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A month ago, I began a massive play through of the entire Mass Effect series. I purchased every DLC to make sure everything would be complete. This was meant to be something special for me. At one point, Mass Effect was my all time favorite series and, despite everything, part of me still loves it. So, while playing it, I tried to see the entire series as one giant narrative. I focused on the themes that were carried through the series as well as those that were abandoned. A number of plot threads were dropped throughout the series. Plot threads like dark energy, which played a prevalent role in the 2nd game, wasn't mentioned at all in the 3rd game. There were plot threads the kept on reoccurring, like Synthetics versus Organics. This one was appeared in every game, ending up playing a central role in the 3rd game.
Believe it or not, this is not meant to be a review of the ending of Mass Effect 3. All the weapons and armaments for that debate have long fallen cold and silent. Nothing can be gained by revisiting the old battlefields. We all have our opinions on it at this point, and I'm willing to bet all our opinions are set in stone. It is impossible to do a review of the game, or the trilogy, without looking at the ending. So the ending will be looked at as the ending of the Mass Effect trilogy rather than Mass Effect 3, to see if anything new can be garnered.
This is a review of Mass Effect 3 and the trilogy as a whole. The first thing to be examined is the gameplay. This section will be about the aspects of the game which makes it a video game: battle interface, sub-quest mechanics, weapons, level design, graphics and music.
Independent of the narrative of the series, Mass Effect 3 was the perfect third person shooter game. The game mechanics were, bar none, one of the best of the seventh generation. The fighting was intuitive, a clear refinement from Mass Effect 2. Aiming the weapon was simplistic, just quickly lining up a shot using the right joystick and pulling the right trigger. To aim, use the left trigger. It's just that simple. You could aim, run, and shoot at the same time. That's useful in the intense firefights that break out in the game.
The BioWare team kept the same idea with weapons that they did in the first game: they all 'feel' different. Each gun has it's own unique quirks. Some of them have more kickback. Others may take a little while to reload. They all were unique enough for people to develop their own favorite gun. Mine was the Particle Rifle, Javik's favorite as well. My number two was the Widow Sniper Rifle. I could drop everything short of Brutes in one clean shot. Cannibals explode when I shoot them. Literally explode. It's a very satisfying visual, emphasizing the sheer power of the rifle.
The dialogue wheel, the staple of the Mass Effect series, still manages to impress. When it comes up with prompts for Shepard's replies, the player can choose at the very least two options. Sometimes it's up to five! The fun thing, Shepard doesn't actually say what you chose verbatim. What he says reflects the spirit of what you chose, but phrased in a way that fits with the scene at hand. It's a nice touch, allowing scenes to feel like they flow more naturally and letting the player still feel like they are controlling the scene.
Mass Effect 3 is somewhat different in its subquests as opposed to Mass Effect 1 and 2. With the first game, he talks with people in order to find new things to do. Like scan the Keepers or agree to go look for missing family or to try to "rescue" Jenna. In the second game, sometimes Shepard talks to others to find something new to do and sometimes he happens to overhear someone. It comes off more like, "hey, I found this along the way and I remember hearing you say something." In the third game, it's creepy. Shepard doesn't talk with anyone. He walks past, listens in, does the quest, then appears out of nowhere to give the person the item they wanted. There were only one or two fetch missions where he was asked to do something. Everything else, he was creepy.
The level design was excellent. The DLCs offered far more creative level design, like shifting landscapes on the Leviathan DLC or all the different things to do on the Citadel DLC. But with the main game, each level had a different layout with their own unique challenges to them. It shows a great progression from the first two games, where the levels only really differed based on where Shepard to get cover. This one felt more like an actual world that Shepard was in. For example, when Shepard was back on Earth, there were tons of burnt out buildings and rubble. It was tough to navigate through it. Some of the burnt out buildings were could be cut through, but Shepard didn't have to go through them. Them being there made sense for the setting and gave additional cover if the player wanted to use it. This sort of option was missing in the first two Mass Effects.
The soundtrack improved, if that were possible. Everything felt far more intense because of it. When Shepard was leaving Earth, you couldn't help but feel sad from Clint Mansell's dulcet tune "Leaving Earth." Or when the genophage was cured and the opening theme from Mass Effect 1 started playing… that was awe-inspiring. They did a great job with it.
And as always, the graphics were nothing short of amazing. I couldn't tell you the amount of times I had Shepard stop and look around, taking in the beauty of the surroundings. The dust storm of Mars, the corpse of the human Reaper in the Collector base, the fires consuming Garrus' home on Pavalen, and the beautiful surrounds on Lesuss, are all some examples of breathtaking scenery in the game. The colors are vibrant, the scenery rich and detailed, and the people all looking fairly realistic. It is, by far, the best graphics in the entire series.
Mass Effect 3 has almost everything that it needs to be a great video game.
In Mass Effect 1, only two people had to die in the story: Jenkins and Ashley/Kaidan. It was possible for Wrex to be killed, leading to a total of three potential deaths. Jenkins was the first casualty in the war versus the Reapers. Ashley/Kaidan showed the importance of sacrifice in the trilogy, showing there was something to be gained as well as lost from death. Wrex's death, unlike the other two, was entirely Shepard's choice. It reflected his personality and drive to finish a mission regardless of the cost. I never thought it made sense for Shepard to kill Wrex, as Wrex didn't betray Shepard. He wanted to work with Shepard, but also wanted to see his people cured of the genophage (Saren was developing a cure). That makes him sympathetic and his death would only show how ruthless Shepard truly is.
In Mass Effect 2, nobody had to die in the story. But it was possible for the entire team, including Shepard, to die as well as the entire Normandy crew, except the doctor. So thirteen squad members and approximately twenty crew leading to a total of thirty three potential deaths. All the deaths could happen at the end of the game and reflects the choices made throughout the game. If Shepard did the loyalty missions and upgraded the Normandy, the squad could survive As for the Normandy's crew, if they live or die depends on how fast Shepard comes after them. So everything is a direct consequence of Shepard's actions. In other words, every decision the player makes will play a role with people living or dying.
In the first two games, Shepard still had agency in the face of death. The death happened because he allowed it to happen. In Mass Effect 3, deaths were treated very differently. Shepard no longer had the agency. Deaths happened outside of his control. Both primary and secondary background characters that Shepard occasionally interacts with died in the game:
|Might Die
|Suicide (possible)
The first column shows eight people being killed in the third game. These deaths are unavoidable, assuming they survived in the previous games. This isn't including current or former party characters, pretty much secondary characters that Shepard interacted with in previous games. Several characters from the first two games were killed off screen: Kal'Reegar, Charr, and Emily Wong. Four more characters will die, assuming Shepard didn't have them killed off in previous games: Morinth, Fist, Rana Thanoptis, and Aresh Aghdashloo. Morinth was turned into a Banshee no matter what Shepard does, leading to her being killed by Shepard's hand at the end of the game. The other three were killed off screen. Finally, Admiral Anderson dies at the end of the game. He was the last casualty of the Reaper War. Anderson's death may be the most tragic, as Shepard was the one who shot him in the stomach, leading to his death.
Nine more only has the possibility of dying, depending on what Shepard does. Assuming they survived the first two games, here's a list of them: Kelly Chambers, Miranda, Wrex, Wreav, Kaidan/Ashley, Cortez, Jack, Septimus Oraka, and Falere. Shepard could play a direct role in the deaths of Septimus Oraka (pretty much setting up a hit on him with Aria), Falere (shooting her down while she begged for her life) and Wrex (he's upset that Shepard lied to him about curing the genophage, so Shepard kills him to cover it up and so he wouldn't have to pay for helping commit genocide against the Krogans). Wreav dies on the mission to cure the genophage. Kaidan/Ashley could be gunned down by Shepard while trying to kill Udina. Miranda dies in front of Shepard if he cannot talk Henry Lawson down or kill him. She will be fatally shot while she kills her father. Kelly Chambers can be killed by Cerberus if Shepard doesn't recommend she change her name. Jack will be captured by Cerberus and killed by Shepard if he doesn't save her from Grissom Academy. Cortez dies in a shuttle crash if you don't help him get over the loss of his significant other, most likely not having the will to survive.
There are five possible suicides in this game, all dependent on Shepard's actions. Tali could commit suicide if Shepard decides to pick the Geth over the Quarians, leading to the extinction of the Quarian race. Samara blows her own head off if Shepard doesn't stop her, she wanting to take her own life rather than violate her Justicar Code. Dr Garvin Archer will kill himself off screen if Shepard kills off the Geth, making all the pain he did to David for nothing. Aeian T'Goni (the PTSD Asari in Huerta Hospital) will kill herself offscreen if Shepard uses his Spectre access to give her a gun. Finally, The Illusive Man (TIM) will kill himself in the same fashion as Saren (though he doesn't come back the same way, praise the Maker) if you can convince him that he's indoctrinated. These five stand out as distinct from any of the deaths that came before it for one reason: it was done out of despair rather than as a heroic sacrifice.
There were two instances of self-sacrifice that was unavoidable. One of them was avoidable depending on your choices all the way back in the first game. Legion's self-sacrifice (or murder-by-Tali) was needed to give the Geth free will. Legion gained a sense of self, calling himself "I" rather than "we" for the first time. His first decision was to die so the rest of the Geth could have the same as him. Legion was selfless, as a hero should be. Thane/Kirrahe sacrificed himself to fight Kai Leng off long enough to save the Salarian Councillor. Once again, sacrificing himself to save an innocent person. The only sacrifice that's avoidable is Mordin's, and that is only available if Wrex was slaughtered by Shepard in the first game. Mordin's sacrifice makes quite a bit of sense. He was responsible for continuing the genophage, resulting in the deaths of millions of Krogan babies. Out of all the team members, Mordin was the closest to being a monster. A charming monster, sure. But a monster none-the-less. I hate to say it, but he needed to be punished for his crime. Yes, he cured it, but he was the one who also inflicted it. Him giving his life to make up for his horrific crimes/mistakes works.
I believe the change in tone with death is apparent. The third game showed many different facets of death. It can be noble or tragic, fill us with hope or despair. Show us the depth of nihilism or be a special gift to the galaxy. This was a very drastic shift, one that would put a depressing spin on the game. In the other games, Shepard could control who lived and who died. Now, much of it was outside of his direct control.
Synthetics versus Organics
The distrust between Synthetics and Organics laced all three games together. It wasn't just the Geth's actions in the first game, which was pretty bad as they laid waste to Eden Prime and the Citadel. Think about that AI that was laundering money on the Citadel. It assumed that Organics would destroy it if anyone found out about it. That's why it activated its self-destruct so quickly. It was so convinced the Organics would destroy it that it planned on joining the Geth. Isn't that telling of the hatred the Organics have with Synthetics?
The first game orientated the Synthetics as paranoid, wanting to attack Organics because that was their nature. The second game called this into question with Legion. Legion presented a different Synthetic, a different Geth. The Geth wanted to live in harmony with the Quarians, but the Quarians attempted to destroy them. The Synthetic versus Organic dynamic quickly became more of a misunderstanding and fear rather than anything else. The Organics feared what they could not understand or control, believing the Synthetics would rebel against them for being treated as tools. The Synthetics only wanted to exist. Nothing else. In this way, we saw a switch. The Organics wanted to attack the Synthetics because it was their nature. The Synthetics were victims, uncertain how to react to the Organics' aggression. Some of them choose to hide behind the Perseus Veil. Others joined with Nazara, possibly for religious reasons or maybe she gave the Geth a way to fight back.
The game hinted at a resolution to the conflict by having Tali and Legion agree to give a little bit and show some faith in each other. Unfortunately, this resolution didn't lead to anything as the Quarians attacked the Geth, pushing the Geth into the hands of the Reapers. We all know how that ended, so no need to go into it. The significant thing here is that the conflict carried through all three games and never really changed much. Either the Synthetics attacked or the Organics attacked.
The conflict should have come to a head with the peace between the Quarians and Geth. Or maybe when Shepard decided to back up the Geth and let the Quarians die (it's a different matter if the Quarians killed the Geth). But no, the conflict was reintroduced again in the ending. The spin put on it was that the Synthetics would always turn against Organics, no matter what. This is an entirely new spin, as it was disproven in the 2nd game by Legion and the Geth. This spin required the Synthetics to be necessarily evil in some important way that wasn't present in the second and third game. If it was only in the first game, with the Geth being a destructive and unknowable force, then this new spin would have had some traction. Unfortunately, it did not. The only thing it could do is reassure Shepard that the conflict occurred over millions of years and through thousands of cycles.
So while the theme was present through the game and in the ending, the ending's take on the conflict was radically different than throughout the narrative of the game.
The Gates of Hell
Feros. Ilos. Noveria. Virmire. The Citadel. Omega. Horizon. The Collector Ship. The Derelict Reaper. The Omega Four Relay. In all of these, Shepard and his people fought against impossible odds over and over again, never giving up or giving in. They were the ones who beat the impossible odds. They were legends. Heroes. For all intent and purposes, gods.
This will help others develop a bond that others will never understand. I think we see hints of that bond throughout the game with small talk between the different characters in battle. This was best displayed in the Citadel DLC for Mass Effect 3, where they all faced certain death and they were flippant in the face of it. Repeatedly.
This theme was sort of present in the third game, as Shepard and the crew faced impossible odds with almost every mission. Shepard did the impossible over and over again: curing the genophage, siccing a Thresher Maw on a Reaper, solving the Geth/Quarian conflict, and so many other impressive feats. The difference between the other two games and the third game was death. No matter how impressive Shepard was, someone died. Something was lost for everything that was gained. It made storming the Gates of Hell into a type of hell, one that repeatedly wore Shepard, and the player, down. This wasn't present in the other games.
The Ending
So much has been said about the ending that it is a challenge not to repeat the same things over and over. For those who hated the ending, and believing it to be inconsistent with the series, nothing needs to be said to remind them of that. For those who didn't mind the ending or even liked it, nothing more needs to be said to remind them of that. Talking about the elements of the ending is more like attempting to open up old wounds. So what could be said about the ending that hasn't been said before? What new way can the ending be approached?
From the moment Harbinger hit Shepard with its beam, the game played very differently. It was as if there were different programmers who designed a different game engine. Shepard's gun shook. He could no longer heal. He didn't have access to his power wheel. He stumbled, limped, and fell over. He couldn't run. His vision was blurry, having dark tendrils eat away at the corners. He sounded unsure of himself, weak. There were so many things that wasn't there in the previous two games or in the third game that was within the gameplay of the ending.
Even independent of what was said in the ending, or how the narrative played itself out, everyone should be able to agree that it played and felt different than the rest of the game. It did have story justification, as Shepard was hit by Harbinger's beam (although it is questionable that he survived it as that beam could destroy ships and Shepard is not as sturdy as a ship). So he could be pretty badly injured in a way he wasn't before. Some may disagree with it, but at the very least, it is an explanation.
The problem with it, no matter the stance on the ending, was that it played differently. Video game gameplay should be consistent from beginning to end. It's that type of consistency that lets everything ultimately feel consistent. Deciding to drop that consistency is jarring, making the scene feel disjointed from the actual game. While it may serve a purpose in the game itself, it invites criticisms. These criticism are valid, since the gameplay was so, that it was possible to argue that the ending did not fit into the rest of the game.
My Opinion and Conclusions
The game was too dark, filled with too much death and not enough heroics. I had the most fun when the characters interacted together. I liked the devil-may-care attitude the team had in the Citadel DLC. It was the same attitude that Shepard had in the Shadow Broker DLC in Mass Effect 2. That's what the game should have had, and then turned deadly serious after the Reapers attacked Earth. Rather than attacking it immediately, build up to it. That way, you can keep the humor going and some lightheartedness.
Yes, I enjoyed playing Mass Effect 3. The gameplay was excellent. The story was good, but just too dark for my tastes. Personal opinion, I know. But with a game where every victory feels like a loss, the game quickly wore me down. I liked the fall of Thessia, but I lost that battle and war. I liked getting Garrus, but hated that I ran from the fight and was unable to really help. I liked that I helped cure the genophage, but lost Mordin in the process. This theme kept on repeating itself over and over. I wanted to laugh while playing the game. They gave that to me with the Citadel DLC. The rest of the game should have been much closer to that DLC than what we received.
Despite it being dark, I find myself liking so much of the game. There were great moments that'll stay with me forever. Legion's sacrifice. Mordin singing before he died. The Reaper coming down on Thessia while the Asari commandos screamed for help. So I don't want to give the impression I hated the game. I didn't. I just hated the ending. And yes, I do believe the game should have been different, but I respect BioWare's right to decide on the direction of the game as long as it didn't violate the game's narrative. For the most part, they didn't do that, so any complaint I have on the story is only an opinion. I realize that, so I can still say my opinion while being a fanboy over the game.
Also, what in the world happened to Ganto Imness, Kenn, Detective Anaya, Xeltan, Mess Sergeant Gardner, Patriarch, Lantar Sidonis, Harkin, Niftu Cal, Cole, Chorban, Doran, Elias Kelham, Helena Blake, Dr Daniel Abrams, Gianna Parasini, and Erinya. There was a lot of the Mass Effect universe that wasn't touched on. A lot of characters not talked about. Characters that I cared about. But we were introduced to new ones instead. While that's all fine and good to have Vega doing pull-ups, it would have been nice if BioWare would have made more of an effort to include in far more characters from the past games than was there.
I loved a lot of the DLCs. I hated the ending. I loved my Shepard. I loved multiplayer mode in the third game. I loved the characters and interactions. I loved a lot of the plot. I loved the Normandy.
And well, I loved the Mass Effect Trilogy.


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Where Does Morality Reside?
February 16, 2016
This is a short paper I wrote for an ethics class.
Humans are born into a difficult situation. We all want live happy, fulfilled, joyful lives, with depth and richness in our experiences, but we all know that life often does not go the way we would like it to. This is because human life is like navigating a giant hallway of doors, where each door leads to a different outcome, some good and some bad. Once you enter a particular door, you have to deal with whatever is in that room and then once again, choose another door. Our personal journey consists of the experiences we encounter in each of these doors; the problem is that we do not know what we will encounter in each doorway.
Each human wants to feel alive, to be loved, accepted, appreciated, to have a chance to exercise his unique talents and abilities, to find friendship, and many other things like this. A person's chance of succeeding really depends on the environment they're placed in. Regardless, we are all fractured, incomplete beings, hoping to find some sort of satiation to all the different longings which our very nature stirs within us. We find ourselves in this sea of time, forced to open these doors and experience whatever lies in each room.
To deal with this situation, humans have devised a wide myriad of strategies for navigating this maze of life. Few people create their own strategy from scratch. Most folks sort of absorb a life strategy from the world around them and go with it, but others are a bit more thoughtful and carefully choose a strategy which they hope will lead them to the best possible life. For example, some will subordinate themselves to a value system, such a religion. This religion will have a series of commandments and rules, which adherents believe originate from a divine source, and if a devout soul will follow them to the letter, they hope they will live the best possible life they could have lived on Earth. Others will search for adventure, sort of charging through life's hallways with bravado, reveling in the entire process. Yet another popular strategy for westerners is to try to figure their own personal nature and then try to navigate their way to environments which best accommodate this nature. These people are always trying to find out who they "really" are. In the east, a common strategy is to try to ignore these inner longings, calming them through something like meditation. They see the mind like a muddy pool of water; if they can meditate and calm their inner thoughts and desires, the water will clear and they can be at peace. The possible strategies are endless and life is very complicated.
Morality is just a particular strategy humans have devised for dealing with life. A lot of it consists of rules of thumb, passed down generation to generation, leaving behind successful life strategies people have found by trial and error. When people talk about duty, honor, good and evil, wisdom, prudence, judgment, and other things like this, it is all life strategies. These systems will tell a "wise" man how to deal with a particular situation, how a person of integrity handles another situation, and so on. All of these systems of thought are like books lying in the door filled hallways. The problem is, there are so many books, so many ideas, and so many varying circumstances that you can never be fully prepared for what any door may hold. There is a lot of guessing and crossing fingers and there are no full proof strategies. Some are obviously better than others, but as we all know, good things happen to bad people and awful things happen to the best people.
Life is not fair or just, it just is. Morality does not reside anywhere in particular, it's just an approach to life us sentient human beings use to navigate through the hallways of life. Morality is really a symptom of our fractured, incomplete existence. If we knew the end from the beginning, morality wouldn't need to exist, but for now, people are condemned to be free.
Topics: Philosophy | 1 Comment »
Why I Often Consider Ending This Blog
February 9, 2016
We live in a strange age. When I first started writing this blog, I wanted to have a chronicle of all my thoughts over time, good and bad. I wanted people to see me as I really am, not as some fake personality. I wanted to be understood. I wanted to connect to like minded people, find others who may resonate with my thoughts, and maybe even share worthwhile ideas on significant topics. I wanted to have a trail which people could follow, that if they were interested enough, they could read through all my posts and understand who I am, why I think the way I do, and how I got to where I am today.
With each passing day, I find myself ever more terrified to leave this blog up. I encourage you all to watch this TED talk, and after watching it, I think you'll understand why I feel this way.
You'll hear about a woman who made an offhand joke to some of her coworkers on Twitter. It was retweeted and retweeted until eventually she became the internet's next target of ridicule. She was completely destroyed. Her career was demolished. He life was thrown into disarray. She became suicidal, couldn't sleep, and still hasn't recovered.
I've been going to university now for a long time, studying Physics. I'll very soon have a PhD in Physics and who knows, I may end up a professor someplace. This blog has been up for so long, and I'm sure it contains all sorts of things which people could dig up and use against me. My life and career aspirations could be totally destroyed. And for what? So a few people can read my thoughts on things?
All it would take is a single angry student over a bad grade, a single student sitting in a class, offended by some offhand comment I make, wanting to get me fired. It could be some random person stumbling across my blog, literally looking for someone to destroy. The better my career and position, the more at risk I am.
Jon Ronson makes an interesting point in his talk. He says, "We're creating a surveillance society where the smartest way to survive is going back to being voiceless." He's exactly right. There are faceless mobs of people on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media outlets, and their greatest joy in life is to destroy other people's lives. Ronson actually interviewed these folks who retweeted the woman's tweets and he asked them how they felt as they retweeted the woman's joke, destroying her life. They said it felt, "delicious."
They're not going to look into your life and who you are. They're not going to try to get to know you or understand you. They're not going to care what happens to you or whether or not you deserve the onslaught of hate and everything else which takes place. To them, destroying your life is just a simple manner of retweeting a tweet, which they got from somebody else, which they got from somebody else, all while they sit on their tablet on the couch during a commercial break from their favorite television show. As they decimate your life and career, they'll feel this small sense of self-satisfaction, like they're making the world a better place in their own small way. They're doing their part.
Let's say I go to MIT, became a great physicist and am featured in a science documentary about the universe or something. The second I become someone these social justice warriors feel has a "voice", who they feel has "power" in some way, they're going to dig through this blog and mine out something I've said and completely destroy my life. It'll be retweeted, and retweeted, and I can see it now, "MIT Physicist said so and so…" Everyone will act appalled, insulted, and will all be out for blood. Then everything I've worked for, everything I've striven for over the past decade, it will be wiped out in an instant.
There is no justice to the social justice movement. They don't think in terms of real justice or offer any method to acquire forgiveness. They won't care if it's an old view I grew out of ages ago, or whether I'm willing to change my mind and reconsider. I'm an open-minded individual, and if you give me a good argument, and point out the flaws in my thinking, I'll probably change my mind; it happens to me all the time these days. But these social warriors won't be satisfied. They're a strange, chaotic power, the very opposite of every principle of democracy.
I've seen them destroy Nobel prize winning scientists, leaving them without jobs, getting them kicked out of their labs, all for saying a tiny joke which they thought was slightly sexist. They will get you fired for wearing a t-shirt they don't like. If you criticize religion, you're racist, and they go after you with everything they've got. Even if you hold conservative political views, which I often do in many areas, they hate you. There's no room for dissent. No room for a different point of view. They talk about safe spaces all while making the internet a firestorm of hate and vitriol, a place closed off from discussion and sharing ideas, destroying anyone who makes them feel uncomfortable or shares ideas they don't like or agree with.
With all this in mind, I don't know what to do. I worry that there are archival websites out there which have every post I've ever written saved in them, so the damage is probably already done. I may already be screwed.
Topics: Personal | 5 Comments »
Scholarship And Awards
February 7, 2016
Just the other day I had a younger student ask me if I'd look at his research paper. Convinced he was onto something big, he wanted to run his ideas by someone he respects and trusts. I told him I would meet him Saturday (yesterday), and he brought his research paper. He was working on a mathematical research paper related to pressure in gases and came across an equation which he felt was particularly significant, and he wanted me to help him relate it to other areas of statistical mechanics.
I'm not really writing this to discuss his ideas or what I thought of them. What really stuck out to me was this intense desire in him to win an award. As we sat in the library, he went on and on about great physicists like Dirac, Feynman, and others, and the stories behind how they won the Nobel Prize or the Fields Medal for their work. That seemed to be his dream. He wants to win a big prize, be famous, respected, accepted, admired. It made me think of this video.
He specifically told me, "If this paper is as big as I think it is, we can publish this together and get into any university." I sort of nodded my head and listened, not really saying much.
I'm very fascinated with physics and am always trying to learn more about the universe. But honestly, I don't care about awards, prestigious schools, fame, recognition, or any of that. I'm actually the opposite. I wouldn't want the attention that goes along with all of that. As time goes on, most of the best lectures from the top universities are being posted online on Youtube, so I have access to all of it nowadays anyways. I can buy the books and teach myself.
Like Mike Tyson in the video above, I care about my family, my friends, and the people I love. I want them to have happy lives, to experience good things, and for us all to share a good life, together.
All of this reminds me of one of the classes I'm in this semester. Being near graduation, I've taken all my main classes, but I have stupid classes I've been putting off left. They really depress me even having to discuss them, but we'll make this quick. One of them is an English course. The professor, a younger woman, went on and on during a lecture, telling us all how we're all future scholars, and we have to learn how to write like scholars, publish papers, and learn about that world. Entire class lectures have been dedicated to the citation system, finding the most influential papers, and when we decide to to publish a paper on our own, we're to look at the current conversation going on and hop in.
I had no interest in it whatsoever. I don't want to jump into the current conversation just because other people find it interesting or worthwhile. It comes down to whether or not I find it worthwhile and interesting. I could care less about what others are doing. What's the point of advancing in some field you're not even interested in? Just so you can be "successful"?
I just thought, well, I have little to no interest in publishing papers, and definitely not like this. If I find out something worthwhile in something I'm interested in, sure, I don't mind sharing it. I'll post it on this site here, I'll post it on other free internet sites, or other scientists can print it in some journal if they want. But I don't care about this academic world all that much. Publish or perish. Make sure to publish lots and lots of papers so you can say, "I've published hundreds of papers in my field. I'm an expert!" Well, good for you. Sounds like a lot of busywork if you ask me. I wonder how many people read most of these papers that are being cranked out?
As for me, I just want to better understand the universe and my place in it. Physics is one of my ways of going about that. That's it. If other people work on the same problems that interest me, great, but otherwise, I don't see a point to it.
People always seem to be chasing things that mean nothing. To me, I'm happy to receive an award with others if it's a celebration of of all our hard work together, a way of remembering our journey together, but if it's an award for just me, it's ok, I'll pass. I didn't attend my high school graduation. I won't be attending my college graduation. Most every award I've ever won, I've turned down. I'd probably turn down the Nobel Prize if I were to win it, though I worry that'd draw even more attention to me, so I don't know what I'd do. I'm just not interested in that stuff anymore. As Mike Tyson said, "It's garbage."
Topics: Personal | 1 Comment »
What Do Muslims Believe?
January 11, 2016
You know what? I'm completely buried in snow, unable to do anything. That being the case, I guess I'll write a post about what Muslims believe. There are frequently discussions about terrorism, women's rights, gay rights, and a host of other things and their relationship to Muslims, and very few people are actually informed with actual facts and statistics. So, let's look into this.
A few years ago (April 2013) the Pew Research Center did an extensive survey of over 38,000 Muslims in 39 countries, with each country having over 10 million Muslims. If you want to view the report for yourself, it is here. Let's ask the politically incorrect questions shall we? How many of them supported the shootings in Paris and 9/11? Do they want to impose Sharia law on the world? What do they think about women's rights? How many of them believe in stoning women who commit adultery? How many of them would kill you if you left their religion? How many of them support homosexuals?
We'll start with the biggest question, terrorism. How many of them would kill you for doing something like drawing a cartoon of the Prophet? The majority of them would not, but it's pretty scary the number who would.
Considering that each of these countries have 10 million or more Muslims, even if only a minority of 7% want to commit such acts, that's over 700,000 people. There are millions of radicals roaming around. That terrifies me. Muslims know they have crazies extremist groups and it worries them, as is indicated in this next poll. Radical Christian crazies scare them too.
So how many Muslims want to institute Sharia law? The answer? A lot of them.
It's important to note that not all of them want to impose Sharia law on non-Muslims. Depends on who you ask. Still, the numbers aren't very fun to look at.
How about women's rights? Basically they think women should be submissive and let men run society.
And how many of them would stone a woman for committing adultery? Well, have a look.
You've probably heard that Muslims won't let you leave their religion. They strongly believe in freedom of religion. They'll let you practice your faith in peace. However, if you convert to their faith and try to leave, a very large number of them will hunt you down and kill you.
As I mentioned, they are firm believers in religious freedom.
Do they support homosexuals? Hah, are you kidding me? No, they do not.
If you want to learn more read the full report in the link I provided in the beginning.
Topics: Politics | No Comments »
Earthly Utopias
January 11, 2016
What happens when you create a utopia on Earth? We can't do this for humans, but we have the power to do this for a small subset of animals. What will happens when we do?
Dr. Calhoun (see video below), and American ethologist in the 1950s, built a perfect utopia for mice. It was a huge cage filled with food dishes, water containers, and lots of nesting spaces. These food containers were always refilled, as was the water. A hundred of so perfectly healthy mice were placed in the utopia. They had tons of space and more food and water than they'd ever need. Sounds like an interesting experiment. What happened?
I'll give you a very short synopsis. In the beginning males competed for space and established harems of females. There was an initial drop in the population due to this infighting but afterwards there was a population explosion, all the way up to the cage's maximum capacity, which was roughly 3000 mice. Things got more and more crowded until in order to get anything in society, there was a huge fight involved. Each mouse had to compete for water, they had to fight and compete for food, they had to fight and compete for a mate, and so on.
At first this competition just bred violence but it eventually lead the mice to insanity. They were getting chewed up just to get food and water and males had to go extreme lengths to get a female mate. More and more of the mice began to "opt out" of society altogether. They would no longer socialize at all. They would sneak to the food and water dishes, eat, drink, and groom themselves, but that's it. They stopped having sex, and the males and females quit breeding altogether. Dr. Calhoun called these mice "the beautiful ones" because they were the only ones not all chewed up from battle. More and more mice began to opt out, and after a generation or two of these "opt out" mice, their entire population died out. The mouse population quickly dropped off until there were none left at all.
Toward the end, the mice had no social structure at all. The males no longer knew how to interact with the females, and vice versa. Others became pansexuals and the mother rats lost interest in raising their children. Everything quickly became too complicated and laden with conflict. They were all terrified of one another, so much so that they just stayed isolated, in their own little area of the cage until they all died off.
This experiment obviously has profound implications for human society. The more our planet becomes overpopulated, where we all have to fight for jobs and resources and our social structure continues to make relationships more difficult and conflict-ridden, filled with mind games, the more humans will "opt out" of society, interacting with it as little as possible, trying to avoid getting psychologically "chewed up". I'm sure the same thing could easily happen to humans. It seems to already be happening to Japan.
In Japan, over 60% of men in their 20s and 42% of those 23 to 34 are uninterested in women altogether. Read that statistic again. Six out of every ten men are uninterested in relationships of any kind. That is not natural. That is not normal. You can't explain it away as if they've all had some mass "realization" that they're all asexuals; it's a complete and utter breakdown of their society. These people are opting out. They're scared, terrified, and quitting. They're uninterested in money or competition. They want to live simple lives. They see everyone around them getting chewed up and have quit. They go for walks and take photographs of Buddhist temples. They play video games and get their emotional fulfillment from dating simulations on the computer. These men are called herbivores or "grass eating men".
"Yoto Hosho, a 22-year-old college dropout who considers himself and most of his friends herbivores, believes the term describes a diverse group of men who have no desire to live up to traditional social expectations in their relationships with women, their jobs, or anything else. "We don't care at all what people think about how we live," he says.
Many of Hosho's friends spend so much time playing computer games that they prefer the company of cyber women to the real thing. And the Internet, he says, has helped make alternative lifestyles more acceptable. Hosho believes that the lines between men and women in his generation have blurred. He points to the popularity of "boys love," a genre of manga and novels written for women about romantic relationships between men that has spawned its own line of videos, computer games, magazines, and cafes where women dress as men."
This is what happens when there's no opportunity for people. The social roles between men and women breakdown. There is so much competition for mates, the rituals and demands to attract one another become more and more complicated and extreme. The competition is so fierce, everyone's expectations get higher and higher. To meet those expectations becomes more and more of a challenge, and people drop out under the pressure.
It seems that when this happens in human beings, relationships get so screwed up that people lose sight of their genders and have no idea who they even are. Nobody knows what they're supposed to do or how to interact anymore. Everyone's forced to work so much to get anything, they start to go crazy. People give up. It's not worth the effort. It's all so difficult and crazy, people don't want anymore of it. Like the rats in the cage who spent their lives in isolation, grooming themselves, humans are starting to do the same.
Topics: Philosophy, Politics, Psychology | 5 Comments »

subset: commoncrawl


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Israel News
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A survey released this morning by the Central Bureau of statistics on Wednesday shows Israeli households' incomes declined in 2011.CBS' numbers show a decreased of 1.7% in gross household income for 2011. The most significant decline was recorded for households headed by self-employed individuals where the average income was recorded at NIS 19 434 a month, a decrease of about four percent from the numbers of 2010. For households headed by a company employee, income declined by a little over two percent. In addition the survey shows a greater gap between the wealthiest and poorest of Israeli society, stating that inequality in 2011 was higher than in other developed countries.
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This seven-week devotional is designed especially for kids to encourage them to explore God's Word! A great follow-up to Operation Arctic. Pack of 10.
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usfighter15: Thanks! And I think it was probably a glitch
Schulmanator: Thanks dude!
Giseth: Thanks, and I will!
In the new and official Great Andiante Republic legislature house, an act known as "Land Ordinance of 2001" was passed. It gave farmers a maximum of 100 acres of land to plant on which can help fuel the economy and food supply. As a result, many people from Middleton moved out into the frontier and began farming:
Experimenting with some flora
20 years later..... Middleton becomes a new financial center
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2017 Global Digital IQ Survey: Augmented Reality
Augmented Reality is discussed on the PwC technology blog as part of their Global Digital IQ Survey. Emerging technology is discussed with AR for the Enterprise taking the spotlight. The blog starts by indicating the types of enterprise enabled AR initiatives taking place in industry now and states that the market is growing. The PwC/CB Insights MoneyTree™ Report, which tracks AR together with VR, recorded $1.5 billion in venture capital investment in 71 deals in 2016.
Graphs included in the blog show (1) Investment in Augmented Reality by industry and (2) "Essential Eight" technologies driving disruption including IoT, AI, Robotics, 3D printing, Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, Drones and Blockchain.
The following 3 questions are posed, with answers given:
Who is investing the most?
Aerospace and defense, as well as software and internet/information technology companies are early to the game; consumer banks, airlines, engineering and construction companies, retailers, and wholesale and distribution firms will be investing in AR in three years.
What are AR investors focusing on?
Digital culture development is a top initiative today; customer experience will be an additional goal for the next three years. AR will increasingly be used to put the huge volume of IoT-collected data into context.
What value do AR investors expect?
Although the number of relevant respondents is small, early returns are expected to take the form of revenue growth.


text: Mirano to Quattromiglia trains might be a good value for money solution; travelling in Italy by train is often rather cheap and faster than taking a bus indeed. You can count on 30 daily rides to get from Mirano to Quattromiglia. Trains leave from Mira-Mirano,Venezia S. Lucia,Venezia Mestre and arrive at Castiglione Cosentino,Salerno every 30 minutes on average. The trip by train from Mirano to Quattromiglia last on average 05:47 travelling with high-speed trains (Frecciarossa or Italotreno) If travelling with ItaloTreno, you need to know the Mirano to Quattromiglia train schedule: the first train leaves at 15:55, while the last ride is at 16:07. A Mirano to Quattromiglia train cost about 89.3 €. But how long is the train ride from Mirano to Quattromiglia? Your journey takes about 6 hours on average. ItaloTreno offers 2 direct trains between these two cities. There are also Trenitalia trains from Mirano to Quattromiglia; you can compare ItaloTreno and Trenitalia with Wanderio, so that you find the best fare in a quick and simple way. A Mirano to Quattromiglia train ticket with Trenitalia cost 49.90 € on average and you can find rides from 06:10 to 22:27. Booking your train ticket a few weeks in advance though, you can find low cost trains from Mirano to Quattromiglia with fares starting from 49.90€, saving 5% on average.


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Courier-Post - "Pennacchio calls for less U.S. dependence on foreign oil"
Joseph Pennacchio is ready to put the pedal to the metal to produce more energy, the state senator from Morris County said Thursday, in a drive that would include construction of more nuclear power plants and extraction of oil from shale in the West.
"Ridding ourselves of oil dependency is the cornerstone of my campaign," Pennacchio said in an interview with the editorial board of the Courier-Post.
The 52-year-old dentist and self-described "Average Joe" is one of three Republicans seeking his party's nomination to run for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Democrat Frank Lautenberg.
Dependence on foreign oil has weakened the country's economy and led it into foreign policy blunders to such an extent, Pennacchio said, that the country "must reach energy independence in 10 years."
Noting that Congress and the president agreed earlier this year to send $600 back to individuals and $1,200 to couples, Pennacchio said that oil prices have already dampened its effect.
"They voted to put $150 billion back into the economy when oil was at $92 a barrell," he said. "Now it's $130. Before the money's even in our pockets, the stimulus is gone."
Touting the virtues of nuclear power as an alternative to fossil fuel -- no carbon emissions, better technology than existed when existing plants were built -- Pennacchio said "we understand that there are environmental concerns."
"The standards will have to be met, whether we're talking about oil or nuclear," he said, but one way or another, the country must wean itself off foreign oil.
"This nonsense has to stop because we're in crisis," he said.
Source: http://www.courierpostonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080522/NEWS01/80522021/1006/news01


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I always love discovering new healthy brunch spots, especially in London, a city where there is so much to discover.
My instagrammable brunch this time was at Beany Green in Little Venice, an Australian inspired cafe, with serveral other branches in London.
Not only is the cafe located in a cool spot by the canal, but also they make every dish incredibly pretty and delicious, in short, very instagrammable.
I ordered banana bread sandwitch which was very delicious and satisfied my sweetness craving. The cream on top balanced the sweetness and the fruits were the perfect healthy addition.
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Sign Up for AODA Alliance Updates by writing: firstname.lastname@example.com
Learn more at: www.aodaalliance.org
June 10, 2011
As reported in an earlier update, on June 6, 2011 we wrote to Ontario Transportation Minister Wynne, TTC Chair Stintz, and Toronto Mayor Ford. We sought a commitment that they would not install the Presto Smart Card technology for paying transit fares on the Toronto Transit Commission until and unless it was made fully accessible to persons with disabilities. To see this letter, visit: http://www.aodaalliance.org/strong-effective-aoda/06072011.asp
Here's the next
chapter in this ongoing saga. On June 8, 2011 we got a letter in response. It
was not from any of the people to whom we wrote. Instead, evidently on the
Transportation Minister's behalf, it was from the President of Metrolinx, the
Ontario Government's public agency that deals with public transit activity in
the greater
That June 8, 2011 letter does not give us the specific and full commitment we requested and need. When one first reads it, it sounds like a strong endorsement of accessibility. However, when read more closely, it turns out to be much less than that.
In response, on June 9, 2011, the AODA Alliance wrote back to Transportation Minister Wynne. We repeat our request for the commitment that no one has yet given us. We also point out our serious concerns with what the Metrolinx president said on this topic on behalf of the Ontario Government in his June 8, 2011 letter to us.
The June 9, 2011
Toronto Star reports that TTC has approved the adoption of the Presto Smart Card
system for
Remember that the Presto Smart Card is just a different way of paying transit fares, so you can use the same card to pay fares on different public transit systems.
Below we set out:
* The June 8, 2011 letter to the AODA Alliance from the president of Metrolinx, written on behalf of Transportation Minister Wynne, in response to our June 6, 2011 letter on the Presto Smart Card roll-out in Toronto;
* The AAODA
Alliance's June 9, 2011 letter to Transportation Minister Wynne, again pressing
our call for a clear commitment that the Presto Smart Card technology will not
be rolled out in
* The June 6, 2011 Toronto Star on-line article about the enormous cost to the taxpayer of installing the Presto Smart Card in Toronto; and
* The June 9, 2011 Toronto Star article confirming that TTC has approved adoption of the Presto Smart Card.
Send your feedback to us at: email@example.com
Bay Street, Suite 600
Office of the President and Chief Executive Officer
Bruce McCuaig
June 8, 2011
Mr. David Lepofsky
Accessibility for
Ontarians With Disabilities Act
Dear Mr. Lepofsky:
Thank you for your letter regarding the PRESTO Fare Card System and your concerns with respect to the accessibility of the present system.
In October 2010, the Provincial government reiterated its commitment to ensuring PRESTO is an accessible system and detailed the accessible features within PRESTO.
PRESTO has been
successfully rolled out across the GO Transit rail network, along with municipal
transit services in
On the accessibility front, we have made substantial progress on items you have raised including web site and kiosks. PRESTO's web site will be fully WCAG 2.0 AA compliant by August 2011, well ahead of the schedule laid out in the recent Integrated Accessibility Standards timeframes. We will be installing, as a pilot, a fully accessible self service kiosk including audio jack in Union Station by fall this year. Ottawa will be installing a new generation of devices complete with audio jacks on unattended devices in 2012 when PRESTO rolls out there. This is substantial and real progress.
We look forward to TTC being part of the PRESTO system. In keeping with the recently proclaimed Integrated Accessibility Standards (IAS), any procurements for TTC equipment will meet the requirements of sections 5 and 6 as applicable of the IAS, once a decision is made by the TTC to implement PRESTO.
As you know, we have an Accessibility Test Panel. Currently this group of seven members of the disability community have been provided with value-loaded PRESTO cards for use on various modes of transit on various transit agencies. The initial mandate of the test panel will be complete this month and the final report will contain their observations, experiences and suggestions for improvements. The PRESTO team will be consulting regularly with the members of the test panel including on future accessibility initiatives. We also continue to meet with the Accessibility Advisory Committees of each of the participating transit partners to make them aware of PRESTO and provide an opportunity for feedback.
PRESTO is removing the barriers that existing fare collection systems have for those persons with disabilities. Moving forward we will work with our municipal partners to ensure the accessibility of devices and services does not create barriers to take transit for any Ontarians.
We appreciate your interest in the development of PRESTO.
Original Signed By
Bruce McCuaig
President and Chief Executive Officer
Premier of
Minister of Transportation
Minister of Community & Social Services
Mayor of
Chair of the TTC
Email: email@example.com
Visit our website at http://www.aodaalliance.org
Fax (416) 480-7014
June 9, 2011
Via email
Kathleen O. Wynne, Minister - email@example.com
Ministry of Transportation
Dear Minister Wynne,
Re: Removing Barriers to Public Transit Passengers with Disabilities in the Presto Smart Card Technology
I wrote to you, the TTC Chair and the Toronto Mayor on June 6, 2011, to ask for a commitment that the Presto Smart Card technology will not be deployed in the TTC, until and unless the barriers in that technology impeding public transit patrons with disabilities are removed. On June 8, 2011 Mr. Bruce McCuaig, the president of Metrolinx wrote to me, evidently responding for you.
We are deeply concerned about his response. His letter initially sounds like a resounding embrace of accessibility for persons with disabilities. However, when it is read closely, the reality falls far short of the rhetoric.
The Metrolinx president repeats commitments we have so often received in the past from your Government, that the Presto Smart Card technology aims to be accessible to persons with disabilities. However, he does not specifically commit that this technology will not be rolled out in the TTC until the barriers in that technology are removed – the very commitment we sought.
For example, the Metrolinx president does not make the important commitment we requested, that the Presto system will not be rolled out in the TTC until and unless it complies with the accessibility requirements of the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. His only qualified commitment pertains to the Integrated Accessibility Regulation your Government enacted last Friday. In several respects, including those applicable to this kind of technology, that regulation's requirements, while helpful, fall well short of the accessibility requirements of the Human Rights Code and the Charter of Rights.
In addition, the Metrolinx president's commitment on complying with the new Integrated Accessibility Regulation under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act is guarded. We had wanted the Presto technology to now fully comply with the letter and spirit of the new Integrated Accessibility Regulation. Yet the Metrolinx president's carefully worded response on your behalf was that "in keeping with the recently proclaimed Integrated Accessibility Standards (IAS), any procurements for TTC equipment will meet the requirements of sections 5 and 6 as applicable of the IAS, once a decision is made by the TTC to implement PRESTO."
His guarded statement leaves wiggle room for TTC or your Government to later argue that the accessibility requirements of the Integrated Accessibility Regulation are not "applicable." For example, that regulation's requirements for TTC's procurement of technology such as Presto do not even go into effect until 2013. Any deployment of Presto in 2012 would not need to comply with the Integrated Accessibility Regulation, even though it must still comply with the Human Rights Code and the Charter of Rights.
That is one reason why we need a commitment that your Government and TTC will obey all of the Integrated Accessibility Regulation, the Human Rights Code and the Charter of Rights, and will do so now.
The Metrolinx president only commits that the Presto technology will provide "equivalent service." "Equivalent service" is a term which is at times used to mean something very different from, and manifestly less than fully accessible and equal service.
The Metrolinx president does not deny the existence of the barriers we have identified in the Presto Smart Card technology. He does not deny that your Government has refused to halt the Presto roll-out until those barriers are removed.
The Metrolinx
president proclaims with pride how far the Presto roll-out has proceeded and how
many people are using it. He says it was successfully rolled out in GO Transit
rail network, along with municipal transit services in
The Metrolinx president notes that as a result of concerns we expressed to your Government, "We will be installing, as a pilot, a fully accessible self service kiosk including audio jack in Union Station by fall this year." A new, fully-accessible kiosk is, of course, a good thing.
However, with the extensive existing roll-out of Presto that his letter details, the fact that there will be only one single accessible electronic kiosk, anywhere in the system, by the end of 2011, is unacceptable. People without disabilities would not find it acceptable to have only one fully-usable electronic kiosk in the entire Presto system.
On your behalf, the Metrolinx president states: "PRESTO is removing the barriers that existing fare collection systems have for those persons with disabilities." With respect, this is incorrect, as our correspondence last year with you and the Presto team who work for you documents. Right now, a TTC patron with vision loss or dyslexia can reach in his or her pocket and count the number of tokens they have. In contrast, with the current Presto technology, if they are in a transit station equipped with a card-reader for checking their balance, their card balance comes up on a video screen that people with these disabilities cannot read. For them, Presto adds a serious barrier, rather than removing one.
The Metrolinx president advises that the panel of persons with disabilities you established last fall to assess accessibility barriers in the Presto system, will report their findings after this month. That panel was re-established after we raised our accessibility concerns, and they were the subject of media coverage.
We appreciate any effort to get the input of persons with disabilities. However there was no need for over eight months of testing for your Government to learn that people with vision loss and dyslexia cannot read a Presto Smart Card balance-reader's video screen.
We ask that the report of your accessibility testers be promptly sent to us and made public. We ask the same about any actions your Government will take in response to it.
The Metrolinx president generally described some future plans to consult with persons with disabilities on accessibility issues. However, as you know, your Government's Presto team solicited input from persons with disabilities on Presto barriers over the past years, but did not implement sound recommendations they received. Last August, when the media approached your office to raise our accessibility concerns, your office reportedly said in your defence that Presto had consulted with persons with disabilities. Yet it turned out that although Presto had consulted, it didn't properly listen to what they were told about the barriers.
You can understand that vague promises of future consultations with persons with disabilities offer us little comfort. We ask for you to commit to prompt, concrete measures to ensure that that is not repeated again now.
The June 6, 2011 Toronto Star on line reported that deployment of Presto in the TTC could cost as much as $300 million, and that your Government may be asked to pay as much as $160 million to TTC to cover part of this cost, in exchange for implementing this new technology. The June 9, 2011 Toronto Star reports that TTC is now facing an operating budget shortfall, and faces the prospect of fare hikes and/or service cuts.
Especially in these circumstances, we propose that not a dime of public money should be spent creating new barriers against public transit passengers with disabilities. Before such mammoth sums of public money are spent on a technology that does not increase any actual transit ride opportunities for anyone, at the very least the Government should ensure that it is fully accessible.
Just a few years ago, TTC unwisely spent fully $450,000 of public money on lawyers, to oppose human rights complaints that forced TTC to announce all subway, bus and streetcar stops – an obvious and simple accommodation for passengers that many now welcome. It makes more sense to ensure that a public transit authority's fare-collection technology is fully accessible in advance, then to have to later fight such a losing battle to justify such denials of accessibility guaranteed under the Human Rights Code and the Charter of Rights.
It was a cruel irony that the Metrolinx president sent us his June 8, 2011 letter, voicing a strong commitment to accessibility, in an inaccessible PDF file. We appreciate that his assistant promptly rectified this and apologized, after I asked for a copy I could read in an accessible format. However this illustrates in a small way, as does this entire exchange, the distance we still must go from accessibility rhetoric to accessibility reality, especially in the area of public transportation.
Metrolinx didn't alone design the Presto Smart Card. It is not ultimately responsible for the barriers against persons with disabilities in it. That is ultimately your responsibility as the Minister of Transportation. As such, we ask you to commit that the Presto Smart Card technology will not be rolled out in the TTC, until and unless it is fully accessible to persons with disabilities, and that it will fully comply with the Human Rights Code and the Charter of Rights.
David Lepofsky CM, O.Ont.,
Chair, AODA
cc: Karen Stintz, Chair, Toronto Transit Commission - email@example.com
Mayor Rob Ford - email@example.com
Office of the Mayor
Bruce McCuaig, President & CEO - firstname.lastname@example.com
Hon. Premier Dalton McGuinty - firstname.lastname@example.com
Premier And President Of The Council
Room 281,
Queen's Park
Hon. Madeleine Meilleur,
Minister of Community & Social Services - firstname.lastname@example.com
Hepburn Block
June 6 2011
Toronto Star online
'Creativity' to fill Presto cash gap
Robyn Doolittle
Don't worry about the money.
This is the message the TTC has been sent when it comes to the province's Presto fare card system.
"It's been clear to Metrolinx and the province that the TTC doesn't have any more up-front capital to implement Presto," said Metrolinx president Bruce McCuaig.
McCuaig said the
parties involved will use "some creativity" to close what appears to be a $160
million funding gap associated with getting
On Wednesday,
members of
The TTC has spent two years and $1.8 million researching open payment systems, after resisting pressure from Queen's Park to cooperate in the Presto fare card system, which integrates fares across nine transit systems.
Although Presto's developers say open payment could be incorporated into the system in future, some consider it an outdated technology. But Mayor Rob Ford faced considerable pressure to adopt the provincial system during recent subway negotiations, say officials at Queen's Park.
If the TTC approves the deal, as expected, the transition to Presto could begin as early as 2012, with most routes online by 2015.
"It's really good news," said Transportation Minister Kathleen Wynne, who has long maintained it is imprudent for Toronto commuters to use a system incompatible with that of their GTA neighbours.
"We need to move
people out of their cars and onto transit. And to do that, we need to make
transit as convenient as possible," she said. "Part of doing that is not to have
three different tickets if you're moving from a
Former TTC chair Adam Giambrone was a strong advocate for open payment.
Globally, big transit systems are working on open payment, not one-card options, he said Monday, the biggest benefit being that it is more adaptable to new technologies.
"The open payment system is the perfect public-private partnership, where the private sector comes in, designs the specifics of the system, takes on the risk, and at the end of the day you're likely to develop a better product."
The TTC had attracted a bid from a third-party operator — U.S.-based ACS Transport Solutions — to pay for and maintain the open fare system. The TTC would have to invest $50 million in updates.
That cash will now be put towards Presto, said TTC chair Karen Stintz, who issued a statement affirming her support, provided the TTC isn't on the hook for more funding.
Early estimates on
the cost of rolling out Presto in
But McCuaig said it is far too early to attach a price tag. Wynne said she isn't convinced open fare would be cheaper when long-term savings associated with a more efficient regional system are considered.
Presto is already
active in
With files from Robert Benzie
The Toronto Star June 9, 2011
TTC eyes staff cuts before fare hikes; Deficit, increased ridership may mean doing more with less
The Toronto Transit Commission will consider whether it can serve more riders with fewer workers before it looks at fare hikes and service cuts to solve an $85 million operating budget shortfall next year.
"There is a sense in the public we can do our work better. We need to respond to that," said TTC chair Karen Stintz, after councillors on the transit commission took a first look at the financial challenges the system faces in 2012. That "sense" extends to management and unionized TTC employees, she said.
This summer, the TTC will undergo a core service and efficiency review. In the fall, transit officials will decide whether to make riders pay more or cut some service - which drew fierce protest earlier this year when the TTC dropped some of its least-used bus routes on evenings and weekends.
The TTC's preliminary budget report called for hiring 128 people, which officials say are needed to maintain service for an expected ridership growth of 15 million next year. The report did not incorporate the cost of a new contract with the TTC's 10,000 unionized staff. If TTC workers, now considered an essential service, were to get the same contract provisions as the police, it could cost the transit system an extra $300 million.
"That's their answer to everything: Cut, cut, cut," said Amalgamated Transit Union president Bob Kinnear. "There are 1.5 million people out there that would disagree with cutting us, particularly service."
He criticized Stintz for failing to speak to front line transit workers.
"I think we have a number of ideas in which they can find efficiencies," Kinnear said, citing no specifics.
Stintz has been called to a meeting in the mayor's office Thursday to discuss the TTC's capital spending plan, which predicts a $1.5 billion shortfall over the next decade.
Next year's overall operating shortfall is predicted to be $85 million, based on growing ridership projections, the current $429 million city subsidy, and this year's level of service. That figure incorporates a $39 million shortfall on operating costs and the 10 per cent cut being demanded of all city departments - about $46 million.
Overall, the TTC expects the costs of running the system to climb by $71.2 million, or about 5 per cent.
Higher diesel prices will account for about $31 million of that. About $19.3 million is needed to pay extra staff to provide service for a growing number of riders. The fact that 2012 is a leap year means spending $3 million for the extra day.
The TTC plans to adopt the provincial Presto fare card, but it's going to keep ties to open payments provider ACS Transport Solutions - just in case talks don't work out with the Ontario government.
ACS, which has bid to underwrite an open payment plan that would allow riders to use credit or debit cards or cellphones to pay, has extended its offer until November. Meanwhile, the TTC will negotiate with the province to adopt Presto as long as it costs the city no more than the $47 million budgeted for card readers and other start-up costs of switching from tickets and tokens.
Tess Kalinowski Toronto Star


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Japan: keeping alive the flame of hope
Bishop Hiraga of Sendai is worried - and exhausted. His diocese has taken the brunt of the recent earthquake, tsunami and potential nuclear disaster. He told Missio: "The situation is very difficult. We are not yet able to comprehend the enormity of the disaster. The news is fragmented. My diocese is very large and covers four civil prefectures, over 500 km of coast, in the North of the Island of Honshu, the largest Japanese island. The tsunami affected over 300 km of coastline. In the prefecture of Aamori two parishes were affected, four in Iwate, another two in Miyagi and two in Fukushima. We still do not know how many people have died, how many have been displaced and how many are missing. And of these we have no idea how many are Catholics.
"Given the uncertainty, it is still difficult to say what can be done to help. The people are exhausted and disorientated. The emotional and financial impact on society is enormous. Helpers and volunteers are arriving from all over Japan. We need unity and goodwill from everyone. We Catholics in the Diocese of Sendai are few more than 10,000, a little flock. However, we continue to pray for the victims and we will do everything possible to bring relief, to testify, at this time of suffering, to the message of the Christ's love."
On behalf of millions of Catholics across the world, Pope Benedict sent over £62,000 ($100,000) to the Japanese bishops as a token gesture of solidarity and help as they begin to come to terms, not only with the cataclysmic tragedies that have hit Japan.
Millions of people, who have never been to Japan and have had little or no communication with the Japanese, have seen the film footage of the relentless tsunami and resulting devastation.
In his Angelus Message of Sunday, 13 March, the Holy Father attempted to put into words the thoughts and prayers of an appalled world: 'The images of the tragic earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Japan have left everyone extremely shocked. I wish to renew my spiritual closeness to the dear people of that land, who are facing the effects of these calamities with dignity and courage. I pray for the victims and their families, and for all those who are suffering due to these tremendous events. I encourage those who, with commendable promptness, are working to bring assistance. We remain united in prayer. The Lord is near!'
Missio has a deeply personal interest in the Catholic Church in Japan because it was through Bishop Jules-Alphonse Cousin of Nagasaki that the Society of St Peter the Apostle (SPA) was born. The SPA is the branch of Missio that supports every seminary and seminarian in countries where the Church is young or poor.
The Society worldwide currently supports over 30,000 major seminarians and 10,000 novices in indigenous religious Congregations... and it all happened because, in 1889 a desperate Bishop of Nagasaki wrote to two French women, Mme Stephanie Bigard and her daughter, Jeanne, saying: "Might I interest you a little in my seminary? At the moment it holds more than fifty students. Despite all our economies, even these fifty mouths are a burden on our meagre resources. At the beginning of last year, we had to announce that we could only admit twelve new students, two from each district. Well, from one district alone fifteen presented themselves. We had to invent a thousand pretexts for sending them back to their families - boys who would have made excellent priests."
Thanks to that letter from Nagasaki, every mission diocese is assured, through the SPA, that financial concerns will not cause them to refuse applications from young men and women who feel called to dedicate themselves to God through the priesthood and religious life. In 2010, the SPA in England and Wales contributed £314,600 to 27 seminaries across Kenya, Malawi, Zimbabwe, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Today's Japanese Church, although small and amounting to approximately 0.5% of the country's population, is extremely generous. The Catholics of Japan contribute more than £600,000 annually through Missio-worldwide to help the Church in places where people are in greater need.
The Japanese Bishops were due to gather today in Sendai for an emergency meeting to decide the strategies they should adopt in order to face the future. Many churches and institutions were destroyed in the relentless power of the earthquake and the tsunami. With limited means of communication, the bishops of the affected areas have found it difficult to assess their needs and available personnel. Inevitably local church community leaders will be amongst the dead and injured.
Speaking befire the meeting, Bishop Hiraga said: "We will consider how to go forward. Meanwhile, we trust in God and ask for the prayers of all Christians throughout the world. We received the Holy Father's message and we thank him for his words that instil courage and hope. Today this is our specific mission: to help the nation to raise its eyes to heaven, and to keep alive the flame of hope."
For more information about Missio see: www.missio.org.uk/


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Britain MUST leave the EU and avoid getting 'bogged down' by Brexit, ex-Cameron aide says
BRITAIN should not get "bogged down" in the process of leaving the failing EU superstate and should "just get on with it", David Cameron's former strategy director has claimed.
The former Prime Minister's aide condemned yesterday's High Court ruling that Brexit cannot be triggered without a vote in Parliament, accusing it of complicating Britain's exit from the Brussels bloc.
Mr Hilton told Newsnight: "Before the referendum, Parliament decided on this particular matter by vote of six to one to give the control to the people in a referendum.
Steve Hilton claimed Britain should not get 'bogged down' with Brexit
Having had that result, the priority now should be to focus on the real impact of this for real people, to not get bogged down in the process but actually just focus on making it work
"Having had that result, the priority now should be to focus on the real impact of this for real people, to not get bogged down in the process but actually just focus on making it work.
"What you want the Government to be doing right now, what you want ministers to be doing, is to be focussing on creating an open, globally engaged economy that creates jobs and opportunity, all those things those of us who argued for Brexit want to see.
"In the end, we know what's going to happen, even if they lose the appeal, even if it goes back to Parliament, we are going to leave the EU, we are going to leave the single market, so why are we wasting time with all this rather than focussing on making it work in real people's lives?"
Jonathan Freedland claimed he was not a fan of 'direct democracy'
The 47-year-old poked fun at the fact that Parliament originally voted in favour of giving the British people a vote on EU membership and was now taking back control of the future EU-related decisions.
He added: "Parliament was given a vote, and it decided to entrust this decision to the people in a referendum.
"Having had that decision made, it seems extremely odd to reopen it.
"The legal process may end up there, it's a complete waste of time because the decision has been made."
Mr Hilton – who voted for Brexit – came under fire from journalist Jonathan Freedland for wanting to carry out the will of the British people.
Steve Hilton told Newsnight presenter Kirsty Wark that Britain should get on with leaving the EU
Remoaner Freedland denounced the use of referendum as a "blunt instrument" and admitted he was not a fan of "direct democracy".
Mr Freedland said: "Parliament now, our elected representatives, not some distant elite, the people we voted for, will have to decide what kind of exit, whether or not we have any."


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Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Daily Look: Country Style
Shirt: J. Crew // Skirt: American Apparel // Shoes: Chinese Laundry via ModCloth // Hair clip: Loft // Earrings: Gift // Bracelet: H&M
This is a look that I wore to work that I think really fits into the small town aesthetic where I work. Not that most people out in the country wear faded floral shirts, or anything much different than we do in the city, but this is how I like to imagine that things are. Does that make any sense? Anyways, I am loving this amazing weather, and that is all that really matters!
Anyone else enjoying the cooler mornings, and maybe a pumpkin-y treat or two?
Posted by Sam at 6:00 AM
1 comment:
- Lauren said...
Super cute! There was definitely a tiny chill in the air this morning, which felt good, then it got into the mid-90s! What the heck?
- September 26, 2013 at 12:15 AM
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DENVER – An amnesia sufferer who had been searching for his identity for more than a month was back in Washington state with his fiancee on Tuesday, but he still doesn't remember his past life or what happened, his mother said.
Jeffrey Alan Ingram, 40, was diagnosed in Denver with dissociative fugue, a type of amnesia.
He has had similar bouts of amnesia in the past, likely triggered by stress, once disappearing for nine months. When he went missing this time, on Sept. 6, he had been on his way to Canada to visit a friend who was dying of cancer, said his fiancee, Penny Hansen.
"I think that the stress, the sadness, the grief of facing a best friend dying was enough, and leaving me was enough to send him into an amnesia state," Hansen told KCNC-TV.
When Ingram found himself in Denver on Sept. 10, he didn't know who he was. He said he walked around for about six hours asking people for help, then ended up at a hospital, where police spokeswoman Virginia Quinones said Ingram was diagnosed with a type of amnesia known as dissociative fugue.
People with dissociative fugue typically appear fine but have temporarily lost their sense of identity, are confused and impulsively travel away from home. Experts say it is rare and typically linked to severe stress.
Ingram's identity came to light last weekend after he appeared on several news shows asking the public for help: "If anybody recognizes me, knows who I am, please let somebody know."
"Penny's brother called her right away and told her `Did you watch this newscast?' and 'I think that's Jeff that they're showing on television,"' said Marilyn Meehan, a spokeswoman for Hansen.
Hansen had filed a missing person report after Ingram failed to show up at her mother's home in Bellingham, Wash., on his way to Canada, but officials searching for him had turned up nothing.
On Monday night, two Denver police detectives accompanied Ingram on a flight to Seattle, where he was reunited with his fiancee.
His mother, Doreen Tompkins of Slave Lake, Alberta, was in tears as she talked about the struggle her son and the family still face.
"It's going to be very difficult again, but you know what, I can do it," she told CTV news of Edmonton, Alberta. "I did it before, I can do it again. I'll do it as many times as I have to just so I can have my son."
Ingram had experienced an episode of amnesia in 1995 when he disappeared during a trip to a grocery store. Nine months later, he was found in a Seattle hospital, according to Thurston County, Wash., officials. His mother said he never fully regained his memory.
Meehan, who works with Hansen at the state Utilities and Transportation Commission, said the couple would not give interviews because they want to concentrate on Ingram's effort to regain his memory.
"They're taking it one step at a time," Meehan said.
"He said that while her face wasn't familiar to him, her heart was familiar to him," she said. "He can't remember his home, but he said their home felt like home to him."