page SEO strategies to elevate your SaaS organic ranking:
Quality of the Content: To get highlighted and be recognised, it is of utmost importance that you create relevant and compelling content. Only by creating such content, you will stand good chances to attract handsome traffic. Create your own content; use simple language so that any normal visitor can comprehend you and your message aptly and adequately. Moreover, if the content has probability of going viral then you are likely to be rewarded by Google because the company considers and takes care of such content in its ranking algorithm. Focus on Relevant Keywords: Don’t act like an amateur who would add every keyword associated with their industry in the content created by them. Employ your grey cells and think what keywords are mostly searched for by the users that are germane to your business and create content based upon these keywords. Make a list of the keywords that suit your domain and explore Google Keyword Planner to understand the trend of searches following on Google and generate content based upon the highly ranked keywords.
Keywords Management: It often happens that we intend to create multiple pages with a variety of keywords so that we can maximize our chances of getting enough traffic, but this practice is out and out wrong. Any attempt at such working will make things difficult for Google and it won’t be able to decide aptly which particular page bears correct and pertinent information and ultimately, it will affect your results. Instead of going after many pages, focus on just one page where all the germane keywords are used. Having a dedicated page to keywords will enhance your traffic. Keyword Repetition: This is another method where keywords can provide you leverage to improve the ranking of your platform. Repetition of keywords must not overshadow your writing style and the quality of your content. Keywords must be used in a proper manner. For short page content, use keywords 2–3 times and for long page content, use keywords 5–6 times. Moreover, make sure that relevant keyword has been used in the first 50 words of the content to increase the probability of your content being listed among the search results. Variation in Keywords: You must have realized by now that keywords are of vital importance in taking the ranking of your website to the next level. In addition to the keyword repetition and relevance, variation in keywords can also play a decisive role. Along with placing the keywords together, you should place them by splitting as well. It will add to the content quality and help in improving your ranking. Content Title Optimization: The title of your content matters a lot. It is not about the description of your content only; it also has a role in adding to your ranking. While displaying organic search results, Google picks up the first line of the hyperlinked text of content. As per Google, this is the second most important facet of improving SaaS organic ranking. Any content targeted towards better ranking must have a title with characters not more than 70. Also, ensure that you utilize your important keywords in the title for your content and if possible, try to add the name of your company as well at the end. Grossing Meta Description: The meta description of your content must be captivating and concise. Google shows the meta description of your content beneath the page title while coming up with organic results. Meta descriptions are not as significant as the title of your content but it matters a lot when it comes to attracting users to generate clicks. Variation in Keywords for Anchor Text: The visible characters and words displayed by hyper-linking while connecting to another page is called anchor text. Utilizing pertinent and aptly described anchor text makes the job of Google easier to decide what the page is linked to. Internal linking is hyper linking of some text called anchor text, clicking on which takes you to another page on the same website. In internal linking, anchor text used should be relevant to the variation in keywords created. Make sure that excessive use of similar keywords does not occur.
Utilize ALT Tags: ALT tags are used to look for and generate alternative text to turn up the elements which can’t be rendered otherwise such as images or any other file. There is a strong association of ALT tags with Google SEO rankings that lets you use targeted keywords with descriptive ALT tags in case you have images and other elements on your web pages. URL Names: URL names matter a lot in improving SaaS organic ranking. URLs must be kept short and must bear relevant keywords close to the domain name. If there are multiple keywords, separate them with hyphens. It has been seen that long URLs affect the search results generated by Google. That is why we are recommending to keep URLs short and simple. No Unethical Practice: Unethical practice to improve the ranking of your website by playing tricks on the search engine is termed as black hat. By applying any cheat codes or tricks, you might succeed in getting traffic but that will only be ephemeral. Google is working incessantly to improve its working and tackle such tricks so that only genuine and deserving content get listed in the search results. Commit it to your memory that if you resort to dirty tricks to boost the ranking of your website and if Google finds it which it will for sure in due course, algorithm update will not only wipe out the progress you have made, but if things want to get worse, your site might be removed from the index as well. Explore Social Media Platforms: It has already been established that every business seeking progress and prosperity will have to turn to the social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+, sooner or later. These platforms can furnish you with tremendous response in the form of traffic. If you have not explored this aspect of improving your SaaS ranking, this is about the time when you give it a serious thought.
Track down Your Community: Just like you do in your normal life that if you feel like socializing, you hang out with the people with whom you share common interests. Similarly, explore the internet and go to various websites and get in touch with the relevant groups. It is by resorting to such methods that you will end up meeting the people who bear the same interest as you and it will help you in your SaaS ranking when they reach you for your services on your platform. Genuine Content: The most which is of paramount importance is the genuineness and authenticity of the content posted on a website. You should work upon creating your own unique content, in your own style to lure traffic. Any amount of copied or edited work of someone else on your website will not only compromise the SaaS organic ranking of your website on but the owner of the original content can dispute it as well which can put you through legal processes and result in the removal of your progress form the index. Self-created Content: Most of the visitors go to a particular website only because they fall for the writing style of the writer of that website and the enthralling manner in which a piece of writing progresses. It is the peculiar writing style of authors that keep their readers loyal towards them. That is why the focus should always be on creating content on your own. Develop your own writing style and enrich it with beautiful and impressive quotes, and figures to make it all the more attractive. To prove the legitimacy of your content, you can add your name as well towards the end of your content. SEO Friendly Internal Links: We have already discussed the vitality of keywords in creating a good content. Other than a piece of writing comprising your keywords, you will also be making your visitors jump to different pages on your website with the application of internal links, but it is quite important that the choice of words for internal links be germane. For any internal link, it must contain the necessary keyword in it and it must allude to the nature of the content that the following link carries. You can opt for multiple internal links on a single page, but it must be ensured that it is not putting in jeopardy the ranking of your website. Short and Precise: We have seen that many content providers produce unnecessarily elongated content just to make it look more impressive which, in reality, does the opposite job. No reader likes irrelevant stories weaved in the piece of writing they are interested in reading. Your target should be on creating a short and alluring content so that they your visitors can grab as much as knowledge from your content as possible without struggling with unnecessary information in your content. Moreover, the information in your content must be precise and reliable so that your readers can invest faith in your services, If possible, try to back your content with facts and figures based upon surveys and polls. Mobile Friendly Content: People do not have enough time these days to open their laptops or go to computers to search for anything online. We all want instant results and that too without having much to do. In such a case, we turn to our smart phones to perform such functions. Almost everything is available on smart phones these days. Hence, it becomes a necessity that your content be mobile friendly so that internet users who use smart phones mostly can access your website and thus your content without any inconvenience. Keeping your website mobile friendly will help you go a long way with your desired traffic count and it will ultimately lead to improving your SaaS organic ranking.
Keep it updated: Internet users will only stay with a particular website of they are getting all the required information with indispensable updates. In order to keep getting a good amount of traffic and giving your visitors a fresh feel from time to time, it is essential that you keep updating the content on your website over a suitable duration. It will not only provide your visitors with latest information about your services but also give you a positive feeling that you are serving your customers in an apt manner. Analytics Assistance: Experts’ assistance and guidance is essential in running any business whether it is online or offline. Website owners must seek services of analytics to comprehend and boost the ranking of their websites. If you are perplexed about such services then you resort to Google analytics strategies to analyse the working and results of your website, Google analytics will help you in the following ways
People tend to fidget when they see that their traffic is decreasing. But they do not realise most of the time that their organic traffic is has increased while other sources of traffic have decreased. Google analytics assist you in viewing your organic search traffic. This report will help you in getting the better of the situation and work upon the aspects where you are lacking.
Google analytics will assign dollar values to your organic traffic. To generate reports this way, you must have access to a Google Adwords account and you will need to have your Google analytics synced with Search Console account.
Get Experts’ Assistance: If you are new to this whole SaaS marketing and improving SaaS organic ranking then you should seek assistance of some professionals. Professional link builders can help you with setting things up in a proper manner by acquiring white hat links. Professionals for SEOs can help you make through the glitches so that you succeed in attracting the traffic you seek and deserve. On the application of such techniques, you will definitely see positive result. Moreover, if you have been in this business for a while and have left no stone unturned to generate traffic but nothing worked out positive, even in that case you can turn to professionals. Transforming the Website Design: It happens most of the time that people find a website’s landing page or home page attractive and alluring which makes them turn them to a particular website for their concerned needs. Hence, website design and display play a vital role. If you find that your website lacks the details it needs to have to take the fancy of the internet users then must mull over this aspect and take necessary steps. Ensure that the design of your website is optimized to lure search engines and traffic.
Consult with Digital Marketing Experts: Many businesses have improved their SaaS ranking following the guidance of marketing professionals. There can be many methods to provide your business an edge over the others such as creating new landing pages with effective and powerful call to actions (CTAs) marketing strategies. Landing pages must be created based upon the types of content such as music, videos, eBooks, info graphics, etc. Keeping in mind your business and its needs, consult with pertinent marketing experts and boost your ranking. Customer Understanding: For any business, it is vital that you understand your customers because only this way you will be able to quench their thirst for your services. Analyse your business and ask yourself that what information about you and your business must be known to your customers so that they put faith in you and your services. All this information must available on your website in order to provide them access to this information all the time. Moreover, keep your website updated with your future products and services so that it keep people tuned to your website for your next big announcement. Captivating Headline: The one thing that incites us to read a piece of writing is its catchy headline or topic. More than half of the population of the readers follows this trend. Hence, keeping a captivating headline is must. The topic or the headline of your content, along with being attractive and alluring to the mind, must give an idea about the information in your content as well. You should not forge any irrelevant topic headlines just to lure the internet users. It must be authentic so that your visitors get what they seek. SE0 Friendly Landing Page: In spite of many search engines including Google giving considerable preference and credit to quality, SEO is still of paramount importance when it comes to increasing ranking. You must resort to some best SEO practices to enable target audience find your landing page such as including keywords in the url of the landing page. You can involve alt tags to link your images. Share your page and content: It is a basic practice to gather as much audience as you can that you share your content and link to your landing page as much as you can. Moreover, search engines prefer such pages that are shared a lot. So, to improve your SaaS organic ranking, make sure that you add sharing button to your page so that interested visitors can share page and generate traffic for your platform. Above-the-fold Strategy: Above the fold strategy is referred to the scenario when all the necessary information is available on the page that gets loaded first on your website. LL the information that a visitor seeks such as copy of the landing page, form for capturing lead and call to action button must all be displayed on the portion of the page that is located towards the beginning of the page. People are unlikely to scroll down unless they see valuable information and plausible information. Hence, it is vital to keep all the vital particulars above the fold.
Aptly Designed Lead Capturing Form: It is essential that instead of elongating your lead capturing form with irrelevant information, you keep it short and simple with required and necessary information only as most of the time, first time visitors do not feel comfortable with sharing their details. You can ask for more and personal information about your visitors depending upon the value of your offer, what sort of business and services you are providing. Consult with other departments of your business and get to know what information you need to grab from the visitors. Even if necessary, try to avoid asking for sensitive and extremely personal information. If possible, try to make and provide a privacy policy on your website so that visitors do not get any uneasiness while providing their details. Test and Analyse your Landing Page: Based upon a survey, it has been found that over 60% of companies put their landing pages through sufficient number of tests. Your old and existing website design and landing page might have been giving you enough traffic but things won’t remain the same in nearby future because other players in the field are incessantly working to improve their design and working. Running pertinent test on your landing page is the best method to keep your landing page optimized and generate a handsome amount of traffic. During the test, you must analyse your layout design, colour scheme for the landing page, compelling headline, and size and text for CTA button. Finding Relevant Clients and Businesses: It is inevitable that if you are running a website, you will look for relevant clients to take assistance and utilize their expertise to boost your business. Similarly, website owners also hunt for relevant parties. So, explore the internet and track down the business entities and you find their links relevant to your business, you can ask them to link those links to yours so that you and the involved parties can gain from this mutual agreement. Acquiring an Existing Website: Of all the SEO techniques harnessed to improve SaaS organic ranking, this one is the most ignored and least utilized. People think that buying an existing website is going to make them shell out extra which is not the case. You can buy a website for an affordable price and spending a modest amount on SEO campaign can result in handsome traffic. When such a venture is carried out in a proper manner, such website can generate good long-term investment. Among the many benefits that acquiring an existing website and maintaining it offers, some are:
You will get to absorb the existing traffic of this website
You will have control over all the links of the existing website.
The keyword ranking of the existing website will enhance the ranking of your keywords.
You might also get to acquire the mailing list of existing subscribers and its social media accounts.
Work on the underperforming Content: While generating more and big content for your platform you must not ignore the existing and underperforming content. Track such underperforming content, modify them accordingly based upon necessary keywords and put them back on the website so that they start generating results. It is only by working on and fixing the weak links that the whole chain system can be rendered with more strength. Hence, work upon the content which is lying useless, republish it and make the most of it. Analyzing the Links of Your Competitors: To provide your business an edge over your competitors, it is essential that you know their working methods and techniques. Compile a list of all the competitors falling in your domain, analyse their websites and relevant pages that are linked to them. Now, explore and track down similar kinds of links and link them to your website legitimately to escalate your ranking.
Special Attention to Video Content: Video content must be rendered with special attention. Such a type of content is very crucial in making your visitors understand your written content. If you are not providing your video content on Youtube and your website is the sole source of viewing your website then it becomes quite important that you keep these videos interesting with the applications of graphics techniques. Also, in the description of your video content, always try to provide some extra information which is not present in the video. Go for Co-marketing Techniques: Running marketing campaigns with another business entities that suit your interest and domain can be of great assistance, It will not only help you save your resources but also render you with more suitable working minds for your job which will generate leads for the parties involved in co-marketing campaigns. Consolidate Your Content: It is a common practice that we keep all of our similar things or the things that are used for similar purposes together. The same way all the content that is interconnected must be linked with each other either by using internal links or suitable templates. All the information that pertains to common domain must be made available so that the users can access them easily without any unnecessary confusion. Work on the Format: The format of your content must be tempting to the eyes and minds of your readers. All the information on your website must be presented in a well manner so that the readers know what lies where and do not get confused while going through your website. If the information is scattered all over your website and there is no place dedicated to any particular content, it will only cause inconvenience for your visitors and affect the ranking of your SaaS. Expert Roundup Role: Among the various assistance sources to boost the ranking of your, one is expert roundup. SaaS Expert roundups are shared quite heavily on social media websites. You can use them for driving social management, generating leads and links, relationship building, etc. Based upon the preferences and needs, business entities utilize them as per their needs. Don’t Rely on Big Content: This particular step is intrinsic to all the business processes and it is a big mistake as well. We often rely on the major parts of our businesses and tend to underestimate the capabilities and importance of minor processes. Similarly, while running a website, we focus only on big content to generate traffic while we don’t pay even of that attention to small content. In fact, it is this small content which is present in large amount on websites that results in a goodish amount of traffic and raising your organic ranking. A Smart Responsive System: We often come across smart, responsive, and assisting systems on various websites that make a window pop up across any lower corner and asks us about our queries and needs. Posting your questions there results in instant answers. Such a system is of great help to provide your visitors all the necessary information without any delay. Moreover, you can interact with your visitors aptly by conversing with them in a real-time manner. | https://medium.com/@hupport/50-on-page-seo-strategies-to-increase-saas-organic-ranking-3e52185b9600 | ['Hupport Appointment Scheduling Software'] | 2020-12-18 05:44:51.788000+00:00 | ['SEO', 'Organic Ranking', 'SaaS', 'On Page Seo', 'On Page Seo Optimization'] |
Hurricane Michael Devastation Only Tip of the Iceberg | Reuters
Powerful Hurricane Michael slammed into the Florida Panhandle with terrifying winds of 155 mph Wednesday, splintering homes and submerging neighborhoods before continuing its destructive march inland across the Southeast. It was the most powerful hurricane to hit the continental U.S. in nearly 50 years. (AP)
Nature has not gone crazy — we’ve gone crazy. Scientists have been warning us for many years but since we are not making any significant changes in our life, the situation will continue to escalate.
Former Vice President Al Gore warned that “time is running out” after the release of a U.N. special report that gives the world 12 years to head off climate calamity by radically transforming “all aspects of society.”
The conclusion from the report is simple: if greenhouse gas emissions are not reduced by 2030, the Earth will be irreversibly damaged. You can also add blows from the rest of nature, such as tsunamis, floods, storms, fires, extreme cold and heat waves, melting glaciers, and more.
In order to understand the bleak situation we’re in, we need to understand the reason for what’s happening.
Earth Is a System of Forces That Must Maintain Balance
The natural system we live in is a system of forces operating at different levels of inanimate, vegetative, living and human beings. It is a closed, integral system, where even the most remote elements are completely interconnected. The relationship between the pieces is so interdependent that each part affects the entire system.
Think of our body as an example for a harmonious system. When any organ is out of balance, it throws the whole body out of balance and causes an illness. Physicians examine the balance across the systems in our body, and when they receive the test results, they diagnose the state of our body in relation to the norm. If certain parameters are too high or too low, it means that our body is not in good health.
Until the last fifty years or so, we lived in relative balance on Earth. In other words, this nice home that feeds and sustains us, was relatively “healthy.”
The illness emerged as we breached our balance with nature. We have been emitting carbon dioxide, polluting the oceans with non-biodegradable waste, fertilizing the soil with chemicals, feeding cattle and poultry with antibiotics, and the list goes on. The chemical and non-natural compounds don’t break down in the soil or the air, and ultimately we feed on them again and again. As a result, new diseases emerge within us and around us.
Why Earth Is Sick
As long as the human ego controls our actions, the situation will only get worse. Greed drives corporations to use toxic substances in agriculture and medicine, and the integrity of nature is the least of their priorities. Governments are subject to tycoons, and scientists conduct their research according to the interests of the heads of industry and commerce.
Thus, we’ve thrown the natural system out of balance, and as a result we witness “natural diseases.” Just like a person who shows symptoms that indicate he is on the way out of his health range, our planet is getting sick. The “physicians of nature,” the scientists who study the various climatic conditions, are noticing that we are facing a terrible outbreak of disease.
Even if it seems that the climate is wonderful in one region and stormy in the other, this is all temporary. The planet is round and the natural system is integral. Ultimately, just like a foot infection can gradually spread throughout the body, the diseases of nature will spread throughout the planet.
But instead of working towards balance with nature, we continue to work for the short term benefit of the rich and powerful. In turn, inequality and polarization grow within human society, and society as a whole grows increasingly out of balance with nature. As the gap continues to grow, the blows of nature will cost us a great deal of suffering, sickness and death. Just consider the amount of damage that one earthquake can cause.
The Human Ego Blocks the Healing Process
Ultimately, climate destabilization will force us to change our ways. We will have to become conscious and wary of our balance with nature, and our connection with each other inside this integral system.
In fact, this change should have happened from the middle of the twentieth century, as we began to be bound through global interdependence in commerce, industry, economics, media, and so forth. The human race should have begun to act in mutual responsibility. That is, to take care of the needs of all mankind, while maintaining balance with nature.
But the reality is that we cannot even deal with our global challenges and their rapid spread because our own ego stands in the way. The human ego doesn’t care about climate change and is ready to trample any agreement on its way to getting its hands on every single penny.
Therefore, it is the human ego that we must balance first if we are to reach any stable agreements between us. Treaties such as the “Kyoto Protocol” or the “Paris Agreement” only serve to show us the futility of any attempt to solve our problems without taking the human ego into account.
Balance with Nature Starts with Balance between Us
To change our fate on this planet, we must begin with harmonizing the connection between all human beings.
The world is a single creation, and even our psychology and our inner forces interact with nature in ways that we don’t see or understand. Our thoughts and our intentions have a lot to do with our balance with nature.
We’re at a unique point in human development, where everyone can begin to see the need for harmonious human connections on a global scale, and yet, we don’t have the power and method to make that happen.
This is why the wisdom of Kabbalah is being revealed today. Authentic Kabbalah is not a new or ancient religion, it’s not mysticism and it’s not a philosophy. Rather, it is an empirical method that teaches us how we can achieve balance with nature through activating our deep wiring for human connection.
Everything depends on the relationship between human beings. When we realize that and begin to consciously act on that, the whole system of nature will give us positive feedback. We will begin to sense that we are a global human family, and Earth is our only home. | https://michaellaitman.medium.com/hurricane-michael-devastation-only-tip-of-the-iceberg-bb7e54cb0bde | ['Michael Laitman'] | 2018-10-11 12:52:22.106000+00:00 | ['Florida', 'Hurricane', 'Weather', 'Climate Change', 'Environment'] |
30 Days of Google Cloud | A Platform to learn, discover, experiment, and win exciting rewards
Turning from neophyte to skilled individuals!
Developer Students Clubs by Google in association with VSSUT, Burla organized the 30 days of Google Cloud Challenge facilitated by AITIK DANDAPAT(DSC, VSSUT lead).
The 30 days of cloud program kick-started to provide hands-on training on Google Cloud Platform — the tool that powers apps like Google Search, Gmail, and YouTube. As a first step, the participants had to enroll in the program and sign in with Qwiklabs, which provides a real cloud environment with no simulations and temporary credentials to perform hands-on lab activities. The Cloud program targeted two of the most in-demand skills booming in the technologically driven world. They were:
1. Cloud Engineering Track
2. Data Science and Machine learning Track
Each of the tracks was followed by six quests with two quests common in both and each quest consisted of at least five labs and one challenge lab that tested our learning in the labs already taken. The labs were assisted with detailed instructions and demo videos to help any individual get an insight of the context. An online help desk was maintained by a group of DSC members who were always ready to help and guide the participants facing difficulty while performing the tasks.
Let’s dive into a brief summary of the quests in the individual tracks:
CLOUD ENGINEERING TRACK
The first quest was Getting Started: Create and Manage Cloud Resources. It focused on making us write Cloud Shell commands and deploy a virtual machine. It dealt with running applications on Kubernetes Engine or Load balancer. Basically, it was an introduction to the fundamentals of Google cloud.
The second quest Perform Foundational Infrastructure Tasks in Google Cloud helped individuals to dive into cloud storage and application services like Cloud monitoring and cloud functions.
The third quest Set up and Configure a Cloud Environment in Google Cloud introduced us to Kubernetes engine deployment, fundamental SQL clauses, and helped in running structured queries in Big Query and Cloud SQL.
The fourth quest Deploy and Manage Cloud Environments with Google Cloud dealt with provisioning a complete Kubernetes cluster and breaking an application into microservices using Kubernetes Deployments and services.
The fifth quest was Build and Secure Networks in Google Cloud. This quest focused on creating load balancers and provided a practical experience to build robust networks.
The last and sixth quest was Deploy to Kubernetes in Google Cloud where the participants were introduced to docker images, containers and were involved in deploying fully-fledged Kubernetes Engine applications and managing deployment.
DATA SCIENCE AND MACHINE LEARNING TRACK
The first quest Getting Started: Create and manage Cloud Resources as stated earlier, was common in both the tracks.
The second quest Perform Foundational Data, ML, and AI Tasks in Google Cloud showed up ways to create a streaming pipeline using a Google provided cloud dataflow template. It helped in creating a Dataproc cluster, run a simple Apache Spark, and integrate speech recognition into web-apps.
The third quest was Insights from Data with Big Query. It dealt in teaching the fundamental SQL clauses and helped in troubleshooting common SQL errors and use the query validator.
The fourth quest Engineering data with the cloud helped in creating a data transformation pipeline, manage devices using cloud IOT core, use Big Query to analyze the data, and build an end to end machine learning solution using Tensorflow and AI platforms.
The fifth quest was Integrating cloud with Machine Learning APIs that stressed on the basic functioning of the APIs, extract, analyze and translate text from images with the cloud Machine learning APIs and detect labels, faces, and landmarks in images.
The last quest Explore Machine learning models with explainable AI provided hands-on practice with explainable AI which is a set of tools and frameworks that helps us to develop interpretable and inclusive ML models as well as deploy the models.
At the end of each lab, scores out of 100 were displayed with a green check mark. A quest was considered to be completed only on scoring a cent percent in individual labs. On successful completion of each quest, a skill badge was awarded on the Qwiklabs profile page which indeed encouraged one to move on with smooth cloud experiences.
Towards the end of the Google cloud event, Schwags Claim form were received by the participants via email and the one’s qualifying for the same were sent exciting goodies from Google Cloud.
This year 180 members from VSSUT, Burla registered for the 30 days of Google cloud challenge with 60 participants completing both the tracks and 85 participants completed at least one track.
Being a participant of the 30 days Google Cloud challenge, I would say,
“It was a very well- planned program that imparted knowledge providing hands-on experience on Cloud learning resources and helped in personal enrichment in a lot many ways. I seriously look forward to more such events. Thank You, DSC, VSSUT for such an exciting platform and I express my gratitude to Aitik Dandapat( DSC, VSSUT Lead, and Google Cloud facilitator) for being an amazing mentor throughout.” | https://medium.com/dsc-vssut/30-days-of-google-cloud-5b493e34df38 | ['Abhipsa Swain'] | 2020-12-25 21:08:58.437000+00:00 | ['Cloud', 'Qwiklabs', 'Developer Student Club'] |
I Let My Son Fall and Fail | I Let My Son Fall and Fail
A playground encounter forces a dad to assert his right to parent.
Photo credit: Shutterstock
By Aaron Gouveia
Will loves the playground. And not just because it’s a fun way to spend a Sunday afternoon, but also because it’s challenging.
The one by our house has a cool plastic climbing structure that really makes Will work. It starts off vertical with holes throughout for hands and feet, before it twists down horizontally and then back up again before reaching the platform on the other side. It not only forces Will to think about where his hands and feet go, but also whether he wants to traverse the top portion or go underneath.
The result is many attempts that fail spectacularly.
Slips and falls are guaranteed as he learns the best ways to make his way along the structure. When we went yesterday, he fell off close to a dozen times before he finally made it. The highest distance he can fall from is roughly 4 feet, and the entire ground is soft mulch that makes for a cushioned landing. So while I offer him plenty of cheerleading and advice when he asks for it, that’s the extent of my involvement. Because as long as you make sure they’re safe (which Will was), I think it’s important for parents to let kids find their own way without babying them.
Today there were a bunch of kids there with their parents. One mother of a boy who looked to be about 2 years old caught my eye, mainly because she couldn’t take her eyes off Will. Each time he fell she winced and looked disapprovingly in my direction. I’m used to that, as overprotective “playground moms” are unfortunately pretty common. But I did not expect what happened next.
Will tried to go on the left side to climb, got halfway there, and thought twice about his decision. So he attempted to go back to the platform to start over, then slipped but caught himself. The end result was him hanging from the top with one tippy-toe on the platform as he struggled to make it back to where he started. He whimpered a little bit and called out for me, but I told him he was doing great and he could figure out on his own if he stayed calm.
And that’s when “Playground Mom” decided she had enough because she walked briskly over to him and said “You need help sweetie? Give me your hand.”
I was furious but not exactly shocked since I had seen it building to that point for the previous 10 minutes. But I still wasn’t about to let it go without addressing it.
“Excuse me, but he doesn’t need your help and he’s fine. I’m his dad and I’m right here.”
“Well clearly he does need help because he’s about to fall,” she said in full condescending mommy tone.
“Maybe, maybe not. But either way he’ll be fine. I can parent my own kid.”
Then, just as she looked like she would blow her top, my boy came through big time and shut her up in the best way possible. Still hanging there, he politely said “No thanks, I can do it myself!” and proceeded to climb his way back to the platform without help from anyone.
“Imagine that,” I muttered with a victorious smirk as Mrs. Know-it-all Mommy McMommerson huffed away, no doubt to get more bubble wrap to insulate her poor son from every bump and bruise on the horizon.
Look, you can parent however you want but I have multiple problems with what happened. First of all, it’s just another in a long list of examples that show some moms think they know everything — especially compared to dads. To openly step in and insert herself with me — the kid’s actual parent — right there? Maybe she would’ve done the same to another mom, but I doubt it. It’s a shitty attitude and I’m unbelievably sick of it.
Second, we are raising a generation of kids who know nothing about taking risks. Even on the monkey bars and playgrounds of America, the minute they hit some turbulence and adversity mommy and daddy are there to rescue them — and give them a trophy in the process. It makes me ill. My son won’t be great at everything, but he’s going to try his damndest. Because every attempt ends in failure until it doesn’t. Every fall builds determination to finish. Every setback is a lesson learned that gets you one step closer to your goal.
I let my son fall — and fail — so his future accomplishments will be that much sweeter and well-deserved.
—
This story was originally published on Daddy Files and republished on The Good Men Project. | https://goodmenproject.medium.com/i-let-my-son-fall-and-fail-f4a11ae19551 | ['The Good Men Project'] | 2020-09-23 15:47:01.595000+00:00 | ['Failure', 'Life Lessons', 'Childhood', 'Fatherhood', 'Parenting Advice'] |
Meetings Suck | Here’s how to make them better according to the experts.
7 books that were written to help organizers make meetings and events more effective, actionable, and interesting to participants.
We’re spending more time than ever in meetings, and most of them are passive online experiences now. How can we prevent meeting burnout and feel every event we attend is valuable?
Here are six books from the experts that answer exactly this.
1. Intentional Event Design by Tahira Endean
Tahira says that event organizers must empathize with their audience and create experiences that leave attendees with knowledge that will change their behavior in a meaningful way after the event is over.
It’s the lasting affects of an event on a participant’s psyche that’s most important.
2. Special Events for Less by Katie Herritage
Katie drives home the point that spending for the sake of itself isn’t worthwhile. Sure, you might be able to up the production level, or provide attendees with something that is perceived as cool or interesting.
But does it align with attendees goals? If it doesn’t, it probably isn’t worth doing.
3. Into the Heart of Meetings by Eric de Groot
Eric says that meetings are a framework that naturally evolve with actual participation. He gets us thinking about the mind and body in the meeting space too.
With so many virtual meetings now, how can we maximize participation and mirror the face-to-face experience? At physical meetings (when we have them) how can we maxmimize opportunity for the mind and body to function together to create unique connections?
4. THRIVE: The Facilitator’s Guide to Radically Inclusive Meetings by Mark Smutny
Mark says that meeting outcomes are perhaps more important than the meeting itself. But to have good outcomes you need first create an environment in which a goal-oriented community can thrive.
Starting with an agenda and having clearly defined rules that consider everyone are good places to start.
5. Conferences that Work by Adrian Segar
Adrian says that traditional conferences put too much pressure on so-called subject matter experts. In what he calls peer conferences, it is the participant that is the expert.
He says conferences that position partipants as professional experts (because they are) and facilitate conversation work better.
6. The Non-Obvious Guide To Event Planning by Andrea Driessen
Andrea says meeting organizers must be very specific about the outcomes they want their events to achieve. This helps them define their audience and help that audience achieve whatever it is they consider success.
Having your audience be motivated or inspired is not enough. What exactly do you want them to leave and do when they return to the office?
7. Meetings Suck by Cameron Herold
Cameron says that it’s up to attendees to make the most of the meetings they attend. It’s the organizers job, however, to give attendees a clear agenda so they can make informed decisions on what to attend and what to skip.
With proper planning, attendees can achieve value from every meeting.
- Mike Doane | https://medium.com/@medoane/meetings-suck-5aa2cd5bf861 | ['Michael Doane'] | 2020-12-03 12:07:18.668000+00:00 | ['Business', 'Event Management', 'Books', 'Meetings', 'Startup Lessons'] |
From Pause Mixing to a Grammy Award: The Story of Mixmaster Mike | (Updated June 2nd, 2018)
From his earliest memories, recorded sound always played a prominent role in San Francisco native Mixmaster Mike’s life. Exposed to the deep funk crates of his uncles as a kid, records were often on full blast in his house. This constant exposure helped nurture an enduring appreciation of music and, according to his 1998 bio for the Sierra Nevada World Music Festival, “planted the seeds for my later learning to pinpoint bits of music, like a breakdown, a chorus, a guitar solo, whatever it was I was hearing.”
Grandmixer DST and Herbie Hancock performing “Rockit” live.
As is common for many artists who came up in the 80s, Mike first found his way into hip-hop culture through breaking and b-boying in 1984 at age 14. Fascinated by the passion he saw people pour into this emerging phenomenon, he knew he had to find a way to increase his involvement. “It was this movement, this art form that was so new, and so full of energy, that captured my heart and really made me want to be involved,” he said in his World Music Festival bio.
An innovative Mike, then in his early teens, also decided to create his own lane into DJ culture by taking two of his uncle’s tape decks out of storage. After he connected the decks to some speakers, he tried his hand at making smooth transitions from song to song. Before long he developed a creative method for mixing songs that played at different tempos. “I would put two different music selections on two cassette decks, and blend them while using the pause button to speed up or slow down the tempos in order to keep both on the beat,” he said in his World Music Festival bio. “That’s how the mixing started.”
“I do the Beasties concerts with two turntables and a microphone — all vinyl, no samplers, and no buttons being pushed except the stop button.”
Pause button blending allowed Mike to test the waters of DJing, but it became a lifelong passion when he caught Herbie Hancock and Grandmixer DST performing their hit “Rockit” by chance one night while watching TV. Hancock’s decision to feature DST prominently on a popular song helped introduce scratching, which was still in its infancy, to the mainstream. Mesmerized by DST’s deft turntable wizardry, Mike knew then and there what he wanted to dedicate his life to. “It was my first introduction to this futuristic art of music manipulation called scratching,” he said in his World Music Festival bio. “And from then on, all I ever wanted to be was a scratch DJ.”
Rob Swift’s personal footage of the X-Men battling the Invisibl Skratch Piklz at ITF in 1996.
Soon after, Mike had a mismatched Garrard and JVC turntables with a faderless, battery-powered mixer as his first official setup. He earned his stripes early on as a mobile party DJ, working house parties, weddings, and any other event he could pick up. During one of these gigs, a mutual friend introduced him to scratch icon DJ Q-Bert. Just as Gradmixer DST had unlocked Mike’s love of DJing, Mike would likewise inspire Q-Bert to take up the turntables as an instrument. “Q-Bert wasn’t a DJ at the time, but when he saw me scratching that night, it had the very same effect on him as when I first saw DST in concert cutting up the word ‘fresh’ on the ‘Rockit’ 12-inch,” Mike said in his World Music Festival bio.
Mike’s life took a turbulent turn after his initial connection with Q-Bert. Disinterested in school and tired of fighting with his mom about his attendance, he ran away from home before finishing high school at age 16. With his future hanging in the balance, he joined a mobile DJ squad and went to work soon after leaving San Francisco and relocating to Sacramento. As he continued building his skill set as a party DJ, Mike caught wind of an upcoming battle Q-Bert was organizing in his school cafeteria. He wasted little time in challenging the artist he had initially inspired. “It turned out to be perhaps the most classic moment ever in the history of DJ hip-hop,” he said in his World Music Festival bio. “I won the battle, but in a re-match soon after that, he won.”
“I would put two different music selections on two cassette decks, and blend them while using the pause button to speed up or slow down the tempos in order to keep both on the beat. That’s how the mixing started.”
The two rivals eventually decided to put the bad blood aside and join forces when Mike, Q-Bert and DJ Apollo came together to form the original iteration of the Invisibl Skratch Piklz. After taking out the competition at the DMC (Disco Mixing Club) US and World DJ finals in 1992 as a trio, Q-Bert and Mike defended the group’s title in 1993 as a two-man team with a legendary routine during the DMC World finals in London. According to Mike, the folks at DMC feared the Piklz were discouraging other crews from competing, asked them to stop entering team battles, and encouraged them to take on judging instead.
Since this article was first published, DMC USA CEO Christie Z. wrote in a Medium response, “DMC allegedly asked them each to battle solo — not as a crew,” adding further, “In addition, DMC didn’t have team battles at that time. That’s why it was mostly unfair to allow teams in to battle solo DJs.” Whether the DMC asked ISP to stop entering competitions altogether or to only compete as solo DJs, they stopped battling in the DMC.
Mixmaster Mike cutting up Robert Johnson in the ‘Scratch’ documentary.
By the mid-90s, Mike’s career took another important shift when he and late Beastie Boys member MCA traded phone numbers. While MCA and Mike left each other a series of odd answering machine messages, the group eventually decided to bring Mike and his unique sensibilities on board in an official capacity. “Finally the Beastie Boys realized they needed me to play with them, because I was obviously from beyond the year 2000,” Mike told the SF Gate in a 1998 interview.
Though many live DJs at the time were incorporating other gear besides turntables and a mixer into their rigs, Mike stuck to his roots and used nothing but the bare minimum for his performances. If this led to an unexpected error or imperfection, he chose to embrace it. “I do the Beasties concerts with two turntables and a microphone — all vinyl, no samplers, and no buttons being pushed except the stop button,” he told the SF Gate. “Sometimes a record skips, but hey, that’s hip-hop.”
“Read ‘Dune.’ You’ll learn from them how to construct your own pyramid and become your own master builder.”
The official “Three MC’s and One DJ” music video.
Mike’s career with the Beastie Boys, which included countless live shows and scratching duties on various songs, lead a 1998 Grammy for his work on the group’s Hello Nasty as well as an eventual 2012 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Though either one of these accolades might seem like a peak of the mountain top moment, Mike is currently busier than ever. 2017 saw him touring sold-out arenas with Metallica, working on new songs with ISP, and wowing the crowd at A$AP Rocky’s album release party.
But Mike, who on one hand seems singularly focused on mastering the art of DJing, has also hinted to the importance of balance in maintaining his creativity. Cutting up records may be his first love, but he also appears to be a man of many interests. When asked by the SF Gate in 1998 if he had any advice for up and coming DJs, he offered the following:
“Seek knowledge. Watch Godzilla and Ultra Man videos. Read Dune. You’ll learn from them how to construct your own pyramid and become your own master builder. I learned by playing with Legos when I was a kid…I’m still playing with Legos. Only now they’re audio Legos.”
(Editors note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that the Invisibl Skratch Piklz won three DMC World titles instead of two.) | https://medium.com/micro-chop/from-pause-mixing-to-a-grammy-award-the-story-of-mixmaster-mike-2487fa64281c | ['Gino Sorcinelli'] | 2019-08-27 11:48:17.998000+00:00 | ['Vinyl', 'DJ Culture', 'Hip Hop', 'Music', 'Music Production'] |
Stressed to Bless. | I am a soul experiencing humanness…willingly exposing truths, balancing-out struggles between the super-ego and id to free my ego. Purge! This is My Medium. | https://medium.com/@subrinao/stressed-to-bless-bf21b58019c2 | [] | 2020-12-20 02:47:31.038000+00:00 | ['Soul', 'Burden', 'Stress Management', 'Blessings'] |
My experience in coding Bootcamp | Benefit of joining coding Bootcamp:
Computer science college students usually spend about four years to learn programing. During this four years, they cover a lot of unrelated subjects to programming and gain limited skills than what a companies looks for. On the other hand, Bootcamp takes a little over four months and provides very important skills that is relevant to the professional-world.
My experience as full-time software engineering at flatiron school:
When I joined flatiron, I didn’t have a lot of programming back group except a little of HTML and SQL server. I found the intensity of the course to be way beyond my expectation. You are given multitude of information in one lecture. I had to adapt to the speed and do extra work than the students with coding back group. Class starts at 9AM and ends at 6PM, from Monday to Friday. During these eight hours, we have lecture, an hour lunch break, sometimes pairing lab, sometimes solo lab. At the end of every phase, which takes about two to three weeks, we have a test and a project. During this intense fifteen weeks, it is advised not to have a job but to concentrate on your class, homework labs, tests, blogs, and projects.
My Dos and Don’ts-I have been there and I have done that:
Don’t burn your self, because it is not a one day race, keep a steady pace and get enough rest. Don’t overwhelm your self with how many home-works needs to be completed but take it one day at a time. Not getting enough rest lowers your learning ability. Staying up late and not getting enough sleep has negatively impacted my ability to learn and participate in class because I was too exhausted. Getting enough rest is crucial in-order for your brain to process the new information. Do what you can do, don’t be afraid to ask and don’t be scared to make mistakes.
Students come with different backgrounds, some have C++ programming background and others don’t have any; Therefore, do not compare your self to others and stress about how much less you know. Don’t stress of how much you don’t know because you will not know everything; you just have know how to figure it out. Have a positive mind, work as hard as you can, and do your best to have stress free learning experience.
Failing code challenge:
Failing code-challenge/test can be overwhelming and devastating; as a result some students might quite. We all have read about successful people’s failure stories, just because they did not give up, we are calling them successful. I want to motivate you and let you know that failing a test does not define you as a failure or grade your mental capacity to learn. If you love programming, keep trying harder because there are many students who failed and repeated, and came back stronger in their understanding and graduate. Failing a test is not failure, not getting up from that fail is a failure; Don’t give up!
What to do to prepare for Bootcamp?
Work harder to understand the pre-work that you are required to finish before you can join a cohort.
Try to learn little bit of HTML, Ruby, Active Record. I will link some videos that I think are helpful, which will give you some incite into how the classes look. These videos are not required by any means by the school, they are just what I think as helpful video to give you a head start.
These videos are by Lyn a Flatiron teacher, who have her videos available on YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8W3IyXQxuB3Rf1v3LnKpiA/videos | https://medium.com/understanding-inheritance/my-experience-in-coding-bootcamp-e1bc2d419fce | ['Rahel Hagos'] | 2020-12-22 19:14:10.411000+00:00 | ['Experience', 'Hard Work Pays Off', 'Dos And Donts', 'Failing'] |
Enhancing categorical features with Entity Embeddings | Enhancing categorical features with Entity Embeddings
Let’s pretend you are the owner of a pub, and you want to predict how many beers your establishment is going to sell on a given day based on two variables: the day of the week and the current weather. We can in some ways imagine that weekends and warmer days are going to sell more beers when compared to the beginning of the week and colder days.
In face of this problem, we would usually start by encoding our categorical data (in this example, the day of the week and the weather) into dummy variables, in order to provide an input to our classifier without any kind of hierarchy between the existing categorical values.
Our data would look like something below, for the day of week feature (you can imagine something similar for the weather feature):
But does this really makes sense, to treat each categorical value as being completely different from one another, such as when using One-Hot-Encoding? Or could we make usage of some sort of technique to “learn” the relationships and inner connections between each possible value and our target variable?
Entity Embeddings to the rescue
With this given scenario in mind, we can then proceed to the adoption of a technique popularly known in the NLP (Natural Language Processing) field as Entity Embeddings, which allows us to map a given feature set into a new one with a smaller number of dimensions. In our case, it will also allow us to extract meaningful information from our categorical data.
The usage of Entity Embeddings is based on the process of training a Neural Network with the categorical data, with the purpose to retrieve the weights of the Embedding layers. This allows us to have a more significant input when compared to a single One-Hot-Encoding approach. By adopting Entity Embeddings we also are able to mitigate two major problems:
No need to have a domain expert, once we’re capable to train a Neural Network that can efficiently learn patterns and relationships between the values of a same categorical feature. This leads to avoid the feature engineering step (such as manually giving weights to each day of the week or kind of weather);
Shrinkage on computing resources, once we’re no longer encoding our possible categorical values with One-Hot-Encoding, which can represent a huge resource usage. Imagine that you have a categorical feature with ten thousand possible unique values. This would translate into a feature vector with the same amount of empty positions just to represent a given value.
The definition of Entity Embedding
An Embedding layer is pretty much a Neural Network layer that groups, into an N-dimensional space, categorical values with similar output value. This spatial representation allows us to obtain intrinsic properties of each categorical value, which can be later on used as a replacement to our old dummy encoded variables. If we think about it in a more simple manner, it would mean that days of the week that have a similar output (in our case, number of sold beers), would be close to each other. If you don’t get it, maybe an example picture can help:
Here we can see that we have four major groups: group 1, with Monday and Tuesday, possibly related to a low amount of sold beers, due to being the start of the week; group 2, with Wednesday and Thursday, with some distance from group 1; group 3, with Friday and Saturday, relatively close to group 2, indicating that they show more similarity than when compared with group 1; and group 4, with Sunday, without many similarities when compared to the other groups. This simple example can show us that the embedding layers can learn information from the real world, such as the most common days for going out and drinking. Pretty cool, isn’t it?
Putting it together with Keras
First, we need to know that for using an embedding layer, we must specify the number of dimensions we would like to be used for that given embedding. This, as you can notice, is a hyper parameter, and should be tested and experimented case by case. But as a rule of thumb, you can adopt the number of dimensions as equal to the square root of the number of unique values for the category. So in our case, our representation for the day of the week would have instead of seven different positions, only three (rounded up). Below we give an example for both mentioned features, and add some hidden layers into our model, in order to have more parameters to capture minor data nuances.
# Embedding layer for the 'Day of Week' feature
n_unique_day = df['Day'].nunique()
n_dim_day = int(sqrt(n_unique_day)) input_week = Input(shape=(1, ))
output_week = Embedding(input_dim=n_unique_day,
output_dim=n_dim_day, name="day")(input_week)
output_week = Reshape(target_shape=(n_dim_day, ))(output_week) # Embedding layer for the 'Weather' feature
n_unique_weather = df['Weather'].nunique()
n_dim_weather = int(sqrt(n_unique_weather)) input_weather = Input(shape=(1, ))
output_weather = Embedding(input_dim=n_unique_weather,
output_dim=n_dim_weather,
name="weather")(input_weather) output_weather = Reshape(target_shape=(n_dim_weather,))(output_weather) input_layers = [input_week, input_weather]
output_layers = [output_week, output_weather] model = Concatenate()(output_layers) # Add a few hidden layers
model = Dense(200, kernel_initializer="uniform")(model)
model = Activation('relu')(model) model = Dense(100, kernel_initializer="uniform")(model)
model = Activation('relu')(model) # And finally our output layer
model = Dense(1)(model)
model = Activation('sigmoid')(model) # Put it all together and compile the model
model = KerasModel(inputs=input_layers, outputs=model)
model.summary() opt = SGD(lr=0.05)
model.compile(loss='mse', optimizer=opt, metrics=['mse'])
Graphically our Neural Network would have the following representation:
That’s it! We can see that our architecture is initially composed of an Input layer for each of the categorical values, followed by our Embedding layers, then a Reshape layer. And then all put together. Lastly, we add some hidden layers to capture any extra information.
Training our network for 200 epochs with a learning rate of 0.05, we can see some pretty good results for loss and mean squared error:
Conclusions
In this simple example it may sound silly, but we can again think about our scenario of ten thousand unique values. The difference between a feature vector with ten thousand positions (by using One-Hot-Encoding) and another with only 100 (measured by the rule of thumb, when using entity embeddings) is enormous, when we think about computing resources. This is the difference for only a single record for a single feature, but you can imagine how complex this becomes with a real world dataset, where categories can sometimes become enormous.
If you reached until this point without any doubts, congratulations! But if you do have any kind of questions, suggestions or complaints, feel free to reach me. I also created a GitHub repository containing a library to help anyone who is looking to perform entity embedding on their data, feel free to check it out:
https://github.com/rodrigobressan/entity_embeddings_categorical.
See you next time, and happy coding! | https://towardsdatascience.com/enhancing-categorical-features-with-entity-embeddings-e6850a5e34ff | ['Rodrigo Bressan'] | 2020-03-15 13:56:37.699000+00:00 | ['Data Science', 'Machine Learning', 'Feature Engineering', 'Data Engineering'] |
Narcissistic Sociopathy of Wealth | Seeking Arrangement and tech bro CEO’s fashion metaphor (https://img.scoop.it/DaZm5V6L3u85ITN8TTCmnIXXXL4j3HpexhjNOf_P3YmryPKwJ94QGRtDb3Sbc6KY)
A perfect illustration of the narcissistic sociopathy of wealth that assumes absolutely everything can and should be bought. He ignores a single and fundamental moral symmetry: you get what you give. He wants to get the emotional high from discovering, young, innocent feminine energy that gives life, while giving nothing of himself but money, which he has beyond excess, in return. The Financial Times just published a piece on why billionaires make pathologically litigious neighbors about trivial stuff like trees that block a view and other superficial nonsense. Last September 26 Wired published “Why Rich People Are So Mean”. This guy fits that model to a T. I spent 20 years in the yachting industry dealing with guys like this and got to know the type very, very well. The crews on the yachts and private jets know all too well how these assholes assume that money buys them the inalienable right to be narcissistic, selfish spoiled and infantile. Talk to any yacht captain. https://medium.com/an-idea/narcissistic-sugar-daddy-ceos-lament-can-t-buy-me-love-d8e7fdb58959 | https://ljgolden55.medium.com/narcissistic-sociopathy-of-wealth-c0d687584d9e | ['Lester Golden'] | 2020-12-29 11:35:54.699000+00:00 | ['Wealth', 'Capitalism', 'Sex', 'Love', 'Relationships'] |
Introduction to Learning Theory — Part 1 | One of the most significant take-aways from NIPS 2017 was the “alchemy” debate spearheaded by Ali Rahimi. In the wake of the event, I have been trying to learn more about statistical learning theory, even though the concepts may not be readily applicable to deep neural networks.
One of the most important concepts in this regard is to measure the complexity of a hypothesis class H. In any machine learning model, the end goal is to find a hypothesis class that achieves a high accuracy on the training set, and has low generalization error on the test set. For this, we require the hypothesis class H to approximate the concept class C which determines the labels for the distribution D. Since both C and D are unknown, we try to model H based on the known sample set S and its labels.
Generalization error: The generalization error of a hypothesis h is the expectation of the error on a sample x picked from the distribution D.
Empirical error: This is the mean of the error of hypothesis h on the sample S of size m.
Having defined the generalization error and empirical error thus, we can state the objective of learning as follows.
The objective of learning is to have the empirical error approximate the generalization error with high probability.
This kind of a learning framework is known as PAC-learning (Probably Approximately Correct). Formally, a concept class C is PAC-learnable if there is some algorithm A for which the generalization error on a sample S derived from the distribution D is very low (less than ε) with high probability (greater than 1- δ). In other words, we can say that for a PAC-learnable class, the accuracy is high with good confidence.
Guarantees for finite hypothesis sets
The PAC-learning framework provides strong guarantees for finite hypothesis sets (i.e., where the size of H is finite). Again, this falls in two categories — the consistent case, and the inconsistent case. A hypothesis class is said to be consistent if it admits no error on the training sample, i.e., the training accuracy is 100%.
Consistent hypothesis
Let us consider a finite hypothesis set H. We want the generalization error to be less than some ε, so we will take a consistent hypothesis h in H, and bound the probability that its error is more than ε, i.e., we are calculating the probability that there exists some h in H, such that h is consistent and its generalization error is more than ε. This is simply the union of all h in H such that it follows the said constraints. By the union bound, this probability will be less than the sum of the individual probabilities i.e.,
From the definition of conditional probability, we can write
which bounds the required probability P as
The condition says that the expectation of error of h on any sample is at least ε, so it would correctly classify a sample with probability at most 1- ε. Hence, to correctly classify m training samples with |H| hypotheses, the total probability is given as
On setting the RHS of the inequality to δ, we obtain the generalization bound of the finite, consistent hypothesis class as
As expected, the generalization error decreases with a larger training set. However, to arrive at a consistent algorithm, we may have to increase the size of the hypothesis class, which results in an increase in generalization error.
Inconsistent hypothesis
In practical scenarios, it is very restrictive to always require a consistent hypothesis class to bound the generalization error. In this section, we look at a more general case where empirical error is non-zero. For this derivation, we use the Hoeffding’s inequality which provides an upper bound on the probability that the mean of independent variables in an interval [0,1] deviates from its expected value by more than a certain amount.
If we take the errors as the random variable, their mean is the empirical error and the expectation is the generalization error. We can then get an upper bound for the generalization error of a single hypothesis h as
However, this is still not the general case since the hypothesis h returned by the learning algorithm is not fixed. Similar to the consistent case, we will try to obtain an upper bound on the generalization error for an inconsistent (but finite) hypothesis, i.e., we need to compute the probability that there exists some hypothesis h in H such that the generalization error of h differs from its empirical error by a value greater than ε. Again, using the union bound, we get
Using the Hoeffdieng’s inequality, this becomes
Now equating the RHS with δ, we can arrive at the result
Here it is interesting to note that for a fixed |H|, to attain the same guarantee as in the consistent case, a quadratically larger labeled sample is required. Let us now analyze the role of the size of hypothesis class. If we have a smaller H, the second term is reduced but the empirical error may increase, and vice versa. However, for the same empirical error, it is always better to go with the smaller hypothesis class, i.e., the famous Occam’s Razor principle. | https://medium.com/explorations-in-language-and-learning/introduction-to-learning-theory-part-1-30db513ce3eb | ['Desh Raj'] | 2018-02-26 14:51:48.588000+00:00 | ['Machine Learning', 'Learning Theories', 'Statistics'] |
Quick PlaidML MacOS Installation Guide | Here you can see that we have reduced the wall time to only 1/3 of the time taken by the cpu, from 9 mins to 3 mins.
Tips:
For anyone unsure if it is working for you. Check GPU acitvity using activity monitor. Launch activity monitor -> Go to window -> gpu history
you can the see gpu fired up in the “AMD Radeon Pro 450” window
Conclusion:
Well, as promised a quick and fuss free guide to installing and using to utilising the GPU on your macbook in jupyter notebook. Feel free to leave a comment if anything doesn’t work out. Oh yes, the codes used in this story can be found on my github: https://github.com/kennylimyx/plaidml | https://medium.com/@kennylimyx/quick-plaidml-macos-installation-guide-e1d4b9805e53 | ['Kenny Lim'] | 2020-11-05 11:08:08.156000+00:00 | ['Installation', 'Gpu', 'Keras', 'Machine Learning', 'Data Science'] |
Debauching Ally | Image by Capsula Nudes from Pixabay
Ally Whitton pulled her oversized sweater tighter around her body. Mr. Hale was probably asleep but traveling all day left her parched. He came in from his date over an hour ago, and it was past midnight now.
She had slept over in this house fifty million times as a kid until she was a teenager. Only twenty-five million, her best friend Sarah Hale stayed at her place the other twenty-five million. If these walls could talk, they’d whisper all her secrets.
Like the major crush she had on Mr. Hale as a teenager. Even if he was Sarah’s dad he was hot. She giggled to herself as she went down the stairs, like a bad girl thinking about a man she could never have.
Ally was too old for silly fantasy. Mr. Hale was doing her a huge favour letting her stay here while she had a couple job interviews. Her parents had moved out of town after she graduated, and she hadn’t planned on returning. But the perfect job was here.
Mr. Hale rearranged the kitchen so she opened several cupboards before locating the drinking glasses. She leaned on the counter and let her sweater fall away to reveal her tank top and panties. While she drank the water, she imagined him walking in here. She knew in reality they’d be embarrassed but she could pretend she’d give him a seductive look and he’d kiss her.
She drank a second glass and disappointment set in as he didn’t find her there. At twenty-four she shouldn’t indulge in silly fantasies.
Ally wandered the dark house, remembering the silly thing she and Sarah did. The birthdays and sleepovers. She couldn’t visit her family home, but this was just as good.
Light flickered from the living room. Mr. Hale had left the television on. She headed toward it to turn it off when she realized moaning came from the room. Had he left porn on?
She peeked her head into the room. There was porn on the big screen. And Mr. Hale on the sofa removing his pants.
Ally ducked out, but she heard him mutter, “Oh shit.” The movie paused. “Sorry,” he called.
She edged back in. “I’m sorry. I came for a drink and I thought you left the TV on. I came to turn it off. I’ll go to bed.”
“Do you want to join me?” He scoffed. “I’m kidding. You should go to bed. I should go to bed. My girlfriend couldn’t spend the night, she has kids at home still.”
Yeah great, then she’d be thinking about him two doors down, his dick throbbing under the covers. “You shouldn’t go unsatisfied because of me.”
“Do you have a boyfriend Ally?” he asked.
His eyes traveled down to her legs. She shook her head and pulled her sweater tighter, looking at her bare legs. “No boyfriend.”
When she looked up, he was in front of her. “You were pretty as a girl. As a woman, you are beautiful.” He tucked her hair behind her ear.
“Thank you,” she stammered.
“This is probably perverted, but when you were hanging around here as a teen I wondered what you’d look like when you grew up.”
Ally licked her lips as she looked up at him. That was perverted. Dirty old man.
“All you girls were pretty but I think you were the prettiest.”
She moved closer as if he were pulling her. “Mr. Hale.”
“When you turned eighteen, I was jealous of all the boys after you. It’s why I didn’t let Sarah have many boys over, I didn’t want to see them touching my girls.”
This got worse and worse. Had he…
“I touched none of you. You know, right?”
“Of course, Mr. Hale.” Her heart may come out of her chest. The situation was dirty and forbidden and it was turning her on.
“Good. I never thought of Sarah that way. But that brings us to our current dilemma. What is under your sweater?”
She could only blink up at him, her energy focused on not overheating or collapsing.
“All you need to say is stop and I will. Okay, Ally?” His hands pulled her arms from where she crossed them over her chest.
“Okay, Sir.” Please don’t stop, her heart pounded and her eyes closed.
He pulled the sweater open and the dark air licked her body. “Black tank top that shows all your curves and black panties that tease men. Look at me Ally.”
She opened her eyes, feeling dazed and dizzy. Mr. Hale pressed his hand against her belly and slid upward. He moved over her breasts over her shirt, he cupped one in his hands, massaging it. His other hand touched her knee, then slid up until it nestled between her legs. His palm rested on the steady throb.
She realized he had no pants or shirt on. Just a pair of black briefs, which highlighted his erection. She stared at it, stunned.
“Are you a virgin?” he asked, because she froze in place.
“No, Sir. Just nervous. Because… it’s you.”
The hand between her legs stayed, the other one moved to grab her chin. He held her while he kissed her, his hot tongue speared her mouth, catching her and reeling her against him. Both his hands were on her ass, pulling her up into his trap.
She took a deep breath and surrendered herself. Her mouth opened, her body pressed closer, her hips cradled his erection. “Mr. Hale,” she breathed against his lips.
“Keep calling me that,” he replied. He pushed the sweater off her and pulled her hair back. His mouth came down hot on her shoulder, kissing and licking and biting up her neck. “Ally, Ally, my sweet Ally.”
Mr. Hale eased away, leaving her cool and regret seeping in. He would call an end to the game, and she wasn’t ready. Neither emotionally nor physically.
Instead he picked her up and carried her to his spot in the living room. He settled her on his lap, her back against his chest, legs over his. He hooked his thighs on the inside of her knees and pulled her open.
“How many times have you sat on my sofa and watched a movie?”
“It was a different sofa,” she replied, her voice rough.
“And the movies were tame.”
“Sarah and I watched your movies a couple times. We giggled about how corny they were.”
“Did you ever consider I was jerking off while I watched them?”
Ally swallowed hard. “Maybe.”
“Tell me, please.” His finger tickled over the crotch of her panties.
“Yes. I thought of you. I wondered how big your… thing was. It made me feel funny thinking of you that way.”
“I always knew you were a bad influence on my daughter. I should spank you for watching my dirty movies when you were underage.”
Ally’s belly clenched.
He laughed. “You like that idea. Later. First, we will watch the rest of this movie.”
“I stole one of your movies,” she confessed. “I brought it back a couple weeks later.”
Mr. Hale rubbed her inner thigh. “I knew one of them went missing. What was your favorite part?”
“Back then, seeing the woman suck the guy’s dick. It always fascinated me.”
“You can show me after I make you come.” He rubbed her pussy through her panties. “My bad little Ally is so very wet.”
She spread her legs and pressed back against him. It was in this house she got a taste for porn, one that fueled her sexual exploration in college. But she centered her fantasies on older men and young women. Sometimes barely legal girls, sometimes men with greying hair. Mr. Hale was greying around the edge now. His trimmed hair, beard and moustache all had a touch of silver. He’d be a silver fox soon.
One hand rubbed her clit while his other pulled up her tank top to bare her breasts. He teased her nipples with soft circles, then sharper pinches.
“Your favorite part is coming up here. We need to get rid of your panties though. I want to sink my fingers into your juicy cunt.”
Ally hoped she’d get more than just fingers, tonight. Or before she left town after her interview. The removed her panties in a tangle of hands and fingers, working together. She rocked her ass on his lap feeling his erection jump behind her.
“She’s choking on his dick now, you’d better pay attention. Take notes for when I’m done with you.”
He held her hips with one arm and rubbed her clit with two fingers. She looked at the screen as the big breasted woman slurped and moaned her way around the guy’s giant erection. The guy on screen praised her mouth.
Mr. Hale’s fingers thrust into her pussy. They curled against her inner walls, making her jolt. “Ride my hand, Ally.” His thumb rubbed over her clit as she rocked on his fingers.
She broke as he whispered her name in her ear. Her pussy spasmed and she jerked on his fingers. Moans loosened from her throat as she lost herself in pleasure.
Fuck. Mr. Hale, her best friend’s Dad, practically her second Dad, just finger fucked her on his sofa. And he wasn’t done with her. | https://medium.com/asrais-purple-prose/debauching-ally-6cf48ef1673 | ['Asrai Devin'] | 2020-09-01 16:23:56.481000+00:00 | ['Short Story', 'Silver Fox', 'Sexy', 'Fiction', 'Erotica'] |
What a Female Vice President Means for Achieving Gender Equity | As parents of girls rightfully celebrate what it means to have our first woman as Vice President, let’s not forget how important it is for our sons to witness. This is a critical moment to teach our boys to celebrate, respect, and honor women in power — especially when they are BIPOC.
We have long taught at A Call to Men that achieving gender equity hinges on a redistribution of power. Sharing power in a way that fairly corresponds to all those represented. This applies to our government, to our corporations, to our communities, and to our families. And having a woman hold the second highest office in the nation, represents a shift in power.
The images being shared across social platforms are powerful visual demonstrations of how different and how meaningful this moment is. This is what progress looks like.
While we all know that there is much work left to do, let us take a breath to mark the moment. Let us look at our children, our grandchildren, and the young people around us and think about what this means for them — about the possibilities that they can now SEE, and not just dream.
Men, our job is to lift up the leadership of accomplished women — in the White House, in our workplaces, in our communities, and in our homes. Our job is to celebrate their success. Our job is to honor and respect their power. Our job is to listen to them. Our job is to learn from their experience.
And if you find yourself feeling some internal discomfort or push back about a woman — and a Black woman — assuming this role, I challenge you to commit some time to thinking about why. Politics aside, we have been collectively socialized to view women and girls as objects, as property, and as having less value than men. These messages are in the air we breathe. And sometimes that socialization can sneak up on us — it is the foundation of our unconscious bias. The teachings of the Man Box help maintain a male-dominated society, where men hold primary power and the majority of roles in leadership, moral authority, social privilege, and have largest control of property.
I invite you to join us as we work to raise men’s and boys’ consciousness about their collective socialization so that we can think critically about how we might be reinforcing or passing on these harmful beliefs and so we can challenge those beliefs in other men. You have influence and you have a platform to create positive social change.
We are going to be talking more about this tomorrow, Wednesday, November 11 with Mark Herzlich, former NFL player and Kyle Harrison, director of players and inclusion for the Premiere Lacrosse League. RSVP to join the conversation. | https://medium.com/equality-includes-you/what-a-female-vice-president-means-for-achieving-gender-equity-9aba9c02eef5 | ['Tony Porter'] | 2020-11-10 22:21:12.082000+00:00 | ['Gender Equality', 'Racial Justice', 'Healthy Masculinity'] |
Support Activities For Coal Mining Market Growth, Size, Share, Geography, Statistics, Top Players, 2022 Forecast Report | support activities for coal mining market, support activities for coal mining industry, support activities for coal mining market size, drilling services market
TheBusinessResearchCompany published its Support Activities For Coal Mining Global Market Report 2020 which provides strategists, marketers and senior management with the critical information they need to assess the global support activities for coal mining market. The report covers the support activities for coal mining market’s segments- drilling services — support activities for coal mining, exploration services — support activities for coal mining, draining services — support activities for coal mining, others — support activities for coal mining.
Explore Complete Report https://www.thebusinessresearchcompany.com/report/support-activities-for-coal-mining-global-market-report
Support Activities For Coal Mining Global Market Report 2020 is the most comprehensive report available on this market and will help gain a truly global perspective as it covers 60 geographies. The regional and country breakdowns section gives an analysis of the market in each geography and the size of the market by region and by country. It also compares the market’s historic and forecast growth. It covers all the regions, key developed countries and major emerging markets. It draws comparisons with country populations and economies to understand the importance of the market by country and how this is changing. The major regions included in the report are Asia-Pacific, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, North America, South America, Middle East, and Africa.
Request to get the sample of this report https://www.thebusinessresearchcompany.com/sample.aspx?id=2159&type=smp
Coal mines are prone to hazards and mining companies are increasingly focusing on technologies to prevent accidents and improve the safety of miners. Government regulations, and health and safety standards developed by international mining groups also promote efficient safety practices. Some of the reasons for the occurrence of accidents in mining include ineffective drilling, blasting, loading and hauling, leaking out of poisonous methane gas, coal dust, and machinery collisions. Sensor-based methane detectors use RFID technology to monitor and control the level of methane which can cause explosions, is the major trend of global support activities for coal mining market.
Purchase Report (Individual License at USD 4000.00) At: https://www.thebusinessresearchcompany.com/purchaseoptions.aspx?id=2159
Chapters from Table of Content:
Chapter 1. Executive Summary
Chapter 2. Report Structure
Chapter 3. Support Activities For Coal Mining Market Characteristics
Chapter 4. Support Activities For Coal Mining Market Product Analysis
Chapter 5. Support Activities For Coal Mining Market Supply Chain
…….
Chapter 20. Key Mergers And Acquisitions In The Support Activities For Coal Mining Market
Chapter 21. Market Background: Support Activities For Mining Market
Chapter 22. Recommendations
Chapter 23. Appendix
Chapter 24. Copyright And Disclaimer
Few Points From List of Tables:
Table 1: Historic Market Growth, Value ($ Billion)
Table 2: Forecast Market Growth, Value ($ Billion)
Table 3: Global Support Activities For Coal Mining Market, 2018, By Region, Value ($ Billion)
………..
Table 131: Global Support Activities For Coal Mining Market In 2022- Growth Countries
Table 132: Global Support Activities For Coal Mining Market In 2022- Growth Segments
Table 133: Global Support Activities For Coal Mining Market In 2022- Growth Strategies
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Follow our Blog: http://blog.tbrc.info/ | https://medium.com/@aleemuddinm/support-activities-for-coal-mining-market-growth-size-share-geography-statistics-top-players-f3e35bbd189f | [] | 2020-03-17 07:07:52.358000+00:00 | ['Market Research', 'Coal', 'Mining Industry', 'Market Research Reports', 'Mining'] |
From Banking to Blockchain: Infinito Marketing Leader, Ms. Ellena Ki, Talks Enabling Mass Adoption and Women in Blockchain | From Banking to Blockchain: Infinito Marketing Leader, Ms. Ellena Ki, Talks Enabling Mass Adoption and Women in Blockchain Infinito Follow Mar 8, 2019 · 6 min read
Before she was Marketing Leader of Infinito, the blockchain R&D house behind the globally acclaimed mobile crypto wallet application Infinito Wallet, Ms. Ellena Ki spent over 15 years in traditional finance. Today, she leads Infinito’s Marketing team to promote the company’s various business and consumer products, services, and solutions; all while spreading awareness about the values of blockchain technology. In celebration of International Women’s Day, let’s sit down with Ellena and discuss how she found her calling with blockchain.
Q1: Seeing that your background prior to blockchain is banking, what kind of revelation have you arrived at regarding these two industries?
Ellena: Indeed, my professional background for over 15 years was finance in Japan and Hong Kong. I worked for Euroclear Bank in Hong Kong as part of a client account management team dedicated to support central banks in Korea and others in the APAC region. In particular, my work centered much around intercontinental finance services, the flow of money across borders, including fixed income, equities, funds, settlement, custody, collateral management, fund settle, and more.
In truth, as significant as finance is in our daily lives, banking is a notoriously slow-moving industry in many ways, even in this technology era. International transactions is slow and the fees are massive. Databases are entirely centralized and clunkily managed, meaning increased chances of hacks wipe away data and funds. After years of dedication in the finance world, I wanted to try out something new and eventually ended up in the blockchain world.
It was then that I discovered blockchain can bring great and much-needed improvements to our current banking systems. The transparent yet secure way data is recorded on tamper-proof ledgers means that database breaches, funds misappropriation, and thus, lack of consumer trust, will become issues of the past entirely. Blockchain’s unique smart contract technologies will also streamline and optimize transaction speeds plus fees significantly. Finance is a heavily regulated industry, so such massive technology overhauls will certainly not occur overnight. However, I do believe that the industry leaders are gradually seeing the values blockchain can bring to this traditional sector, and at Infinito, we are always ready to help businesses and consumers across all industries realize and benefit from adopting blockchain.
Q2: What is your role at Infinito as a Marketing Leader?
Ellena: At Infinito, our Marketing team is dedicated to establishing a strong branding amongst crypto communities and the blockchain industry as a whole. Therefore, we work with Business and Technical teams to make our products, services, and solutions not only functionally capable but also professionally presented and a joy to use for customers.
We also strongly believe in the power of partnerships, as we can leverage one another’s expertise to enhance our lineup of offers and deliver better value to our communities. Therefore, our team is focusing our efforts on forging strategic partnerships with other industry experts so that we can bring value not only to our company but also to our customers, businesses and consumers alike.
Q3: Which achievements of Infinito are you most proud of?
Ellena: If you had ask me last year, it would have been being the industry’s first in many fields: universal wallet for EOS, ADA, and security tokens through integrated KYC feature. All of these milestones are made possible through intensive efforts in partnership building and collaborative technical integrations.
This year, however, is all about practical blockchain applications. So, I am very proud of Infinito Wallet finally becoming a universal gateway to both leading cryptos and innovative blockchain services, with the launch of our in-wallet DApp browser, Infinito App Square. Additionally, we officially launched Infinito Blockchain Platform earlier this year, with the goal to become the number one choice of platform for anyone looking to integrate or develop practical blockchain applications and services. Infinito also reached a landmark collaboration with the government of Uzbekistan to promote blockchain awareness.
Both Infinito Wallet and Infinito Blockchain Platform are truly game-changers for the blockchain industry, both of which has an extensive lineup of value offerings for customers unlike any other on the market. We are extremely proud of these accomplishments and is always eager to bring more innovations to the industry!
Q4: What is it like being a woman in such a new, tech-focused industry?
Ellena: Personally, I am very comfortable with it, as I have always been working in male- dominated environments; first finance and now blockchain. However, unlike finance, tech and especially blockchain are still young sectors open to new possibilities. They are also key industries that can majorly impact our daily lives and potentially the future of our society. Therefore, it is important for women to join this field and help shape the future together.
Q5: What do you think blockchain need to reach mass adoption?
Ellena: As much as I am a believer in blockchain technology, I too must admit that it is not always very accessible. This technology is quite complex and not a lot applications built on it are user-friendly, which makes the average consumer shy away. So I believe that as blockchain service providers, we must impact user experience in meaningful ways and practically transform blockchain functionality to be of service to consumers’ daily tasks. Because of this belief, Infinito puts heavy focus on the user experience of all our products, services, and solutions. We also channel our efforts to build strategic partnerships with other experts in the industry who share our vision to enable blockchain mass adoption for consumers and businesses by focusing on the practicality and accessibility of our innovations.
Q6: What are your goals to expand Infinito in the years ahead?
Ellena: As mentioned, we believe in producing practical and accessible blockchain innovations that can be easily adopted en masse. So naturally, we will focus on enabling more practical blockchain services in Infinito Wallet through App Square and wallet integration with esteemed technology partners. We are also committed to bring more useful and versatile tools, services, and solutions to Infinito Blockchain Platform. And on our journey, we will also forge more strategic partnerships with other blockchain experts to help us reach these goals and also conquer underexplored territories in blockchain, such as tokenized securities. Please look forward to our innovations in this and the coming years!
Q7: Do you have any advice for women looking to join blockchain industry?
Ellena: This applies to everyone and not just women, but I would advise all who seek to join the blockchain industry to be flexible and think beyond technicalities. Blockchain is a fast-moving space that evolves everyday, so you need to be as adaptable as possible and stay open to new possibilities, whether it’s new technical protocols or different angles to market businesses.
And, of course, never gloss over the user experience. Blockchain is new, difficult to understand, and rather tech-focus, so it is not always intuitive and easy to use, especially for the average consumer. Translate technicalities into friendly, easily comprehensible values that people can understand and benefit from, no matter how small. This, I believe, will go a long way in making your blockchain innovation more appealing to a wider spectrum of audience and help enable mass adoption of this technology much more effectively.
About Infinito
Infinito is a leading Japanese blockchain technology house with over 300 experts and 3+ years of professional experience in the field of cryptography and blockchain technologies. We help businesses of all scales easily realize blockchain values to their business. Infinito builds and operates an Ecosystem of products, solutions, and services, either ready-made or custom tailored, to help businesses and developers seamlessly implement, develop, and run blockchain applications securely, efficiently and compliantly. At the same time, Ecosystem consumers can access and enjoy these innovations with utmost convenience and safety. Infinito Wallet, our universal mobile wallet app, prides itself on being widely appraised as one of the world’s most powerful cryptocurrency wallet solution for the safe storage and usage of crypto assets.
Infinito is actively expanding its ecosystem by collaborating with blockchain industry players around the globe to become the one-stop solution for businesses and consumers looking to utilize blockchain. Contact [email protected] to learn more about our lineup of services and solutions for businesses and developers, or simply to become an ecosystem partner.
Infinito Blockchain Platform website: https://www.platform.infinito.io/
Infinito website: https://www.infinito.io/ | https://medium.com/infinito-wallet/from-banking-to-blockchain-infinito-marketing-leader-ms-21eb25a6c7e5 | [] | 2019-03-08 04:50:54.233000+00:00 | ['Blockchain', 'Women In Tech', 'Marketing', 'Banking'] |
Do Marketers Dream of Artificial Intelligence? | Mad Men v.s. Math Men
© nanuvision / Adobe Stock
Today, the breed of Mad Men like Don Draper, whose mad genius once ruled the advertising world, is being dethroned by the emerging crop of Math Men, who specialize in utilizing data science and algorithms to harvest consumer insights. The technology that emerged in the past two decades has provided the perfect soil for the Math Men to thrive. Don is getting more and more depressed, as he can foresee a future where creative geniuses like him will exit the stage and disappear in the wave of history. But is that so? Has this transformed digital era forced the traditional Mad Men into extinction?
Jim Lecinski, a former VP at Google and current Medill IMC Professor, believes that we are still too early to assert whether AI is going to transform the existing marketing world entirely: “Big-budget brands like Nike, IKEA and Sephora are pioneering AI for marketing, but most advertisers don’t have their resources, so they’re focusing on more immediate marketing efforts.”
It is inevitable that today’s marketing decisions are more geared toward data collection due to the increasing demand for 1-on-1 personalized marketing. As companies today are relentlessly collecting consumer data, it is essential for AI to step in to extract insights and continuously learn from past trends. However, a talented marketing team is irreplaceable.
As Lecinski stated: “Success requires a combination, a partnership of humans AND machines.” The utilization of AI and machine learning can only be effective if deployed by a talented, sophisticated marketing team that can come up with a rock-solid marketing strategy to acquire, retain, grow its customer relationships, and promote customer advocacy.
In the well-known science fiction masterpiece Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, Phillip K. Dicks depicted a world where artificial intelligence has gained empathy and lived like human beings. As we look at the world 60 years after the book was written, this dream does not seem to be so far-fetched. Artificial intelligence technologies are aggressively taking over the marketing world and getting access to brands, both big and small.
It would be an appropriate time to start dreaming big and asking where AI will lead us to in the future. The marketers of the new generation should not categorize themselves in either the “Mad Men” or the “Math Men” faction. | https://medium.com/jimc-2021/do-marketers-dream-of-artificial-intelligence-b3ef2a476733 | ['Journal Of Integrated Marketing Communications'] | 2020-12-31 22:03:55.700000+00:00 | ['Digital Transformation', 'Digital Marketing', 'Machine Learning', 'Artificial Intelligence', 'AI'] |
Started A New Business? Here Are 5 Types of Insurance You Might Need | Types Of Business Insurance
“Treat your business like your second child.” If so, just you like you got a group mediclaim policy for your entire family, you should get small business insurance policies even for your new company. This is essential to mitigate possible risks.
But, of course, there are many types of small business insurance policies out there; some are essential, others could be an unnecessary expense. To help you make the right choice, here are 5 types of insurance you should consider to protect your new business:
Property Insurance — Also called fire insurance policy, this is something almost every business owner opts for. In case of fire, as well as theft, lightning, flooding and inundation or any other unfortunate events, your company can sustain huge losses. Property insurance covers your inventory, furniture, equipment, and signage. There are several specialized types of property insurance, like standard fire and special perils policy and burglary insurance. Business Income Insurance — Also called business interruption insurance, this policy covers the loss your business may suffer after a disaster, which itself gets covered under the fire insurance (property insurance) policy. For example, if your establishment was destroyed in a storm or fire, the business will likely remain shut until the repairing work is complete. In this shutdown period, the income that you lost, this insurance covers that. Workers’ Compensation Insurance — If you have employees, what if they sustain work-related injury or illness? What if they suffer a fatal accident at work? This is where the worker’s compensation insurance comes in. It provides coverage for employee’s medical care, disability expenses, lost wages if they require time off, funeral expenses, and more. Product liability Insurance — If you sell any tangible products (say you’re a manufacturer or a distributor), your business should be shielded against lawsuits from people who possibly suffer either a bodily injury or property damage due to your product. Depending on what exactly you sell, your product liability insurance can be tailored accordingly. Professional Liability Insurance — If your business revolves around your expertise in any specific area and you work directly with the customers/clients (say you’re an accountant, lawyer, doctor, or anything else), professional liability insurance is a must. It will keep you and your business protected from claims of negligence, malpractice, and other related things that are initiated by the customer/client. This is also called errors and omission insurance.
Consult A Certified Insurance Broker
As mentioned earlier, there are many types of small business insurance policies — some of which are essential, others are unnecessary. These five insurance policies are often considered to be very important. In addition to them, your business may require other types of policy as well to put off risks; which ones depend on the kind of business you run.
It’s best to consult a certified insurance broker. They will not only help you understand these policies better and which ones your business may require, but they can also help you compare insurance quotes from different insurers and buy the best policy at the right price. Find one such insurance broker today and talk to them about your small business insurance needs. | https://medium.com/@plancover/started-a-new-business-here-are-5-types-of-insurance-you-might-need-9a49f1e8be20 | [] | 2020-12-26 06:39:55.375000+00:00 | ['Insurance', 'Business Insurance Guide', 'Insurance Companies', 'Insurance Coverage', 'Business Insurance'] |
Did you know? | Inside the cortex of the brain are billions of tiny nerve cells, called neurons. When you learn new things, these tiny connections in the brain actually get stronger. The more you challenge your mind to learn, the more your brain grows!
So if you keep learning new things all the time, the more your excellent brain will grow.
But it most certainly shocked me to the core!
Here’s another interesting thing.
This information in a physics paper that was recently released pointing out the similarities between the brain and the observable universe:
Does the human brain resemble the Universe? | https://medium.com/@wwfenn/did-you-know-a4e6337b00c8 | ['Kyle Dring'] | 2020-12-07 00:23:54.570000+00:00 | ['Humanity', 'Evolution', 'Intresting', 'Brain', 'Facts'] |
Our Open Source Contributions | Let me start telling you about one of the crypto currency world’s best kept open secret and most advanced Bitcoin software: libbitcoin.
Libbitcoin was started by Amir Taaki as the first reimplementation of the Bitcoin protocol. Nowadays, it’s maintained by serial entrepreneur Eric Voskuil, who developed it into a full fledged Bitcoin development ecosystem with software libraries, the most advanced command line tool to do anything Bitcoin related, a standalone full node as Bitcoin Core alternative as well as a high performance blockchain query server.
“Libbitcoin is a multipurpose bitcoin library targeted towards high end use. An ideal backend to build fast implementations on top: mobile apps, desktop clients and server API’s. The library places a heavy focus around asychronicity, speed and availability.” — libbitcoin.org
Especially the blockchain query server libbitcoin-server (or bs) is extremely valuable for the ecosystem: many wallets and other services either use slow, outdated JavaScript-based implementations or, even worse, centralised closed source APIs from service providers. Using a centralised API to build your application means trusting a 3rd party with the privacy of your users as well as having the risk that it might get shutdown any time on no or very short notice (something that happened before).
We plan to use libbitcoin-server as our node and backend for all our apps and services. Talking with Eric about our plans, he immediately suggested to make all of libbitcoin coin-agnostic, so Feathercoin and Bitcoin can equally benefit from the improvements developers are making. This means to have all the Feathercoin specifics as part of the runtime settings. The end result is having one source code base, one development community and even only one binary for Bitcoin, Feathercoin, Litecoin and other cryptocurrencies (if someone is willing to do the little implementation work that is needed). This is certainly a goal we consider worth working on.
Electrum
Another critical piece of software for the Bitcoin ecosystem is the Electrum wallet. Electrum is the number one desktop wallet with all features one can possibly imagine (SPV, HW wallet support, multi-signature, replace-by-fee, etc), so it was an obvious choice for us to make it also available for Feathercoin.
Yet, we have bigger plans for Electrum: We are working on a new desktop wallet called Swan, which uses Electrum as basis. With Swan, we are creating a more user- & beginner friendly desktop wallet for Bitcoin and Feathercoin built on a stable, battle-tested source. Just as with libbitcoin, we plan to not diverge from upstream and contribute most of our work and improvements directly to Electrum itself and have only our own, frontend specific changes in our repository.
A small teaser from our designer Frederic Berghmans
One of our first big contributions to the ecosystem is combining those two great software pieces: we are implementing libbitcoin-server as a backend option in Electrum. To achieve this goal, we’ve already implemented a Python library, pylibbitcoin, which talks to libbitcoin-server. This library can be used by anyone, is not depending on Electrum or libbitcoin source code and is fully open source. Right now, we are working on integrating it into Electrum and while doing so, our developer Harm also refactored the full networking module of Electrum.
Some might not like it but this shows that (Bitcoin-based) Altcoins can contribute to Bitcoin ecosystem development.
We see ourselves as part of the greater Bitcoin development ecosystem. We always try to contribute and work upstream instead of reinventing the wheel, which benefits all Bitcoin-based cryptocurrencies. We do that already with libbitcoin and Electrum and plan to contribute to more open source projects in the future. | https://medium.com/feathercoin/our-open-source-contributions-5b04545df1ba | ['Lucas Betschart'] | 2018-06-22 08:55:38.762000+00:00 | ['Feathercoin', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Bitcoin', 'Open Source', 'Free Software'] |
Tether Added to Crystal Analytics | Tether Added to Crystal Analytics
The Crystal Blockchain platform has just been updated to include Tether (USDT), along with several other new features.
1. Tether Added to Our Platform
We have now added Tether (USDT) to Crystal Blockchain analytics! Tether is one of the top 10 cryptocurrencies, with a market cap of $4.5b+. Tether support will be available as part of the Bitcoin (BTC) interface on the platform — it has been extended to show USDT transfers.
It is important to note that this addition will mean a few changes in your platform functions, including:
Explorer: On the entity/ address page, it is now possible to check the amount of assets received (in BTC or USDT), as well as the entity/ address balance in fiat (USD or Euro). Both types of transfers (BTC and USDT) are now considered when calculating a risk score, making our overall profiling capacities much stronger.
We have extended the Connections feature for USDT, so users can now choose from five different currencies.
Visualization: Users will now also be able to build visualizations with the USDT layer.
Our Monitor feature now enables users to add transfers in USDT or BTC, so the risk can be assessed appropriately depending on the currency they choose.
In Cases, we have added the ability to set up notifications in USDT, as well as in BTC.
Other Updates:
2. New Analytics Tool: Shortest Path
In the list of All Connections, you will see a new option — “shortest path.” This option will show you shortest transaction path to any named entity from the Connections list. Users will also be able to open a visualization of a path to the entity in a single click.
3. Site Status
Users will be able to check whether all cryptocurrency support systems are operational (eg. due to maintenance or power outages) using the link status.crystalblockchain.com.
4. Nomenclature Change: “Fiat” instead of “USD”
We have also updated our API endpoints. The term “USD” in the current endpoints has been replaced with the term “fiat”. Data is now displayed based on the fiat currency pre-selected in your profile. (Note: these endpoint term changes only affect those who use Crystal via API.) | https://medium.com/meetbitfury/tether-added-to-crystal-analytics-a813b4534a1a | ['Crystal Blockchain'] | 2020-02-19 13:17:33.288000+00:00 | ['Blockchain', 'Tether', 'Technology', 'Crystal Blockchain', 'Cryptocurrency'] |
What’s New in Swift 5.3? | Redefinition of ‘didSet’ Semantics (SE-0268)
Prior to Swift 5.3, when using didSet in a property, the getter was always called to obtain the oldValue of that property (although this value was not referenced), with the consequent performance impact. In Swift 5.3, the efficiency of the process has been increased since now the oldValue is not accessed if we are not calling it inside didSet .
‘self’ Use in Closures Is Eliminated if No Reference Cycles Are Given (SE-0269)
Until now, inside closures, it was necessary to use self explicitly, even if reference cycles were not going to occur. For example:
With Swift 5.3, self can be removed:
Until now, Swift only allowed the use of one error type per catch block, allowing us to reduce duplicate code in error handling. That is to say: | https://medium.com/better-programming/whats-new-in-swift-5-3-f5584dd4e4ed | ['Raúl Ferrer'] | 2020-06-07 10:26:29.543000+00:00 | ['Mobile', 'Xcode', 'Swift', 'iOS', 'Programming'] |
Good Economics for Hard Times — Book Review | Good Economics for Hard Times — Book Review
What can economists really say about how to make the world a better place?
It’s rare for economists to highlight how little is known about which policies and institutions fuel economic growth and prosperity. But in their latest book, Good Economics for Hard Times, Nobel Prize-winning economists Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee do exactly that. And it’s this quality of humility and courage, espoused throughout their writing, that inspires confidence and curiosity in what they have to say about other, potentially more important, issues.
Each chapter of the book tackles a big question of global relevance — many of which the reader has likely pondered or even debated over the dinner table. Questions like: should people vote for politicians that favour immigration? How might we avert climate Armageddon? Does welfare or cash handouts make people lazy? And what impact will automation have on jobs and welfare? Despite the contentious and divisive nature of these topics, the authors manage to orchestrate a balanced debate, engaging with the entire spectrum of research, evidence and public opinion.
Their approach is to synthesise the results of empirical work on these topics primarily through randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and natural experiments. These are studies in which people are allocated at random to either receive an intervention (usually a product or service) or be part of a control group that receives no intervention at all. The aim is to measure and compare the outcomes of those that did receive the intervention and those that didn’t. The findings of these studies are then compared to what is predicted by economic theory, often revealing stark differences. Whilst this would probably not surprise those acquainted with the study of economics, the implied nullification of key economic concepts and theories calls for a marked shift in the way economics is taught, studied and interpreted.
On immigration, for example, the authors show that contrary to the law of supply and demand, the influx of low-skilled workers hasn’t really affected local wages in most countries. The chapter on trade more or less debunks a foundational economic model — Ricardo’s Law of Comparative Advantage, which describes how countries are better off under free trade. Particularly compelling is the narration of India’s response to massive trade liberalisation in the early 1990s. Contrary to the purported uniformly distributed ‘gains’ from trade, there were sharp variations in the way liberalisation impacted poverty in the country — some benefitted far more than others.
This divergence between actual experience and economic models or theory is explained by ‘stickiness’ — a concept which theoretical models assume away:
‘Economics imagines a world of irrepressible dynamism. People get inspired, change jobs, turn from making machines to making music, quit and wander the world […] Manchester is reborn as Manchester digital, Mumbai turns its mills into upmarket housing and shopping malls, where those who work in finance spend their newly fattened pay-cheques.’
However, ‘stickiness’ suggests that people and processes are slower in adapting to change than we think or want. Old habits die hard and money can influence some types of behaviours — but not all, not instantly and certainly not for everyone.
The repercussions of ‘stickiness` are so profound, the authors argue, that an entirely different approach to economic policy formulation is needed — one that relies on experiments and real data more than on theoretical models and prediction. This is not surprising given that the authors are strong proponents of RCTs as a tool for designing economic and social policies. The other major implication is that the ultimate objective of policies themselves, at least in developed countries, needs to change too. Today, even in the Global North, when one hears of a certain policy recommendation in political and public spheres, it is almost always justified on the grounds of economic growth. This is ‘bad economics’, write the authors, not least because little is known about what causes growth. ‘Good economics’, on the other hand, especially in hard and uncertain times, places much greater emphasis on policies that tackle inequality and support resilience.
This attention to equality and justice is also notable in the authors’ responses to the other big questions the book addresses. On how to tackle climate change, they write about the inadequacy of clean technology and green growth to solve what is at heart an ethical — not a technical — question: shouldn’t rich countries consume fewer luxuries so that citizens in poorer countries can have some of life’s essentials? On that basis, they emphasise the role of policy in influencing individual behaviour, habits and norms. Specifically, they call for interventions that marry psychology and economics. A carbon tax for instance, combined with simpler measures such as better labelling, has proven effective in gently nudging people towards more preferable behaviours and decisions.
The chapter on social welfare, cash transfers and universal basic income delves into the recent history of the US welfare system, explaining how the topic is heavily politicised and showcasing once again the huge contrast between popular ‘wisdom’, what economic theory predicts and actual experience. The evidence referred to is borne out of the large number of studies looking at the experience of 1 billion people in over 100 countries that have received either conditional or unconditional cash transfers since 2014. The authors write that:
‘There is no evidence that cash transfers make people work less.’
Many might find this surprising — why would you work if you did not need the money to survive? Infact economic theory provides explanations for effects in both directions. However as the authors highlight, much attention has focused on the possible negative effect on labour supply. It’s assumed people will “spend” any extra income they receive on leisure by working less. Poorly acknowledged is that transfers can increase work by giving households a basic living standard which enables them to be productive workers, and by reducing credit constraints so that businesses can open and grow.
By comparing theoretical predictions with real-world experience, the authors illustrate how a fallacy has pervaded media and rhetoric, and use this to once again make a case for evidence-based policymaking.
On AI and robot-induced fears, we learn that while economists’ views on the impact of automation diverge greatly, the real challenge is for governments to put in place policies that help those who are most at risk to adapt. Some answers are provided — certain types of training programmes, for example, but this seems beside the point. Instead, a careful recollection of the history of technological progress, its interplay with politics and the ultimate effects on inequality and poverty is enough to drive the point home.
Filled with personal anecdotes and experiences, the book provides a grounded bird’s-eye view of policy debates that are shaping the discourse on today’s most pressing global problems. Furthermore, in carefully laying out the evidence and not preaching dramatic solutions, the book imparts an important lesson to anyone engaged in scholarly work: be less strident with your views. Every question has multiple answers. And new findings can easily overturn well-established ‘knowns’.
Undoubtedly, though, the authors’ biggest contribution stems from a recurrent critique levied throughout the book against the economics profession’s obsession with growth. They repeatedly underline the shortcomings of using financial incentives to influence behaviour. Many a time, they illustrate how the line between economics, psychology and communication, as well as the distinction between micro- and macroeconomics, are unhelpful constructs.
‘Economics is too important to be left to economists.’
In making this argument, Banerjee and Duflo clear a path for more interdisciplinary work centred on improving citizens’ well-being and protecting human dignity.
This article was first published on the LSE Book Review Blog — https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/lsereviewofbooks/2020/11/23/book-review-good-economics-for-hard-times-better-answers-to-our-biggest-problems-by-abhijit-v-banerjee-and-esther-duflo/ | https://medium.com/curious/good-economics-for-hard-times-book-review-c11fab12cc42 | ['Shruti Patel'] | 2020-11-27 12:22:49.214000+00:00 | ['Nobel Prize', 'Economics', 'World', 'Book Review'] |
Typescript: Are “Private” properties private? | Photo by Wesley Tingey on Unsplash
If you are reading this article, I guess you are interested in the Typescript language. Either you are a newbie or an experienced developer in Typescript language, I bet you use the concept private for class properties many times. But do you know that it is not private at all. Let’s discover together.
Take a look at an example where I have a Student class:
As you can see there are two private properties in the class: attribute phone and method playGame() and we expect that the outside of the class cannot call these properties. And yes, the Typescript compiler guarantees the rule for us.
In the index.js I import the class and I try to violate the rule:
With the modern IDEs and useful plugins, developers can be alerted if they do like this. How luckily we are, right!
But, even you use a simple text editor to write these lines of code. The Typescript compiler will throw errors when building:
You can see the error messages. So, are we safe? The answer is NOT YET. Unfortunately, Typescript only alerts us during compile time, after that, the compiled result is javascript where these private properties will be fully accessible and visible. Let see how:
So, I can violate the rule by cast the Student instance as any and this is the compiled result:
Then, in runtime, it works. Of course, use any is a bad practice or even a mistake. My point here is to prove that we can call private properties in runtime from outside of the class as we have known about Javascript.
But you can have real private properties
With private lass fields. We can easily achieve real private properties. There is however a stage 3 proposal to allow defining private class fields using a hash # prefix. I will modify the class Student as below:
You can see now, the attribute phone is changed to #phone and the method playGame() is changed to #playGame . I keep the same main file with the trick student as any and you can see the result when compiling the code:
The compiler throws an error and the compiling process is exited at the first line of code that the rule is violated. We can see it is more restricted than before where it throws errors for all of the violated lines of code.
You can check more examples in private class fields documentation. | https://medium.com/@congtuanle/typescript-are-private-properties-private-c9558f04f571 | ['Tuan Le Cong'] | 2020-12-20 00:24:27.580000+00:00 | ['Programming', 'JavaScript', 'Object Oriented', 'Tips', 'Typescript'] |
LAST FEW MAJOR STEPS OF FAILURE | LAST FEW MAJOR STEPS OF FAILURE
25). POSSESSION OF POWER THAT WAS NOT ACQUIRED THROUGH SELF EFFORT- (Sons and daughter's of wealthy men and others who inherit money which they did not earn). Power in the hands of one who did not acquire it gradually, is often fatal to success. QUICK RICHES are more dangerous than poverty.
26). INTENTIONAL DISHONESTY- There is no substitute for honesty. One may be temporarily dishonest by force of circumstances over which one has no control, without permanent damage. But, there is NO HOPE for the person who is dishonest by choice. Sooner or later, his deeds will catch up with him and he will pay by loss of reputation and perhaps even loss of Liberty.
27). EGOTISM AND VANITY- These qualities serve as red lights which warn others to keep away. THEY ARE FATAL TO SUCCESS.
28). GUESSING THE INSTEAD OF THINKING- Most people are too indifferent or lazy to acquire FACTS with which to "OPINIONS" created by guesswork or snap-judgments.
29). LACK OF CAPITAL- This is a common cause of failure among those who start out in business for the first time, without sufficient reserve of capital to absorb the shock of their mistakes and to carry them over untill they have established a REPUTATION.
30). UNDER THIS, name any particular cause of failure from which you have suffered that has not been included in the foregoing list.
In these thirty major causes of failure is found a description of the tragedy of life, which obtains for practically every person who tries and fails. It will be helpful if you can induced someone who knows you well to go over this list with you and help to analyze you by the thirty causes of failure . It may be beneficial if you try this alone. Most people cannot see themselves as others to see them. You may be one who cannot. | https://medium.com/@piyushsingh199921/last-few-major-steps-of-failure-dbad36b317b2 | [] | 2020-12-24 15:30:08.615000+00:00 | ['Positive Thinking', 'Daily Blog', 'Brain', 'Succession Planning', 'Failure To Success'] |
Kindness in the Surgical Suite | Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash
Kindness in the Surgical Suite
Whoso Keepeth His Mouth and His Tongue Keepeth His Soul from Troubles. -Proverbs 21:23
When you’re cutting into a cadaver and you sever a choice artery or nerve, expletives will fly. Such was the case in my anatomy lab one day. My tank mates and I stood around a stainless-steel table with a lifeless corpse whom we were systematically dissecting. After more than an hour of work separating the pathway of the vagus nerve one of my mates accidentally tore it. Foul expressions abounded at the lost work. I looked up from where I was working and proclaimed, “Dagnabbit!”.
My classmates laughed good-naturedly at my choice of words then one of them said, “Mason, I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say a swear word.”
“Well,” I replied, “that’s because I don’t curse. Actually, I don’t think I’ve ever said a swear word in my whole life.”
Jaws dropped; they had never heard of such a thing. As a teenager I endured lots of friendly teasing for my lack of four-letter words. I’ve noticed as I’ve grown older that people seem to respect clean language. This is what my tank mates did. They also began to apologize profusely for any poor language they have previously used around me. My response was, “No worries. I appreciate clean language but honestly, I’m busy enough trying to take care of myself I don’t have enough energy to police anyone else. You all talk how you want.”
After that I was known as a nice kid who never swore. People respected me for it. People saw me as a good person. Now, a few years later, I look back and wonder if we were all missing the point.
Unkind Words
While I don’t curse, there is a prevalent phenomenon of complaining in medical school. There are so many things wrong with medical education that one could write volumes. With so much to complain about, it is no surprise that medical students end up complaining…A LOT. On Twitter you can find dozens of anonymous medical student accounts, hiding behind anonymity to express displeasure. If you could be a fly on the wall in a study group, you would be surprised at the vehemence expressed sometimes by students. They voice their anger and discontent. There was a time during medical school where I, just like my fellow students, jumped feet first into the complaining.
We were mad at professors, mad at admin, mad at lectures, mad at crippling loans, mad at the whole system. I remember a student in my study group found out that someone in admin, who proctored our exams and controlled our grades, had a criminal record. My study group started complaining and gossiping in unkind ways.
I didn’t curse, but I did gossip and sometimes say unfair things about people behind their back. I was respected for my clean speech, but were my words really as good as I received credit for?
Mirrors for Ourselves
Kids are a great mirror for ourselves. My son repeats my words all the time. One day I was helping him clean a mess. My hand slipped and I made the mess worse. Instinctively I muttered, “Crap…”.
“Cwap?” a sweet little voice echoed, slightly slurring the R with a W, “Dada what's crap? You said crap, what is crap?”
“Oh, I didn’t say that,” I lied, “I said… ‘Darn’”.
“No dada, you said crap.” my son retorted.
Well here I was being a bad example to my son and I was lying about it. I confessed that I said “crap” and explained what the word means, advising my son that we should try not to say it.
Another time I was driving and someone pulled out in front of me. “Watch where you’re going!” I yelled, and then muttered, “What a doofus-head.”
“Doofus-head?” came a tiny echo in the car-seat behind me. “Dada, what is a doofus-head?”
None of these words are really that bad but it’s the intent of them and the example I was setting. It shows that kids are always listening. It also showed me that I wasn’t always saying the kindest things.
Good Examples
In some ways I don’t like the person I’ve become in medical school; specifically becoming jaded and cynical. I have found that the toxic habit of complaining does me no favors in school, it just makes me mad and ruins my focus on the important things. I now try to distance myself from negative words and gossip. I’m not perfect, and sometimes I still contribute to the flood of complaining that happens when med students congregate.
There are a lot of pressures in med school and life in general. Sometimes, at home, I found that I was quieter, maybe even shorter tempered, with those around me during times when my school stressors were more severe. At church I wasn’t very congenial. I went to my services, said cursory hellos to people I needed to, and mostly focused inside my own head on things I was studying or problems I had. I wasn’t a mean person, but I wasn’t as good as I could be.
Then I started my surgery rotation with Dr. P.
Surgery With Dr. P
During years three and four of medical school, students spend time with physicians in different specialties. Learning what they do, exploring different aspects of medical care, and preparing for our certifying exams. I’ve learned a lot about being a better person and physician from most of my preceptors. Each one of them deserves an article of their own. Dr. L taught me about charity and service, as well as Internal Medicine. Dr. W taught me patience and manly virtue, as well as Orthopedics. Dr. P taught me about kindness, as well as Surgery.
The stereotype is that one’s time in surgery will be stressful and that most surgeon preceptors are egotistical jerks. Dr. P did not fit that mold. He is a jovial man from Ghana with a smile that splits his whole face. He gave me a big hug on our first day and was peppy, bubbly, friendly, and happy. In the operating room he plays upbeat music and sings along, sometimes to the chagrin of the nurses. When we walked down hallways, he would make up raps about working hard and his family.
He introduced me to patients as his albino son, the hospital CEO, Captain Amazo, a shared hallucination, his bodyguard, and more. I visited a patient after their surgery and the patient told me he had been nervous for his procedure, but when he saw how happy his doctor was, and when Dr. P introduced me as Captain Amazo it made him laugh. It made him feel better about his impeding procedure. From then on that patient only called me Captain Amazo, and I didn’t mind.
I never once heard Dr. P say anything mean about someone else. He always gave people the benefit of the doubt. Once, before a tricky surgery, a patient expressed concerns about Dr. P’s ability to perform the surgery. The patient flatly said their concerns stemmed from the color of Dr. P’s skin. So what happened when this patient was anesthetized, shirtless, and limp on a table, with Dr. P standing over him with a knife? Well, Dr. P did his best surgery and gave his best care afterwards. He was bothered by the patient’s perceptions, I saw him struggle with it, but he wanted to be a good person and help reverse the patients racist paradigm.
Dr. P said hello to EVERYONE. He asked them about their lives and was sincerely interested. He spoke to everyone like they were close friends. He prowled the hospital hallways looking for people to make smile. He would tease, he would joke, he would console, he would comfort.
In his clinic there are a lot of inspirational quotes hanging up. One of them succinctly expresses who Dr. P is. It says:
“Be a somebody
who makes everybody
feel like a somebody.”
Did he tell me when I was wrong? Yes. Did he point out my mistakes? Yes. Was he ever rude, condescending, or unkind about it? Nope. He was always sincerely trying to help me out and teach me. Students flocked to him to learn, we all loved him. Every day, when I went home Dr. P would say, “I know you’re studying very hard, but enjoy being with your family tonight too. Don’t neglect them.”
I saw other surgery preceptors banish their students to the corner of the room, with virtually no view of the table or procedure. The students were allowed to approach the table once the procedure was over and they could suture an incision or two. Not so for Dr. P, he had me gown up for every surgery. He wanted me right up to the table. Working with him, I learned a lot about surgery, I learned a lot about the kind of physician I want to be, and I learned a lot about the kind of person I want to be.
A Change in My Life
I made a goal to be more friendly at church. Not to rush home when it was over so I could nap or study, but to linger, talk, and make friends. I found myself smiling and saying hello to people in the hospital hallways. I spent more time talking with my family. I feel like my time with Dr. P made me a more positive, friendly, kind person.
I look at Dr. P and realize he truly is the good person that I had a reputation for being. The cleanliness of your language isn’t as important as the content. Sure, I don’t curse, while he lets squeak the very rare swear word. My words were clean, but the content wasn’t always kind. Dr. P always had uplifting content. He edifies people in his life and his work. I hope to follow his example and truly speak kind words to others. | https://medium.com/interfaith-now/kindness-in-the-surgical-suite-df744630c005 | [] | 2020-06-03 23:40:59.371000+00:00 | ['Charity', 'Kindness', 'Love', 'Medicine', 'Healthcare'] |
Can’t Keep a Long-Term Partner? You’re Not a Failure — Our Culture Is. | “Every other year he brings another woman home for Christmas,” said a voice in the cafe line behind me.
“That’s crazy, why can’t he just stick with one person? At his age? There must be something wrong with him,” said her friend.
As I ordered my Americano, I felt my stomach knot. Maybe there’s something wrong with me too, I thought.
I’m 32 and have been in seven different relationships in my life. The longest ones lasted only a year and a half. So those women could have easily been gossiping about me.
And it’s hard not to take their words to heart. It’s hard not to feel like a social deviant for my relationship history.
According to a survey, about half of people ages 18–34 and almost 80% of people ages 35–49 are in steady long-term partnerships. So the majority of people around my age are coupled up long-term.
And every time I go on Facebook, my newsfeed is lit up with photos of proposals and baby bumps. Posts that regularly get hundreds of likes.
This enthusiasm on social media shows how much society approves of coupledom, marriage, and kids more than almost anything else.
I imagine the people who make those posts and my growing number of married friends with kids at the top of some hill, living the dream.
And I’m here stuck at the bottom. After many attempts at climbing up the hill, (once getting so far as living with a partner) I’ve always lost my footing somewhere and slipped back down again.
After all this time, it’s hard not to feel like I’ve gotten nowhere. It’s hard not to feel like a failure.
The relationship escalator fallacy
But maybe I’m not the problem. Maybe that man who brought the different women home for Christmas was not the problem either.
Maybe the problem is that in our culture, we tend to see our romantic lives as a progression, with casual relationships at the bottom and marriage and kids further up.
But an enriching relationship is not about getting anywhere. It is not about how far you can “ascend,” what “level” you can “reach,” or how long you can endure.
It’s about committing to your own spiritual growth and that of your partner. It’s about supporting each other and growing together.
Whether that happens over the course of a year with one person and over a few years with another, doesn’t really matter. Those few years could be more valuable, deep, and enriching than a lifetime in marriage could have been.
There is nothing intrinsically wrong with someone who is with a new partner every year.
When two consenting adults decide to enter into a relationship, enjoy each other’s company, and then later realize the relationship isn’t right for them, who is to tell them they’re doing it wrong?
Being in a long-term relationship doesn’t not make you more successful.
It’s okay to only want short-term relationships or to not want a classic relationship at all. It’s okay to want to be single your whole life.
It doesn’t make you a sociopath, hopelessly impulsive, or simply unloveable.
If you decide you never want to be with someone long term, there are no real victims. The only victim is an irrelevant cultural standard. If someone judges you for that, that’s on them.
An ended relationship is not a failed relationship.
Even though all of my long-term relationships “failed,” they did so for a reason. They ended because I chose something else (or they did). Because I wanted something more from life and being in a relationship wasn’t compatible with whatever that was.
I chose other things that I felt would be a better use of my time like traveling the world solo.
And I regret neither leaving those relationships nor having them in the first place. All of my relationships have changed my life and made me who I am today.
Be in a long-term relationship for the right reasons.
To be clear, I’m not saying that you shouldn’t want a long-term relationship.
There’s a lot of good that can come from being committed to someone for a long time: a stronger bond, deeper trust, and companionship.
But when we do so, we have to really want all of that regardless of what happens down the line.
The effort and commitment it takes to be in a relationship cannot be made only for the sake of reaching some point in the future together. It must be made because both people want it now.
I’ve been with my current partner for nine months, and I hope that we will stay together for a long time. At this point in my life, I want to experience the type of love that comes with being with someone long term. And I feel like I’ve found someone perfect for me. Someone who is also interested in non-monogamy and would be a great father to my future children.
We have something in mind for the future. But that’s not why we’re together today.
We’re together today because I love my life with him in it. Right now.
And even if doesn’t work out down the line. Even if we were to break up tomorrow, it doesn’t mean we failed. That time we shared would not have been wasted. | https://medium.com/the-virago/cant-keep-a-long-term-partner-you-re-not-a-failure-our-culture-is-faa1c4b98e11 | ['Sarah Stroh'] | 2020-12-18 15:39:37.165000+00:00 | ['Relationships', 'Culture', 'Love', 'Life Lessons', 'Women'] |
iExec joins the ‘Microsoft for Startups’ Program | iExec joins the ‘Microsoft for Startups’ Program: a unique ecosystem made up of both tech giants and disruptive startup innovators.
This month, iExec was selected for the ‘Microsoft for Startups’ France program. The program accompanies the growth of the most innovative B2B startups in France and forms a community of experts, startups leaders, and other professionals looking to share their skills and do business together. The goal for iExec in participating in these initiatives is to reach potential new customers and partners.
Opening up a whole new world of partnership and marketing opportunities.
The Microsoft for Startups program is a chance for iExec to meet new business partners and clients in line with iExec’s go-to-market strategy. The ecosystem and community made up of specialist teams with whom iExec can exchange valuable advice. Being part of the Microsoft Startup program is a chance for iExec to work with actors in fields that match iExec’s vision of the future: the program has invited numerous AI projects, for example, that face significant computational and privacy challenges. iExec is looking forward to meeting these companies and looking out finding solutions that match their needs. Within this ecosystem, iExec can also benefit from marketing through events, media content and interviews, and press relations, generating invaluable visibility for iExec.
Microsoft for Startups also offers a large variety of tools that iExec will use on a daily basis: For example, GitHub Enterprise and Microsoft Power Platform which enables organizations like us to analyze data and automate processes. We’ll also be increasing our involvement in the Microsoft Azure ecosystem, the standard for B2B infrastructure, used by thousands of companies around the world.
iExec is ready to bring their latest technological developments and expertise to the table and is excited to see how this participation in this program can aid in their adoption strategy.
About iExec
iExec is the world leader in decentralized cloud computing. We help enterprises develop blockchain projects focused on business priorities. Our team has built multiple products and services around blockchain, giving us a unique perspective on how it can transform your industry and create new business models. We specialize in public and consortium blockchains, off-chain distributed computing, and privacy-preserving data exchange and usage. Having first launched a decentralized marketplace for cloud computing resources in 2018, iExec is a scalability solution for blockchain projects and governance and traceability solutions for non-blockchain projects,
About Microsoft for Startups
Microsoft, at the heart of the startup ecosystem: We are fuelling some of the most passionate and creative people on our planet to make change. We believe that supporting our startup ecosystem is the best way to foster innovations of tomorrow that will have a positive impact. As a partner of the French innovative ecosystem for more than 30 years, Microsoft support startups by offering them tailored support to guide them on a daily basis to help them grow, create and scale. The program provides up to $120,000 in Azure Cloud credits, technical support, visibility, and most importantly, the opportunity to build a partnership with Microsoft to take advantage of its ecosystem and reach new customers and new markets.
Find out more: https://experiences.microsoft.fr/categorie/business/segment/start-up | https://medium.com/iex-ec/iexec-joins-the-microsoft-for-startups-program-370c9fe249cd | ['Blair Maclennan'] | 2021-08-12 13:56:02.250000+00:00 | ['Microsoft', 'Press Release', 'Startup', 'Tech', 'Blockchain'] |
Creating and Applying Discounts in the AccelByte Dashboard: A How-To Guide | Offering discounts is a classic way to boost sales and promote campaigns. The fact that discounts are frequently seen in the digital game market shows that this strategy works. If you’re considering this strategy for your game, our game storefront backend service has all the right features to control your game catalog and item pricing, including the ability to set regional and discount pricing.
In this guide, we’re going to walk you through how to configure item pricing and discounts with AccelByte, using our admin dashboard.
Log in to the Admin Portal using an admin account that has permission to adjust the prices of items for sale.
In the Admin Portal, go to the Store page by clicking the Store menu in the E-Commerce section on the left sidebar. Here you’ll see a complete list of all of your stores, both Published (stores that are live) and Draft (stores that are not live).
Admin Portal sidebar menu
Only Draft stores can be edited, to minimize the chance of errors occurring in your published store. If the item you want to discount is in your published store, you can clone your published store for editing purposes. When you have the Draft store you want to apply the discount in, click View in that store’s Action menu to open its contents.
Draft Stores list
Find the item to which you want to apply the discount, or create the item if it doesn’t exist in the store yet. To open the item, once again click View in the item’s Action menu.
Digital assets (items) list in the store
On the Item Details page that appears, scroll down to the Pricing section. Select the price you wish to apply the discount to and click View, or click the Create New button in the top-right corner of the Pricing section to create a new price for the item. The latter option can be used to create a region specific price.
Item Details page
Item Details page: adding new pricing
For an existing price, scroll down to the Discount section of the Pricing page for the item. From there:
Pricing Details page
Pricing Details page: adding a discount
Choose whether you want to discount the item’s price by Amount or by Percentage , and input the desired discount value, such as 10.00 ( by Amount ) or 30 ( by Percentage ). When you click the Checkmark button after inputting your discount value, the discounted price of the item will be automatically generated in the Discounted Price field.
or , and input the desired discount value, such as 10.00 ( ) or 30 ( ). When you click the button after inputting your discount value, the discounted price of the item will be automatically generated in the field. Select the Discount Release Date and Discount Expiry Date to define the period of time for which the discount will be active. After the discount expires, the price of the item will be reverted to the base price automatically.
Or for a new price, fill out the Add Price form as follows:
Add Price form
Select the Region the price applies to.
the price applies to. Select the Namespace the currency is defined in. This should be your publisher namespace.
the currency is defined in. This should be your publisher namespace. Select the desired Currency Code for the price.
for the price. Set the base Price for the item. This should not include the discount, which will be added further down.
for the item. This should not include the discount, which will be added further down. Select the Available From and Expiry Date dates to define the time period during which the price will be used for the item, if desired. You can also leave these blank to ensure that this Price will always be used for the item.
and dates to define the time period during which the price will be used for the item, if desired. You can also leave these blank to ensure that this will always be used for the item. Choose whether you want to discount the item’s price by Amount or by Percentage , and input the desired discount value, such as 10.00 or 50. The discounted price of the item will be automatically generated in the Discounted Price field.
or , and input the desired discount value, such as 10.00 or 50. The discounted price of the item will be automatically generated in the field. Select the Discount Release Date and Discount Expiry Date to define the period of time for which the discount will be active. After the discount expires, the price of the item will be reverted to the base price automatically.
After applying the discount, publish the store. The new price will be visible in both Launcher and Player Portal, and anywhere else you sell your game.
Discount pricing displayed on the store page
Discount pricing displayed on the game page
Make sure to notify your players of the discount, so they can take advantage of the great deal you’re offering! You can also use Contentful to publish the story in Player Portal and Launcher. | https://medium.com/accelbyte-inc/creating-and-applying-discounts-in-the-accelbyte-dashboard-a-how-to-guide-2db824a296af | ['Accelbyte Inc'] | 2020-11-18 04:13:32.340000+00:00 | ['Game Development', 'Ecommerce', 'Discount', 'Game Publishing', 'Monetization'] |
2020 is almost over. Here’s what I learned about “Passion”. | Believe it or not, there are two kinds of babies born to this world: the ones which are told “Follow your passion”, and the ones whose fates have already been sealed and labelled. After those babies grow up, one group of people, hence, are told to follow a certain path, and they’ll earn bliss, while the rest of them are guided to a certain destination, which can be a lesser peak than the former group or higher. Nevertheless, we observe, that it is always the latter group who gets to enjoy the walk.
The word “Passion” is of Latin origin. Its root is “pati ”— Latin for “suffer”. This word is frequently used these days in a multitude of books and speeches. But never we thought that the word has got a root which is quite the opposite to our idea of what passion is. There is almost no career guidance program which does not speak of this word. Every self-help guru puts quotes and quotes to make the word never leave our “consciousness”. Van Gogh’s quote “A great fire burns within me, but no one stops to warm themselves at it, and passers-by only see a wisp of smoke” is frequency cited in many books, and speeches. So clearly, this word has an immense significance to one’s life.
What is “Passion”?
One close definition I could extract from Merriam Webster was “a strong liking or desire for or devotion to some activity, object, or concept”. Oxford’s got a very similar definition: “a very strong feeling of liking something; a hobby, an activity, etc. that you like very much”. We observe the term “strong”, is common. Thus, in order to cultivate passion, one must have a strong desire to an entity — be it a person, an object, or a career. Now, shall we go a little bit far, as Van Gogh did, and replace the term strong with burning? Steve Jobs put forth the quote “You have to be burning with an idea, or a problem, or a wrong that you want to right. If you’re not passionate enough from the start, you’ll never stick it out.”. The terms strong and burning give us a magnitude of the sense of intensity. This magnitude is differed in the aforementioned point of views. The former gives sort of a solid, gritty and long-term feeling while the latter gives us a highly-motivated, intensive, and tempting feeling to act.
In spite of the textbook definitions, we already have some idea on what the term “Passion” actually mean. If I am not prompted with multiple textbook definitions, I would have explained the word in a similar way that most people do — a burning, never ending and highly productive desire to drive through to a specific, profitable and effective goal. This may depend on the context (environment — culture and relationships— that you live in), but nevertheless, the term passion heightens sort of an intense desire to pursue a worthy goal. Specially if you’re in a corporate environment, and you’re bombarded with a plenty of self-help jargon, this might be evident to you more than enough.
The Longevity
When it comes to goals, there are long term goals and short term goals. They form a hierarchy — a binary tree-like structure — where the short term goals are the leaves of the tree and the one grand long-term goal is the topmost node. The tree is all about the levels of abstraction — down you go (i.e. to the leaves) you get less abstraction i.e. more specificity in the goals. The low-level goals (leaf-level goals) are aligned in a way that they help you to attain the goal at the topmost node.
It’s December already. 2020 is almost gone. It’s high time to evaluate the goals we had set at the beginning of 2020. How many of them you can tick off (i.e. completed), and how many of them you cannot (i.e. not completed)? I was graduated from the university at the beginning of 2020, and my topmost node at the goal-tree was to cultivate my skills (both technical and non-technical) so that I could compete my older self and topple my older self by a quite significant margin. I’m certain I have achieved my top-level goal, because I have a habit of keeping track by writing an article on how the year went at the end of the year. I can compare myself with my older self, and I’m way above my older self.
Now, if we traverse down our goal trees, we can find more specificity in the goals, and we can reminisce the extents to which the mid and lower level goals helped us to achieve the topmost node(s). And if we couldn’t achieve the topmost level, we can find out why. When I traverse my goal tree, I find one node which I failed to even look at when the year 2020 progressed on. I am quite adept at music (well, not proficient but I feel I have some sort of a born-skill set towards it; this was evident to me specially in my younger days when I used to play the violin — many of my teachers used to say that I was quite skilled. I’ve never played the violin since I was 15), and I resolved to practice guitar finger-style patterns (not the violin). I did practice it at the beginning of 2020 for a month, and it did not became a habit, since it was replaced by reading. I love to read, and I am constantly on the “50 books a year” challenge. But still, I wanted to practice the guitar, and the lack of it made some aspects of my topmost goal fail. That is, I cannot challenge my older self because my older self was miles better at aesthetics than I am now.
We’re not bad at resolving on to something. We all are quite good at setting goals. In fact, we all make goals on the 1st of January every year, and when we reconcile them at the end of the year, we find loopholes. Therefore, it is evident that enthusiasm is common in setting goals. We all get pumped up when we set the goals. But the endurance it takes to achieve the goals is the most striking aspect most of us lack. If we define Passion as the enthusiasm (the intense feeling we get when we set the goals) at the beginning of a goal, it is an inept definition. As Angela Duckworth states in her book “Grit”:
“Fireworks erupt in a blaze of glory but quickly fizzle, leaving just wisps of smoke and a memory of what was once spectacular …. Instead, passion [should be regarded] as a compass — that thing that takes you some time to build, tinker with, and finally get right, and that then guides you on your long and winding road to where, ultimately, you want to be.”
Intensities that “quickly fizzle” —like sudden rushes of dopamine — shall not be regarded as passionate enterprises. Instead, we must regard the term Passion as a long-term endurance, a constant struggle to achieve something which challenges us to our very core but still does not lead us astray from the topmost goal. The longevity of the effort we put, is what defines how passionate you are towards the goal. The graph of effort against time should be a constant vertical line at best (better if it has got a positive gradient). When our goals lead us to dead-ends (they will), it seems that Passion is the only genuine agent that takes us aback and encourages us to push on. One cannot simply say that another is passionate towards something if he/she has not seen the other fail in the goal at least once. I think this is how the word was formed, and this is why the word’s root is “pati” (i.e. to suffer).
On “Follow your passion”
I am in that category which people are born with their fate labelled. This is the primary reason why I took my advanced level examinations twice — to achieve my label. I had no idea which stream of Engineering I was to take (our university had 8 streams), so I took the one which was there in my label. Quite spontaneously (miraculously), the stream I chose fitted me and ultimately I became passionate towards it. It did not fit me perfectly; I had to work hard (very hard) to get the basics right, as most of my colleagues had done courses before the university. It made me a Geek, and I’m proud of being a Geek because of — as I call it — the “cultivated passion”. It involves reading what other people had done constantly, how other people think and design their codebases and appreciating them, what alternative technologies you can use, how the trending technologies work, doubting the existing codebases (and sometimes get scolded for it), and reading books on subjects where one can learn them through an easy online-course. These subtleties made me desire the work more that I refused a high-paying employment just to be in the framework I made to achieve my goals, and I never regret the decision one bit.
The continuous utterance “Follow your passion”, heeds differently in different contexts. In certain circumstances, people cannot afford to find their passion, and they have to resolve into something much less — or something of a higher status but something they don’t want to do. On the other hand when opportunities are plenty, it might also be difficult to find one pursuit. My situation was more towards the latter, but not entirely the latter. However, as they say, “you cannot always get what you want”. Now I trod on grounds where Self-Help books abolish you from stepping into. Nevertheless, it’s true. Setting a goal, and achieving it is one thing, but thinking you can achieve all the goals is another. Not everybody has to become a Steve Jobs; not everybody has to become an Elon Musk. If you look at the two personalities, one has traits that the other does not have. I think, in my experience from what I have observed (my colleagues and from what I have read), this is one reason why Passion falters: having too much diversity in goals, thinking that you can achieve all your goals, and expecting short-term fireworks.
There are people who once faced dire circumstances but climbed out of the pit precisely because of the unending persistence they had because they had cultivated passion towards some enterprise. They came out because they did not expect short-term fireworks. They always believed that it would take time, and it was those dire backgrounds that made them persistent. Quite often, people in the pit have one selfless long-term goal — no multitudes of diverse goals. Their intentions are not for an individual, but for a whole community. Hence, their passions are backed by an entire community than one individual. Therefore when one climbs out, he carries a whole society with him. That passion never runs out — it always recovers.
It is thus evident that the utterance Follow your passion is easily said than done. There are a lot of signals at play, when you try to find your passion. It’s not as straight-forwards as the Self-Help books depict.
Simon Sinek’s take on Self-Help
My Key Takeaways
2020 was a pivotal year for my career. I was not alone. I saw my colleagues step into their careers as well. I saw some of my colleagues pursue different goals than I do, which is a good thing. Some went for entrepreneurship, some — like me — went straight for organizations to work, some went abroad for higher studies (and work) and some stayed in University as grad students. It has been over 10 months we’ve been at our careers — a short term and very long days to come. How we’ve spent our post-university life might be the same for each profession we’ve been in the 10 months, but I think how that time affected each and everyone of us is completely distinct for each of us. All of us, at the start of our university, were told the same “Follow your Passion” story. When I think of it, it seems that how each of us reacted to differing circumstances in the past 10 months emphasizes and heightens our passion towards the work that we do. I know people who worked around the clock but still hold their work to the highest standard, never complain (A healthy discussion is not a complaint) and in fact, rebut the naysayers. I also know people who directly told me that what they do now is not what they wanted to do and thus it seems impossible for them to cultivate the effort it requires. I regard the former group of people as equipped with the highest form of grit which aids passion to cultivate among themselves. The latter did not fail at work they do. But for them, it seems it is not possible to continue in the long run, which would cause strain and fatigue onto their own careers. Quite often, the latter group are subsets of the “labelled” group we’ve discussed before.
Millennial Talk — Sinek
We are from the Millennial generation (born between 1981 and 1996). The traits of Millennial generation generally come from the attitudes towards what we do. Quite often, as we’ve discussed before, we expect quick fireworks, which do not happen in the real world. We want quick success. I think the term passion is paradoxical when it is used with quick outcomes. It demands long-term stances, arduous effort and strong will. It seems that Passion is a recovery agent, a compass, but not a genie in a bottle that suddenly pops. | https://medium.com/@dasunpubudumal/2020-is-almost-over-heres-what-i-learned-about-passion-8e78f0ea02e3 | ['Dasun Pubudumal'] | 2020-12-19 06:33:50.839000+00:00 | ['Passion', 'Careers', 'Graduate', 'New Year'] |
$5 Per Month — A Bargain!. We Get So Much For So Little | $5 Per Month — A Bargain!
Photo by Katie Harp on Unsplash
I was reading a response to a story that Louise Foerster had made. She had written a comment on a story that struck me (and down the rabbit hole I went.)
What had she written?
“The fact that for $5 a month, I get to read AMAZING, WISE, SMART stories and poems and articles I would never otherwise have access to — the ability to connect with intelligent, interesting people is a treasured bonus.”
She wrote this in response to the following story by Agnes Louise.
Agnes makes a good point and one I’ve thought about often. Most of us get paid chickenfeed for the work we do on here. Only about 6 or 7% earn more than $100 per month. So why do we do it? For the reasons Agnes points out. We love the connections, the community, the opportunity to read and comment on what our fellow writers publish.
I don’t know about you, but Medium has spoiled me. Whenever I read something elsewhere and I can’t highlight, clap or comment on it, I feel cheated. I feel like an important and valuable element is missing. If it was a good read, I want to let the author know I appreciated it. If something jumps out at me, I want to highlight it and maybe come back later and make a comment.
It has even gotten me back into the habit of highlighting print books. When I read, I keep a highlighter beside my reading chair and another one on my writing desk.
On Medium, I love “seeing” who reads my work and what they have to say as a result. (Thankfully, most of the comments are appreciative and encouraging. I suspect that may be due more to your kindness than my writing.)
When you think about it, $5.00 is a paltry sum to pay for what we get. And, if you are even a moderately good writer, you can earn $5 per month by writing a few stories, AND you can have a boatload of fun doing it.
Frankly, I don’t know how Medium stays afloat unless they have a ton of readers who do not write for pay. Being a writer, I cannot imagine foregoing the opportunity to write when it is offered. If I can believe the Medium statistics, some writers get paid thousands and some stories earn tens of thousands of dollars. That’s a lot of $5-per-month readers.
So, as Agnes says, when you get upset about Medium’s policies or what they pay. Stop and think about what your getting for that $5 per month.
After all, as Agnes mentioned, Medium does have to pay staff and the servers and hosting costs in addition to paying us writers. They have to pay lawyers and people to send out those meager monthly payments we work so hard for. Unless they have another source of revenue, I don’t see how they do it. I just hope it is sustainable. Their tinkering with the pay algorithm, no doubt, is an effort to balance money paid out and other costs with revenue. I wish them success. After all, their success helps insure our success.
Like many of my reader-writer friends, I spend a significant block of my time reading and writing on Medium. I do it because I enjoy it. I’m retired, so I don’t have to chase the mighty buck, but I don’t like to waste my time either. After all, we each have a limited amount of time on this planet. (The older I get, the more appreciative I am of that fact.)
Part of the motivation to write this article came from my good friend Rasheed Hooda. He wrote
If I were in Rasheed’s shoes, I’d probably do the same thing.
But I’m not sure I’d have the guts to take the 2nd step he took, though
That’s a new approach to Medium. My guess is that he plans to treat his Medium stories the same way he does his balloon art: give it away and people will give him money in return. If so, I hope it works for him.
To earn real money on Medium, you need a large following of dedicated readers. To get that, you need to write articles that attract and engage your readers and write them well. It’s not rocket science, but it does require skill and dedication.
Many successful writers have a niche and a following in their field. I came across one writer (a programmer in a language I had not heard of) who was bemoaning the fact that one of his stories hadn’t earned $100. Apparently he’d written some that had and was trying to duplicate that achievement. (Sorry, but I don’t remember the writer or the article.)
I think what that proves is that if you have something valuable to sell, something that’s unique, that only you can provide, and if you have a cadre of potential buyers, and if you are a good writer, you can make decent money.
To my mind, writing for money on Medium is akin to network marketing. Most of the “buying” comes from those who know you. And your reputation spreads mostly by word of mouth. We find readers by reading and interacting with other writers. There is a lot of reciprocity. We read them; they read us.
Writers in the hundred-dollars-plus-club are not in my league. I guess its like us hackers watching the golf pros and marveling at how well they play. They’re consistent. Almost every shot is a good one. A big part of how they do it has to do with practice, but natural skill plays a huge role. Also, good coaching makes a big difference. The same can be said of writing here on Medium or anywhere.
Stephen King says you can make a good writer better, but you can’t turn a good writer into a great writer. I’m not sure I agree, but he certainly knows more about writing than I do.
As I said when I joined Medium, I’m not here for the money. I do view it as a fun way to measure my performance each month. For me, it’s a challenge to earn enough to cover the subscription fee. That’s part of what keeps me going and writing.
Happy Reading, Writing and Connecting! | https://medium.com/illumination/5-per-month-a-bargain-73087474a129 | ['Bob Jasper'] | 2020-11-17 22:39:12.211000+00:00 | ['Writing', 'Payment Gateway', 'Writers On Medium', 'Bargain', 'Writing On Medium'] |
Wanted: Associate Consultants (Social Change) | In a nutshell: We’re looking for new people to join our team of freelance associate consultants at the Co-production Network for Wales.
Closing date: 15th January 2021
Location: home-based, Wales preferred
Contact details: [email protected]
Who we are, the official blurb: The Co-production Network for Wales is the leading organisation in Wales with specialist expertise in co-production and citizen involvement. It offers capability building across sectors through training and consultancy, in both strategic and delivery organisations. Our strength lies in our ability to combine hands-on facilitation and training skills with advisory and strategic input, and in our distributed membership of citizen and professional practitioner members across sectors: a network of doers and thinkers who inspire and empower one another, share power and work together to bring positive change to our public services and communities. Find us at https://copronet.wales .
What’s happening? We are planning ahead for an increased workload in 2021 and are looking to add capacity to the team. We’re looking to recuit several people who can offer at least 1 day’s consultancy per week on average. (We will need about 4–5 additional days’ capacity per week across our new associates.)
For us to be a good fit we need you to be:
1. An experienced facilitator
It’s not so much about which techniques are in your toolbox and how long you’ve been doing this for, so much as what your approach is like. You are:
- person centred / strengths based / relationships focused;
- trauma informed, compassionate;
- comfortable operating in complexity and thinking about systems;
- tuned into creating and holding welcoming spaces (including online);
- bringing kindness, empathy and non-judgement;
- able to balance the objectives for the session with being participant-led.
2. Organised!
You’re good at managing projects, you have attention to detail, and you can juggle different briefs and projects at once. Also, you are a good communicator: you’ll be keeping track for the client team you’re supporting, which will keep them on track.
3. Into positive social change
Understanding and experience of co-production as an approach, is a bonus. If this is new to you it’s not a deal breaker: you can learn it from the rest of the team — the important thing is that we have the same values base. If your background includes things like asset-based community development, human-centred design, or participatory approaches, we’re probably talking about roughly the same thing under a different label, and you’ll fit right in.
4. In Wales (preferred)
We are, after all, the Co-production Network for Wales, and we work across the statutory and third sectors across Wales. While we can brief you on the devolved policies and structures of national and local government, it would be better if you experience these first hand because you live here. And of course one day (maybe) we’ll be working in person again, and the logistics and costs of travel will be a factor.
5. Self-employed, and with available capacity
We have a team of associate consultants who work under the umbrella of the Co-production Network for Wales. You need to be set up so that you can invoice us, and also so that you are taking on a portfolio of projects alongside ours. We will need 1–2 days per week from you, with the potential to grow this over time.
Does this sound interesting?
Email [email protected], and tell us how all this resonates with you and matches your practice. Keep it simple, 1 side of A4 max in length. Also please give us an indication of your hourly &/or day rate(s).
Timescales:
Please write by close of play on Friday 15th January 2021. If we think you might be a good fit, we’ll set up a Zoom chat with two of our senior consultants (Noreen and Mike) at a mutually convenient time in w.c. 18th or 25th January.
(Please note: I will be off work from 18th December to 11th January, so don’t worry if you don’t hear back in between those dates. I’ll get back to you on my return.) | https://medium.com/@noreenblanluet/wanted-associate-consultants-social-change-9357be57dc07 | ['Noreen Blanluet'] | 2020-12-08 14:13:55.889000+00:00 | ['Wales', 'Freelance', 'Recruitment', 'Consultant', 'Social Change'] |
Two Early Descriptions of Camphor Production | Camphor has come up several times on this blog. If you’ve read everything on the blog so far then you may be sick of it. This is yet another post about the stuff — specifically about the two earliest accounts of Southeast Asian camphor production, which happen to come from different corners of the planet but nonetheless show remarkable similarities. Here I’ll go over a few basic facts about camphor to jog your memories before having a look at the relevant texts, one in Chinese and the other in Arabic.
Camphor is a white oily crystalline substance produced by several plant species, most notably tall forest trees in the genus Dryobalanops, several species of which have been exploited for camphor production in Sumatra, Borneo, and the Malay Peninsula. (Another tree species, Cinnamomum camphora, native to Taiwan, southern China, and Japan, has also been exploited for camphor production in more recent times.) The camphor is stored inside the wood, and to get at it entire trees, which tend to live lonely lives deep in the forest, are cut down. Camphor could never be produced in large quantities as a result. The substance was put to many uses in the Middle Ages (Fig. 1): It could be added to food and drink; it was used in medicines to treat a range of conditions, from headaches to nosebleeds and swellings; and it even found its way into recipes for gunpowder and fireworks, particularly in late-medieval Europe.
Figure 1– An illustration of camphor being sold in a late-fourteenth-century northern Italian manuscript of the Latin “Tacuinum Sanitatis” (a translation of a work by the eleventh-century Iraqi Christian scholar Ibn Buṭlān). Vienna, ÖNB, Cod. Ser. N. 2644, f.94r.
Camphor was a truly hemispheric phenomenon in the Middle Ages — one of many things, like cloves and rosewater and the Arabic script, that would have been recognisable to sophisticated people living anywhere from Morocco to Japan and beyond. The Malay word kapur (originally ‘chalk’ but by extension also ‘camphor’) was the source of terms for camphor across medieval Afro-Eurasia, including the modern English word. Barus on the northwest coast of Sumatra, known in Arabic and Persian as Fanṣur, was particularly well-known for its camphor, and the local term kapur Barus (lit. ‘Barus chalk’), attested in many texts in Malay, Old Sundanese, and Old Javanese, was loaned into or calqued by languages as far apart as Old French and Chinese. It is reasonable to infer that the camphora referred to in medieval European texts came largely from Sumatra and Borneo, as did the kāfūra in medieval Arabic ones.
Figure 2— Dryobalanops aromatica in the Forest Research Centre, Kuala Lumpur. Source.
In this post we’re going to look at two of the earliest sources describing the processing of Southeast Asian Dryobalanops camphor — one written by a Persian geographer in Arabic and the other by a Táng-dynasty Chinese writer. Both texts were written in the late ninth century and, significantly, appear to draw on the same original account, perhaps a text or a verbal description in Persian. (There were significant connections between China and the Persian-speaking world at this time, and Persians in China were renowned for their medical knowledge — see e.g. Allsen 2004:11–14.) The similarities between these accounts have been noted in the past (see Donkin 1999:54) and are perhaps unsurprising. That Chinese and Persian writers drew on similar sources when attempting to describe Southeast Asia in the ninth century is nonetheless an excellent demonstration of the interconnected nature of Afro-Eurasia in the Middle Ages.
These two texts, introduced and translated below, are not the earliest extant references to camphor — as we’ve seen on this blog, camphor is mentioned in the Qur’ān and also perhaps in some early Sogdian texts — but they are the earliest surviving descriptions of the substance’s origins and processing. | https://medium.com/@indomedieval/two-early-descriptions-of-camphor-production-ba3054e60375 | ['Medieval Indonesia'] | 2020-12-25 20:16:21.224000+00:00 | ['The Middle Ages', 'Medieval', 'Indonesia', 'Spices', 'Camphor'] |
268. Missing Number — LeetCode(Python) | I got you!
Problem:
Given an array nums containing n distinct numbers in the range [0, n] , return the only number in the range that is missing from the array.
Follow up: Could you implement a solution using only O(1) extra space complexity and O(n) runtime complexity?
Example 1:
Input: nums = [3,0,1]
Output: 2
Explanation: n = 3 since there are 3 numbers, so all numbers are in the range [0,3]. 2 is the missing number in the range since it does not appear in nums.
Example 2:
Input: nums = [0,1]
Output: 2
Explanation: n = 2 since there are 2 numbers, so all numbers are in the range [0,2]. 2 is the missing number in the range since it does not appear in nums.
Example 3:
Input: nums = [9,6,4,2,3,5,7,0,1]
Output: 8
Explanation: n = 9 since there are 9 numbers, so all numbers are in the range [0,9]. 8 is the missing number in the range since it does not appear in nums.
Example 4:
Input: nums = [0]
Output: 1
Explanation: n = 1 since there is 1 number, so all numbers are in the range [0,1]. 1 is the missing number in the range since it does not appear in nums.
Constraints:
n == nums.length
1 <= n <= 104
0 <= nums[i] <= n
All the numbers of nums are unique.
Solution(s):
1. Hashing —
Solution —
class Solution:
def missingNumber(self, nums: List[int]) -> int:
num_dict = {}
for num in nums:
if num not in num_dict:
num_dict[num] = 1
for num in range(len(nums)+1):
if num not in num_dict:
return num
Explanation —
We create a dictionary num_dict to store all numbers in the array nums. Then, we iterate over the range [0, n] to check for every number if it is stored in the dictionary. If a number is not in the dictionary, it is the number missing from the array nums and we return it.
Time and Space Complexity —
To iterate over the elements of the array to form a dictionary, is a linear time operation and the space needed to store all items in the dictionary is a linear function of the length of the input array.
Thus, if n is the length of the array nums,
Time Complexity: O(n)
Space Complexity: O(n)
2. Bit Manipulation —
Solution —
missing = len(nums)
for i in range(len(nums)):
missing ^= i^nums[i]
return missing
Here, we use the XOR operation (^). The properties that we’ve used are:
a^a = 0
0^a = a
a^b = b^a
Thus, when we iterate over the array, we use the XOR operation on every single element with the variable missing and store the value of the expression in the same missing variable.
A sample run over the input array [0, 1, 3, 4] would be:
missing=4∧(0∧0)∧(1∧1)∧(2∧3)∧(3∧4)
=(4∧4)∧(0∧0)∧(1∧1)∧(3∧3)∧2
=0∧0∧0∧0∧2
=2
which is indeed the ‘missing’ element.
Time and Space Complexity —
To iterate over the elements of the array, is a linear time operation and we need constant space to store the variable missing.
Thus, if n is the length of the array nums,
Time Complexity: O(n)
Space Complexity: O(1)
3. Gauss’ Formula —
Solution —
expected_sum = len(nums)*(len(nums)+1)//2
actual_sum = sum(nums)
return expected_sum - actual_sum
Explanation —
We are aware of the fact that the sum of the first n natural numbers is represented as:
sum = (n * (n + 1)) / 2
We subtract this sum from the actual sum of the array that is passed as input to us and return the value. This value is equal to the number missing in the array.
Time and Space Complexity —
To sum over the elements of the array, is a linear time operation and we need constant space to store the mathematical and the actual sum.
Thus, if n is the length of the array nums,
Time Complexity: O(n)
Space Complexity: O(1) | https://medium.com/@palashsharma891/268-missing-number-leetcode-python-a983a290a8ea | ['Palash Sharma'] | 2021-06-08 07:53:29.211000+00:00 | ['Python', 'Leetcode', 'Algorithms', 'Interview', 'Coding Interviews'] |
Real Estate Commissions Fall In 2020. Covid is why. | Each year the EffectiveAgents® team looks at a large sample of US home transactions to determine the average real estate commission that a home seller might expect to pay. 2020 was an unusual year (for so many reasons) and the fees that real estate agents charge were impacted. Overall, the year yielded some interesting changes to fee landscape. With homes selling quicker and agents utilizing more tech than ever, average realtor commissions were markedly lower.
2020 Average Realtor® Commission Rate
Our analysis occurred on 12/21/2020 and was comprised of a large sample of US existing home closings. The average realtor® commission rate for 2020 is 5.656%.
Average real estate commission rates have fluctuated over the years but have remained between 5% and 6% for nearly a century. The income that an agent earns is highly influenced by economic cycles and is subject to expansion when housing inventory moves quickly and compression when homes aren’t as liquid. 2020 saw record demand thanks to Covid-19 and a cultural re-prioritization of home-ownership. The speed at which homes sold in 2020 was staggering. On average, it took a homeowner just 24 days to get their home under contract. This unprecedented home sale velocity encouraged motivated real estate agents to lower their commissions and fees compared to 2019. The average real estate commission in 2019 was 5.702% and, while inventory was constrained, it was nothing like the supply-demand scenario that played out in 2020.
If you are considering selling your home and are evaluating average real estate commission rates charged by realtors®, let this be a starting point for your conversation. As long as demand for housing remains as strong as it is, we believe that the fees that realtors® charge will remain under some pressure. If you would like to find a motivated, top performing realtor® in your area…that’s what we do best.
Recent surveys indicate that more, 77% of home sellers only interviewed one agent. EffectiveAgents.com suggests interviewing at least 3 agents, we can introduce you to a few great candidates as well. Interviewing multiple agents helps home sellers get the most out of their relationship and is a simple way to save a little money. While it may not seem appealing to meet in person, a lot can be accomplished with facetime and zoom. | https://medium.com/@kevinstuteville/real-estate-commissions-fall-in-2020-covid-is-why-62b12248b3b0 | ['Kevin Stuteville'] | 2020-12-22 17:03:24.999000+00:00 | ['Real Estate', 'Realtor Comissions', 'Real Estate Agent', 'Real Estate Trends'] |
Machine Learning — Complete Linear Regression | Linear regression is a method that describes dependence relationships, a linear model establishes the relationship between a dependent variable y (Target) and one or more independent variables denoted X (Inputs).
Let us follow one simple example to get an idea of linear regression, our sample data set is shown below, then we plot them.
The values in column ‘GrLivArea’ are independent variables because they are pre-determined, we can not change them by the other variables. The values in column ‘Price’ are dependent variables since we can predict them on changes in the independent variables. Through observation of the diagram, we found there seems to be a positive impact of GrLivArea (X)on the Price (y) of the houses. We could try to fit a line to the graph that describes the ‘average’ impact of X on y. However, how could us find the straight line that fits the data best?
Basically, we could use either Ordinary Least Squared (OLS) Method or an algorithm called Gradient Descent.
Ordinary Least Squared (OLS) Method
1.1. Sum of Squared Deviation
Sum of squared deviation, also called sum of squared errors, is the sum of the squared difference between each dependent variables and the mean of the dependent variables. The deviations here are the difference between actual values (each observations) and predict values (the line). Let us take a look at the mathematical solution.
1.2. Minimizing the sum of squared deviations
Following is the process how we get the formula for m and b, with simple linear regression, we could use the outcome formula directly.
1.3. Example
Now we got the solution for the value of m and b, we will see how it works in our example:
By using the example data set and the formula above, we derive m = 142.02, b = -11954, below is the scatter plot diagram with the best fit line.
The Ordinary Least Squared (OLS) Method is an efficient way to deal with simple linear regression problems (e.g. single independent variables and single dependent variables). It can deal with linear regression with multiple variables as well. We could substitute b and m as θ0 and θ1, thus, the model could be denoted as:
2. Gradient Descent
2.1. The Hypothesis
In machine learning, we have a notion of hypothesis, represented as h, which is a function takes X (Inputs) and try to output estimated value. Therefore, we could present our model as following:
2.2. Cost Function
2.3. The Algorithm
2.4. Example
There are three types of Gradient Descent algorithm:
Batch Gradient Descent: In Batch Gradient Descent, when we calculate the gradient of the cost function, we need to sum up all the training examples for each step. Therefore, if we had a huge data set, it is not appropriate to use this method.
Stochastic Gradient Descent (SGD): Instead of using all the training examples for each step in Batch Gradient Descent, SGD uses one randomly selected example or training sample of the data for each step. Depending on the problem, it sometimes could be much faster than Batch Gradient Descent. However, it may cause the problem of error rate jumping around instead of slowly decreasing.
Mini-Batch Gradient Descent: This method is a combination of Batch Gradient Descent and SGD, it uses a randomly selected subset of the data at every step. Minni-Batch Gradient Descent creates a balance between the stablity of Batch Gradient Descent and the efficiency of SGD.
Reference:
Andrew Ng (2016) ‘Linear Regression’. https://youtu.be/kHwlB_j7Hkc.
Emvalomatis, G. (2020) ‘LinearRegression’ [PowerPoint presentation]. BU52018: Business Analytics.
Khan Academy (2011) ‘Squared error of regression line’.
Madhu Sanjeevi (2017) ‘Chapter 1.2: Gradient Descent with Math.’
Prabhu (2018) ‘Linear Regression Simplified — Ordinary Least Square vs Gradient Descent’.
StatQuest with Josh Starmer (2019) ‘Gradient Descent, Step-by-Step’. https://youtu.be/sDv4f4s2SB8. | https://medium.com/@marvinbu/machine-learning-complete-linear-regression-924f698659b6 | ['Bu Yifan'] | 2020-09-17 06:52:31.904000+00:00 | ['Ordinary Least Square', 'Machine Learning', 'Linear Regression', 'Gradient Descent'] |
7 surefire ways to boost your self confidence right now | 7 surefire ways to boost your self confidence right now
It’s all about what you do, not who you are
There is a certain aura around confidence, it’s something most people covet. I usually imagine myself as someone who is super confident in my daydreams. If you knew me when I was young, you would no doubt have described me as a happy-go-lucky kid. Maybe a little shy but pretty well balanced overall. But the word confident was, I believe, never used as an adjective to describe my appearance to the world.
Most people would like to be more confident, but as luck would have it, most people are going about it all wrong. You see, I always aimed to become confident in order to portray confidence. But that’s not how it works. Courage works in a similar fashion. We can only be courageous by taking action in the presence of fear, not in its absence. So fear is a prerequisite for courage.
Image by author, made in Canva
The same can be said, in a way, about confidence. We become confident only by acting confident. I don’t mean to downplay the lifelong act of becoming comfortable enough in our own skin to have less of an anxiety while speaking in public, talking up a potential hot date, or going on a job interview. But acting confident is a much bigger part of being confident than most people realize.
So to get you started, since I imagine you ended up here searching for ways to become more confident, I’ve compiled a list of my top 7 tips on self confidence. These are all tricks that anyone can do without preparation, and more importantly, there is no excuse for not doing them.
Tip #1 — Smile!
Let’s dive right in with a good one to kick it off on a high note. It’s an easy one as well. I know what you’re thinking, “Smile? That’s the big surefire way to increase my confidence I came here looking for?” But see, if you’re looking for quick and easy ways to become more confident, nothing beats a nice, big grin. And with smiling, the bigger the better.
Now, we don’t want to look fake, so aim for the smile to be big enough to show across a small room, but not so big that you look like grandpa showing off his new dentures. Humans are also pretty good at spotting a fake, so it has to be as genuine as you can pull off. My secret trick to induce a genuine smile, especially if I don’t feel like it, is to think of something I genuinely love, like my kids. My profile picture has that kind of smile, my daughter took the picture so the smile is for her. I love that picture, and I’m pretty sure most would agree I look pretty confident in it.
Tip #2 — Stand up straight
I can hear you sighing in disbelief at this one as well, “Are you kidding me with this? Loose my hunched back and conquer the world with my exuding confidence you say?” But even science agrees with me on this one.
You might have seen a TED talk by Amy Cuddy in which she claims that so-called power poses change our hormonal levels to increase our confidence. And while Cuddy herself has since taken a more agnostic approach to that particular physiological claim, follow up studies have shown that our psychological and emotional states are improved for the better by a better posture.
Tip #3 — Pull your shoulders back
When we pull our shoulders back, we also tend to straighten our backs and raise our necks. This makes us look taller, which makes us look more confident. But the real reason this works is the effect it has on ourselves. Research has shown that pulling our shoulders back signals the brain that it is confident and powerful.
This one is almost too powerful, at least depending on the situation at hand. I’m not a traditional male alpha, so I don’t naturally gravitate to the type of over-confidence where I look to “dominate” a room. But when I pull my shoulders back and straighten my entire posture, making the most use of my 6'3″ height (189cm), I feel arrogant almost. Like I’m showing off. But it’s great when I speak in front of a crowd.
Tip #4 — Look people in the eyes
This one is hard, I completely get that. The eyes are the window to the soul, and looking into another person’s eyes can be quite, well, scary!
If you manage to do this, then the effect is strong both on you and the person on the other end of the gaze. It instantly creates a connection that is very intimate and human. But for the intents and purposes of gaining more confidence, that connection imbues us with more confidence. Be careful not to stare, though, that’s just creepy.
Tip #5 — Be grateful
Being grateful is a superpower. Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m very preoccupied with my goals. And in being so, I am focused on things I don’t have. This is, in a sense, the opposite of gratitude. Looking at the things I already have, everything I’ve accomplished, and being grateful that has a very calming effect on me. It centers me, and brings me squarely to the present.
And being present takes confidence, and it shows. Both internally and for those we interact with. All of the people I look up to have the ability to be present, and when I speak to them they make me feel like I have their undivided attention.
This is a quality that is perhaps more noticeable for the people we speak to than ourselves when it comes to confidence, but it surely packs a punch.
Tip #6 — Speak slowly and clearly
I’m practically cheating here. If anything, my speaking is fast and slurred. So I’m not that good at practicing what I preach with this one. But it’s something that has always bothered me, especially the pronunciation. If I’m giving a public talk, I make a special effort to speak slowly, clearly, and in a loud enough voice to be heard by all those attending.
You might think that speaking slowly will give off the impression that you’re dim-witted or don’t know what to say. But it’s quite the opposite. Apparently, 190 words per minute is the sweet spot. I have no idea what my rate is, personally. I aim to go as slow as I can, since I always, always go too fast.
Tip #7 — Focus on others
This is the trickiest part, but the most rewarding one. My trouble is that if I’m too focused on myself, my self esteem goes completely out the window. Or I think I’m the bees knees and come off as an arrogant prick. Either way, the more appropriate way to frame our thinking is in the context of how we make others feel. There is a very distinct difference between being aware of how we come across in order to impress others, and having genuine empathy for how our actions affect others. Always aim for the latter.
By putting others first, and putting yourself in their shoes, the focus is on giving. Whatever the occasion, big or small, we are social animals who are surrounded by other people we interact with. Make sure you keep in mind how you can give back to each and every one of them whenever you can. If you smile and are polite and focus on giving back to the people you interact with, whether it’s the CEO you’re interviewing with or the cashier at the register, it’s going to come across as confidence. My promise from me to you. | https://medium.com/an-idea/7-surefire-ways-to-boost-your-self-confidence-right-now-8b0ff16bc09f | ['Johannes Thor'] | 2020-10-07 14:46:02.860000+00:00 | ['Speaking', 'Confidence', 'Transformation', 'Lifehacks', 'Life'] |
Imagining what smartphones could look like in 50 years time | The decade is ending were seeing many compilations from various sources rounding up smartphones from the past 10 years and tech in general. What about smartphones in the coming future and what changes would we see compared to what we have now? 50 years into the future to be precise.
By looking at the trends in years ranging from 2010 to 2020, here’s what we have found. Now of coarse we don't exactly know what the future will bring us in terms of tech in smartphones but we can at least predict. So if you are seeing this in 20 years time or so, we’re sorry.
Foldable Smartphones
Foldable smartphones were first seen on the market when Samsung first introduced the Galaxy Fold. That was a first attempt so had many compromises and flaws but in 50 years, it’s possible that we could all own a foldable phone.
In 50 years, companies could have enough time to improve on the folding mechanism and find ways to make it cheaper to implement. So in that time, we could all be walking with affordable folding tech right in our pockets.
As of right now, they’re considered gimmicky and only the more tech enthusiast person would actually buy this kind of thing. Also the software for it isn’t fully optimized to take full advantage of folding screen’s potential.
Speeds at 5G and 6G
Right now, 5G is already available in many countries but even in those countries, only in select areas is there any coverage of 5G network. The speed that 5G brings doesn’t even mean much for people living there as 4G is still a lot faster than what people need. We aren’t living in a time where 5G speeds are needed and will be fully utilized.
But this may not be the case in the future where higher quality content becomes mainstream and people require high download speeds to use their super high resolution screens at their best.
Companies have started pumping out 5G capable smartphones so maybe more and more countries will start implementing this technology and in the future 6G will be a thing and everybody will have a 5G or 6G capable device.
Who likes ports and holes in their device?
Many companies have already skipped out the 3.5mm headphone jack and in around 50 years time, it may be a distant history. More and more people use wireless headphones and soon everyone will follow the trend.
Also wireless charging is becoming mainstream in flagship smartphones like who even likes to be tethered to his phone when he’s chatting? In the future, people will toss away their wired chargers in favor of wireless options to make a truly port free smartphone.
Even more rear camera’s?
We’ve already seen the huge bumps at the rear of expensive smartphones housing some of the best cameras and up to 5 at a time! Xiaomi and Samsung already showed us their first 108 megapixel cameras in 2019 so in the future, are we gonna see even higher megapixel count?
It is estimated that the human eye has around 576MP so many companies may try to achieve that image quality in the future when super high resolution screens are readily available.
We may even see companies ditch the idea of multiple camera implementation altogether by introducing a single camera module that could do everything that is achieved by multiple cameras. For example a single camera module could take ultrawide pictures as well as zoom without the need of any other camera sensor. | https://medium.com/@alizaka26/imagining-what-smartphones-could-look-like-in-50-years-time-43bf8070869b | ['Ali Zaka'] | 2020-12-19 13:08:57.537000+00:00 | ['Future', 'Technology', 'Future Technology', 'Smartphones'] |
Rising Music Star Carter Faith On The Five Things You Need To Shine In The Music Industry | Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?
Thank you so much for having me! Yes! I grew up in North Carolina, in a small town. I am a gemini, middle child, so I honestly think that’s what pushed me towards the arts and entertainment. My parents told me I was just always running around the house singing and putting on concerts for my stuffed animals. I have an amazing family and didn’t leave them until I went off to college in Nashville. I had a very loving and simple but fun and crazy upbringing:)
Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?
My first memory of music was when my grandpa would drive me to pre-school if my parents had to take care of my older sister or younger brother. He would always get me to school early and let me crawl in the front seat and pick a cassette to play from his collection until I had to go to class. I think I’ve loved music ever since.
Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
One of the coolest things was Carly Pearce sharing my song “Sinners in a Small Town” to her instagram story and basically asking me to open some shows for her after Covid. I was so shocked and it just gave me that feeling of “ok I’m actually getting somewhere”.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
I make mistakes every day lol but I think most of my biggest mistakes come from not practicing or preparing and thinking I can “wing it”. Whether it comes to shows, meetings, writes, anything, I have definitely learned to PREPARE. There is now worse feeling than forgetting your own song on stage!
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?
Working on new music is really exciting right now!
We are very interested in diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers about why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture?
Diversity is always important because the world is diverse. Everyone should be able to look to the entertainment industry and see someone like them represented. Everyone should also be exposed to diversity because it helps us appreciate others for their differences instead of feeling uncomfortable by that. If our entertainment becomes truly diverse one day, I think our culture will be greatly impacted in amazing ways!
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.
Ok I am definitely still at the beginning of this crazy journey but here goes!
Don’t chase anyone else’s sound. No one gets anywhere by copying someone else and people want something new and unique always. Be authentic. Find what makes you, you. Humans crave real and raw authenticity so don’t waste your life by trying to be anything other than what you are. What you are is beautiful and special. BE NICE. Omg the amount of people I am nervous to work with because of their reputation or because I had a bad first interaction with them is crazy. This goes for any aspect of life also. It is hard to be 100% kind every single day, but people want to work with nice and gracious people — practice kindness and gratitude. Don’t get jaded. Remember why you started and don’t lose that magic. If music is your dream, and it starts to feel like a boring reality then you are going to get burnt out and forget what you love about it all. Just keep going. I would say the last thing is to just keep going on your own path. You can admire, empower, and support others but never compare them to you. “Comparison is the thief of joy” ❤
Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
Definitely to take a break every once in awhile and remember why you started. | https://medium.com/authority-magazine/rising-music-star-carter-faith-on-the-five-things-you-need-to-shine-in-the-music-industry-d578489b770f | ['Karina Michel Feld'] | 2020-12-23 19:21:57.241000+00:00 | ['Pop Culture'] |
Easy Ramadan Prep for Busy Moms — Biscuits & Banarsi Style | Ramadan is only a week away!
I haven’t been able to get into the Ramadan Spirit so I thought i’d make a guide for myself and other Moms who want to be hyped for Ramadan!One of the reasons that I’ve been dragging my feet is because there is so much to do that it seems over whelming! so if making the 20,000 Samosas, decorating the house, while catching up on spiritual goals feels daunting…your not the only one!
Follow these easy instructions to get you caught up in the Ramadan Spirit in no time Inshallah!
1. Jam those Ramadan Nasheeds — (Click here for our favorites)
2.Organize a Samosa Fest — Call your family and friends and arrange a samosa making party (click here to see how one family makes it their annual tradition)
3. Decorate your house for Ramadan (click here for our guide)
[caption id=”attachment_374" align=”aligncenter” width=”300"]
www.ranoon.com[/caption]
4. Make Ramadan baskets for your neighbors! (Our guide to making Ramadan Baskets)
5. Start your Ramadan Journal — a Journal in which you write the duas that you want to make during the blessed month | https://medium.com/biscuits-and-banarsi/easy-ramadan-prep-for-busy-moms-biscuits-banarsi-style-afb535f401f9 | ['Islamic History Notes'] | 2018-09-10 02:05:20.768000+00:00 | ['Ramadan Crafts', 'Ramadan', 'Kids'] |
What Top Investors Look for in Early Stage Startups | Q: How did you get into startup space? What would you change?
Mahesh: I wish I had started earlier. I had no idea about startups 10 years ago, and only knew there were big tech businesses like Google. And I thought they were cool but I didn’t understand ‘startups’. Social networks like MySpace, Facebook etc captured the imagination of my generation. These companies who were growing so fast seemed to have such an impact on the world. It seemed so exciting, there was so much learning going on etc.
In my MBA class an entrepreneur presented the space to us and it was the first time it felt a bit more accessible. It planted the seed. Then growing frustration with “what am I really achieving” got to me and I decided to have a crack at a startup. For the longest time though — I had imposter syndrome as an entrepreneur.
I would have gotten into it sooner. The Australian market was just beginning to grow. If I had been more aware, I should have hustled to try to get into Atlassian (pretty much the only proper growth startup that was making waves back then) but things worked out :)
Dan: I got interested in startups around 2007 playing around with a few business ideas. We ended up launching GradConnection based off experiences on the Westpac NZ Graduate Program and seeing a gap in the market in how companies attracted students to apply to their entry level programs.
When we first started out, there wasn’t much of a startup scene in Australia at all apart from a weekly drinks at a hotel happy hour once a week and not many avenues at all for funding which is way different to the multitude of accelerators and funding options available today which is a massive evolution of the startup eco-system.
Q: What stage do you usually invest in and why?
Mahesh: Really early stage. To me, passing on my experience and supporting the founders is really important. I realise now there is a difference between an investor and a mentor. An investor’s job is to choose wisely and deliver ROI (return on investment) for themselves, LPs (limited partners) etc. On the other hand, a mentor’s job is to guide a startup through critical decision making, pointing out gaps, giving frameworks to think through a problem, sharing their experiences/resources and even more. Investors may likely deliver even more value for themselves and their companies if they have actually had their own startup and been an operator, as then they are in a good position to mentor. It is likely that the best investors are mentors.
Dan: I’ve been involved in investing in venture capital funds since about 2012 but this has been completely passive in terms of me selecting which companies to invest in. I’ve been getting involved in direct Angel Investing since about early 2020 so just under 18 months at this stage. When making direct investments into startups I’m generally focused on the Pre-Seed and Seed rounds
Q: What do you look for in early stage startups?
Mahesh: Really simple — a strong connection between a founder and a problem, product market fit (or love preferably), traction and ambition. Basically a minimum viable business going for crazy scale. These are the non-negotiables for me.
Dan: The key things I look for are:
Founding Team: do they have a good background in the problem domain and the right skills to run the company?
Business Problem Domain: is there a real business in the space they are choosing to work in?
Progress made in acquiring customers, revenue, traction off limited to no funding or resources. If a startup can get any sort of traction in their problem domain without much cash to spend, it’s a good sign they will be able to multiply their efforts substantially when they receive funding
Clear scalable uplift that can be achieved with the fund raise with a big addressable market. Key thing is to have $X spent will return $Y in revenue or some other key business metric.
Q: What are the biggest mistakes founders make?
Mahesh: Not getting product market fit. Nothing matters without that. That is the first step and you can get it with really low tech fidelity. You need a bunch of customers saying I love how your solution solves my problem. Nothing else matters early on. Not a tech cofounder, not non-tech cofounder, not advisers.
You have to understand the problem you are solving really deeply. What is it in acute detail? You should be able to write a research paper on it. If you don’t understand the problem really deeply (through customer interviews, research and insights) — it is going to be really hard to accelerate fwd.
Dan: Not ‘expectation setting’ early on amongst founders. This is hard to get right early as things are very dynamic and always changing however if you end up having a really imbalanced workload and responsibilities amongst founders it will cause issues later
Also, building products no one wants. Many startups focus on building something before going out to heavily engage with their future customers meaning a lot of time and resources get wasted on building things that never get used due to no product market fit.
Q: What do you think makes a great founder?
Mahesh:
Deep connection to a problem, grit (there is a book on this) — basically capacity to get off the mat. Curiously, capacity to learn things and also a confidence that you can work through problems. Strong communication (story telling) skills also go a long way. Finally “I want to make an impact” at the core of it all.
Dan:
A personal connection to the problem the business is solving Resilience — things are not going to go to plan more often than not, so you have to be able to deal with some major setbacks, change direction and keep going
Q: What mistakes have you made thus far (startup/investing related) and what have you learned?
Mahesh: The biggest mistake I have made is to be distracted by vanity metrics and the story telling of founders (I was that person too!). I wish I had pushed for evidence and signalling of problems and customer validation more. I should have insisted more often for evidence around problem validation and also validation that the solution is working.
Dan: In a funded scenario, the startup needs to be thinking 1–2 funding rounds ahead to make sure that their initial round of funding will produce uplift in the business to support and simplify their future fund-raising rounds as that can be a real momentum killer if your next round doesn’t go smoothly.
Q: What are some indicators that an early stage startup is heading in the right direction?
Mahesh: Revenue metrics — as Paul Graham says, the key metrics are just growing. If not, founders are talking about how to do this and asking the right questions etc. Also, if the team they are bringing together has a good startup/tech history — that is a good sign.
If there’s one number every founder should always know, it’s the company’s growth rate. That’s the measure of a startup. If you don’t know that number, you don’t even know if you’re doing well or badly. — Paul Graham
Dan: Having a set of customers/users that would be very unhappy if the product or service didn’t exist anymore and being able to grow this set of customers according to their forecasts is a pretty good indicator you’re heading in the right direction
Q: What are the mistakes you see other investors make?
Mahesh: In my opinion it is indexing for the positive vibes that their interaction has had with a founder. We are all biased in my opinion, acknowledging that and trying to make as few subjective decisions (or minimum, acknowledge what are the things that are subjective that make you like them). Also when an investor wears a mentor hat as well but they don’t actually have startup operator experience (or have not had the chance to pick it up) — this can be really dangerous.
Dan: The main mistake I’ve seen is that some investors will blindly follow higher profile investors or celebrity investors into deals without doing their own due diligence (DD). Another mistake at the early/angel stage is over doing it on the DD as most of the time the company won’t have reliable data/forecasts to provide you that you can necessarily put much weight into as well as taking up a large amount of the founding teams time for DD questions over what ends up being a small cheque from an individual investor
Q: Which entrepreneurs do you admire and why?
Mahesh: Mel and Cliff from Canva are fantastic entrepreneurs. I think Jack Ma (refer to video below) has also achieved unreal things. I like the Afterpay story. I also really admire every entrepreneur that is problem and customer focussed, whether that be those I just mentioned or a local cafe owner. Every person/team who has a go and one of (if not the highest) their biggest priorities is to solve a customer problem — yeah that’s great. In my opinion, prioritisation and focus is one of the key things for a vibrant powerful economy and society.
Crocodile in the Yangtze Trailer depicting Jack Ma’s story
Dan:
Rosemary — Romain Bonjean: Romain is an execution machine in the e-health sector for his current venture Rosemary Health. I’ve seen him aggressively close out multiple funding rounds while simultaneously keep up a rapid business tempo of producing results at the same time which is tough going.
Pushas — Justin Truong: Justin is impressive in terms of the wide ranging network of advisors and mentors he has put together while focused on growing Pushas which is a sneaker reselling logistics and market place business.
Canva — it has been crazy watching the progress of Canva since 2012 and how they have gone from small Sydney based start up to a global giant and one of the best companies in the world in general. I’m amazed at how the founding team has been able to scale up their operations to sustain this crazy level of growth and success
The story of three of Australia’s fastest growing startups — SafetyCulture, Vinomofo, and Canva — as they scale from garage offices to millions of users and worldwide impact.
Q: What are your opinions about the NZ startup ecosystem?
Mahesh: Awesomeness! It is early doors, I feel like it is where Aus was 5–7 years ago. There are tremendous founders all around. The ecosystem is starting to mature to ask the right questions around true high growth. We have been lucky to have had early pioneers who have made adequate space for the next wave of leadership and operators to join them in maturing the ecosystem. All of us have to keep pushing and aiming big. Software/tech scales. NZ has the required talent. It is time we stepped up to the challenge of building even more global solutions and powerful companies.
Dan: I’ve been based in Australia since 2008 so I’m not super across the NZ ecosystem in detail but a couple of observations I’ve had are:
Focusing on the NZ market only — the NZ market is often too small for many business models even if you get close to 100% of the total addressable market
Not aggressive enough — I’ve found the NZ market to not have the same level of competition as other markets globally which leads to many NZ founders not raising their level of aggressiveness when they expand outside of NZ
Q: Any advice you’d like to give/Any other comments?
Mahesh: Always keen to meet more Kiwi founders. Hit me up, always open to chat.
Dan: There is never a perfect time to start a business so if you are wanting to start a specific venture, why not now? You will always learn and adapt from your original concepts so the sooner you start, the faster you learn what will work and what doesn’t.
Think through what sort of business you want to work on — not every startup needs to be a VC backed hugely scaled global business, but if you are ambitious and want to push out to a global market, be aggressive and go hard! | https://medium.com/nzscaleup/what-top-investors-look-for-in-early-stage-startups-87a939618cb7 | ['Doris Dong'] | 2021-07-15 03:18:01.254000+00:00 | ['Startmate', 'Tips', 'Early Stage', 'Insights', 'Investors'] |
Platform Liquidity: Why Economic Incentives Matter | Platform Liquidity: Why Economic Incentives Matter
The economic incentives of a platform determine its liquidity barriers — but they also create long-term trade-offs with the effectiveness of developer marketing programs Sameer Singh Follow Oct 5, 2020 · 6 min read
Image credit: Unsplash
Network effects can only take hold when a product has reached a minimum threshold or critical mass of users (also called liquidity) — this is true for marketplaces, interaction networks, and data networks. Platforms, on the other hand, are unique because they are always built on top of another product with existing adoption. So, as we saw with SaaS-enabled marketplaces, it is natural to assume that platforms can leverage these existing customers to attract a critical mass of developers. Wouldn’t they have liquidity right from the get-go? Not always.
Platforms are a combination of four elements — an underlying product, a development framework, a storefront to “match” users with apps, and an economic benefit for developers. Thanks to the underlying product (and existing customers), fledgling platforms already have a critical mass of demand. As a result, liquidity is purely a function of supply, i.e. developer adoption. This is driven by their economic incentive which varies based on the type of platform in question. I previously identified two types of platforms, each of which creates different economic incentives for developers, leading to different liquidity dynamics:
Type A: Focused platforms with integrations (weak defensibility & scalability) Type B: Multi-purpose platforms with native apps (strong defensibility & scalability)
Type A: Focused Platforms with Integrations
On Type A platforms, developer programs are created to complement the underlying product. The use cases of this product are already well defined and this lowers the barrier for developer adoption — developers merely need to cater to existing behavior, not discover new needs. As a result, the platform is initially adopted by professional developers of complementary apps, who often have significant user overlap with the platform owner.
Take Slack as an example. Slack began its journey as a simple collaboration and messaging tool for teams and businesses. After growing rapidly, it announced a developer platform and app directory in 2015. At launch, Slack’s app directory had 150 apps including Dropbox and Airtable. Both Dropbox and Airtable were used by teams to enhance collaboration — they addressed needs that were complementary to Slack. As a result, they had a significant number of shared users. This created an opportunity for companies like Dropbox and Airtable — they could improve engagement and retention by making it easier to use their products on Slack. This was their economic incentive.
This economic incentive makes it very easy to reach liquidity. Since professional developers simply want to cater to existing product users in new contexts, the case for adopting the platform becomes obvious. As a result, Type A platforms like Slack, Zoom, and even Figma are liquidity inclined. This is true as long as the user base of the underlying product is large enough and has a meaningful overlap with products from third-party developers.
Type B: Multi-Purpose Platforms with Native Apps
On the other hand, Type B platforms are much more complex to create because there is no blueprint for developers to build apps. The role of developers is to experiment and discover new use cases for the platform. Professional developers will only create new apps from scratch if they have confidence that their investments will pay off. And without a track record of direct monetization, new platforms are a major financial risk. So unlike Type A platforms, Type B platforms face a variation of the “cold start problem” — they cannot attract professional developers without traction, but they cannot build traction without developers. This is why Type B platforms always begin by reaching out to “hobbyists” first — per Slashdata, this includes student developers or those who code as a hobby.
Shopify is a great example of this. Its underlying product helped retailers and other sellers create online stores. As it grew, it launched its app store in 2009 to help customers address needs that Shopify could not cater to itself. However, there were hardly any popular apps in this space. As a result, Shopify needed developers to create new apps for its platform — a challenging task without a track record. So Shopify first attracted hobbyist developers like Mapify (order tracking & store locator) and Fetch (digital product delivery). Initially, these developers had no overarching economic incentive (beyond status) — they were just experimenting with the capabilities of Shopify’s platform. But as they experienced success and developed revenue models, they became professionals. Shopify enabled them to generate revenue and build new businesses. This economic incentive then attracted other professional developers like Yotpo, setting the flywheel in motion.
The economic incentive here is less straightforward for new platforms to capitalize on — in other words, Type B platforms are liquidity challenged. As a result, they are forced to take the “scenic route” to build liquidity — attract hobbyist developers first to prove traction and then go after professional developers. Smartphone platforms like iOS and Android are also good examples here — with game developers like Rovio playing the role of hobbyists turned pros.
The Platform Matrix: Economic Incentives and Developer Marketing
The dominant economic incentive has a significant impact on key KPIs and the way platforms market themselves to developers — even after liquidity is achieved.
Direct monetization is not an important consideration for Type A platforms. Instead, platforms like Slack, Zoom, and Figma highlight interoperability and UX advantages for developers to better cater to their own users. This makes it difficult to establish clear KPIs to promote the platform. As a result, their developer marketing efforts tend to be nebulous, relying on the traction of the underlying product and developer adoption. So even though it is easier for Type A platforms to achieve liquidity, they can be challenging to promote beyond a point.
On the other hand, developer revenue is a critical KPI for Type B platforms. This is the metric developers use to evaluate the potential payoff from creating new apps for a platform. As a result, platforms like Shopify, Salesforce, iOS, and Android (+Google Play) report developer earnings publicly and advertise new businesses they have enabled. The propensity to report developer earnings can be considered to be one of the strongest indicators of a successful Type B platform. Also, clear success metrics make their developer marketing initiatives much more effective. So even though Type B platforms may be liquidity challenged in their early days, they are much easier to promote once that barrier has been cleared.
To summarize, the economic incentive innate to a platform is the primary factor that determines liquidity barriers. Startups building platforms with known use cases (Type A) can easily reach liquidity by targeting developers who already share users with them. On the other hand, startups building truly multi-purpose platforms (Type B) have a more difficult path to liquidity — they need to attract hobbyists first to show some traction before they can appeal to professional developers. While this can be challenging, there is a payoff at the end — the monetization metrics that help you reach liquidity also help power the flywheel to further growth. | https://breadcrumb.vc/platform-liquidity-impact-of-economic-incentives-72ac4ed6e9dc | ['Sameer Singh'] | 2021-03-01 10:08:00.334000+00:00 | ['Platform', 'Venture Capital', 'Technology', 'Startup', 'Business'] |
How to Set a RusVPN Connection in Your Windows System? | While this appears to contain some excellent news any logs are frequently elaborate, actions cannot be tied to your real address, it’s lacking in technical detail with some odd components (‘we do not write something down’?, and does not leave us feeling we tend to fully perceive however RusVPN very works. That may be a translation issue, however, regardless of the cause, we’re like a lot of clarity in RusVPN’s descriptions.
How to Setup RusVPN?
Setting up a RusVPN account tried trickier than we tend to expect. We tend to pay via PayPal, associate email receipt arrived at once, however no ‘welcome’ email with details of our account. There was no resend confirmation email’ button, therefore we tend to wait many hours, and however, nothing happened. RusVPN does not have live chat, however, we tend to send a message via an online kind asking what was happening. Hours elapsed while not a response. We tend to send associate emails, still no response into the successive day. RusVPN does not send associate automatic ‘thanks, we’ll reply soon’ acknowledgment to messages, either, therefore we have a tendency to could not even take care that our queries had been received.
We tried once more, now paying exploitation associate existing account and were able to get access at once. Maybe this wasn’t entirely RusVPN’s fault; perhaps there was some temporary email or alternative issue that prevented it from responding to our queries. There is no means we can apprehend needless to say.
What to Say?
It definitely is RusVPN’s fault that it’s no choice to resend a confirmation email, though, which it does not supply live chat support, which it’s email and net kind web does not send any machine-driven reply to reassure customers that their messages are received. Second, once the kill switch will kick in, it affects the shopper, too. We tend to found our web access was blocked, closed, and restarted the shopper, and it prompted us to log in. You should visit https://rusvpn.com/en/blog/how-to-create-and-use-vpn-connections-in-windows-7/ here soon.
Why? We do not apprehend, however, once we tried, it complained ‘connection unsuccessful — check network association. Try to be with us up to the last. | https://medium.com/@miraj-fp/how-to-set-a-rusvpn-connection-in-your-windows-system-41466e37d974 | [] | 2020-12-18 16:07:19.164000+00:00 | ['Rusvpn', 'System', 'Connection', 'Windows'] |
My Voice, Lost and Found, Here | Today is Sunday. I’m not gong to church. Instead, I’m sitting in a crowded Starbucks inside a shopping mall, the size of Penn Station in New York. Don’t be surprised. This is about the average size of malls in the techie city of Hangzhou (pronounced “Hung Joe”, and you are welcome), China. In the recent decade, the city of Hangzhou has transformed into the Silicon Valley of China, as its resident tech giant Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) has taken over every corner of shopping in mainland China. I will write an article later about the dark secrets of Alibaba. Now, let’s focus on voice.
The 20-something lady to my left is making a business plan with an entrepreneur-looking young guy. The couple to my right were playing their phones. The universe must have decided to tilt the gender balance a bit in this Starbucks today, as the female-to-male ratio is about 10:1. The powder faced girl, with deep red lips, sitting 6 feet to my front has a KPOP-celeb-ish guy next to her, with his hands on her thigh. She looks triumphant, in this room, like a reigning Queen. The blonde hair Caucasian guy standing by the bar stool has a sparkle-eyed slender Chinese girl, with sun-kissed skin and delicate makeup, chatting with him. I look at them, as if I was still in San Francisco.
I’m 30 years old. I used to be outgoing and fearless, the non-apologetic speaking-my-mind type. Being able to express oneself freely is a gift. It’s a power. Words matter. Using words freely gives us humans agency in this chaotic universe. I know exactly how I lost the power of free expression. I lost it due to fears.
Fear 1. Potential political repercussion from non-democracy government. Think if you live in Russia or its equivalent.
Fear 2. Social repercussion from the majority in democracy. By majority, I don’t simply mean white people. “Majority” should be determined by shared interest and is highly situational. I spent 4 years in New York City. My first year was fine. I just found the gay guys, white and black and Latino and very often fellow gay Asians, really repulsive in their attitudes towards me. They made me feel invisible and not welcomed in their space. When I started to openly talk about what it was like for me to navigate Gay New York as a Twinkie gay boy from China, the feedbacks from gays often ranged from rejection to rage to violence. Fellow gay Asians rejected/denied my claim that racism caused my discomfort. One Asian American gay friend taught me to, in his words, “put everything else before race.” This did help me but not for long. White gays often instantly put out their defense mode, become aggressive, or just abruptly ended the conversation. There was rarely a conversation in the first place. The black gays usually nodded upon hearing my claim. Then, never talked to me again. My last resort was to visit my college’s psychology service. The professionals were no better than the unprofessional in my opinion, as they pushed back, they attempted to attribute my experience to subjectivity, they misunderstood.
I spent 3 years of isolation in New York City, being rejected, being unwanted, being torn by these denials. In these 3 years, I learned that being a gay Asian twink, complaining about racism is not socially accepted. Only African Americans get to be the victim of racism, in the most accepted form by progressive, liberal whites. I learned that gay men, being sexual minority and the victim of AIDS crisis of the 80s, cannot possibly be bullying and harming other gay men, like a Chinese gay twink, like me.
As I ventured out of the gay dimension of New York, I soon learned that Asian women get to call out “fetish” and at the same time dating and marrying exclusively Caucasian men, rejecting fellow Asian men. I learned that it is not right to incarcerate African American men who happen to sell drugs on the streets, and at the same time it is ok for whites to die from OD. Alas, these multi-layered standards, what New York has taught me. What made me doubt if there was any point in putting out my voice, at the cost of being repressed and further isolated.
I’m in Hangzhou, where I barely feel gay. The dating APPS are full of fake profiles and AI robots. I’m fine. It gives me space and time to think. I still have fears, but now I’m in a process to regain my voice. Whether this essay is good or bad, it is my voice. The more I put my voice out there, the better I could get. | https://medium.com/alchemy-of-learning/my-voice-lost-and-found-here-c03830419b6f | ['Schwinn Zhang'] | 2020-12-13 07:34:35.923000+00:00 | ['Writing', 'New York', 'Hangzhou', 'LGBT'] |
MYKEY Weekly Report 28 (November 30th~December 6th) | Today is Monday, December 7, 2020. The following is the 28th issue of MYKEY Weekly Report. In the work of last week (November 30th to December 7th), there are mainly 5 updates:
1. Firstpool, the third-party application&MYKEY launched S05 USDT-DeFi mining financial products on December 1st
The principal is 100% safe, the annual income of the financial product sold this time is 8% and the lock-up period is 87 days. Firstpool provides a full BTC risk reserve guarantee, which is managed by MYKEY.
2. HashKey Hub&MYKEY launched the new period of BTC financial products
MYKEY and the third-party partner HashKey Hub launched a new period of 5% BTC 30-day regular financial products on December 1, 2020. Both parties will further deepen cooperation and jointly explore the development of digital currency financial products.
3. MYKEY released a new time-limited activity around Swap Tokens
Swap stablecoins add up to 1000 to any token in <Swap Tokens> of MYKEY to get a free coupon, for more details, click to read: https://bit.ly/39InWUh
4. The twenty-second MYKEY Crypto Stablecoin Report was published
We release MYKEY Crypto Stablecoin Report every week to share our interpretation of the development status of stablecoins and analysis of their development trends to help the participants in the crypto market stay updated on the development status of stablecoin. The twenty-second Crypto Stablecoin Report was published on December 3rd, click to read: https://bit.ly/37sFOQ1
5. Three Dapps were listed in MYKEY last week
Organix, Evolution Land, and 三国争霸 were listed in MYKEY last week, welcome to search and use.
!!! If you encounter any abnormal situation while using MYKEY, remember not to uninstall MYKEY APP, please contact MYKEY Assistant: @mykeytothemoon in Telegram.
!!! Remember to keep the 12-digit recovery phrase properly from [Me] — [Manage Account] — [Export Recovery Phrase] in MYKEY even if your account is not real-named.
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Youtube: MYKEY Laboratory | https://medium.com/mykey-lab/mykey-weekly-report-28-november-30th-december-6th-2c37cef250d8 | [] | 2020-12-07 06:00:21.756000+00:00 | ['Mykey', 'Eos', 'Weekly Report', 'Ethereum'] |
Mercedes-Benz Greener Manufacturing Problem | B usiness Problem:
Since the first automobile, the Benz Patent Motor Car in 1886, Mercedes-Benz has stood for important automotive innovations. These include, for example, the passenger safety cell with crumple zone, the airbag and intelligent assistance systems. Mercedes-Benz applies for nearly 2000 patents per year, making the brand the European leader among premium car makers. Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz cars are leaders in the premium car industry. With a huge selection of features and options, customers can choose the customized Mercedes-Benz of their dreams. .
To ensure the safety and reliability of each and every unique car configuration before they hit the road, Daimler’s engineers have developed a robust testing system. But, optimizing the speed of their testing system for so many possible feature combinations is complex and time-consuming without a powerful algorithmic approach. As one of the world’s biggest manufacturers of premium cars, safety and efficiency are paramount on Daimler’s production lines.
In this competition, Daimler is challenging to tackle the curse of dimensionality and reduce the time that cars spend on the test bench. Competitors will work with a dataset representing different permutations of Mercedes-Benz car features to predict the time it takes to pass testing. Winning algorithms will contribute to speedier testing, resulting in lower carbon dioxide emissions without reducing Daimler’s standards.
Project Overview:
In automobiles industries there will be a Testing department which tests the safety and reliability of cars that come out of the production. These tests play a crucial part in manufacturing process. Mercedes Benz industry manufactures huge number of cars every day and they will be sent to testing as final stage in production. Every possible feature combination of vehicles must undergo through the test bench to ensure that each vehicle is robust for daily use. More time spent on the test bench will result in more CO2 emissions and increase of costs to company.
Business Use Case:
In this we are trying to optimize the time spent on testing for every vehicle that comes to test bench. Using this optimization will result in speedier testing and decrease in CO2 emissions due to testing procedure for Mercedes Benz.
Mapping the problem to a Machine Learning model:
The Mercedes Greener dataset is comprised of 369 features which are (categorical and numeric)are anonymized. So conventional set of rules don’t work, we can use ML algorithms that has ability to apply complex calculations to large number of features which helps in optimizing the time spent on test bench without reducing Daimler standards.
Here we are trying to predict a continuous target variable which makes this a Regression Problem.
This problem can be solved using Classical ML techniques where we are trying to predict Time taken by a vehicle on a test bench which is a continuous target variable based on vehicle features which are independent. This type of problem is Supervised Learning where model can learn from labelled data.
Performance Metrics:
Mercedes Benz industry suggested to use R2 (Coefficient of Determination) to evaluate the model performance.
Why R² (Coefficient of Determination):
R² is given by the formula 1-(SSE/TSS).
SS regression= Sum of Squared errors (sum of the squares of the differences between the observed values and the expected values)
SS total= Total sum of squares (Total sum of squares, the sum of the squares of the differences between the observed values and the mean of the observed values.)
The R2 is usually between 0 and 1. It is the simply the fraction of response captured by the model. If R2 values is 1 then our model explains all the variability of the target data around its mean. R2 value can be more easily interpretable and measures goodness of fit in capturing variance of the data. RMSE is measure of deviation of model predictions from actual values. RMSE doesn't have any range. If we look at RMSE only it doesn't add how much variability our model has. R2 is most common measure used in model fitting procedure for regression and forecasting.
Data Source:
Mercedes Benz industry posed the problem on Kaggle and data is provided in two CSV files (train, test). Data can be downloaded using below link.
(https://www.kaggle.com/c/mercedes-benz-greener-manufacturing/data)
Existing Approaches:
In this blog he used the dataset to explain how stacking models perform. He dropped the ID column and columns which have zero variance from the dataset and used Label Encoder to encode categorical features. He trained XG boost model and Random forest model on the data. These two models are used as baseline for future models. He created a stacking model using this data which gave him best performance out of all models.
Since this dataset challenges the curse of dimensionality. He used PCA, TSVD, ICA dimensionality reduction techniques to create new features and add them to our original dataset. He trained XG boost, Random forest models on the new dataset. In this he focused on showing how stacking models perform over ensemble models.
2. https://medium.com/analytics-vidhya/mercedes-benz-greener-manufacturing-74a932ae0693
In this he removed the columns which has low variance. used a threshold of 150 seconds on target variable. He used Label Encoding for encoding Categorical features. He used PCA as dimensionality reduction to create new features. He added the 2-way and 3-way interaction features based on first place winner solution.
He used linear regression as the baseline model and went to ensemble models. He also trained a stacking model on the dataset which gave him best results of all models.
3. https://medium.com/@williamkoehrsen/capstone-project-mercedes-benz-greener-manufacturing-competition-4798153e2476
In this blog he mentioned a model known as Weighted average model which was discussed in Kaggle. Since most top performing models are of stacked and XG boost model. He tried to find which models complemented each other used these to create weighted average model.
He dropped the ID column, outliers and transformed the data using PCA. He used XG boost model and Stacked model where output of Linear regression with Elastic net goes to Extra trees regressor and predicts output based on output from linear regression. The final model is average of the Stacked model and XG boost model.
4. https://medium.com/analytics-vidhya/mercedes-benz-greener-manufacturing-kaggle-competition-1c25c89e012
In this blog he used Label, Frequency, Mean encoding for categorical variables. He transformed the dataset using PCA and used Lasso model to find which type of encoding gives best results.
Using encoding selected above, he removed low variance features, features which have correlation between each other, duplicate features. He used Pearson correlation to find which variables are highly correlated to target. He created 2 way and 3 way interaction features out of those and added to the dataset.
Using Select K best on the above dataset he reduced the dimensionality of the dataset. He trained Lasso, RF, Extra trees, XG boost and Stacked model. Stacked model gave him the best result.
Improvements to existing approaches:
In all the above approaches the models which performed well were the model with interaction features, and dimensionality reduction features. Since the highest score is 0.5550 there are certain things in solutions which might not be very helpful in real world scenario. The following steps I have tried to on existing approaches:
I have tried to reduce Overfitting since most models from above approaches seems to be overfitting. I didn’t remove low variance features as some blogs removed low variance features which might be cause of overfitting. Some kagglers created models without removing outliers. But I have used a threshold on target variable and removed all points which are greater than threshold. Some kagglers got good scores without using categorical variables. I have used the categorical variables in my dataset. I have used PCA and TSVD as dimensionality reduction techniques. I have implemented the paper(Thresholding of singluar values (https://arxiv.org/pdf/1305.5870.pdf)) to select optimum rank for TSVD.
Exploratory Data Analysis:
Data overview:
Mercedes Benz industry posed the problem on Kaggle and data is provided in two CSV files (train.csv, test.csv) The dataset consists of 377 features (x0, x1, x2,…., x386) which are anonymized and each represent a custom feature in Mercedes car like 4WD, suspension or heads up display which together define a car model. The dataset has two types of features. Categorical features, Numerical Binary features. The ID column in data represent the unique configuration vehicle Id. The target variable y represents the time a vehicle takes to pass testing in seconds. There are 8 Categorical features and 369 Numerical features in the train.csv
Eda is divided into three parts:
Target Variable (Analysis and Visualization) Categorical Variables (Analysis and Visualization) Numerical Variables (Analysis and Visualization)
Target Variable:
Analysis:
This code is used to generate descriptive statistics that summarize the central tendency, dispersion.
We can see for target variable ‘y’ mean is 100.669 and 75% value is 109. So there are 25% values in dataset which have ‘y’ greater than 109.Maximum of value of ‘y’ in dataset is 265.
Visualization:
Scatter plot:
Above is scatter plot made between series(with length of dataset) and sorted values of Y from train data frame. We can see that most points lies between 80 and 140. There are some points which are far away and these are outliers.
PDF, CDF plots:
CDF plot of y
From above PDF plot we can see two peaked curves and distribution is similar to Gaussian. We can see that the values are centered around almost 100 and most values lie between 80 and 120. Since the curve is highly skewed to right shows that some values are above 200. From the CDF plot we can see that atleast 95% values lie below 150.
Categorical Variables:
X0:
Bar plot:
The above plot is a bar plot which represents how many values each class has in our dataset. We can see that there are 3 classes with lowest value than others.
Scatter plot:
The above plot is a scatter plot between Categories of X0 and distribution of y for each category. We can see that there is an point in class y of X0 which is far away from other points. This can be considered as an outlier. There is only one point in classes of ac,g,ab.
X1:
Bar plot:
The above plot is a bar plot which represents how many values each class of X1 has in our dataset. Since v class has highest count, this feature is used common for most of the cars. We can see that there are 3 classes (q,d,ab) with lowest value than others.
Scatter plot:
The above plot is a scatter plot between Categories of X1 and distribution of y for each category. We can see that there is an point in class r of X1 which is far away from other points. This can be considered as an outlier. Less number of points belongs to classes of d,q,ab.
X2:
Bar plot:
The above plot is a bar plot which represents how many values each class of X2 has in our dataset. as class has highest count, that means this feature is most commonly used in cars. We can see that there are more than 5 classes with lowest value than others which implies these features might be rare in cars.
Scatter plot:
The above plot is a scatter plot between Categories of X2 and distribution of y for each category. We can see that there is an point in class ai of X2 which is far away from other points. This can be considered as an outlier. There is only one point in classes of af, l, aa, c, o, ar which might be rare features.
X3:
Bar plot:
The above plot is a bar plot which represents how many values each class of X3 has in our dataset. X3 has only 7 features and class a has highest count, that means this feature is most commonly used in cars. Since b has low count in dataset, we can think it as a rare feature used in cars.
Scatter plot:
The above plot is a scatter plot between Categories of X3 and distribution of y for each category. We can see that there is an point in class f of X3 which is far away from other points. This can be considered as an outlier.
Violin plot:
The above plot is a violin plot between Categories of X3 and distribution of y for each category, Data is distributed uniformly and has overlapping over classes. We can see that most values are around 80 and 130.
X4:
The above plot is a bar plot which represents how many values each class of X4 has in our dataset. Class d has highest count, that means this feature is most commonly used in cars.
Scatter plot:
The above plot is a scatter plot between Categories of X4 and distribution of y for each category. We can see that there is an point in class d of X4 which is far away from other points. This can be considered as an outlier. There are only 4 values in our training data which has b,c,d classes of X4. These features are rarer. This means that the variance of X4 is very low. We can remove this column from the dataset.
Box plot:
The above plot is box plot Categories of X4 and y for each category. We can see that class d has most values between 75 and 140. Test time for class b is around 115,class c is 130 and class a is between 90 and 110.
X5:
Bar plot:
The above plot is a bar plot which represents how many values each class of X5 has in our dataset. No of values for top classes are almost equal. This means that amount of data in our train for most classes is equal. There are 4 classes which has lowest amount of points.
Box plot:
The above plot is box plot Categories of X5 and y for each category. We can see that for most classes values have range of 75 and 110. From the above plot there is a point in class ag which can be considered as an outlier. Class u has test time around 130, class y and g has test time around 90. Class x and h might have test times between 75 and 90.
X6:
Bar plot:
The above plot is a bar plot which represents how many values each class of X6 has in our dataset. X3 has only 12 features and class g and class j has same no of points. Class k,c,b,f,e has lowest amount of points compared to other classes.
Violin plot:
The above plot is a violin plot between Categories of X6 and distribution of y for each category, Data is distributed uniformly and has overlapping over classes. We can see that most values are around 80 and 130. There is an outlier in class l.
X8:
Bar plot:
The above plot is a bar plot which represents how many values each class of X8 has in our dataset. Observing bar plots of other categorical variables, bar plot of X8 has enough data for each class. We can see that amount of data for classes are almost equal.
Violin plot:
The above plot is a violin plot between Categories of X8 and distribution of y for each category,Data is distributed uniformly and has overlapping over classes. We can see that for most classes values have range of 75 and 110. From the above plot there is a point in class t which can be considered as an outlier.
Numerical variables:
ID:
From above plot we can see that there is a slight decrease of Y with respect to ID. It might be that cars later inspected took less time in test bench. Even though in plot it shows that ID has importance in predicting model, but in reality using ID doesnt make sense. We will train our best model with ID and without ID. From the dataset we can see that ID has been randomly sampled into train and test sets.
Analysis:
We can see that there are 12 features which have same value i.e. the variance for this columns is zero. So we can remove these columns from the dataset. The rest 356 features have only 1 or 0 values.
Multivariate analysis:
I am doing Recursive Feature Elimination (RFE) to get top features.
The above 15 features are top features i got after recursive feature elimination.
The above plot is a correlation plot of the top 15 numerical features found using Recursive feature elimination (linear regression as model). From above plot we can see that X29 and X76 are highly correlated and X17 ,X382 are highly correlated as well. So there are some features in our dataset which are multicollinear. We need to remove these features.
Conclusion for Exploratory Data Analysis:
Removing feature ID and X4 from the dataset since X4 has lowest variance. Removing constant values columns from the dataset. Removing points which have target test time greater than 150 from the dataset. Remove multicollinear features.
Interaction Features:
I have used Random forest to get top features from numerical columns using feature importance to create interaction features.
From above feature importance's we can take the top features and create interaction features.
First Cut approach:
Categorical variables:
We have 7 categorical variables. I have used below three types of encoding to see which performs better.
Label Encoding, Mean Encoding, Generalized Linear Mixed Model(GLMM) encoding.
Numerical Binary variables:
For the numerical features I standardized the data and then used PCA and TSVD to create new features.
For PCA I have used Elbow method to get optimum number of components.
For TSVD I have implemented the below paper to get optimum rank for creating TSVD features.
Interaction Features:
From the Top features we got from random forest I have used combinations from itertools library to generate two way and three way interaction features.
I have created a data frame consisting of above interaction features and took features which have correlation to ‘y’ greater than 0.68. Below are the features I’ve got.
After Featurization I’ve got 4 types of datasets for each encoding and a total of 12 datasets. They are as follows:
Label Encoding features Label Encoding + Interaction features Label Encoding + Interaction + PCA features Label Encoding + Interaction + TSVD features Mean Encoding features Mean Encoding + Interaction features Mean Encoding + Interaction + PCA features Mean Encoding + Interaction + TSVD features GLMM Encoding features GLMM Encoding + Interaction features GLMM Encoding + Interaction + PCA features GLMM Encoding + Interaction + TSVD features
Models:
The idea I had in implementing models was, first Iwill try with base line models for each dataset and then try to improve results using complex models.
I have created two function in python which will do GridSearchCV and RandomizedSearchCV and plot the Train, CV scores for any model passed. Below is the code.
The below function plots features importance horizontal bar plot for top 20 features.
Linear Regression:
I am using Linear Regression as the baseline model. The scores from linear regression will act as a baseline score for further reference and improvement. For hyper parameter tuning I have used grid search cv.
Random Forests:
Random Forest is an ensemble technique known as Bagging with bootstrap sampling. This model reduces variance while training to prevent overfitting. Random forests are highly interpretable and we can get feature importance's easily.
For hyperparameter tuning of Random forest model, I have used RandomSearchCV.
Extra Trees Regressor:
This is similar to Random forests we have Extra trees regressor which is also known as Extremely Randomized trees. Extra trees reduces the variance further than random forests. This model performed well with the datasets created.
Hyper parameter tuning is done using Random Search CV.
XG Boost:
XG boost is an ensemble technique known as boosting. It reduces bias during training. XG boost is popular algorithm used in Kaggle competitions.
Stacked Model:
In most Kaggle competitions Stacked models are used to increase score to move up in the leaderboard. I have combined the Random forest, Extra trees, XG boost into a stacked model with ridge as meta regressor with regularizations taken as 0 so that it doesn’t impact the output from stacked models.
The above code snippets are for dataset (Label encoding ). For Mean, GLMM encoding and datasets with Interaction, PCA, TSVD features added visit my GitHub Repository.
Model Comparison:
Datasets -1 (Encoding of variables):
Datasets -2 (Encoding + Interaction features):
Datasets -3 (Encoding + Interaction + PCA features):
Datasets -4 (Encoding + Interaction + TSVD features):
Conclusions:
From the above scores the Best performance was provided by Extra Trees Regressor on Mean Encoding with Interaction and PCA features added with a score of 0.55258 on private leaderboard on Kagggle. As we can see that the second best model was Extra trees regressor on Label Encoding with Interaction features added. It got score of 0.55241 on private leaderboard of kaggle. We can see that the Mean encoding worked better than Label encoding and GLMM encoding did not work well. From the plots we can see that Interaction features has high importance in all the plots and X314,X315,X47 combination has top feature importance no matter which encoding we used. The PCA components performed better with Mean encoding rather than Label and GLMM. The best score on Kaggle 0.55258 give me a position of 102 on private leader board and in Top 10% scores.
My Score
Kaggle Leaderboard
Future Work:
In this I have used PCA and TSVD to create new features. We can apply other dimensionality reduction techniques like ICA, AE. We can implement Neural networks which might give a good score and a different approach.
References:
GitHub Repository: https://github.com/bnspriyatham/Mercedes-Greener-Manufacturing-Problem
LinkedIn Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/priyatham-bhaskara-21a670ab/ | https://medium.com/@bnspriyatham/mercedes-benz-greener-manufacturing-problem-55ba8ff86ad5 | [] | 2020-11-04 08:12:05.558000+00:00 | ['Ensemble', 'Regression', 'Kaggle', 'Machine Learning'] |
An Open Bazaar for Drug Development: Molecule Protocol | Imagine a world where patients directly fund researchers developing the next therapeutic breakthrough they need. One where drug development is collaborative, open, and decentralized — an open bazaar anyone with the right intentions can join. A system that could radically increase the diversity of treatments, and lower costs and time to market.
The majority of promising early-stage therapeutic research lacks funding and access. Funders struggle to discover and engage with suitable projects. In addition, IP is a highly illiquid, bureaucratic and opaque asset class that restricts virtual scientific collaboration through printed and filed legal constraints.
Drawing on original Linux metaphors and open source software. We live in a world where big pharma constructs expensive cathedrals over decades that serve their clerics’ interests more than they serve their followers. +10 years to market, +$2bn in avg. development costs, coupled with an appaling failure rate — biopharma is a system with zero consumer choice and 100% dependency. We need bazaars.
To address these challenges, we’ve set out to create an open marketplace that makes novel therapeutic projects discoverable, universally fundable and distributes ownership to patient collectives.
Diseases have global networks of stakeholders: Imagine a new insulin treatment funded, governed, and owned by diabetics. Our marketplace connects researchers with patients to enable this.
Photo by Francesco Ungaro from Pexels
Learning to Swim: an OpenSea for Biotech IP
Over time, we aim to build a full-fledged funding ecosystem for early-stage research discoveries. Molecule is an OpenSea of biotech IP. Powering a new creator economy for researchers that allows for the rapid funding, discovery, and development of therapeutics through globally connected patient collectives. Virtual and sustainable. We believe this system will be equally beneficial to the current pharma industry as it will be for patients: by decentralising access and helping discover promising research more quickly.
In a first step, Molecule provides an interoperable Web3 marketplace leveraging a scalable legal IP to NFT framework. Our novel approach allows for IP to be virtualized and modularised in an open bazaar. To achieve this, we utilize a combination of unique digital asset identifiers (NFTs), novel automatic exchange infrastructure (AMMs) and governance structures (DAOs) to reinvent IP ownership, financing of these assets, and entity creation. Our tech stack allows therapeutics to be funded and governed in entirely new ways that leverage the decentralised power of open communities and decentralised finance (DeFi), as opposed to single centralized entities and corporations.
We began exploring the combination of IP and NFTs with DeFi in 2018. Fortune favours the brave.
Molecule has two layers — Molecule Discovery and Molecule Finance. Combined, they enable the creation of a vibrant ecosystem for decentralized modular drug development.
Molecule Discovery — Making Research & IP Globally Discoverable
A first objective on our journey is to accelerate the discovery of promising early-stage therapeutics and bridge the “Valley of Death” in academia. We achieve this by creating a platform for individuals and organizations to interact with intellectual property and data — the two core innovation drivers and assets in biopharma. On Molecule Discovery, researchers can make their biopharma assets (data as well as pre-filed patents) visible to a global audience, receive feedback and engage with potential funders. The platform allows them to list the details of their projects, specify the commercial opportunity and upload data assets on an interface that feels familiar. Inclined investors can discover and follow projects in areas of their interest, engage with the research team and ask for further qualification. When interest from potential investors reaches a certain maturity, the IP moves into a new licensing platform built on Web3.0.
Filtering for global longevity projects: A snapshot of 3 out of +250 projects on Molecule Discovery.
Virtualising Research On-Chain: IPNFTs
The evolution of the biopharma IP transactional landscape is happening in part via a class of digital assets called Non-Fungible-Tokens (NFTs). A new NFT standard, the IPNFT developed by Molecule, will unlock new value in biopharma IP through fractionalization, frictionless tech transfer transactions, and collateralization of IP in decentralized financial systems in a permissionless way. The art and music industry embraced NFTs by storm, its time we empower scientists. Molecule’s first use case for IPNFTs is in early-stage biopharma where university tech transfer offices (TTOs) sit on IP goldmines languishing in obscurity for lack of easy access to liquid global markets.
Our platform enables these early-stage biopharma assets to be attached to NFTs via automated licensing frameworks and decentralised data storage systems like IPFS or Arweave. Once on-chain, NFTs can then be plugged into the broader Web3 and DeFi ecosystem to access price discovery and liquidity, financing and virtual drug development frameworks like DAOs.
In 2015, pioneering research in blockchain applications highlighted IP management and fractionalization as one of its key use-cases. Research collectives like COALA IP and Ascribe come to mind. Thanks to open networks like Ethereum and Ocean Protocol, technology, and adoption has matured to the extent that these early concepts are finally within reach of practical implementation.
The type of IPNFT developed by Molecule consists of two contracts: a legal contract and a smart contract, which cross-reference each other. The legal contract is an IP license with language referencing blockchain transactions, addresses, and signatures. The smart contract is an NFT with code referencing the IP licensing agreement, obfuscating certain data components and storing them on decentralised file storage networks. Combined, the legal contract and the smart contract create the IPNFT.
Molecule Finance — Full Decentralized Modular Drug Development
But research projects and IP require an active team, community and funders to become productive assets. Molecule.Finance enables modular drug development by creating virtual funding and collaboration environments. NFTs can be moved into automatic market makers to raise funding, or inserted into DAOs managed as a portfolio in a specific therapeutic vertical. These structures mirror virtual biopharma startups or holding companies that consist of various global stakeholders, funders and researchers — but fully distribute governance rights to their community. | https://medium.com/molecule-blog/an-open-bazaar-for-drug-development-molecule-protocol-a47978dd914 | ['Paul Kohlhaas'] | 2021-06-14 17:40:05.760000+00:00 | ['Web3', 'Blockchain', 'Crypto', 'Pharmaceutical', 'Biotechnology'] |
Six customer experience trends we’re tracking as retail and consumer goods respond to COVID-19 | Omnichannel experience and customer-centricity matter more than ever as consumer behavior rapidly responds to COVID-19. Here are six key trends to keep you ahead of the curve.
By Rio Longacre
COVID-19 has only been in the United States for several months, but it has already had a significant impact on consumer behaviors. These changes have disproportionately affected retail and CPG brands, which have seen their businesses impacted negatively as a result of temporary shuttering of physical locations due to social distancing guidelines and rules requiring consumers to shelter in place.
While only time will tell how the crisis ultimately unfolds and what impact is has on both brands and consumers in coming years, these six key trends have jumped out that fall under the umbrella of Customer Experience. These trends run the gamut from loyalty strategy to first-party data, from digital transformation to a renewed interest in omnichannel experience and customer-centricity.
Trend #1: New consumer habits are forming — and many will stick
“Habits are formed by the repetition of particular acts … and contrary habits are formed by the repetition of contrary acts.” — Mortimer Adler, philosopher
They say old habits die hard — which is generally true. Witness the US’s continued use of the Imperial system or (still) ubiquitous use of cash. In the span of several short weeks, COVID-19 has upended many sacred cows: consumers are washing hands, wearing masks, telecommuting, baking bread at home, and shifting other behaviors at a startling pace.
Given store closures and shelter-in-place orders, it’s no big surprise that in the CPG world, more people are ordering groceries online. As recently as 2018, only 36% of consumers had ever purchased groceries online. A recent study from RBC Research showed than about one-third of overall consumers surveyed made their first online grocery purchase in the past month, potentially pointing to a momentous shift.
Trend #2: Digital transformation redux
Digital transformation (DT) describes how organizations move from current-state to one that uses digital technology to shift offerings and deliver enhanced stakeholder value. A digital mindset isn’t really about tools, websites, or getting rid of paper forms. Ultimately, digital organizations move fast, release iteratively, organize cross-functionally, and nurture a culture that encourages innovation.
Being more mature digitally means making moves like adopting digital collaboration tools, migrating key tools and data sets to the cloud, adopting D2C ecommerce systems, and driving demand gen through digital marketing.
According to Forbes, 70% of companies had a digital transformation in place or were working on one pre-COVID-19. Despite this fact, many entered the crisis woefully unprepared and, not surprisingly, have spent the past few weeks scrambling to catch up. Andrew Filev, CEO of Wrike, calls COVID-19 a “before-and-after moment” in DT. Suffice it to say, many brands are now revisiting or accelerating their DT programs.
Trend #3: Customer Loyalty becomes paramount
In most of the world, empty shelves and closed locations have disrupted brand loyalty. Not surprisingly, around two-thirds of US consumers have tried new brands after sheltering in place, with 79% saying they did so because a product was unavailable or out-of-stock. More troubling for brands, 30% to 45% of consumers indicate a willingness to stick with a new brand, pointing to permanent shifts in consumer behavior that may be difficult to dial back after the crisis ends.
In response to this trend and because many retail and CPG brands are struggling to maintain revenues due to COVID-19 closures and quarantines, many brand leaders see loyalty as a vehicle to build direct, enduring relationships with customers. Beyond the mechanics of points or tiers, loyalty has long proven an effective model for obtaining, engaging with and retaining customers, beyond the potential of an average or non-member customer
79% of US consumers are trying new brands as they shelter in place because preferred brands are unavailable or out-of-stock. And 30–45% indicate a willingness to stick with the new brand.
The good news: The number of consumers signing up to loyalty programs has been steadily increasing. The last week of March, for example, saw 26% more program sign-ups than the last week of February.
Trend #4: D2C ecommerce focus
Pre-COVID-19, the Retail Apocalypse and accompanying disappearance of storefronts as shopping malls close across America has posed a poignant threat to many brands. Indeed, adjusting to the eventual demise of the Baby Boomer retail model has proven especially challenging to brands centered around distributions through channel partners found primarily in department stores and shopping malls.
In 2019, more than 10,000 stores closed across the country, reported the Washington Post. As the Retail Apocalypse has grinded on, online sales have simultaneously surged, surpassing brick-and-mortar department store sales close to a decade ago and accelerating ever since.
Digital D2C sales heat up as brick-and-mortar stores accelerate their descent.
Over the past few weeks, COVID-19 has dramatically accelerated the effects of the retail apocalypse by shuttering retail locations and limiting opportunities for brands to sell in traditional environments. Furthermore, it’s safe to say many of these merchants will never reopen, even after the crisis winds down.
For brands that sell through channels, the stakes have thus raised dramatically. Given this stark reality, it should come as no surprise that the D2C model looks increasingly appealing to brand leaders. In 2020, eMarketer forecasts digital D2C sales will grow by 24.3%, to $17.75 billion.
This silver lining comes with a couple caveats: As sales shift from nice-to-have to must-have products, many D2C brands may find themselves on the wrong side of the equation. Furthermore, disruptions to global supply chains are likely, presenting scarcity issues for many of these same merchants.
Trend #5: Continued rise of the CDP
With channels shuttered and consumers sheltering in place, brands are realizing the importance of establishing direct relationships with consumers and gaining a 360-degree view of their behavior. Over the years a variety of Marketing Technology (MarTech) solutions have sprung into existence, including the most recent entrant, the Customer Data Platform, or CDP.
The CDP is essentially a purpose-built solution that seeks to unify customer data and unlock its power for marketers. In addition to consolidating and normalizing first-party data, which can then be appended and enriched by second- and third-party data sets, CDPs tend to have strong identify resolution and management capabilities.
The real power of CDPs lies in their ability to unlock the power of data and make it both available and actionable for the marketing value chain. Marketers need some kind of CDP-like solution if they wish to align first-party data to the Consumer Journey and enable personalized experiences.
Given the challenges posed by COVID-19, many organizations are doubling-down on methods to centralize analytics and decision-making. A recent article on Forbes reported 53% of CX Leaders are currently investing in CDPs, and 45% in real-time decision engines, as a result of COVID-19.
Trend #6: Omnichannel gets new momentum
Omnichannel is not a new term — it’s been around the industry for a while and has been pushed aggressively by pundits for a close to a decade. In recent years, some brands had begun to sour on the concept, questioning the value of online transactions in light of their supposed deleterious effects on both in-store sales and overall profit margins.
COVID-19 has urgently breathed new life into the idea of omnichannel. Look around and you will see brands experimenting with tactics like curbside pickup, BOPIS, frictionless shopping, and so on.
“Necessity is, of course, the mother of invention … the necessity imposed by COVID-19 looks to be the mother of long overdue omnichannel invention,” reports Stuart Lauchlan on Diginomica.com.
Criticisms aside, the concept of omnichannel was never truly in jeopardy. That ship sailed long ago. If anything, omnichannel was misunderstood or poorly interpreted. In the end of the day, omnichannel is really about customer-centricity — giving people what they want, when they want it, in the manner most convenient to them. It was never about simply adding more channels, adopting solutions like clienteling, or pushing more customers online. The necessity posed by COVID-19 has laid bare this fact for all to see. | https://medium.com/slalom-customer-insight/six-customer-experience-trends-were-tracking-in-retail-and-consumer-goods-ca1de9d30ec | ['Slalom Customer Insight Team'] | 2020-05-06 20:29:07.061000+00:00 | ['Marketing', 'Customer Experience', 'Consumer', 'Retail', 'Customer'] |
Logs in Kubernetes: expectations vs reality | It’s 2020 already, and there is still no common solution for aggregating logs in Kubernetes. In this article, we would like to share our ideas, problems encountered, and solutions — all these with the help of real-life examples. Generally speaking, most of the things described here can be applied not just to Kubernetes but any kind of modern infrastructure…
For a start, I’d like to note that there are radically different ideas of what logging is:
someone would like to see security and audit logs only;
someone else prefers the centralized logging of the entire infrastructure;
while the other one wants to see the application logs excluding, for example, load balancers.
Here is how we have implemented different functionality and overcome various constraints. However, let’s start with a brief theory.
A bit of theory: Logging tools
Origins of the components of the logging system
Logging as a discipline boasts an eventful and rich history. In the end, we have got the methodology for collecting and analyzing logs that is actively used today. Back in the 1950s, the analogue of standard input/output streams was introduced in Fortran that helped programmers debug their programs. These were the first attempts at logging, and these tools made life easier for programmers of those days. Today we consider them one of the earliest components of the logging system — the source, or “producer” of logs.
Meanwhile, computer science continued to evolve: computer networks and first clusters have emerged… The first complex systems consisting of several machines have been introduced. Now, system administrators were forced to collect logs from multiple machines, and in some particular cases, they could even accumulate OS kernel messages to investigate a system failure. In the early 2000s, RFC 3164 was introduced. It standardized remote_syslog and provided the basis for defining centralized logging systems. That is how another essential component — the collector of logs and a mechanism to store them — has emerged.
The growing volume of logs and the widespread adoption of web technologies have led to the question of how to present logs to the user in the most accessible form. Simple console tools (awk/sed/grep) were replaced by more advanced log viewers. It was the third component of the modern logging system.
The increasing amount of logs made it clear: we need logs, but not all of them. Moreover, it turned out that different types of logs have varying levels of importance: some can be deleted the next day, while others need to be stored for five years or more. Thus, the logging system has acquired the data filtering and routing component; we will call it a filter.
The storage has also seen numerous improvements: regular files were replaced by relational databases, and later, by the document-oriented storages (e.g., Elasticsearch). As a result, the storage has been separated from log collecting.
In the end, the concept of the log itself has been broadened to some abstract stream of events that we would like to save for history, or rather, keep it in the case we need to conduct an investigation or make some analytical report.
Eventually, in a relatively short time, logging turned into a rather important subsystem that might be rightfully classified as Big Data.
In the past, you could implement a “logging system” with simple prints. The situation has dramatically changed today.
Kubernetes and logging
When Kubernetes became a part of modern infrastructure, the problem of collection of logs manifested itself with renewed vigor: the management of the infrastructure platform was both streamlined and made harder at the same time. Many established services started migrating to microservices approach. Regarding logging, this resulted in a growing number of log sources, their unique life cycle, and the need to track interactions of all system components via logs.
Looking ahead, I would like to note that currently there is no standardized logging option for Kubernetes that stands above the rest of the pack. Here are the most popular schemes sought by the community:
deploying an EFK stack (Elasticsearch, Fluentd, Kibana);
stack (Elasticsearch, Fluentd, Kibana); using the recently released Loki or the Logging operator;
we (perhaps, some others as well) prefer our own tool, loghouse.
In Flant, we tend to use the following bundles in K8s clusters for self-hosted solutions:
I am not going to tell you how to install and configure them. Instead, I will focus on their shortcomings and the situation with logs in general.
Logging routines in K8s
Day-to-day logging explained…
Centralized logging of a large infrastructure requires considerable resources that will be spent on collecting, storing, and processing data. While operating a diverse range of applications & platforms, we have to satisfy various requirements and deal with operating problems arising from them.
Case study: ClickHouse
Let’s consider centralized storage in the case of an application that generates a lot of logs: say, over 5000 lines per second. We will be using ClickHouse to process them.
While attempting to ensure real-time collection, we would run into the problem: it turns out that the 4-core server running ClickHouse cannot handle such a load, and its disk subsystem is severely overloaded:
The high load is caused by the fact that we are trying to perform writing into ClickHouse as fast as possible. The database responds with the increased disk load, which can cause errors such as:
DB::Exception: Too many parts (300). Merges are processing significantly slower than inserts
The fact is that MergeTree tables in Click House (where logs are stored) have their own complications when writing is performed. The inserted data generates a temporary partition that is later merged with the main table. As a result, writing tasks tend to be very disk-demanding. Hence the error represented above: no more than 300 sub-partitions can be merged per second — that’s 300 inserts per second.
To avoid such complexities, we should use as large chunks as possible when writing into ClickHouse while at the same time decreasing the frequency of writes to one time per two seconds, at least. However, writing in large batches brings another risk: the risk of buffer overflow and loss of logs. The obvious solution is to increase the Fluentd buffer. However, in this case, memory consumption will increase.
Note: Another problem of the ClickHouse-based solution mentioned here was that in our case (loghouse), partitioning was implemented via external tables linked by a Merge table. When selecting long time intervals, excessive amounts of RAM are consumed, since the meta-table scans all partitions — even those that are known not to contain the necessary data. However, for ClickHouse versions starting with 18.16, this approach has become obsolete.
Thus, it becomes clear that ClickHouse-based real-time logging solution can be resource demanding and won’t be a reasonable option for many applications. Also, you will need an accumulator (more about it later). The case we describe here is based on our real-life experience. At that time, we could not find a reliable and stable solution for collecting logs with a minimum delay that would have suited the customer.
What about Elasticsearch?
Elasticsearch is known to handle high loads. Let’s try it for the same application. Now, the load looks like this:
Elasticsearch has successfully digested the data flow. However, the process has been very CPU-demanding. It is not a problem from a technical standpoint — you can solve it by reorganizing the cluster. But we end up using a whopping 8 cores for a mere log collection and getting an additional highly loaded component in the system.
To sum it up, such an approach is quite viable in case of a large project and if the customer is ready to spend significant resources on a centralized logging system.
Then it’s fair to ask:
What logs do we really need?
What if we reframe the task itself? Say, logs must be informative and cover only the required events.
Suppose we have a thriving and successful online store. What logs do we need? We need as much information as possible from a payment gateway, obviously. Wherein, the service for showing images in the product catalog is not so critical: we can limit logging to errors and overall monitoring (for example, the percentage of 500’s errors that this component generates).
The main takeaway is that centralized logging does not always make sense. Often, the customer wants to accumulate all logs in a single place, although, say, only 5% of the messages have any relevance (only those that are critically important for business):
Sometimes it is as simple as, say, configuring the log size and an error collector (e.g., Sentry).
Often, error alerts and a comprehensive local log are enough to investigate incidents.
We have had projects that used functional tests and error collection systems only. Developers did not need logs at all — they used error traces to figure out what’s happening.
Real-world example
Here is another great example. One day, we received a request from the security team of one of our customers. This client had some commercial solution that had been developed long before implementing Kubernetes.
They wanted us to integrate a centralized log collection system with security information and event management tool, QRadar. This tool receives logs using the syslog protocol and collects them from the FTP server. However, our attempt at integrating it with the remote_syslog plugin for fluentd did not work out (as it turned out, we were not unique in this). Problems with configuring QRadar were on the side of the customer’s security team.
As a result, part of the logs critical to the business was uploaded to QRadar FTP, while the other part was redirected directly from the nodes via remote syslog. To do this, we have even created a basic chart (it could be useful for someone else). Thanks to the implemented flow, the customer has been able to receive and analyze critical logs (using its favorite tools), and we have been able to reduce costs related to the logging system by keeping data for the last month only.
Here is another example of what you shouldn’t do. One of our clients implemented a multi-line unstructured output of data to the log for every user-related event. As you can easily guess, it was challenging to store and analyze these logs.
Requirements for logs
The above examples lead us to the conclusion that besides choosing the log collecting system, we also have to define the standard for logs themselves! What are the requirements?
Logs must be in a machine-readable format (e.g., JSON).
Logs must be compact and support the ability to adjust the level of logging to debug potential problems. Accordingly, in production environments, a logging level such as Warning or Error must be set by default.
Logs must be normalized, meaning that all lines in the log object must have the same field type.
The unstructured logs might lead to problems with loading logs into the storage and a halt in their processing. To illustrate, here is an example with a 400 error (which, I believe, many of our readers have encountered in the fluentd logs):
2019-10-29 13:10:43 +0000 [warn]: dump an error event: error_class=Fluent::Plugin::ElasticsearchErrorHandler::ElasticsearchError error="400 - Rejected by Elasticsearch"
The above error means that you are sending a field with an unstable type to an index with defined mapping. A prime example of that is a field in the nginx log containing the $upstream_status variable. This variable can contain either a number or a string. For example:
{ "ip": "1.2.3.4", "http_user": "-", "request_id": "47fe42807f2a7d8d5467511d7d553a1b", "time": "29/Oct/2019:16:18:57 +0300", "method": "GET", "uri": "/staff", "protocol": "HTTP/1.1", "status": "200", "body_size": "2984", "referrer": "-", "user_agent": "Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/78.0.3904.70 Safari/537.36", "request_time": "0.010", "cache_status": "-", "upstream_response_time": "0.001, 0.007", "upstream_addr": "10.100.0.10:9000, 10.100.0.11:9000", "upstream_status": "404, 200", "upstream_response_length": "0, 2984", "location": "staff"} { "ip": "1.2.3.4", "http_user": "-", "request_id": "17ee8a579e833b5ab9843a0aca10b941", "time": "29/Oct/2019:16:18:57 +0300", "method": "GET", "uri": "/staffs/265.png", "protocol": "HTTP/1.1", "status": "200", "body_size": "906", "referrer": " https://example.com/staff ", "user_agent": "Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/78.0.3904.70 Safari/537.36", "request_time": "0.001", "cache_status": "-", "upstream_response_time": "0.001, 0.007", "upstream_addr": "127.0.0.1:9000", "upstream_status": "200", "upstream_response_length": "906", "location": "staff"}{ "ip": "1.2.3.4", "http_user": "-", "request_id": "47fe42807f2a7d8d5467511d7d553a1b", "time": "29/Oct/2019:16:18:57 +0300", "method": "GET", "uri": "/staff", "protocol": "HTTP/1.1", "status": "200", "body_size": "2984", "referrer": "-", "user_agent": "Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/78.0.3904.70 Safari/537.36", "request_time": "0.010", "cache_status": "-", "upstream_response_time": "0.001, 0.007", "upstream_addr": "10.100.0.10:9000, 10.100.0.11:9000", "upstream_status": "404, 200", "upstream_response_length": "0, 2984", "location": "staff"}
Logs show that the 10.100.0.10 server responded with a 404 error, and the request was redirected to another content storage. As a result, we have got the following value in the logs:
"upstream_response_time": "0.001, 0.007"
This problem is so widespread that it was even awarded a special mention in the documentation.
What about reliability?
There are cases when all logs are equally vital. Typical approaches for collecting logs in K8s discussed above have some problems with this.
For example, fluentd cannot collect logs from short-lived containers. In one of our projects, the container with a database migration has run for less than 4 seconds, and then it has been deleted according to the respective annotation:
"helm.sh/hook-delete-policy": hook-succeeded
Because of this, the log for running a migration has never made it into the storage (the before-hook-creation policy might help in this case).
Another example is Docker’s log rotation. Suppose there is an application that is writing to the logs intensely. In normal conditions, we can process all the logs. However, when some problem arises — like the problem with the wrong format described above — processing halts, and Docker rotates the file. As a result, business-critical logs can be lost.
That’s why it is important to split streams of logs so that the most valuable logs would go directly to the application, ensuring their preservation. You can also create some kind of a log accumulator — it would preserve critical messages if the storage is briefly unavailable.
Finally, we should not forget that every subsystem needs thorough monitoring. Otherwise, it is easy to encounter a situation when fluentd ends up in the CrashLoopBackOff state and stops sending logs, which can lead to the loss of valuable information.
Takeaways
As you can see, we leave aside SaaS solutions such as Datadog. Many of the problems we have touched upon have already been solved by commercial companies that specialize in log collecting. However, SaaS solutions are not suitable for all for various reasons (such as high costs or legal considerations in some countries).
At first glance, the centralized collection of logs looks like an easy task, but it isn’t. Here are a few considerations to remember:
The detailed logging is justified for critical components only. For other systems, you can set up monitoring along with the error collection.
In production, it makes sense to minimize logging to avoid an excessive burden on the system.
Logs must have a machine-readable, normalized, and strict format.
A separate and autonomous stream should be used for critically important logs.
The idea of a log accumulator looks promising. It can help you in case of load spikes and would make the load on the storage more uniform.
These simple rules, if applied wherever appropriate, allow the approaches described above to work smoothly, even if they lack some critical elements, such as a log accumulator.
Those who feel that these principles are excessive might find themselves in a situation when another highly loaded and inefficient component emerges in the system: the logging.
This article has been originally written by our engineer Nikolay Bogdanov. Follow our blog to get new excellent content from Flant! | https://medium.com/flant-com/kubernetes-logging-challenges-aad3f45d8eed | ['Flant Staff'] | 2020-02-01 03:52:12.226000+00:00 | ['Logging', 'Microservices', 'Fluentd', 'Loghouse', 'Kubernetes'] |
Voice of the Boys | Captured by: Author
Don’t hear of it so oft
Am I the only one?
My sister came crying to me one day,
Complaining about
The man who pulled her skirt
I wondered again, why does it happen?
Does it happen only to girls?
No, it happened to me
It happened despite gender.
It happened to a boy.
That boy is me.
He showed me porn
When I was six
I thought he was cool.
Showing me stuff banned at home
I didn’t know at the time.
Oh, why didn’t I?
How could I?
I was getting groomed.
For the next four years of abuse.
I was her student, and I was bright.
I’d stay after class, but that wasn’t right.
Of her or of me?
I was ten then
She’d pull my shorts down.
Touch my genitals
I thought it was love, a young boy’s crush.
It took me 17 years to realize
When I found true love
I wasn’t a stud, I wasn’t too special.
I was a victim of abusive hands.
I doubted myself
I doubt myself
Am I not a boy enough?
A man enough?
The only one who cries,
Feels strangled?
Perhaps the world is
Not kind enough, and I was not
Right enough,
To self-doubt
To not talk out
To feel worthless and lost.
But now I speak,
I speak for you all,
I’ll be your voice
The voice of the boys. | https://medium.com/illumination/voice-of-the-boys-a9f6ea2864b8 | [] | 2020-12-23 08:25:16.812000+00:00 | ['Sexual Assault Awareness', 'Sexual Assault', 'Poetry', 'Sexual Harassment', 'Sexual Abuse'] |
[WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT] | [WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT]
for this entry, i wear no mask of poetry to hide how i feel. this would be more like a journal entry, and i suppose this will suffice as its resting place. all i can think of is the easiest way to end my pain, and that would be firing a twelve gauge shotgun round into my mouth straight to my brain whilst hanging by my feet atop a well. i’ve everything i need, i now just need to make the journey. i am currently seriously considering this option, as i feel i deserve it, and i wish to rid myself of this pain. i don’t wish for vices to escape the pain, i don’t wish for substances to numb myself, i don’t wish for sleep to enter my own world that’s a dice roll of chance whether it’s good, bad, or nonexistent, none of those will suffice. the pain with which i’m afflicted feels as though it can only be drowned out in blood, another way my mind is yelling at me is digging a hunting knife deep into both of my wrists facing the blade vertical and carving up to my elbow, or as far as i can get with a knife scraping up against my bone, opening up my arteries and veins like wet paper. these, i feel, are my only two options to rid myself of this pain, and all others, therefore ridding all others around me of the pains i cause them day in and day out. i feel this to be the superior option, and i do not fear death. however, i wish i would’ve gotten to accomplish more. this isn’t to say i’ll go through with this, honestly i don’t think i will, but it means i’ll be heavily considering this for some time, meaning the next thing to set me off could topple the pile and very well push me over the edge. this is not a cry for help, nor is it meant to scare anyone or evoke pity, this is merely a vice for me to speak my mind, as i have nobody to talk to. good morrow to all, may the end of the world join us soon. | https://medium.com/@snodwhumple/warning-graphic-content-772d659e840f | [] | 2020-12-21 02:54:51.256000+00:00 | ['Suicide', 'Kill Me Now', 'Crash Bandicoot', 'Suicidal'] |
Fractal Token Launch on Polkastarter | 2021 is already shaping up to be a landmark year for Fractal, and the announcement of the all-new Fractal Protocol.
We earlier this year successfully completed a $2.2m pre-sale round, with support coming from a myriad of tier-one blockchain protocol founders, smaller and larger VC funds, infrastructure providers and more. We are truly humbled to know that so many influential figures, projects and businesses from such a wide array of industries trust in our plan for the future of the free web as much as we do.
This initial funding helped us to amongst other things build the first MVP version of our protocol — We invite you to discover more about this by reading our Whitepaper.
With a highly dedicated team and prominent figures in the Web3 space advising Fractal such as Bruce Pon, Co-Founder of Ocean Protocol, we have kickstarted our mission to build a new layer that powers the free internet. It was important to us to get support from renowned entrepreneurs in the AdTech industry like Adjust’s (recently acquired by Applovin) former COO Aurel Stenzel as well as Stefan Benndorf, former MD at Applift.
Following successful private raises and to further assist us in the development of this open-source solution for the fair exchange of data and information, we want to announce that we will be conducting a Community Sale of the utility token for the Fractal Protocol, FCL, on the popular sale platform Polkastarter.
Polkastarter sale information
We will be launching the Fractal Community Sale on the Polkastarter platform on Thursday, 25th February 2021. The specific time will be made public in the coming days.
4,000,000 FCL tokens (0.5% of total supply) will be sold in the Community Sale
Sale price will be $0.10 per FCL
The tokens will be split into 2 pools: The POLS pool and the community pool. Those wishing to participate in the POLS pool must hold a minimum of 3000 POLS tokens at the time of the Community Sale. For more information on POLS read this article on Polkastarter
2,000,000 FCL tokens will be reserved for those in the POLS pool
2,000,000 FCL tokens will be reserved for the Standard pool — For more information on how to participate in the Standard pool read this article on Polkastarter
Max cap per person is $800
A total of $400,000 will be raised from the Community Sale
All $400,000 collected via the community sale will be used to add liquidity to the initial DEX listing on Uniswap shortly after the token sale concludes
This upcoming sale will give both the existing Fractal community, Protocol stakeholders (Users, Advertisers, Verifiers, Insurers, and Attesters) and the future bloggers and builders, those that will enable the free web, the opportunity to join us and be part of the Fractal journey.
Presale information
5.3% of tokens were sold in our private sales between Summer 2020 and January 2021. Prices in the early rounds ranged from $0.025 and $0.05 per token with a 6 months lock, followed by 12 months vesting. In the most recent round, the price was $0.10 per token with a 6 month vesting schedule starting with the day of the Uniswap listing.
For further information on our token distribution, please read this article.
The FCL token
The Fractal utility token FCL coordinates and unites all stakeholders around the Fractal Open Advertising Economy. There is no profit, no dividend, no ownership, and no voting rights via the token. We instead intend that the token functions as the Protocol’s native currency, fueling the incentives mechanism embedded in the Protocol.
By design, the FCL token fulfills a number of critical functions that ensure ongoing demand correlated to ecosystem growth. We believe that well-designed token economics is essential to supporting the actual utility of the token.
Please stay tuned for an in-depth look at the FCL token economics, which we will be releasing in the near future.
About Fractal Protocol
Built on Polkadot, Fractal is an open-source zero-margin protocol that defines a basic standard to exchange user information in a fair and open way, ensuring a high-quality version of the free internet. In its first version, it is designed to replace the ad cookie and give users back control over their data.
Make sure to -
Visit our Website
Join our Telegram
Join us on LinkedIn
Follow us on Twitter
Watch our YouTube Videos
Disclaimer
This article does not include elements of any contractual relationship. This article shall not be deemed to constitute a prospectus of any sort or a solicitation for investment or investment advice; nor does it in any way pertain to an offering or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in any jurisdiction.
For the avoidance of doubt, please note that the Protocol has not been fully developed. Any statements made about the Protocol are forward-looking statements that merely reflect Fractal’s intention for the functioning of the Protocol. There are known and unknown risks that can cause the results to differ from the forward-looking statements.
Fractal does not intend to express investment, financial, legal, tax, or any other advice and any conclusions drawn from statements in this article or otherwise made by Fractal shall not be deemed to constitute advice in any jurisdiction.
Fractal’s intended purpose of the Tokens is to be used as means of payment for the services that will be offered within the Protocol (the “Services”). The purchase, ownership, receipt or possession of Tokens carries no rights, express or implied, other than the right to use Tokens as a means to enable usage of Services in accordance with the then applicable terms of use relating to the Services offered within the Protocol. The Tokens do not represent or confer any ownership right or stake, share, security, or equivalent rights, or any right to receive future revenue shares, intellectual property rights or any other form of participation in or relating to the Protocol, Fractal, Service Providers or any of their corporate affiliates, other than any rights relating to the provision and receipt of Services, subject to the applicable terms, conditions or policies that may be adopted by participants in the Protocol. | https://medium.com/frctls/fractal-token-launch-on-polkastarter-3c067b321525 | [] | 2021-02-15 12:56:32.796000+00:00 | ['Web3', 'Data', 'Digital Identity', 'Web3 Foundation', 'Digital Marketing'] |
Distributed Caching in ASP.NET Core | Implementing project using Visual Studio
Creating new project
Search for ASP.NET core web application and select it. Then click on Next
Name the Project DistributedCaching and select all dropdown according to above selection. Then click on Create
Choose API on next screen
Package Installation
Right-click on Project Solution select Manage Nuget Package and Install the following packages
· System.Data.SqlClient
Configuration
After the project creation, go to Startup.cs. In the ConfigureServices method, we need to add Distributed Memory Cache service.
In appsettings.json, we need to write our SQL server data source, user, password, and database that will be used by our project
"ConnectionStrings": { "SqlServerCString": "Data Source=localhost;Initial Catalog=caching;Persist Security Info=True;User ID=sa;Password=1234;" }
A complete view of appsettings.json
Create Database
Open your SQL Server Management Studio and create a database named caching.
Then open your query window and create a table named Student with the following query and insert some data using the following query
Create Controller
Click on the Controllers folder and add a new Controller. On the next screen select API Controller Empty and Click on Add
On the next screen name the controller CachingController and click on Add
Then open CachingController and do the following
[Route("api/[controller]")]
to
[Route("api/caching")]
Create Database Model
Create a folder and name it Model, add Student.cs with the following code. Make Model serializable for further serializing in setting cache
Place the below code inside CachingController
After placing code, make a request from POSTMAN to https://localhost:<PORT>/api/caching and you will get back the following response. You can notice response time 1348 MS
Create a folder Service and add MemoryCache.cs class and IMemoryCache.cs with the following code.
IMemoryCache.cs
MemoryCache.cs
After placing all code accordingly, we will do Dependency Injection MemoryCache in Startup.cs. Add the following code inside the ConfigureServices method
Now MemoryCache implementation available throughout Application Lifetime and an instance will be created every time there will be a request to the server.
Now let’s go for caching the result after fetching data from Student Table
First, let’s receive MemoryCache through Constructor Injection in CachingController.cs with the following code.
· Let’s cache student list after fetching data from Student Table, update the GetResult method in CachingController with the following code
It will set cache named student and send back response to Client.
So now fetched data from DB is now stored in a cache, now we have to check if student data available in the cache then fetch data from the cache otherwise make DB call and store it in the cache using the same method. Update the GetResult method with the following code.
Check if it is in cache then extract and send back otherwise make DB hit and set cache, send back to client
So now make a request from POSTMAN to https://localhost:<PORT>/api/caching and see the difference in response time
Too less than before
You can see time 7 MS, this makes a huge difference in server efficiency using the caching method.
Now, we have created a service that will be injected in Startup.cs file, a component that can be used in any project for caching. One more point if you want to remove a particular cache from memory then in the same way call removeCache and pass the CacheKeys inside the function. It will remove cache from memory. | https://medium.com/nerd-for-tech/distributed-caching-in-asp-net-core-683ba8593390 | ['Sankhadip Samanta'] | 2020-09-29 09:49:01.788000+00:00 | ['Postman', 'Sql Server', 'Caching', 'Dot Net Core', 'Aspnetcore'] |
How to make sharing menu in SwiftUI for macOS | Use NSSharingService.sharingServices(forItems:) with an array of one empty string gives a list of sharing items. There we show image and title of each menu item
import SwiftUI
import AppKit
import EasySwiftUI extension NSSharingService {
static func submenu(text: String) -> some View {
return Menu(
content: {
ForEach(NSSharingService.sharingServices(forItems: [""]), id: \.title) { item in
Button(action: { item.perform(withItems: [string]) }) {
Image(nsImage: item.image)
Text(item.title)
}
}
},
label: {
Text("Share")
Image(systemName: SFSymbol.squareAndArrowUp.rawValue)
}
)
}
} | https://medium.com/fantageek/how-to-make-sharing-menu-in-swiftui-for-macos-b46890f0975e | ['Khoa Pham'] | 2020-12-23 06:20:05.180000+00:00 | ['Sharing', 'Swiftui', 'Messages', 'Mac', 'Mail'] |
Yakima Feb 2018 | in In Fitness And In Health | https://medium.com/andytillo/yakima-feb-2018-f26fbec7779e | ['Andy Tillo'] | 2018-02-19 04:57:27.312000+00:00 | ['Yakima', 'Wind', '360'] |
Why You Should Respect He/Him Lesbians | Butch identity in context of lesbian culture has existed for a long time. the historic working-class lesbian community — and the iconic lesbian bar scene — included all modern sapphic identities. Although these spaces have dwindled since, a diverse butch community still remains. Back in the 1950s, 60s, and beyond, lesbian spaces had almost no men around. this created a separate world of people and relationships, giving way to an entirely new system of “gender,” of the ways they related to one another. Butches were those who took on a more masculine role. People who said that this dynamic “mimicked heterosexuality” were simply comparing butches to men, which couldn’t be farther from the truth!
Butch masculinity was — and still is — a unique kind of masculinity. In other words, it was something entirely new and had no static rules!
Equating butches to men is dangerous for butches and other masculine sapphic people. Not only that, but the conflation itself creates even more confusion surrounding the very simple ideas that i’ll be breaking down in a minute. When people say things like “why would a lesbian wanna be with someone who‘s basically a man?” it enables real life violence towards butches. men will justify harming us due to our masculinity and feminine lesbians will justify rejecting us. we end up completely alone in the world.
So, it’s the 50s, and being gay is basically seen as a form of gender non-conformity. Why? Well, you’re a woman, so you’re supposed to conform to the expectations of womanhood. Lesbians didn’t do that, and we didn’t want to do that, so we made spaces where we didn’t have to.
sub·vert /səbˈvərt/ (verb ) to undermine the power and authority of an established system or institution.
Since existing as a lesbian already challenges the traditional expectations of womanhood, a lot of lesbians found empowerment and freedom in further undermining the system of mainstream gender, its constructs, and its general power and authority over society.
Butches, who already felt masculine in a way much different from manhood, embraced this. Gender subversion became a staple of butch identity and culture. They presented masculine, as non-men. It felt powerful because it was undermining the exact gender system that oppressed them.
This subversion of gender gave rise to:
using different pronouns, including he/him, they/them, zie/hir, and more
dressing in traditionally masculine ways
being called masculine terms like “boyfriend,” “husband,” and “dad.”
taking testosterone to present more masculine
getting top surgery
All of this was going on and butches weren’t weren’t men. In fact, butches do all of these things today and still aren’t men. it’s a matter of gender presentation, an intentional subversion of the established mainstream system of gender. But how does this affect gender identity?
As you can imagine, many butches began to consider “Butch” their gender identity. Their entire experience of gender was being butch. Don’t believe me? Here is a story from the neighbor of a older butch named Mary talking about this exact phenomenon:
That comment is on my historically cited article about how bar scene butch identity was a precursor to modern non-binary lesbianism. It goes into many examples and also explains the formation of non-binary terminology in the mid-1990s.
The truth is, lesbianism has always been a haven for free gender expression. The way butch identity normalized gender subversion opened a door. Now all lesbians of today, regardless of whether or not they identify as butch, can express themselves and identify however they want.
This genuine detachment from traditional womanhood, a feeling that still exists for many lesbians today, means that some of us don’t even identify as women in the traditional sense anymore.
And, like I said, this is not unique to butches. Even femmes of the bar scene subverted expectations of femininity, reinventing it for the gaze of people other than men. It challenged gender expectations. “Femme” & “butch” are deeply historical identities within lesbian culture.
Saying that lesbians can’t subvert gender by using alternative pronouns, presenting in unique ways, and identifying with gender labels other than woman, isn’t just wrong. It completely opposes everything about lesbian history. We’ve been subverting gender from the very start!
Lesbian bar culture was a safe space for butches to exist as masculine without any correlation to manhood. We were seen and understood by other lesbians. We expressed ourselves however we wanted, and so did the femmes, and so did the many lesbians who didn’t identify as either.
However, these spaces weren’t entirely secure. There were laws as early as the 1940s known as the “three article rule.” They made wearing less than a certain number of gender-conforming clothing illegal. You could be arrested. you could be assaulted. You could even be killed. When modern refuters and gatekeepers say butches only existed for “safety purposes,” it’s erasure. If butches were comfortable being femme, they would’ve been. Maybe they had to pass as men in front of cops, but they weren’t men, and they risked their lives to exist as butch. To say that butches of today or, by extension, that any other lesbians can’t express themselves in a way that’s comfortable is spitting in the face of every butch and femme, of every lesbian, that survived the police raids and discrimination and violence in order to freely exist.
You are not “protecting lesbians” by invalidating those of us who are connecting with this deeply ingrained part of our history. It’s okay if you don’t feel the need to subvert gender in the ways we do, but you don’t get to tell us what is and isn’t allowed, and history agrees.
Butches — and all other lesbians — are free to do what we want regarding gender identity & expression. If you aren’t going to read the history to try and understand that, then at least show some respect by not telling us we’re “fake” or a threat…
…because you’re wrong. | https://radiantbutch.medium.com/why-you-should-respect-he-him-lesbians-85dca31a5b4f | ['Jules Rylan'] | 2020-11-30 20:46:40.622000+00:00 | ['Stonewall', 'Queer', 'Lesbian', 'Transgender', 'Queer History'] |
How to Become a Better Programmer by Discovering Your Strengths | BECOME A BETTER PROGRAMMER
How to Become a Better Programmer by Discovering Your Strengths
You can be a better developer by knowing yourself and leaning into your strengths
My ex-boss was a so-called natural achiever. He had a constant need for accomplishments. By the end of every day, he had to have something tangible to feel good about himself. And by “every day” I mean every single day — workdays, weekends, and vacations. A vacation was no fun for him unless he was climbing the highest mountain or doing something he could measure.
My friend Nika loves to learn. She’s drawn to the process of learning — more than the content or the result, it’s the process that’s especially exciting for her. She is energized by the steady and deliberate journey from ignorance to competence.
My colleague Miha likes to talk, he values relationships more than anything. Miha wants to understand other people's feelings, their goals, their fears, and their dreams; and he wants them to understand his. He is a “relator.”
What about you? You might be one of those people who like to think everything through. You might say things like, “Prove it. How can we do this? Show me that what you’re claiming is true.” It’s not that you necessarily want to destroy other people’s ideas, but you insist that their theories be sound. You see yourself as the objective one. You like data because data has no agenda. Armed with data, you search for patterns and connections.
Some of us are natural activators. Once a decision is made we must act. Others may worry that “there are still some things we don’t know,” but this doesn’t slow us down. If the decision has been made to go, we know that the fastest way to get there is to go stoplight to stoplight.
Most developers do not know what their strengths are. When you ask them, they look at you with a blank stare.
I know you’re in the quarantine right now but think of your co-workers or the people you used to work with. Have you ever worked with someone:
Who has great attention to detail and patience?
Who doesn’t solve a problem with just the code? They believe software products aren’t just the code you write, they’re much more.
With the willingness to keep learning?
Who’s a great listener and can explain concepts in a clear and simple manner?
Who loves to work in a team, who is a pleasure to work with and is adaptable?
Who writes elegant code that can be easily maintained?
A team leader who inspires and motivates their team?
Who has a constant drive to be better, to do better?
Who is super analytical and understands solutions on multiple levels? Who sees the pros and cons of every approach?
Who pushes to get the job done?
Everyone has their own strengths. One person's strength lies in strategic thinking, another excels in relationship building. Some people are natural-born influencers and others are best at executing and achieving. Finding your strengths can help you in the long run. | https://medium.com/better-programming/how-to-become-a-better-programmer-by-discovering-your-strengths-fc8f78e86628 | ['Jana Bergant'] | 2020-04-25 18:23:27.794000+00:00 | ['Personal Development', 'Startup', 'Books', 'Advice', 'Programming'] |
I Created The Best-Ever Pomodoro Timer, Just For You 🍅 | I Created The Best-Ever Pomodoro Timer, Just For You 🍅
I’m a horrible procrastinator.
So a while ago, I started using the “Pomodoro Technique”, where you set a timer for 25 minutes, and keep on working until the time is up. It worked pretty well — the Pomodoro creates an artificial mini-deadline, and I’m a writer, so I don’t do anything without a deadline.
But there was one big problem: Every app I used displays a big, vivid countdown of how much time was left.
For example, here’s what (clockwise from top right) Forest, Pomodor, Clockwork Tomato, Pomofocus, and Marinara Timer look like …
Look at that! Everyone has some huge read-out or dial or image showing the time … ticking … down.
I find this design awfully distracting. What winds up happening is:
I start the Pomodoro …
I flick over to Google Docs or whatever work I’m doing, but …
while I’m working I keep wondering hmmm, how much time is left on the timer? So …
I flip over to the app to check it out.
This continually breaks my concentration, which defeats the whole purpose of the Pomodoro technique, which is to concentrate! | https://medium.com/@clivethompson/i-created-the-best-ever-pomodoro-timer-just-for-you-29f63f926cd1 | ['Clive Thompson'] | 2021-07-23 17:47:04.757000+00:00 | ['DIY', 'Pomodoro Technique', 'Coding', 'Time Management', 'Procrastination'] |
Announcement #39: Ascent — Change the world, one project at a time! | Update: The ship has sailed from shore!
Ascent is live for projects. We invite the projects to play the testnet at http://launchonascent.com
Ascent is the world’s first decentralized token Launchpad platform which carefully vets best projects in which users can participate.
What’s wrong with the world you ask?
It’s the fact that the most deserving projects, ideas, things don’t get the right platform. Think for example a disaster like WeWork gets $20 billion worth of funding and a deserving project like doesn’t even get $10K for something like. It’s a basic detangler for wires on any electronic device
There are millions of such examples. A dog walking startup got $300 million funding https://edition.cnn.com/2019/12/09/tech/wag-softbank/index.html but great projects don’t receive a fraction of that. Because there is centralised decision making from certain offices which decide which projects are they willing to bet on.
A lot of these opportunities don’t even present to 99% users. That’s because of a lack of access. What if you could be a part of the initial Flipkart, Ola, Paytm etc. Can you do that ? No.
So what’s going to get built or happen in future you have very little say in it. What if you could. What if you could participate and drive networks which you passionately care about, understand or see value in. The world would be a lot more dynamic, would thrive a lot more innovations and things would progress so much faster and in varied dimensions.
Crypto provided a way with ICOs but it had it’s set of challenges. Then came IEOs which again has its own set of challenges that it’s limited. Then came DEXs which provide a way but there are a lot of scams and rug pulls that happen there. Here’s a comparative chart of the 3 modes:
Launchpad vs Centralised exchange launchpads vs Uniswap
ICOs are gone;
IEOs are almost done;
Uniswap based listings have been the in thing and this is where you frequently have such tweets:
There are thousands of such tweets and experiences people have on a daily basis!
This happens for multiple reasons:
Non legit/scam team,
Bots front run and pump up price in seconds before your actual order execution takes place and then start selling,
Non locked liquidity on team, advisors, pre-sale investors,
FOMO/ FUD through influencers just before launch. Because it’s a very abrupt launch in many cases it gives less time for people to research and find exact things,
You have an entire array of such experiences here: https://t.me/s/rektplebs
For IEOs
There’s no transparency in allocation
Allocations are often very low
Often there are projects which are not vetted https://coinfomania.com/okex-postponed-its-attn-ieo-token-sale/
There is no accountability on supply
This is where Ascent comes in!
With Ascent, users can get the best of everything and get a chance to shape the future they want to see by backing trustworthy teams trying to make a change.
What’s in it for $BNSD?
BNSD holders have following benefits:
Voting for favorite projects w.r.t listing via governance token
Participating in governance decisions of Ascent
Getting 80% of the fees of Ascent. (Example: People would get fees in that proportion of staked BNSD. So if they staked 20% of total BNSD staked and fees generated is say 2 crores then they get 40 lacs )
Becoming a validator for certain project related details and earning tokens for it
Stakers would also get airdrops from certain projects.
Governance tokens (BNSG) users can get by burning their BNSD or BNS tokens. Update: You can read more about it in our 41st announcement
As of the time of writing, Uniswap has 1000 new pairs getting added every week. Imagine over a period of time on Ascent we have 50 a week great quality projects each having swaps of say 1000 ETH a project. That’s like 20 ETH*50 projects = 1000 ETH worth of fees getting generated for $BNSD stakers weekly. That’s huge and most $BNSD stakers would stake their tokens to participate in this.
What about Fees?
The total fee would be 3% of the raised funds.
BNSD stakers would get 80% of the fees generated
20% fees would be reserved with the foundation for further development work
Sounds Exciting. What kind of projects could be there ?
Basically, anything and everything under the sun. Here are a few to name:
So a writer trying to publish a book and seeking funds for it to a footballer creating token of skillsets where you can bet on and earn royalty of fees going forward, or
Crypto DeFi projects, or
Fintech innovations for the bottom of pyramid, or
Community projects like fixing a pothole on a road. That can also get facilitated via this as the funds can’t get misused. They are in time-locked escrow which would only get released when certain milestones are hit. This showcases a supreme example of decentralised governance
We wish to drive the efforts towards decentralisation going forward and here’s our first footstep in this. We aspire to create a system Decentralised governance, decentralised community projects. | https://medium.com/bitbns/ascent-change-the-world-one-project-at-a-time-fd4988e6642b | [] | 2020-11-05 16:43:32.274000+00:00 | ['Investment', 'Launchpad', 'Cryptocurrency Investment', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Decentralization'] |
Charter Flights are the Secret Transportation of the Rich and Powerful | Around the world, air traffic has nearly ground to a halt. Commercial planes sit lined up on the tarmac, grounded by canceled routes and closed borders. The airline industry is forecasting slow business for the coming year, and some companies may not survive the downturn at all.
But some planes are still flying, and they are carrying precious cargo: For the past few months, charter planes have been shipping people and possessions to where they’re needed most. Charter planes provide a shadow world of transportation, moving essential cargo like personal protective equipment and medical staff, alongside less-than-essential cargo for the mega-rich. When a global pandemic shuts down much of society, you begin to realize what’s important to people by the kind of things they try to move around the world.
Justin Lancaster, chief commercial officer at Air Charter Service, a charter airline broker that normally arranges 23,000 flights per year, began to see business pick up in early March, as the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a global pandemic. Lancaster fielded panicked calls as countries began locking down their borders. Italy, then the worst-hit country before being overtaken by the United States in April, closed its borders entirely on March 9, setting off a chain reaction at airports worldwide. “People were trying to get back to where they needed to be for lockdown,” Lancaster said.
Frantic requests were coming in for private jets — which seat fewer than 19 people — as well as berths on commercial planes. Governments needed huge numbers of repatriation flights to airlift citizens out of locked-down countries. In a single week in late April, repatriation flights returned Britons from Peru, Americans from Switzerland, Greeks from Germany, Russians from Italy, and UAE nationals from India. In March alone, Germany repatriated 42,000 of its citizens on 60 flights. Individuals often had to pay tens of thousands of dollars for a seat on one of these planes. (One couple profiled in the New York Times for being stranded on their honeymoon in the Maldives balked at spending $100,000 on a charter flight home to South Africa.) Charter flights also allow private companies to get workers out of sticky situations: Air Charter Service has arranged transport home for South Americans working at a mine in Africa and cruise ship passengers escaping lockdown in the Caribbean.
The challenge Lancaster and his staff encountered during those early days wasn’t necessarily finding space on flights, which was plentiful, or getting flights out of airports that were still open, but figuring out how to navigate the sometimes confusing intricacies of worldwide travel restrictions. Some countries, like the United Kingdom, continued to have open borders; others, like Italy, had firmly locked them down. Australia wouldn’t let passengers layover in the country, and France only allowed its own citizens to return home.
When a global pandemic shuts down much of society, you begin to realize what’s important to people by the kind of things they try to move around the world.
After Donald Trump closed the U.S. border to European nationals on March 11, the reality of lockdown truly sunk in, and the passenger airlines scrapped their normal schedules. Today, two in every three planes worldwide are currently grounded, according to consultants Ascend by Cirium. Across Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East, almost all flights remain on the ground. Journeys across Asia-Pacific and North America have continued, buoyed by domestic travel, albeit at a much lower level than before Covid-19 struck.
By now, most people have returned to where they need to be, and the overwhelming majority of people aren’t traveling for business or pleasure anymore. (Unless you’re an essential worker, like the 150 Romanian vegetable pickers who were flown to the U.K. on a $50,000 charter flight in April.)
But you can still attempt to travel — if you can afford it. A private jet chartered by a Croatian businessman with 10 people on board, the men in their forties and fifties and all the women in their early twenties, was turned back to London from France’s Côte d’Azur after landing there in early April. (France, along with the greater European Union, has restricted nonessential travel.) All but one of the passengers returned to the U.K., according to French TV, with the tenth instead taking another charter flight to Berlin, Germany — according to Lancaster, chartering this aircraft would have cost around $11,000. | https://gen.medium.com/the-rich-and-powerful-are-unsurprisingly-bypassing-flight-restrictions-2a6c971bc728 | ['Chris Stokel-Walker'] | 2020-05-07 13:51:19.015000+00:00 | ['Airplanes', 'Travel', 'Culture', 'Power', 'Wealthy'] |
Productivity with Python: From Your Daily Notes to Anki Flash Cards | Photo from Free Photos on Pixabay (left) and by Andrej Lišakov on Unsplash (right)
Productivity with Python: From Your Daily Notes to Anki Flash Cards
A programming approach to automate turning your notes into Anki flash cards.
Automating Flash Cards
Flash cards are a great tool to enhance memorization of all the information one might care to remember and learn.
The power of this system is that it implements scientific findings related to concepts like spaced repetition and concrete feedback, both paramount for memory retention.
I have been a big fan of this system for a while now, and recently I posted an article about it, but one thing that has bothered me regarding my workflow routine is the data entry process.
Since I don’t like switching work environments from my regular notes or scripts to writing flash cards on Anki, I wanted an automatic way to turn them into neat Anki flash cards that I could import directly to the app on my desktop.
From Notes to Flash Cards with Python
To start things off, if you are new to flash cards, go check out my post here.
If you are not familiarized with Anki, take a look at their website and download the free app (not affiliated):
Ok, now let’s get started with our main topic.
Since I am a big python fan, I asked myself: “Can I write a script that turns a markdown or python file into an Anki flash card?”
Yep! I only have to translate the files into one of the acceptable formats that Anki can understand, one of which is a simple .txt file!
Photo by Photo Boards on Unsplash
You write a .txt file separating each question and answer with a “;” and you are ready to go!
Below, I will walk you through my process of turning my Notion pages (markdown files) and my python scripts into neat .txt files that can be imported to Anki as nice flash cards automatically.
The process: from everyday workflow to Anki flash cards
First, let’s take a look at the entire process in terms of input and output: | https://medium.com/python-in-plain-english/productivity-with-python-from-your-daily-notes-to-anki-flash-cards-a212e46d097b | ['Lucas Soares'] | 2020-09-14 21:11:24.069000+00:00 | ['Learning', 'Productivity Hacks', 'Productivity', 'Programming', 'Python'] |
Capturing Essences: A Writer’s Experience — Chapter Three | Author’s note: This is not a book of essays “just for writers,” but a few thoughts I’d like to offer to all creative spirits wishing to make a difference in helping to lift the energy on this planet and what I feel are some important steps we can all take to bring solutions through creative expression.
CHAPTER THREE
This is a micro-book, a space where thoughts form on a page. I’ve had a lot of time on my hands of late. My children are grown and off on their own, and I find myself, without needing to be there for them, staring out the window, opening and closing said window, adjusting my seat cushion, retreating to the kitchen for a cup of tea only to return again to face a blank page on the screen. Time is nothing. It is everything. We use time wisely. We waste it, or perceive to waste it. I, for one, spend a lot of time daydreaming. I guess it’s something I’ve always done, especially as a child, and now as an adult I’m still looking out the window trying to rationalize life.
We go through the motions day in and day out, and that’s fine. It gets us from point A to Point B, but ultimately if we’re going to go from one place to another, not only in our thoughts but in our hearts, our minds, and our bodies, we need to utilize that action. Getting up to go make myself a cup of tea gives me pause. It relaxes me because it takes a lot both mentally and physically to craft. It’s taking a unique acceptance of myself that I’m being worthwhile with my time. This little book of thoughts isn’t a way to offer advice about anything, really, it’s simply a platform for me to share myself, ultimately asking you to think about what it means to craft and create not only your self in relationship to your loved ones, your colleagues, your friends, but the relationship you have to your work..in essence…you.
Encapsulating as it is, all of us are attempting to go from this to that to either grow, improve, or just get by. We need this to achieve that. Can it ever be this and that? Can we ever be satisfied with where we are and not where we want to go? Can we be happiest being? I spend time thinking about finishing a work instead of enjoying the process of writing it because I fear that if I don’t think about the end I may never get there. I have to visualize it complete, but there’s a point in which I know being in the mess of creation is part of the reason for being.
Life came about. We are. Sure, we’re going there, but we’re here. I recently had surgery so I’ve spent a lot more time in the required state of just being. Being too tired to write and too tired to walk the block. You get the picture. The body cooperates for only so long before sending you the signal to rest. Creation needs rest. I’m learning this. Appreciating it. Creation isn’t about upstarts or building a better stage, a new idea, or even reinventing an old thought and seeing how it plays out…it’s more subtle than that. Creation is nuance. It is the acceptance of space, the emptying of that space, seeing nothing, and being inside that space to be.
Creatives want to be creative. I’m growing to appreciate that creatives can grow to be.
More Chapters On Medium
Read The Full Work On My Website | https://medium.com/@aliciacahalanelewis/capturing-essences-a-writers-experience-chapter-three-660a2866add7 | ['Alicia Cahalane Lewis'] | 2020-12-25 17:43:10.571000+00:00 | ['Humanity', 'Creativity', 'Human Experience', 'Writing', 'Essay'] |
Disability Discrimination, the abuse we are too ashamed to talk about | When the issues of hate crimes and discrimination are discussed race, religion and sexuality are automatically mentioned within the context of prejudice. However, hate and discrimination experienced by those with disabilities is not. To better understand these issues I interviewed Marc who has Spina Bifida and from this discussion it became very clear to me that discrimination of those with disabilities isn’t lessened by its exclusion from public discourse and that without addressing the hate that Marc and so many others have experienced, any solutions of reaching a more compassionate society are silenced as well.
Marc’s Spina Bifida affects the neurons in his lower spine, as a result he has mobility problems, muscle wastage in lower legs and he is technically incontinent as a result of this he has a stoma. Due to pain and low stamina, caused by Spina Bifida, Marc uses a walking stick or a wheelchair for mobility.
Marc has experienced hate crimes, his whole life, his first memory of discrimination was as early as a 5 years old when he was rejected from different preschools as he was still in nappies. Any discrimination Marc endured as an infant only worsened throughout school. When he went to visit his local primary school the head teacher turned around to his parents and him, and said “I don’t want a cripple in my school!” Instead Marc had to attend a school further away with a disability unit. During his time at school people were only just beginning to realise that physical disabilities didn’t mean you were also mentally disabled and many staff at his school didn’t deem it worth putting effort into educating him. The head of the disability unit at his school advocated for him to attend the mainstream school as he was highly intelligent and academically capable. However, being in the mainstream school only led to more hate fueled discrimination. From there Marc went to secondary school which was “hell,” Marc’s disturbing account of the hate he experienced as a person with disabilities in secondary school was deeply troubling. The P.E teacher at his school, would make him run around the field in front of all the other boys to humiliate him, despite his mum sending in letters saying he was exempt from certain physical activities. The P.E teacher would sadistically set him challenges such as running 500m in three seconds and would send him off to take P.E with the girls as he wasn’t “a real boy.” This abuse carried on when Marc was in English lessons, his English teacher would throw dirty looks anytime Marc made a comment, refusing to acknowledge any contribution he made. She would also stand behind him and sniff really loudly and tell him she thinks he should go to the loo, making it out as though he had had an accident. The torment and bullying Marc experienced by both teachers and his classmates caused Marc to try and take his own life when he was 16.
This hate and discrimination continued into his work place. He left his teaching job because of the discrimination he received there, his colleagues would move around the photocopier room so it was inaccessible in a wheelchair. The staff room was upstairs so they gave him tea and coffee facilities in the back of the school office, which was hard to get to anyway. However, they also put the coffee on the top shelf, after him asking if they could move the coffee to a lower shelf they said no as at would be “in the way.” After constantly experiencing this daily torment and feeling like he was a burden Marc left.
Photo by alexandre saraiva carniato from Pexels
I would like to think that times would have changed however the hate has still persisted throughout Marcs whole life. In January of this year Marc was using a replacement bus service and while getting off the bus the bus driver shouted at him, “hurry up you f*cking sp*stic and get off my bus, it’s not my fault you’re a f*cking sp*stc and can’t move quickly.” Marc complained to the British Transport Police but the bus company that ran the replacement bus service refused to confirm the name of the driver, denied it ever happened and told BTP that the CCTV was off. It took 5 months for the BTP to reach an outcome of not enough evidence and they failed to keep to phone interview appointments so Marc had to contact them twice as he hadn’t heard anything. COVID-19 was given as an excuse even though it was only around for two of the five months the investigation took place. Without CCTV footage and sound, Marc said like with so many other discriminatory acts there is no point in reporting it as no one is going to believe you. Marc told me over the last few years he is increasingly facing instances of people shouting at him on the street telling him to “go die” or calling him a “cripple” and he has even been punched but feels as though reporting it is a waste of time due to poor experiences he has faced when he has.
You can see why he would feel this way, in England and Wales there has been an increase in disability hate crimes, there were 6,263 disability hate crimes were reported in 2018–19, while in 2017–18 the figure was 5,599 and in 2016–17 it was 4,079. However, fewer people are being charged or prosecuted for disability hate crimes across England and Wales. [1] It is something to note that all hate crimes are on the increase however Marc is also gay and has said he feels that the discussion of hate crimes against disabilities is excluded from these discussions and feels that there is far more stigma attached to being disabled than being gay, something he has attributed to disabilities being viewed as a burden on society.
Horrified and appalled by Marc’s accounts of abuse he has received, I looked into our government’s commitments to helping those with disabilities, I felt ashamed at what I found. The government’s commitment to upholding and enforcing its austerity measures makes it seem more and more that they are viewing welfare and social care as forms of charity seen most recently with the government voting down the continuation of free school meals. People with disabilities are some of the hardest hit by austerity measures. As a result of changes to benefits and taxes, a 2018 report by Professor Alston, a UN poverty expert, cited that since 2010, some families with disabilities are projected to lose £11,000 on average by 2021–2022, more than 30 per cent of their annual net income. The report states that the UK has “deliberately removed” welfare reform policies and replaced it with a “harsh and uncaring ethos.” When challenged at PMQs former prime minister Theresa May “disagree[d] with the report.” Which also stated that as the UK is one of the wealthiest nations in the world, its failure to put in protection for those with disabilities was in “clear violation of the country’s human rights obligations.”[2]
The government hasn’t enshrined rights in the EU Accessibility Act into UK law meaning those with disabilities are still unable to travel with ease and safety or easily access buildings or workplaces. Nor is the ‘UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities,’ enshrined in UK law. Over 10 years ago ‘The Equality and Human Rights Commission’ was set up under the ‘Equality Act 2006’, the commission has the responsibility for the promotion and enforcement of equality and non-discrimination laws in England, Scotland and Wales however it has basically no power to do this, it cannot bring enforcement action, something the equivalent bodies in the US, Australia, Belgium, Canada and New Zealand can do. [3]
I asked Marc how he thought the government was able to get away with its disregard for helping those with disabilities, and he spoke candidly of how he felt that people with disabilities are never seen as a community on par with other minority groups like the LGBTQ+ and BAME groups. He said “Perhaps this is a way of ‘disabling’ and stopping us from building an identity, and therefore coming together and fighting for our rights.” He also said that the terminology used around disabled people is dehumanising and thought instead of saying disabled person he would prefer ‘person with a disability.’ This is using people-first language and it describes what a person “has’’ rather than asserting what a person “is”.
However, Marc and I feel that the word disabled is problematic in its assumption that disabilities stop people from being “able” and instantly set up a narrative of a person with disabilities missing something or needing help. Marc said he would “love to be spoken about as differently-abled.” Furthermore, there is no word for abuse based on disability, like there are for other minority groups. Marc said “you have racist, misogynist, transphobic but what is our word? I have started to hear the term ‘able-ist’ being used but is this another way to keep us in our place and to shut up because we literally do not have a word to describe what happens to us and thus our abuse is lost by grouping us in with general terminology,” this therefore stops disability abuse being talked about separately and forcing the government to address how they could better support and provide legislation for people who are disabled.
Perhaps a reason why the government won’t pass legislation against discriminating against those with disabilities is because they have no intention of following the legislation themselves as they continue to infringe the human rights of those with disabilities.
I think one of the hardest parts having a disability for Marc has been his exclusion from society. Marc has endured malicious and violent attacks but he told me it was the constant judging from our society that has alienated him. From the tutting when he was walking too slow up the High Street, the dirty looks people would give him for parking in a disabled bay and all the discriminatory things mentioned above both personal and governmental.
It’s this pervasive assumption that he had nothing more to offer society than having a disability. However, having a disability doesn’t make you exempt from a positive contribution to society and receiving disability benefits shouldn’t be perceived as someone being a burden. Having a disability is a part of you and it isn’t something that is negative, it can however become negative through lack of support and understanding around disabilities. Marc said that having Spina Bifida has helped him be a more compassionate and empathetic person, this is something that clearly we all need. Marc said it is not about understanding all the struggles someone with disabilities face, it is about having an awareness that you don’t understand.
From talking to Marc it has made me aware of how much having a disability is a social construct perpetuated by ignorance, intolerance and impotent governmental legislation. People without disabilities need to think more about these issues and we all need to put pressure on our institutions to make changes to legislation as well as challenging these prejudices when we see them in our daily lives. Because if we start making places more accessible and be kinder to other people, we will start to bring some really incredible people into our lives as well. My hope is that if we make these changes people with disabilities will never have to go through the experiences that Marc has and is still experiencing now and that if we could eliminate these marginalising attitudes we would therefore eradicate some of the most painful experiences of having a disability, and by doing this I hopefully we see people simply as differently abled rather than disabled.
Be kind whenever possible. It’s always possible.
[1]BBC News (2019). Disability hate crime: Number of reports rising. [online] BBC News. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-49975697 [Accessed 30 Oct. 2020].
[2] Springfield, F. (2020). A Human Rights Approach to Disability Campaigning — Disability Labour. [online] Disabilitylabour.org.uk. Available at: https://disabilitylabour.org.uk/blogposts/a-human-rights-approach-to-disability-campaigning/ [Accessed 30 Oct. 2020].
[3]Springfield, F. (2019). UK in clear violation of Human Rights obligations — Disability Labour. [online] Disabilitylabour.org.uk. Available at: https://disabilitylabour.org.uk/blogposts/uk-in-clear-violation-of-human-rights-obligations/ [Accessed 30 Oct. 2020]. | https://medium.com/@tillyc/disability-discrimination-the-abuse-we-are-too-ashamed-to-talk-about-4249a7517263 | [] | 2020-11-05 14:56:51.550000+00:00 | ['UK', 'Disability', 'Discrimination', 'Covid 19', 'Hate'] |
Are Liberals Really Guilty of Anti-Conservative Bias? | Are Liberals Really Guilty of Anti-Conservative Bias?
Is this bias real? Should we trust those who say that it isn’t? Also, can we really say that “both sides are equal”?
This story is more about observations and opinions rather than hard facts. Opinions are as valuable as assholes. Don’t take them too seriously.
Also, this is a very biased story. You may get offended. I warned you.
Photo by visuals on Unsplash
While sane people write about sane issues on Medium, I like to write articles that give me a small existential crisis, like pretty much all you can find on I, Human.
Now the same is happening as I’m writing the second part (from now on, S2) of this story (S1). I don’t know who I can trust anymore.
Writing about politics is less easy than it seems. Every one of us has their own political views and biases, even “centrists”, and it’s tough to try to see both sides’ perspectives at the same time.
In my stories about politics, I want to be as unbiased as possible and consider “both sides as equal”. I have to admit; I often find it difficult to see both sides as equal. Sometimes I think that one is better than the other. This is not to say that one is right¹ and the other is wrong. Both sides suck, but one sucks more than the other.
I tried to promote a broader perspective in S1, proposing alternatives to the left-right dichotomy. It sounds nice in theory, but in the real world, politics is a sport. Every one of us picks their favorite team.
As a liberal, I started my journey into becoming a conservative. Well, at least for the time needed to understand their viewpoints so I could write S2. | https://medium.com/i-human/are-liberals-really-guilty-of-anti-conservative-bias-de71aabe4608 | ['Luca Rossi'] | 2020-08-16 21:32:19.658000+00:00 | ['Society', 'Psychology', 'Philosophy', 'History', 'Politics'] |
Kamen — Yoh Kamiyama (English Translation) | 手探りで僕らは今でも
even now, we fumble —
綱渡りの日々にもがいている
— struggling through this balancing act of our lives
ふらついて試す疑いの余地
having room for doubt that keeps you on your toes — [1]
壁に付けた正の字も二画目
that’s the second strike on the scoreboard [2]
思い出すあなた届かない指が
your unreachable hands —
その隅から隅までが
— i remember them from tip to toe
嫌になっちゃってさ
and i absolutely hate it
鈍く灯った優しさだけ
guess that was just dimly lit kindness
重たい体ならば置いておいで
if your body’s too heavy just leave it behind
全てわかった気でいたい夜もある
there’s still nights i wish i had it all figured out
誰にも言えないような過去があって
there are things in our pasts we can’t talk about
このまま秘密にできるなんて
— can’t believe we’ve kept them a secret like this!
仮面の奥の顔は何を見てたの
behind that mask, what did you see?
欲しがれば夢のあとさき
if you want it, that’s your dreams talking [3]
仮面の奥に光る
behind that mask, it’s shining —
朝焼けが消えないで
— don’t let that morning glow disappear
まだ張り付いたまま
still clinging on,
後ろの正面の
that you behind the facade —
あなたは誰
who is that?
幸せな暮らしもいつかは
oh i already know that someday
変わっていくものだと気付いてる
my happy life will change
浮ついて減らす言い訳の余地
having room for excuses that let you throw it all away — [4]
こべりついた正の字も七つ目
we’ve somehow already five strikes on the scoreboard [2]
笑い出すあなた戻らない時が
you who started laughing —
その場しのぎばっかりで
— your leaving was just make-do
嫌いだったんだな
and i absolutely hate it
黒く濁った虚しさだけ
guess that was just inky black nothingness
泣きたくなったならここにおいで
if you wanna cry, come over here
全て無かったことにはできない夜
to a night you couldn’t pretend it didn’t all happen
誰にも見せないような傷があって
there are scars we have we wouldn’t show anyone
二人の秘密にできるなんて
— can’t believe we’ve kept them a secret like this!
仮面の奥の顔は何を見てたの
behind that mask, what did you see?
あなたしか知らないままで
with something only you know
仮面の奥に光る
behind that mask, it’s shining —
明日が跡になって
tomorrow turns to dust
まだ焼き付いたまま
with it still etched in memory,
生きてる証明をしているだけ
i’m just trying to prove i’m alive
暗闇の中でさえ
even in the dark,
迷わずに歩いて行ける
i can still walk forward without getting lost
この先にあなたがいると
because i believed
信じていたから
you were just ahead of me
仮面の奥の顔は何を見てたの
behind that mask, what did you see?
欲しがれば夢のあとさき
if you want it, that’s your dreams talking [3]
仮面の奥に光る
behind that mask, it’s shining —
朝焼けが消えないで
— don’t let that morning glow disappear
時が流れても
even though time keeps flowing,
変わらない想いを
these feelings just don’t change
後ろの正面の
that you behind the facade —
あなたは誰
who is that?
[1] ふらついて試す is translated as “keeps you on your toes”, but literally is “to hesitantly/waveringly test/experiment”
[2] Ah, a (sort of) cultural reference. 正の字 refers to tally marks (you know, like the ones that’re grouped in fives?), but specifically the version where each group of five is represented by the five-stroke character 正, and one 正 is one full tally. It was a bit hard trying to translate this without either losing the actual literal meaning or the in-song metaphorical meaning — but i think i did ok (turning one full tally into three strikes and out)? The literal translations for those two lines are “That’s the second stroke on the tally painted on the wall” (for 壁に付けた正の字も二画目) and “That’s the seventh stroke on the tally, stuck on (the original 5)” (for こべりついた正の字も七つ目).
[3] More literally “if want, it’s the consequences of dreams”
[4] 浮ついて減らす is translated as “throw it all away”, but literally is “to frivolously abate/diminish” | https://medium.com/@theparocine/kamen-yoh-kamiyama-english-translation-2d7a8271d34 | [] | 2021-12-23 15:01:49.550000+00:00 | ['Translation', 'Yoh Kamiyama', 'Kamen'] |
The Stairs | There are 13 stairs in my house and having them is still a novelty as I grew up in a bungalow.
I know that there are 13 stairs as I’m currently trying to teach my little man how to count and, as he crawls up, we count each step and then celebrate with whooping sounds and exciteable shouts as we reach the top.
Upon ascending to the top I’ve observed him looking at me quizzically and in those moments I wonder whether he is aware that, at times, my congratulatory squeals of delight, are put-on and strained. It’s like he suspects it, but can’t quite prove that this is indeed the case.
It’s just that sometimes we travel up the stairs as much as 15 times a day and so, you know.
On the flip side, those stairs haunt me sometimes.
I can’t seem to get away from those fitness influencers who suggest ditching the gym and instead, using items within your home for a workout. I see them during every advert break when I am vegging on the sofa and I’ve noticed that they seem to be strategically placed between the cooking shows. The shows containing burgers and pizzas.
The stairs seem to be a favoured piece of equipment for these influencers and I really do need to give it a go.
I mean, I’m not suggesting that I run up and down all 13 steps at lightning speed. No. I enjoy having a neck that is untwisted and in one smooth piece. But they have a point; “the stairs could be a whole body workout, just by focusing on the bottom two. There’s no excuse!” they say. So with every journey up those stairs, those words come flooding into my consciousness and I’m immediately laden with guilt. Especially as I was probably thinking about burgers or pizzas just a few seconds prior and had most likely made up my mind to cook it, that very evening.
I amplify that guilt by going to extreme lengths to ensure that I only have to make one trip up and down those stairs.
I’ve been known to throw some excess items to the bottom of the stairs and then balance the rest in my arms and against my cheek, just to avoid an extra journey. Sometimes it’s hazardous as my vision is obstructed. But no injuries yet. Solely by the grace of God and the protection of his Angels, most likely.
On other days I could be balancing a toddler (of ever-increasing weight) on one hip, a phone in my mouth (that the boy insists on trying to repeatedly yank, mid-flight), a half-filled cup of cold coffee, a pack of wipes and a notebook in one hand/balancing somewhere on my body. Then I get downstairs and realised I’ve left the blasted charger upstairs.
The question in my mind is then, do I carry this slim but deceptively heavy child up and down the now TWENTY-SIX steps, or ask him to stay at the bottom of the stairs, knowing full well that he’ll defy me and that in those brief seconds of me dashing for the charger, the front room will be trashed to an irretrievable extent.
We all say it, especially in later years. But there’s that whole thing about reaching the top of the stairs and forgetting why you went up there. I don’t take it lightly and whilst others may jog downstairs jovially, shaking their head at how silly they’ve been, to me it’s anything but a joke and I’m doing anything but giggling.
I don’t just sprint back down with the thought that I’ll just ‘nip back up’ when I remember. No, I sit on the bed and trace every thought and footstep I can recall, in a desperately saddening effort to make the journey worthwhile. I’ve been known to let my dinner go cold.
There’s that halfway panic as well. Recalling that I’ve left an item back in the bedroom, mid-step. It’s massively dangerous as it confuses my brain. It’s like a fuse is shorted because of the complex nature of the problem. Do I place my foot safely on the next step, or do I defy gravity and adjust my weight which is by now bound for the next step, pivot in mid-air and swing back on up? These things are sent to test us, for sure.
I have a glass of water by my bed at night as I become exceptionally thirsty. On the rare nights that I forget, the descend down the stairs is similar to walking a tightrope with a blindfold. I’m as parched as heck, but equally exhausted. I don’t want to turn the light on or open my eyes too wide for fear that I’ll properly wake up and struggle to return to slumber. So I slowly decline down those 13 creaky steps, in the pitch black, with my eyes closed. Gripping onto that bannister like I’m journeying the most extreme white-knuckle ride. Then there’s the terrifying experience of pouring a cup of water, in the same vein. Thankfully the return journey up the stairs isn’t nearly as bad.
I usually draw the line at counting the steps when I’m by myself, but I wonder if this may happen subconsciously anyway, at these times. Most likely for fear of taking a tumble in the dark, the resulting effect being a neck not as smooth and untwisted as it presently is.
Saying that, I’ve fallen up those stairs more than I’ve fallen down them. This reminds me of one of the most embarrassing upward falls I’ve had.
Imagine this. Walking up to an escalator at a tube station, I’m heading out and so wearing a beautiful dress, receiving admiring stares (which I’m aware of but pretend I haven’t seen), think to myself “this darn escalator is taking way too long for me to be moving so slowly in this gorgeous dress”, attempt to bypass all of the other travellers and overtake elegantly, huge tumble up the stairs…… Marilyn Monroe. Attempt to delicately hop up and glide away as if the incident never took place. Eventually, as my pace quickens, the sniggers fade into the background. But it’s too late. Mortal embarrassment.
The stairs.
They’re everywhere I turn and everywhere I go. Can’t escape them. | https://medium.com/@natalies-pen/the-stairs-a8c7e9147c3a | ['Natalie Enn'] | 2020-12-09 00:35:17.842000+00:00 | ['Funny', 'Life', 'Humour', 'Musings', 'Lifestyle'] |
La conferenza del lancio di GAIA | in Both Sides of the Table | https://medium.com/gruppo-locale/la-conferenza-del-lancio-di-gaia-82a1bd59dd57 | ['Sabrina Masiero'] | 2017-02-09 11:22:54.397000+00:00 | ['Esa', 'Gaia'] |
Marketing to the Modern Millennial: Investing in advertising with a multicultural emphasis isn’t just the right thing to do — it’s good business too. | Marketing to the Modern Millennial: Investing in advertising with a multicultural emphasis isn’t just the right thing to do — it’s good business too. Avidan Grossman Sep 3, 2019·4 min read
A still from the 2017 Pepsi campaign. Image courtesy of The New York Times
In early April of 2017, Pepsi released a now infamous commercial starring Kendall Jenner as a sad simulacrum of a social justice warrior deescalating a tense standoff between a crowd of demonstrators and police in full riot gear by handing an unsuspecting officer a chilled can of soda. Initially uploaded to YouTube, the video debuted to an immediate and extensive backlash including criticism from members of the Black Lives Matter movement who claimed the soft drink company was blindly appropriating imagery reminiscent of recent protests for the brand’s own benefit. The commercial features Jenner, who boasts well over 100 million followers on Instagram alone, boldly wiping off her lipstick and ditching a photo-shoot to join an impromptu protest populated by a group of generically attractive young people who look like they walked straight off the front cover of a college brochure. A little over a day after the commercial was first released, Pepsi pulled the advertisement from the video-sharing platform and issued a public apology for very clearly “missing the mark.”
Image courtesy of CNBC
Large legacy companies like Pepsi have long struggled with capturing the increasingly valuable attention, and spending power, of the millennial market. For many brands, emphasizing their commitment to embracing diversity has been the easiest way to indicate to young shoppers that they’re in-the-know when it comes to sharing the same values as their family and friends. Among big-box retailers and boutiques alike diversity has become the buzzword of the moment, catalyzing a cavalcade of content trotted out alongside campaigns expressly appealing to the millennial market. Yet far too many brands still persist in pushing the same stale agenda, perhaps hesitant to make as public a screw-up as Pepsi, or blithely unaware of the increasing importance millennials place on accepting all forms of surface and deep-level diversity.
A snapshot from the Fashion Spot’s seasonal diversity breakdown from a roundup of the Spring 2019 fashion campaigns. Image courtesy of the Fashion Spot
The racial tapestry of the United States is rapidly changing. By 2050, whites will no longer be the statistically dominant race within the US. America will soon be a majority-minority country, and the millennial generation is the most racially diverse in American history. More than four in ten millennials are nonwhite, and as a cohort they’re expected to have the most spending power of any American generation, with expenditures over $200 billion last year within the US alone.
Image courtesy of the Pew Research Center
Millennials, more so than the generations before them, tend to vote with their dollars by supporting brands that purport to share their guiding principles. Many brands have thus taken it upon themselves to diversify their seasonal campaigns in authentic ways, including models of different shapes, sizes, creeds, and colors. Other brands, however, lag woefully behind, or worse yet, merely pay lip service to what they think their customers want to hear. The modern consumer is increasingly well-informed, and millennials are especially savvy shoppers. As a general rule, making a push to cultivate a more “diverse look” is really only valuable when it’s supplemented by a similar effort to embrace diversity on a macro level. Otherwise, retailers run the risk of being called out for shamelessly attempting to touch on all the hot-button topics of the day without really saying anything substantial at all.
The Gap Logo Remix campaign, a rare instance of a brand getting it right. Image courtesy of the Gap
The diversity that represents a defining feature of the largest generation in the US is conspicuously absent in much of the marketing done to attract its attention. Although significant inroads have been made to correct these glaring omissions, there’s still a serious dearth of diversity when it comes to minority representation in advertisements across a broad array of platforms, from leading digital media players like Snapchat and Instagram to the traditional print advertorial found in the pages of publications like Vogue and Vanity Fair. For brands that have already established themselves as champions of progressive causes, touting an authentic commitment to advancing diversity is a no-brainer. Standing idly by is no longer a viable option. The companies that can capitalize on this reality in a way that best allows them to form meaningful relationships with their millennial customers will not only survive, but thrive, in the fashion industry of the future. | https://medium.com/@avidan.grossman/marketing-to-the-modern-millennial-investing-in-advertising-with-a-multicultural-emphasis-isnt-e4378720e5ba | ['Avidan Grossman'] | 2019-09-03 18:23:44.531000+00:00 | ['Style', 'Diversity', 'Advertising', 'Millennials', 'Fashion'] |
Bent but not broken | Well, this almost looks like my Spine with Scoliosis.
It has been over 7years since a major incident occurred in my life that left a permanent “physical” scar on me. I have since changed inside out in ways I could have never fathomed. In 2009, I was exposed to the devastating truth of having Scoliosis — a spine deformity condition that results in lower backaches at the very least of its effects, the severity of which really depends on how progressive the curve (deformity) is. In layman's context, someone with this condition would not be able to walk straight (posturally) and would have an incline following the spine's curvature. Scoliosis typically doesn’t happen because of a sudden accident; mine started during my adolescent years and kept progressing since then.
All my life, I was told by family, friends, and even strangers to correct the way I walked, to “straighten” myself, and correct my walking posture to try and bend the other way (If only it were that simple!). I tried, but it would be so painful to force against the natural way of the dominant spine, and I would suffer silently, not knowing what to do. I must mention that when all this was happening, I was growing up in India, where there is little to zero knowledge about this condition to date and no mandated screening for children in schools that could help with early detection. Neither did I own a phone or a personal laptop, and Google wasn’t even big back then to be the one source go-to destination for any question, so I was pretty much in the dark on what was happening to me. Over the years, my lower back pains just got worse until the extent that during the time I was pursuing my Bachelor's degree, I recall that I could not stand for a few minutes and required leaning on to some support like a wall just to put my backache to ease.
Life went on, and I just continued living, accepting I couldn't do long walks or stand for longer times and nothing else majorly impacting my lifestyle. I was accepted to pursue my Master’s degree in Singapore and left India for the first time in 22years. When I returned home (India)during my first-semester break, I met with a minor accident while traveling on an autorickshaw on a rundown road. This increased my backache greatly and inevitably prompted my family and me to seek medical attention when a spine x-ray finally unveiled the reason for my constant suffering over the years — Scoliosis. By this time (2009), the spine’s curvature was already well over 70degrees, and I was told I should consider getting a surgical correction as it was too late for any non-intrusive resolutions like physiotherapy or braces, etc.
I returned to Singapore to complete my Master’s degree and, in parallel, sought out specialists locally to confirm the severity of my condition and the options on hand to find the best way forward. I gave myself a couple of years from 2009 until 2013 with physiotherapy sessions while monitoring if my curve was improving or atleast stagnating. But, as ill fate would have it, the curve just worsened year after year, and by 2013, it was already over 75degrees. Worse still, the spine’s curvature, which in my case was originally C-shaped, had started to become S-shaped, curving on top and starting to touch internal organs such as the lung.
I had to make a life-changing decision then to go for a surgical correction. I didn’t know back then what would happen next, but I didn’t have a choice. I had to do it then or sometime later in life to arrest the deformity. But given the reduced chances of recovering from major surgeries with age, I decided to get myself operated on when I was just 26years old. At this stage, I hadn’t started a family of my own yet, not married, no children, just a boyfriend who was sincerely there for me come what may and my parents.
The surgery that was estimated to last for 4hours ended up stretching 2x more to almost 8hours (Imagine the nerve-wracking experience for my boyfriend and family!). I landed straight in the ICU, given the complexity of the surgery. One of my lungs suffered a tear during the spinal correction — this was an unpleasant gift with that lung permanently since having a lower breathing capacity. The surgery replaced more than 60% of my boned spine with 2 titanium rods and 13 screws precisely that hold the remainder of my boned spine from curving further. It was a physically and emotionally draining recovery period in the days and months to come for me. I gave up on several occasions, played the victim card repeatedly, and battled sleepless, painful nights with tears. But, things did get better eventually. Though the surgery could only correct the curve by 50% (now my spine curvature is around 35degrees), it did enough to arrest persistent backaches and still managed to prevent further curving and to hit any internal organs. I still need to do yearly periodic checks to ensure the curve isn’t worsening, and thank goodness that things are still stable since the surgery.
Life is pretty normal for me today; I stay away from extremely strenuous physical activities, carrying heavyweights, but otherwise do light exercises and am even the mother of a 3-year-old today. I use my past to motivate those around me today by engaging in my workplace’s Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion efforts, as this gives me immense purpose. I actively participate in hosting events or facilitating workshops around disabilities or workplace inclusiveness, which positively impacts the audience and cultivates awareness and inclusiveness. Connecting the dots backward, things did turn out okay for me in the end (well, atleast until today, since I am not completely off the hook and discharged from yearly checks, we never know what the future holds, but we can only hope!). I was so scared if I would see a better day, a normal day/life ever again back when I was contemplating the surgery. But, like all things good or bad, it is so true to believe in “This too shall pass” and continue living. | https://medium.com/@shilpa-leo/bent-but-not-broken-5e5b9f4e8760 | ['Shilpa Leo'] | 2020-12-20 10:34:40.172000+00:00 | ['Survivor', 'Scoliosis', 'Invisible Disability', 'Scoliosis Surgery', 'Resilience'] |
Brand New tackles American identity and the politics of letting go in long-awaited fifth album | Science Fiction, released August 17, 2017 (Procrastinate! Music Traitors)
Brand New tackles American identity and the politics of letting go in long-awaited fifth album
“SCIENCE FICTION”
On Tuesday, August 15th, the Internet began murmuring as the announcement of a limited edition LP from the infamous Long Island indie rock outfit, Brand New, was slated to hit shelves in October.
On Thursday, fans on the band’s original mailing list received a mysterious package: a CD crudely labeled with the GPS coordinates for Devils Tower National Monument (featured in the climax of Steven Spielberg’s iconic Close Encounters of the Third Kind), an insert including quotes from 2001: A Space Odyssey, and a single 61-minute long track. Later that evening, Science Fiction, Brand New’s eagerly anticipated fifth album was wide-released, signifying the beginning of a new chapter in the band’s journey since 2000: the end.
For a fan of a band characterized by the frustration of slow-bleed releases in between little to no media presence, and often times, a presumed contempt and reproach towards the listeners with ears constantly trained on the Brand New camp, the finality of Science Fiction brings with it a sort of bittersweet reconciliation. Alongside cryptic whispers that Jesse Lacey & Co. plan to disband next year after eighteen years as a millennial pop-punk staple, the deliberate tone of the album, that of a swan song, reads like an unsurprising terminal diagnosis. You can have hope for the future, but it’s best to close your eyes to three chords and the truth and enjoy the following twelve tracks.
Whether or not Lacey is reckoning with the demons of his past or those very much alive and well in the world today is up to the audience, but it goes without saying that we may all spin this record believing that it is the beginning of the end of something many years in the making.
____________________________
Much like 2006’s standout, The Devil And God Are Raging Inside Me, Lacey peppers Science Fiction with plenty of character-driven storytelling (and in those cases, a duality that reflects on his own inner monologue, underlying struggles, and personal experiences) that fixates on conclusions: of relationships, mankind, cultural eras, and lives.
In track number three, “Waste,” we’re dropped into a conversation between two individuals (“Don’t lose hope my son / This is the last one”) that begs the explanation: is this Lacey talking to his younger self promising the light at the end of the tunnel that delivers him from the manifestations of crippling depression? Is this the last nervous cigarette, the last mind-numbing hit, the last night bleeding out on the bathroom floor? Or, is this a much more literal ultimatum between friends, lovers, confidantes at the hands of addiction (“I’m hoping that in time you can lay down / All this weight you’ve been carrying around / And for the last time / Yeah, you say goodbye”)?
Three tracks later, “137” literally addresses nuclear annihilation and mutually assured destruction. The element caesium-137 is a radioactive byproduct of uranium present in nuclear reactors and wasn’t detectable in the Earth’s atmosphere prior to the atomic detonations in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which becomes strikingly clear in the lyric: “Let’s all go play at Nagasaki / What a lovely place to die / The final show where we all go / So we never have to say goodbye.” If one wanted to dive even deeper into lyrical allusion in terms of endings, they could argue the song also addresses a relinquishing of faith as Lacey engages in a philosophical debate with God; “Before the Garden / When you were all alone / You made the atom / Is that some kind of inside joke / Let’s load the gun / See how long they last,” asking why would a benevolent entity give the thing it loves most a definitive means to an end: the capacity for self-inflicted death, erasure, and the lack of compassion to forge ahead with both?
Speaking for the record as a whole, the final track and magnum opus, “Batter Up,” is the only song to suggest any sort of continuation (“Batter up / It’s never going to stop”), yet even its verses speak in the past tense and all eight minutes sound like a methodical funeral dirge sending Brand New off into the swirling ether that is nonexistence after nearly two decades of a tumultuous love affair with their fans (“You were all I see / You were everything / Cast about you / Turning up your gravity / Pull me in or under / Died and returned to the Earth / Found ourselves back in love”).
Jesse Lacey, live at the O2 Arena in London, December 2016.
As if it weren’t painting with a heavy enough thematic brush, Science Fiction also grapples with its place in the current American political climate. Whether that choice was intentional or not, it only makes the record more incredible and cohesive, as it has been somewhere between two and seven years in the making and yet still emerges so culturally relevant, if not tailor made, to the very week it was released. In that regard, the title is well-deserved: the constant chaos unfolding in the world — the frustration, the unrest, all seemingly at the hands of a malicious government — used to be just the plot of a novel set in the distant, dystopian future a la 1984 but has now become the reality we find ourselves forced to live. In terms of “science fiction,” it is a genre best known for encompassing cautionary tales and promises of the times ahead — exactly what Lacey is not-so-subtly hinting at in each song; each glimpsing into the future, whether societally in a storm of political angst, the band’s own demise looming on the horizon, or perhaps his own presence — resignation from the music scene that raised him and from the role in which listeners have come to revere him.
“Lit Me Up” sets the tone of the album on all accounts. It is a song about frustration long ingrained that carries a strong, politically pertinent message:
“Something’s stirring in a deep Atlantic trench / Doesn’t forget the thousand years before it slept.”
This is the imagery of civil unrest, plain and simple. The only matter up for interpretation is whether or not it is referencing the growing angst of white, patriarchal coal country (which in the last year since the song has gone into production has come to a Trumpian head) or the ongoing plight of women, people of color, and the LGBTQ+ community in the face of civil rights, which in the age of the Internet and a twenty-four hour news cycle has all of a sudden been dragged to the front and center of the national conversation as if it’s a new or trendy phenomenon.
“It’s where you live / But you don’t know how it’s been” seems to calls out Washington and out of touch politicians, “armchair activists,” the bleeding heart college Democrats, the rednecks, and your drunk uncle at the Thanksgiving table: according to the opposite side, every demographic is fighting for or against something that’s so far removed from reality that it can’t be seen from outside of the beholder’s own terms and conditions.
I can only speak from the place of a white, solidly middle-class woman’s perspective, just as I’m sure Lacey is coming at it from that of a white American dude who’s doing okay by society’s standards, and not to stoke the controversial #notallmen fire, but I believe that is where the pain is translated from: “When I grow up / I want to be a heretic.” In verse three is where the song’s difficult political commentary comes alive. This is Lacey directly addressing his listeners. To be a heretic is to go against recognized doctrine — in this case, the standing political implication of being a white, straight, American man. “I want to climb over the wall / ’Cause I’m not on the list” conjures the literal image of scaling Forty-Five’s notorious border wall, but as a white man, this administration’s agenda doesn’t affect Lacey, so he won’t even be given the option to do what he sees as right thing in rebelling in the first place. This is met with the hopelessness of desire (“I want to put my hands to work / Until the work is done / I want to open my heart like the ocean”): the desire of the “good guys” to serve as allies to those oppressed or under fire, but don’t know what their role is or should be; the intermingled desire to champion and the fruitless despair of recognizing you’re just one person.
Yet, while Lacey paints an inclusive picture in “Lit Me Up,” on track nine, “Desert,” he stakes his ideological claim and makes the homespun white male much less sympathetic in pointed, caricatural meter: “I seen those boys kissing boys / With their mouth on the street / But I raised my son to be a righteous man / I made it clear what a fear of God means.”
He damns intolerant conservative fundamentalism driven by fear mongering and paranoia, calling out American traditionalism: “Last night I heard a voice say ‘Don’t give up your gun’ / Those bleedin’ hearts come marching down my road / I got one with your name on it.”
But don’t be confused — Lacey doesn’t just dole out criticism to one side. He begs to question the whole of a country involved, which is wrapped up neatly between bookends in “Lit Me Up’s” intro and outro: “While I don’t mind having all this going on inside of me, I think I’m going to be relieved when it’s over and I can settle back down” / “It was a good dream.” In relation to today’s political tendencies and the theme of the song, what do these sentiments mean? When 45 has either run his course or the country has run him out, will things go “back to normal?” And what does that even mean? Will our society have changed for the better and finally heeded centuries of mistakes? Or will all the political upheaval merely be cast out of the spotlight and America will go back to business as usual where injustice and prejudice returns to breeding under cover of darkness, away from public scrutiny, as the whistleblowing and watchdogging by the country at large disappears? Or…is it exciting to be alive during these times but better to expire at a high point when we’ve all been united for a brief moment in our shared outrage or our common interests, knowing that human nature and the cemented power structures it supports will never change (“It was a good dream”)? This proves there’s something deeply poetic and unifying in the song, but still dangerously cynical — not unlike the events that have unfolded in the streets of the United States since November 2016.
However, political motives aside, the prominence of white supremacy, the emboldening of bigotry, and the rise of The Resistance — they’re all born of something outside of civic motivation. They all encompass identity. Our beliefs are tied so deeply to who we imagine we are at the very heart as conscious human beings, and when a campaign (now presidency) is painted on a canvas as stark as Good versus Evil, we fight for our role as the “good guy” even more ruthlessly. If we’re somehow faced with the possibility that we were wrong — and in the face of regimes who equate “wrong” with “evil,” not mistaken, not misguided, not differing in opinion, but “evil’ — an identity crisis is inescapable. So perhaps in its potentially unintentional political arguments is where Science Fiction finds its footing, however, I believe it is rooted the strongest in the overarching question of identity: either in terms of finding it or abandoning it.
Brand New with Dinosaur Pile Up the Brooklyn Bowl, June 2015.
Despite all of the left turns from the band’s origins in pop-punk and college radio emo, each song is quintessentially Brand New. Sonically and lyrically, there are so many similarities to albums past that you could spend an entire afternoon making a string plot spanning the last eighteen years of releases, however, in the warbly, drop-pitch, cartoonish vocals at 2:44 of “Same Logic/Teeth” that are reminiscent of late Modest Mouse, the rambling, rolling, almost tongue-in-cheek nod to the great guitar licks of classic rock in “451,” and the frenzied fretwork that seems more at home on a Dillinger Escape Plan or Mars Volta record, Science Fiction seems to draw more inspiration from everything but its own namesake’s discography. That doesn’t stop each song from aching of Brand New at its core.
It’s those left turns that drive the whole purpose of Science Fiction home. Lacey is coming to terms that this record isn’t spitting the same brand of coming-of-age venom as Deja Entendu or waxing poetic at the same one hundred raw, screaming decibels as Daisy. As a musician, he’s bled down several different stylistic sleeves, and as a person, he’s found himself on a very different path as compared to what seemed inevitable after the relatively under-appreciated release of Your Favorite Weapon sixteen years ago.
With the reckoning with and acceptance of one sense of self comes the release of another. Since 2000, Brand New has been Lacey’s sole identity as far as even the most faithful of listeners are concerned and this record is either the attempt or the preparation to shed those layers in favor of just Jesse.
While it seems too early to cast complete judgment, Science Fiction already rivals, if not has the potential to best, both fan and critically commended Deja Entendu and TDAGARIM as the band’s most intricate and accomplished work to date. However, I believe with age, it will be viewed as less of a competitor and more of a culmination, musically and emotionally, of a career’s worth of effort and achievements. A graceful exit on the highest note of symphony; a sentiment echoed in Brand New’s perennial encore song “Soco Amaretto Lime,” the following lyric of which has been established as scripture by the eyeliner punks and rainy day kids of the alternative music scene for nearly two decades: | https://medium.com/the-composite/brand-new-tackles-american-identity-and-the-politics-of-letting-go-in-long-awaited-fifth-album-7014a744e0fd | ['Alexandra Dennis-Renner'] | 2017-08-26 19:02:37.857000+00:00 | ['Music', 'Emo', 'Alt Rock', 'Punk', 'Brand New'] |
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