fabiochiu/medium-articles huggingface dataset:
Five office hacks to get you ready for fall
Tags: Communication, Management, Social Media, Office Culture, Product Management

Five office hacks to get you ready for fall

Social media audits, a post-mortem for your post-mortem, and finally getting to know your colleagues

by Mikhail Klimentov

As fall approaches, we asked some of our co-workers for their recommendations: What are some quick activities that people, organizations, or teams can do to make the most of the last weeks of summer?

Find the time for a social media audit

Now is the perfect time to audit your social media program and ensure alignment with your overall strategy. A social audit requires pulling together key metrics from your social channels and social content.

You’ll want to assess what’s been successful, where you can improve, and what you may want to cross off your list of tactics. Look at your key performance indicators (KPIs) and really evaluate whether your investment of time and resources is giving the team a meaningful return on investment. Once you’ve done the work of analyzing your platforms and content performance and pulling all that lovely data into a format that your team can digest, transition into the fall with substantive conversations about new ways to bring your strategy to life and shake up your social.

Hillary Beulah, Social Media and Audience Growth Editor
Mayday May Day in Uncanny Valley
Tags: Future Of Work, Labor, Tech

Silence stretched between them as they sipped on the scotch. “Un-fucking-believable,” said Richard, shaking his head. “Un-fucking-believable.” “I must admit, I was shocked to see you walking out of Cumulus as I was walking in. Huian told me you had been let go.” “That bitch,” said Richard, slamming a palm on the bar. The bartender gave them a look. “That arrogant, fussy little bitch. Riding her high horse, thinking she knows better than anyone else. Trying to tell me how to negotiate an acquisition. Me. I was doing deals when she was nothing but a nerdy Chinese twat in high school algebra. Someone should teach her a goddamn lesson.” Graham repressed a grin. This was going to be even easier than he had anticipated. He was fairly certain that Huian Li had blazed through advanced algebra in elementary school. He also knew that her parents were Chinese Indonesian, not from mainland China. Huian herself had been born and raised in Palo Alto. But once the racism started flowing, all you needed to do was smile and nod.

How does all this labor–capital struggle play out? Here, a Bay Area native imagines how worker woes and social inequality play out. Eliot Peper was kind enough to send me an advance copy of Cumulus, a work of social science fiction based in Oakland. In it, Huian is an ambitious founder of an ominous technology company that oversees every aspect of our near future, from Fleet transport to Security protections. The obsessive execs at Cumulus are in a state of constant power brokering trying to acquire new startups, maintain security and keep lawsuits at bay. But even as living has become far easier for the technologentsia thanks to Cumulus services, Oakland remains broke and the region segregated into class zones—Green, Fringe and Slums. We’re introduced to Lilly, a broke on-demand Lancer and we catch a glimpse of life on the other side of the highway, in the Slums. Meanwhile Graham, a former secret agent turned Cumulus fixer is politicking Huian to ensure his indispensability. The novel in set in motion with the murder of an lawyer who’s suing Cumulus. Who’s really responsible and will they get away with their crimes?

Cumulus is an intriguing attempt to grapple with our present concerns about technology oligarchies, their influence over politics and the livelihoods of everyone else. Along the way it considers the implications of shallow libertarianism while science fiction prototyping early stage technologies and it does so with more declaration than dialog. Cumulus is due out this week on Amazon.

…That’s this week’s letter, an all around sombre one for May Day.

— @yungrama
What’s Coming in Violin Plot 1.1.0
By: Daniel Marsh-Patrick
Tags: Custom Visual, Data Visualization, Power Bi

I’ve been pretty happy with how the development of the violin plot custom visual for Power BI has gone, so I’ve been chipping away at my wish list of additional features in order to improve it further. These are available in version 1.1.0 of the visual.

Photo by Josep Molina Secall on Unsplash

The visual listing has already been updated but there’s potentially a couple of weeks before Microsoft complete compatibility testing and you’ll be able to load the new version in your reports.

As such, I can’t update the sample workbook just yet as it uses the same mechanism, so thought the following may whet your appetite in the meantime if you’re a user of the visual.

KDE Bandwidth Changes

In the 1.0.0 release, the visual would apply a uniform bandwidth to all violins within the data set, whether this was manually specificed in the properties, or estimated using the rule-of-thumb appropriate for the selected kernel.

A new Bandwidth By Category property is now present in the Violin menu, which when enabled will allow the new behaviour. This may assist with finding a better representation of distribution if your individuals categories might have their own unique characteristics.

Specify Bandwidth = Off (Rule-of-Thumb Estimation)

When the visual estimates the bandwidth rather than being manually specified, the rule-of-thumb bandwidth will be calcluated over the data points in each category, e.g.:

Differences between uniform estimation of bandwidth and estimation by category. The left plot has a bandwidth of 7.91, whereas the right plot has values of 4.50, 4.42 and 3.77 respectively.

Specify Bandwidth = On (Manually Provided Values)

If you opt to specify a bandwidth value manually, the behaviour is a little different.

As before, the Bandwidth field is present, but serves as a default for the individual category values that will appear after enabling Bandwidth By Category, e.g.:

Defaults when Specify Bandwidth and Bandwidth By Category are enabled.

If we change the value for the 1 category to 3, this will only update that category, e.g.:

After applying a bandwidth value to an individual category. The 0.5 and 2 categories remain unchanged.

If we now change the Bandwidth value to 5, this will update the other two categories that we haven’t yet set with a new default and leave the one we specified unchanged, e.g.:

0.5 and 2 categories updated with new default value of 5 from the Bandwidth field above.

The default will also be applied to any new categories that might appear in your data after a refresh or a slicer value is reverted.

If you’ve changed a category to a different value to the default, you can ‘revert’ it to the default by deleting the value so that the field is blank. It will then replace itself with the default value.
Bigfoot Sighting
By: Mark Starlin
Tags: Humor, Pets, Dogs, Three Line Conversations, Bigfoot

“I don’t know. His feet don’t look that big to me.”

“Shh. I told you not to say anything. He is very sensitive about them.”

“Actually, he looks a lot like Harry. My first owner.”
Live Updates: Transgender Candidates Win Big In Historic Election
By: National Center For Transgender Equality
Tags: Transgender, 2018, LGBTQ, Politics

In races big and small in states across the country, a historic number of transgender candidates ran in the 2018 midterm elections!

The National Center for Transgender Equality Action Fund was proud to endorse 7 transgender candidates running for public office this year, including Kim Coco Iwamoto of Hawaii, Christine Hallquist of Vermont, Alexandra Chandler of Massachusetts, Melissa Sklarz of New York, and Amelia Marquez of Montana, Brianna Titone of Colorado, and Gerri Cannon of New Hampshire!

Of the 47 openly transgender candidates running for public office in 2018, these are the victories NCTE is aware of right now (candidates who received an endorsement from NCTE AF are in bold):

Liz Lyke, City Council of Fairbanks, AK

Kathy Ottersten, City Council of Fairbanks, AK

Gerri Cannon, State House of Representatives, NH

Lisa Bunker, State House of Representatives, NH

At this time, we are watching several close races across the country and will update this list as results come in.

If you know of an openly transgender candidate who has won their bid for public office in 2018, we want to know about it! Feel free to reach out to us on Facebook, Twitter, or email Gillian Branstetter at press@transequality.oeg
Data Privacy and Me
By: Sruthi Korlakunta
Tags: Humor, Datenschutz, Data Privacy, Comics, Security

Data Privacy and Me

Comics by Korlakunta

My Phone is a Peeping-Sam(sung)

In case it isn’t please send me a software update that makes it one.
The Moment We’ve All Been Waiting For
By: Jada Gomez
Tags: Newsletter, Gratitude, 2020, BlackLivesMatter, Politics

The Moment We’ve All Been Waiting For

Goodbye, 2020

It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for: the chance to say goodbye to the hectic, harrowing year that was 2020. We entered the new decade with high hopes; sadly, those Roaring ’20s references didn’t quite track on our IG posts the way we’d hoped.

But as we close out this year, I am focusing on gratitude. For one, painful police brutality ignited a racial reckoning we needed centuries ago. We’ve learned to speak up and rise up. We made it possible for a new administration to take the reins next month. And we baked bread — lots and lots of bread.

On behalf of the Momentum editorial team, we thank you for learning, expressing your pain, and sharing your hope with us this year. We plan on being a guide and good friend and getting you through the fight against anti-Black racism through 2021 and for years to come.

Read the latest issue of Momentum’s Up to Speed newsletter here:
How to use Github with Xcode11 🤩
By: Hector S. Villasano
Tags: Swift 5, Git, Xcode, Swift Programming, Xcode11

Xcode11 provides a set of tools that can optimize your GitHub flow. Let us go over some of the ways we can use GitHub with Xcode.

Setting up a new repo with Xcode is extremely easy. Although I love working on iTerm2, with my ZSH configuration, Xcode has tools that allow us to stay in Xcode!

Before we start, we have to take some initial steps to make sure Github has been configured properly on our Mac (If you’re using Xcode, I assume you’re on a Mac ). So before we start we will need to do three things. First, we will need to open up a terminal. Second, we will have to configure the “.gitconfig” file in our Home directory. Third, we will have to sign in to our Github account from Xcode! Let’s get started!

First, let’s start by opening the terminal. Click on “command + space” to bring out the spotlight search, write “terminal” and press enter. The terminal will show up!

Second, inside the terminal, let’s start setting up our Github user name and email. Use the “git config” command to check and set your credentials. Note that this email address will be associated with your commits.

$ git config --global user.name "Mona Lisa" $ git config --global user.email "email@example.com"

Third, we need to log in to our Github account from Xcode. So let’s open Xcode using Spotlight Search. Ones you’re in the Xcode, press “command + , ”. Now you should see the Preference window. Navigate to “Accounts”, and lets login to our Github account from Xcode by pressing the “+” icon on the bottom left corner. After selecting Github and pressing confirm, you will be able to add your Github user name and password.
Narcissus
By: Mark Kelly
Tags: Humor, Poetry, Narcissism

Narcissus

Once more, with feeling

Photo by Mohammad Asadi on Unsplash

In my praise I heard you speak

I stopped you not, your words were sweet

And, when you paused, praised not your name

But wished to hear my own again
Song
By: Amy Jasek
Tags: Poetry, Pomprompt, Thepom, Song Of Myself, Autobiography

Poetry

Song

Dance to your own drum, sing in your own key

Medium format film self portrait, September 5, 2019 (photograph by the author)

I sing the song of America, my country, sweet land

the clay from which I was made

where my ancestors sailed before there was an island to receive them

and again, later, leaving their names upon the island’s wall

Believers, all of them

in the promise of freedom and rebirth

with passion enough to join a revolution

to stand up for the stricken

with courage enough

to weather the tyrant’s Tower

I sing the song of Texas, the proud state that raised me

for the hometown much maligned

for my grandparents, forging south

Believers, all of them

in our ability to strive and achieve

I sing for the hope that burns like a fire in the heart

stacking hard work and perseverance

layer on layer, year on year

for love, the mortar to hold the life of a family together

that produced a name to stand behind

and the treasure that grows the more it is given away

like a lucky penny in my pocket

I sing for the memory of the individuals who built this place

in their humanity, in all their triumphs and defeats

in their trials and errors, their rights and wrongs

I hear them singing back

how we are all one in our successes and failures

how the tides from this turbulent sea of liberty

rush out from our shores to touch the hands of the world

how the prize we seek hides like a pearl

not in the shell of desire

but in the glowing mantle of compassion and duty

I sing, because I still believe in the dream
Looking for Cricket?
By: Parita Pithwa
Tags: Players, Sports, Local, Cricket, Cricketer

Grassroots Cricket (aka Local Cricket), especially in India, has grown enormously over the years. The success and popularity of the Indian Premier League is a major reason for that. But as more people are playing Cricket in India, they are facing new challenges as well.

For e.g.

Someone is looking for the right players for his/her team. Many a time one or two players are missing and you need a wicket-keeper batsman for your team!

Someone is looking for a team to join as a player especially if he/she has moved to a new location.

Someone is looking for a tournament to participate in his/her city.

Someone is looking for a ground to play on around his/her location.

Someone is looking for a worthy opponent to play against.

You get the gist!

Now, at CricHeroes, our mission is to make the life of grassroots cricketers not just easy but delightful. We had to do something about these problems. Well, it didn’t take us long!

Introducing our latest and coolest feature (no marks for guessing the name)— Looking.

If you have recently updated the app, you will see an elegant small bar on top asking you,
What is a digital asset exchange? Are they reliable?
By: Tanaka Chamisa
Tags: Crypto Exchange, Cryptocurrency, Digital Asset Exchange, Digital Asset

Lately we’ve been touching on the “how to’s” of bitcoin as well as what it is exactly. Read our previous article for a more in depth understanding.

So, what is a digital asset exchange?

A cryptocurrency exchange or a digital asset exchange is a business that allows customers to trade cryptocurrencies or digital assets for other assets, such as conventional fiat money or other digital assets. A cryptocurrency exchange can be a market maker that typically takes the bid-ask spreads as a transaction commission for its service or, as a matching platform, simply charges fees.

ChainEX is a South African Digital Exchange

How does a crypto exchange work?

How does an exchange work?

A digital asset exchange, for example ChainEX; exchanges electronically transferred money and digital assets. Exchanges may accept various forms of payment in exchange for digital assets or cryptocurrencies.

The exchanges allow users to trade using their platform, and can send cryptocurrency to a user’s personal cryptocurrency wallet.

Interesting. So how do I benefit?

Hmm…So, how can a crypto exchange be of use to me?

Well, firstly, crypto exchanges like ChainEX offer its users a secure platform to trade and purchase various cryptocurrencies and digital assets.

Secondly, exchanges like ChainEX also offer a referral program! Earn more by referring your people to the platform too!

Whoa, wait a minute… Is all of this safe?

Can I trust this “exchange” you speak of?

Actually, yes. Bitcoin in itself, is safe. Who you decide to invest your money with in order to obtain bitcoins however, is everyone’s own responsibility. Hackers, thieves and scammers (as with anything valuable) will always be after your assets. So securing your bitcoins is important.

ChainEX, a Digital Asset Exchange, provides Two-Factor Authentication (2FA), secure cloud access and a secure connection, among other security measures. You can rest assured knowing that all information and data passed between you and the ChainEX platform, is transferred securely. Find out more about ChainEX security.

Okay, I hear you. But who is this “ChainEX” you keep mentioning?

ChainEX is a South African Digital Asset Exchange

ChainEX is a South African digital asset exchange that provides a platform for South Africans to buy, sell or trade a variety of different digital assets using the South African rand as the default fiat-buying currency for some.

ChainEX provides you with a secure, online platform from which you can purchase and trade with different digital assets.

ChainEX Questions & Socials

FAQ’s | Sign Up | Facebook | Instagram | What is Bitcoin? | ChainEX Markets | ChainEX Security
The Migration Guide from Chainer to PyTorch
By: Kenichi Maehashi
Tags: Pytorch, Deep Learning, Preferred Networks, Tutorial, Chainer

Migration from Chainer code

The goal of this section is to illustrate how to translate a script written in Chainer to PyTorch + pytorch-pfn-extras, taking a simple MNIST MLP training script as an example.

You can see the original Chainer code and migrated PyTorch code in full. You may notice from the diff that these codes are similar to each other.

Training/Evaluation loops

In the training loop, you can define Extensions Manager (ppe.training.ExtensionsManager) and inject Extensions to the manager to enrich your training loop. The manager has a role similar to the Trainer object in Chainer, but it does not manage the training loop itself.

The manager object manages extensions registered and calls them accordingly.

manager counts up the number of iterations each time the context manager manager.run_iteration() is called. ppe.reporting.report is called len(train_iter) times during one epoch, and the average of them is displayed at the end of epoch.

# Chainer

trainer.run()

The evaluation function can be specified to extensions.Evaluator as an argument eval_func . It will be called automatically at each end of the epochs. The argument passed to the evaluation function is a single unit of batch of test_iter .

Models

Most functions and links (“module” in PyTorch terms) in Chainer are available in PyTorch. Please refer to the mapping table in the Framework Migration Guide.

The following example illustrates the difference of network definition in both frameworks:

In the PyTorch code above, we use the LazyLinear module implemented in PPE. Unlike torch.nn.Linear module, it accepts None as an input size argument; in this case the size of inputs is inferred during the forward process. Note that you need to run a dummy forward call before registering parameters to the optimizer (see the full code for details).

Snapshot

You can take snapshots by using the snapshot extension.

# Chainer

trainer.extend(extensions.snapshot(n_retains=1, autoload=True), trigger=(frequency, 'epoch')) # PyTorch

manager.extend(ppe.training.extensions.snapshot(), trigger=(frequency, 'epoch'))

All information used in a training loop (e.g., models, optimizers, updaters, iterators) are collected from the manager and serialized accordingly. When used in conjunction with torch.distributed, pass saver_rank keyword argument to the snapshot extension to tell the MPI rank which will write the actual snapshot.

All the ranks need to execute the extension due to synchronization happening inside. Otherwise, a deadlock will happen.

Further Reading

For further information, please see our Framework Migration Guide and examples in pytorch-pfn-extras repository.
Don’t Let The Fear Of Failure Stop You From Trying
By: Thought Catalog
Tags: Personal Growth, Self, Success, Failure, Self Improvement

Society puts so much emphasis on success that it prevents many of us from going after our dreams — from going after what makes us happy, what put shivers down our spines, and butterflies in our stomachs. The need to succeed is so fundamental in our minds that it’s terrifying for many of us to try at all.

I don’t let the fear of failure stop me from trying anymore. I take risks. Some may call it crazy because I get hurt more than the average person, but I find it liberating. I don’t have to live with that dull, constant pain of not knowing. I don’t have to live with the what-ifs.

I dedicate my free time to my wildest dreams, even when I know the chances of success are slim. I don’t hesitate to put myself out there, even when I know I’ll be made fun of because people are all too often expected to hide the intensity of their minds. And I fight for my relationships until there is not an ounce of hope left. I risk my heart, hoping that it will pay off. And if it doesn’t, well… If it doesn’t, then I know I did my part. There’s no remorse. Regrets, maybe, sometimes, but regrets fade away. Regrets are a sharp pain, but temporary if you keep moving. Remorse, on the other hand, slowly eats your soul with the daily self-questioning of what could have been. What would have happened if I’d tried? When I’m unsure whether to go for something or not, I have to ask myself, “Would I have done it if I wasn’t afraid of failure?” I guarantee you 9 times out of 10, the answer is ‘yes.’ More times than not, the only thing stopping you from trying is the fear of failure and rejection.

Life is too short to be played safe. To not risk your heart out. To not chase your dreams. To not tell the people you love how much they mean to you because you’re afraid of scaring them off with your big feelings. Life’s too short to not submit your application because you’re afraid you’re not good enough. To not give that pretty girl your phone number because your fear is telling you she’ll laugh at you or say ‘no.’

You don’t get anything in life without taking risks. Believe me, the pain you’ll feel if your expectations aren’t met is nothing compared to the dark, immutable remorse of the pain from not being brave enough to try. Do not let the fear of failure stop you from trying.
How Teachers Can Help Students Focus Better Online During The Pandemic
By: Christian Pow
Tags: Education, Teaching And Learning, Online Learning, Teaching Tips, Teaching

Late March was when I got the news that all my classes were going to switch to an online format due to the pandemic.

It was also just a couple of weeks before final exams started. That abrupt change coupled with all the news about COVID-19 coming in at me made it tough, to say the least.

It’s now almost December and online school is still the only option for university and college students. The only good thing I can say about this is that I save a lot of gas money, and if I wake up 10 minutes before a lecture starts, it’s no big deal. I just run downstairs, furiously make a cup of coffee, and run back up to sign into Zoom last minute.

However, focusing on my studies while everything is delivered to me online is much harder than it was when everything was in person. Everyone knows by now that technology, social media, and almost everything connected to a screen scratches away at our attention span. When school was in person, the only thing we could do in the classroom to pass time was focus on the teacher.

Now, we’re all at home, and Netflix, YouTube, my PS4 (soon to be PS5, hopefully), Instagram, and Facebook all want to hang out while I’m trying to focus on my new friend Zoom.

After almost two full semesters of this, I’ve noticed the things that teachers have done to help us be better online students and the things that don’t help as much.

Also, to preface these takeaways you’re about to read, I’m no expert on education or the secrets of how to teach properly. I’m just a student who’s been in college and university for almost 5 years now (the final stretch is here, yay!), and these are just my observations on what teachers have done that help me learn better in this new online education system.
To Speak of Perdita
By: Dylan Kelly
Tags: Sleep, Poetry, Memory, Literature

The seasons stopped being seasons

just before her story ended.

But now, the present circumstance

makes my memory of her stale.

And the winter never comes,

nor the Spring, the Summer, or the Fall

in her stead.

The weather never changes,

and there’s no rain to wet the asphalt

beneath my bare and blistered feet.

And I have no roof to settle under,

nor a pillow, nor a chair,

to put my guilty conscience at rest.

All I have is ceaseless motion

without sleep,

“cause sleep is the cousin of death”.
Shaping the Patient Future With Purposeful Partnerships
By: Patients
Tags: Advertising, Digital Marketing, Healthcare, Social Media

Key Insights From Our Inaugural Event

Never before have we had such a diverse yet connected group of speakers — all focused on improving the patient experience. Below is a taste of some of the key insights they shared. For more, be sure to follow us on Facebook , Instagram , and LinkedIn.

“When it comes to communicating with patients, brands need to start thinking verbally, orally, and gesturally.”

David Shing (“Shingy”)

AOL’s Digital Prophet

“At the end of the day, it’s not about what brands say, it’s what the patients hear.”

Keith Yazmir

Language Strategist

Partner at Maslansky + Partners

“Social is becoming a place where patients and healthcare providers can come together to talk about health.”

Danielle Salowski

Industry Manager at Facebook Health

“Facebook in particular is the way that CF patients all over the world stay connected and support one another.”

Emily Schaller

CF Patient

Founder/CEO of Rock CF Foundation

“Empathy is important in healthcare, because it helps us meet the patients where they are, and be with them every step of the way.”

Abbey Spencer, MD

Director of Internal Residency Program at Cleveland Clinic

“Virtual and augmented reality are going to revolutionize healthcare, because it can provide personalized experiences for things that can’t be done in the real world.”

Pete Smith

SVP of Digital at GMR Marketing

Let’s Partner on the Patient Future
My $1000 PC for Personal Data Science Projects
By: Naser Tamimi
Tags: Data Science, Deep Learning, PC, Gpu, Hardware

DATA SCIENCE

My $1000 PC for Personal Data Science Projects

How to avoid overspending on a PC for data science projects.

Image by the author.

If you search on the internet and type “Building a PC”, there are thousands of Game Lovers who build their own PC with passion. What about Data Lovers? Why don’t they do the same? Mostly because they are in love with their laptops, cloud computing services (like AWS EC2), or their employers' computing servers. Although cloud computing services and on-premise servers could be good options for large projects, for many smaller projects (like your personal side projects), building a PC is a good long-term investment.

For this good reason, I did extensive research on available hardware options and tried to pick the best and affordable (and of-course compatible) hardware components. Basically, the art of building a PC (for either data scientists and gamers) is not how to connect wires or install devices (which is by the way super easy), but it is important to find hardware components that are compatible in performance and none of them create a bottleneck. The worst thing is to waste money on an expensive hardware component\ that you cannot get maximum performance from it because of the computational bottleneck caused by other components.

In this article, I will show you how to build an affordable PC for your next data science side project. I’ll go through all the necessary components and try to explain what is THE BEST BANG FOR YOUR BUCK.
The Treasure Hunt
By: Paroma Sen
Tags: Treasures, Poetry On Medium, Soul, Poetry, Treasure Hunt

She searched high, she searched low

Foraging in ancient caves,

Scraping the bottoms of gaping oceans

Picking through kings’ crowns,

Mining the bank vaults

She even combed through the dregs of other people’s hearts

Digging the tops of mountain peaks,

Sieving the flow of pristine rivers,

And just when she was about to give up,

She found the treasure,

buried within her own soul.

Always there for her to find,

All she had to do was

Change her frame of reference.

And accept the boundless joy

written to her,

willed to her own name.

The compass in her hand pointed within,

And as the fog lifted from her eyes,

She rejoiced,

And gracefully lay down in peace.
Precipice
By: Dayleah Rose
Tags: Mountain Climbing, Death, Adventure, Tragedy, Pentina

Precipice

The plan didn’t work

Photo by Claire Kelly on Unsplash

“The plan’s not working!” Gerald gripped her arm but his grasp wouldn’t hold for long. Lillian’s hand began to slip. He cried.

“It’s alright,” she sputtered. Tears streaked her cheeks.

“No, you don’t know what you’re doing!” Gerald yelled.

“Let me go.”

“Hold on, I have you!”

Lillian’s face disappeared.
I Was Bullied Non-Stop on an 18-Hour Coach Trip
By: Sabah Ismail
Tags: Self, Life, Body Image, Life Lessons, Kindness

The Trip

One incident that has stayed with me since I was 18, was from when I went on a university trip to Amsterdam with friends I had back then. One of the girls, someone who I considered a friend, invited her boyfriend who was nine years her senior on the trip, along with his brother and one of their friends.

This trip involved an 18-hour, yes 18-HOUR coach trip to Amsterdam and then another 18-hour coach ride back — and when I tell you that the girl's boyfriend and her brother, who I had only just met for the first time, insulted me about my physical appearance during the entire 18-hour journey that it took to get to Amsterdam, I do not exaggerate.

I am someone who has struggled with body image my entire life, never really being happy and fully at peace with the way I look.

When I think back to being 18, I honestly thought I was huge. Obese. Now I look back on pictures, I was just a normal, curvy 18-year-old girl — not extremely thin like most of my South-Asian girlfriends, but not what you would consider fat either (not that there is anything wrong with being fat, because of course, there isn’t).

But for some reason, this coach trip made me the subject of continuous verbal abuse from these two boys — one of whom was 28-years-old at the time, an age at which most people would think someone would know better.

They sat on the back seats getting high and sniggering away between themselves, hurtling various insults at me — over and over again. I had only just met them and being the friend of his girlfriend, I would have expected kindness and respect from the boyfriend. But nope, I received neither. I was horrified.

I tried to ignore it and take it in my stride, but I’m not going to lie, it really did get to me. I remember calling my friend back home and crying because it had upset me so much.
VIDEO’S YOU NEED TO SEE..
By: Floris Koot
Tags: Education, Education Reform, Social Change, Life Lessons, Alan Watts

Life is strange. Our mindsets stranger. cc from Pexels

VIDEO’S YOU NEED TO SEE..

TO STAY HUMAN AND HAVE A LIFE.

Here are a few of the video’s that I think should be cornerstones in education, business training and life in general. Watch this before you watch more adverstising. They are all under ten minutes, so easy to digest during a break or as intro to a discussion.

THIS SHOULD BE A CORNERSTONE IN EDUCATION.

What is life really about? Why do we feel pushed, or seek to be very ambitious for what? What is life truly about? You’ll know from the regrets of the dying. Don’t end up with those.

CHOSING A REAL CAREER, LIFE OVER EXPECTATIONS

So what do you want to live for? And how do you hope to get there? Alan Watts is a cult hero that questions traditional education and ambitions.

THE INTERCONNECTEDNESS OF EVERYTHING

Too often human arrogance doesn’t know or care what’s it messing with. We need to be aware that everything interconnects. The ecosystem is developed over millions of years. We should keep it as healthy as we can, rather than think we can recreate, let alone use it, to our pleasing. This video should make you way more angry at factory fishing, destruction of primal forests and the death(!) of the Barrier reef for the profit of some companies, who stuff you buy.

BREAKING DOWN THE MYTH/MATRIX

This one will hurt. It is hurtful. It’s about massive suffering, most of us, including me, are more or less, complicit of.

SEEING THROUGH THE PEOPLE WHO SELL THE LIES

Magnificent bit from one of the last shows of Bill Hicks. He directly addresses the multi million industry of lying to consumers for financial game and the work ethics, or better lack thereof, by those in it. Hilarious and painful.

LIBERATION FOR THE WORLD AS A WHOLE

Understand that we can choose a different story, different values, different attitudes, act different. Liberation for the whole begins with each of us.

FOR ALL STUDENTS OUT THERE

Big questions asked in a very clear way. Poetic, and straight to the guts.

NOTE: None of the video’s are mine. They are all on Youtube, free to see for all. If you have cornerstone video’s, please add them in the comments with a link.
A work of heart
By: D Abboh
Tags: Emotions, Love, Poetry, Life

I am a flame

stripped naked, cajoled by the wind

shaking tail feathers, an uncaged phoenix that sings

my tongue is a match with a taste for gasoline

bleeding my own veins, I spill ash and dust and trouble and pain, a poisoned paradise in a picture frame

so full of fire and water and blood and bones and breath

these still rivers run long and deep beyond my rib-cage

they flow down my back whilst I sleep, if I wake in the night — they bathe me in starlight and poetry

I keep beating and skipping and bleeding and blooming

I’m somewhere in between the light and the dark, a weekend of Saturday night love — five thousand miles from another heart

like a rain-cloud filled with inevitable rain, sometimes I rain drops of red and yellow and green and blue or purple or silver and Black and gold onto a page

if you came only for the cotton wool, candyfloss filled clouds — you will leave here dismayed

when you look at this picture, what do you see?

don’t lose yourself — looking for me

everybody’s looking for something, everyone has an ache they carry on their way to somewhere

my heart won’t seek my permission for this spilling from it’s chambers — all the mentions of your name and our silly games, as it tries to piece itself back together again

my minds eye beholds

what a glorious mess we make
Our EL Passion for Excellence
By: Sona Kerim
Tags: App Development, UX Design, Software Development, UI Design, Customer Service

What’s Clutch?

Clutch is a B2B ratings and reviews platform based in Washington, DC. They work to make it easier for firms to find the right partners. Clutch gathers relevant information on each company that has a profile on their website and makes it available to any business looking for someone to collaborate with. This way, firms can find more reliable, productive, and long-lasting relationships with other firms.

That’s not all!

EL Passion is also on the board for Top Custom Software Developers in Poland, and we’re on the list of Top App Developers in Poland! Here is a glimpse at our success stories that made this possible:

“We were paired with a front-end developer who was fantastic, super flexible, and easy to work with.” — Carol Meere, Founder, Indu Healthcare

“They created exactly what we wanted under budget and ahead of schedule.” — Gabor Wnuk, Developer, Media Company.

“I think what makes EL Passion stand out is their understanding of design and their speed. With both projects, they hit it right on the point.” — Welby Obeng, Founder, Face2FaceAfrica

What We Do

We develop MVP’s and products for businesses. The services we provide utilise cutting-edge technologies and creative solutions. Our developers and designers are experienced in UI/UX design, iOS, Android app and website development, optimising all projects to fit different screen types.
Behind the Lens: Photographing the President in 50 States
By: The Obama White House
Tags: President, Photos, America

This week, the President will visit South Dakota, marking the 50th state he has visited during his administration. As such, it’s also my 50th state with him.

To mark the occasion, I chose one photograph from each state that we’ve visited.

This was not as easy as I thought it would be. With help from photo editor Phaedra Singelis, I tried to depict a variety of situations. Some are more lighthearted; some are sad, and some are poignant. Some are with the Vice President; some are with the First Lady, and a couple are with the entire family. A selection of photos are centered on policy, and others on politics. Some focus on the President as Commander-in-Chief — others on his role as consoler for the nation.

I hope you enjoy this gallery. And stay tuned — we’ll be adding a photograph from South Dakota following his visit there on Friday.
Please Don’t Fall
Tags: Chocolate, Hot Chocolate, Milk, Poetry, Free Verse

Please Don’t Fall

Disclaimer: Based on a True Incident

Captured By: Author

A cup of hot chocolate milk

I take it out

From the microwave

Place it on the table

I begin to sip

Oh dear, a creamy layer

Forms on its top

It touches my lips

Bwaaah, I make a sound.

Rush to the kitchen

I get a spoon

To remove the creamy layer

Atop the milk.

Now I hold the cream-filled spoon

In the right hand

A tiny droplet of hot chocolate

Hangs beneath the spoon

Ready to fall

In the left hand, I hold the milk

I begin to sip

I hurry and haste

I pray and call out

To the tiny droplet of milk

That still hangs

From the bottom of the spoon

Please don’t fall, please don’t fall.
線上活動案例 — 福島再出發 Meet “Diamond Route Japan”
By: Henry Hu
Tags: Campaign Page, Campaign, Landing Page, 數位行銷, Digital Marketing

Co-Founder of Chigyosha Marketing Copr. based in Taipei. Addicted in data mining and content marketing. Passionated by visions and dreams.

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Millions of Iranians Mourn Imam Hussein Martyrdom Anniv.
By: Maryam Khy
Tags: Imam Hussein, Religion, Islam, Culture, Shiites

Millions of mournful Shiite Muslims in Iran and across the world have taken to the streets and mosques to mark Ashura, the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein, a grandson of Prophet Muhammad, who was martyred along with his family and companions some 14 centuries ago.

Muslims worldwide, dressed in black, hold mourning rituals during the month of Muharram on the lunar calendar in remembrance of the suffering imposed on the religious icon, his family and his companions, by the tyrant of the time Yazid I, an Umayyad caliph, back in the seventh century.

The events peak on the 10th day, traditionally known as Ashura, when the Imam and 72 of his companions were martyred at the hands of the despot, to whom they had refused to pledge allegiance.

This year’s Ashura fell on Thursday when, in line with centuries-old customs, benefactors distributed votive food, while others marched in massive mourning processions, lamenting the tragedy.

Muharram ceremonies represent the never-ending and unswerving stance of the truth against falsehood and the humanity’s struggle against tyranny, the cause for which Imam Hussein sacrificed his life.

https://ifpnews.com/millions-of-iranians-mourn-imam-hussein-martyrdom-anniv
Why Christmas is More Important than Ever in 2020
By: Midori Writes
Tags: Christmas, Loneliness, Aging, Kindness, Covid 19

It’s Fine if Christmas is Commercialised

I never used to celebrate Christmas because it’s not really about Jesus Christ’s birth anymore. It’s a commercialised event to worsen consumerism and allow spoiled children to eat more candies and demand more gifts.

But this year, I don’t care if Christmas is commercialised, because small businesses need us to help their sales, and we all, need to show a bit of tender love and care to our family and friends.

The pandemic has brought so many people down, from unemployment to mental health problem, and the divorce and break up rates are going up. We could be in the same house but feel imprisoned, or we could be working from home alone and feel pathetically lonely.

The pandemic has sucked the lives out of many of us. We should allow the festive spirit to make us happy and forget about the madness out there, at least for a few days.

What more can we do?

But more importantly, we should be grateful that we are alive, and start giving more than taking.

A few years ago, my family and I happened to be in a tiny seaside village near Cinque Terre, Italy during Christmas. The hotel included dinner and we enjoyed the evening with a full-house of local diners.

All the diners were old people, some come in pairs, some alone. There were live piano and a magic performance. A grey-hair gentleman came up to me for a chat, perhaps because it was surprising to see a young Chinese family in this town at this time of the year.

I learned that many of the guests have been dining in this hotel every Christmas for decades because their children are all married and hosting their Christmas meal at home with their children. Some continued to come even their spouse has passed away, including this gentleman's wife. The hotel was the only one in town that opened during the holiday season.

“It’s a tradition for me now,” said he, in his exquisite grey three-piece suit, “I feel very happy to see so many familiar faces here.” We saluted to good health and happy holidays.

Everybody Gives a Little Love

I thought about the guests in Italy and wondered if hotels and restaurants continue to shut down this December, what will happen to them. In fact, what will happen to many of the elderlies and young people living alone all over the world? Is there something we can do to help them through this difficult time?

Then I stumbled upon this John Lewis advert. John Lewis is another famous department store in the UK and every year their Christmas advert is highly anticipated by all. This year, it is all about sharing love and kindness:

Aging population and loneliness is a big social issue and will worsen over time. Long term solution such as cohousing village is needed, but here is a list of small deeds we can do to help now, especially during Christmas:
ไม่แบ่งงานใส่คนใน Sprint planning
Tags: Scrum

I am a product builder who specializes in programming. Strongly believe in humanist.

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Just Get Over Me
By: Danny Ballan
Tags: Freedom, Chains, Poetry

If I fight to keep my soul,

and the ashes of war keep smoldering

under a pile of fallen friends and foes,

of dreams forsaken and lives abandoned,

of a kneeling generation

fooled into submission

by throwing unending candy onto the floor —

petty prizes to be bought

dreams refurbished and resold

cheating them away from a priceless view

of holding heads up high and see

the world is all around and not beneath their feet —

not every buyable dope’s a treat;

like an old dog’s tail,

what good would it be to stand

when all the body juice goes bland

and the eyes go blind —

can’t catch the smell of a friend no more.

If I fight to keep my soul,

fight with me

or just get over me.

If I fight to keep my soul,

when the world drowns in smithereens

of our own making —

commodities like a giant black hole

we thought we could swallow;

no reach no aim for tomorrow

just the instant joy of buying

a dream after a dream and slaying

the dream that can only be built —

the false ecstasy of bought love

dries too soon for there is no love,

and all the people say to me

I have to stop the madness

blend in and mix

and lose my color to the masses —

like a giant lollipop so bright and colorful

yet nothing’s real and not artificial;

forgive my recoiling from a world so steep

I may fall at any moment

the abyss is too deep

the temptation’s a mountain

turned all the way upside down —

forgive my being on guard at all times;

too much is at stake, I can’t lose all.

If I fight to keep my soul,

please fight with me

or just get over me.
7 Unexpected Ways Being a Geek Makes You More Interesting, Purposeful, and Dedicated
By: Max Phillips
Tags: Self Improvement, Lifestyle, Self, Geek, Identity

1. You Always Have Something To Talk About

Celebrating your inner geek equips you with an arsenal of talking points.

As “geek culture” is now mainstream, there is nearly always a new movie or TV show coming out. Chances are, someone else has seen it too, so you probably won’t be hard-pressed into finding conversation. Plus, I’ve always found the ability to discuss a film I love with friends makes the experience more enjoyable. That way, the film can last longer in my memory.

I will always be bursting with things to analyze, praise, and critique. The hours will fly by, and I will view whatever I am consuming with new perspectives.

All through openly talking about my passion.

Why it helps

Many people don’t like this sort of stuff, and that’s fine.

When you embrace your inner geek, however, your passion is there for everyone to see. An avid interest in something is an attractive quality, both in relationships and friendships, as it shows you have more layers than the eye can see. People will want to dig into your personality.

Moreover, you will notice other people’s passion, even if it is for something else entirely. You may even disagree with them, but the ability to have a debate deepens your relationships. Plus, it’s truly a wonderful sight to see someone’s eyes light up when they begin talking about something.

Being a geek fuels your desire to see what other people’s passions are.
What It’s NOT About
By: Benjamin Foley
Tags: Religion, Poetry, Christianity, Spiritual Growth, Spirituality

It’s not about your meditation posture.

It’s not about a correct mantra.

It’s not about following the rules.

It’s not about your job or career.

It’s not about structure.

It’s not about your daily routine.

It’s not about reading the perfect book.

It’s not about your $25 moleskin journal.

It’s not about setting goals.

It’s not about being part of a select tribe.

It’s not about finding your passion.

It’s not about rebelling against the status quo.

It’s not about helping those in need.

But…

It is about love.

It is about dying to who your ego thinks you are.

It is about surrender and vulnerability.

It is about non-doing and letting God do through you.

When you realize that finding God is less about perfection and more about being wholly imperfect, the Great Opening will begin.

Let’s let the doors open, shall we?

Let’s Fall Inward, Shall We

Do you define yourself as someone who is spiritual but not religious?

If so, you are not alone.

Sign up for my daily email on contemplative spirituality and join over 5,000 seekers who are Falling Inward to [re]discover the power of within.

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