fabiochiu/medium-articles huggingface dataset:
Confessions of a Foodie
By: Rachel Wayne
Tags: Foodies, Culture, Food, Nutrition, Self

When we visited the port cities, we found restaurants that matched our expectations. Catering to tourists, these eateries offered the Caribbean flavors we were craving. We indulged in spicy chicken, rum-drenched fruits, and zesty rice. I ordered a round of Gulf shrimp and was amazed to see that they were eight inches long, beer-battered with their heads still on. I acted out a brief scene from Romeo and Juliet with them before my classmates told me to stop.

We were pleasantly surprised to discover that pineapple (which the Q’eqchi Mayan descendants called “ch’op”), so bitter in the United States, was amazingly sweet and supple in Belize. And bananas — one of the nations’ chief exports — had a delightful flavor that put American grocery stores’ bananas to shame.

Coming back to the United States was hard. I missed the lush green jungles and vibrant flavors. Even the bland chicken served by our host families was better than the artificially plumped-up stuff that I bought at the store. I wished that I could travel more and discover more amazing foods.

Embracing Vegetables

A few years after the trip to Belize, I decided to become a vegetarian. After seeing — and tasting — the difference between farm-raised chickens and those raised in brutal factories, I wanted to minimize my contribution to those industries. I decided to keep (sustainably sourced) seafood as part of my diet to keep my protein up and take advantage of those magic omega-3s.

This dietary shift was when I truly became a foodie. With chicken, pork, and beef out of my diet, I was forced to rethink my meal planning. Who says that we have to eat a meat and two vegetable sides for dinner? Who decided that a balanced breakfast includes sausage and eggs? I started thinking about vegetables as a main dish, and it opened up a world of possibilities for me. I’d grown up with boiled corn, canned green beans, and mashed potatoes on the side. Now, I was discovering the joys of baked squash, fried polenta, roasted Brussels sprouts, and so much more.

My taste buds had evolved as well. The Great Spice Incident in Belize had triggered a morbid curiosity in the terrifying range of chili peppers. I learned what the Scoville scale was and started challenging myself to move up it. Meanwhile, I started buying spices such as cardamom, curry, and ginger to use in my cooking.

Throughout this journey, I started seeking out interesting foods rather than simply eating out of necessity. The concept of fast food began to baffle me. I no longer could understand how my friends could just swing through a drive-through to sate their hunger. For me, food had to be an experience.
I Need Bruises, Not Strings
By: Hannah Katelyn
Tags: Love, Poem, Fiction, Poetry

I Need Bruises, Not Strings

A Poem.

Don’t.

Don’t kiss my forehead.

Don’t try to hold my hand.

Don’t apologize for anything. Ever.

Don’t pull my chair out at the dinner table.

Don’t open any doors for me.

Don’t try to pay the bill.

Don’t let me put my feet on the dash.

Don’t ask me how my day was.

Don’t try to comfort me.

Don’t introduce me to your parents.

Don’t try to get to know me.

Don’t count the days since we first met.

Don’t call me when you get home safe.

Don’t even make it home safe.
“Karena pahitnya kopi tak sepahit kehidupanmu” by Coffee Talism | Final Project Alterra Academy Batch 2
By: Alterra Academy Writer
Tags: Final Project, Alterra Academy, Software Development, Codingbootcamp, Coffee Talism

Alterra Academy is a tech talent incubator that gives everyone (even non-IT background) a chance to be a professional Tech Talent.

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The Power of SaaS When Running Complex Operations
By: Jade Garrido
Tags: Logistics, API, SaaS, Security

By Justin Hein

I was sitting with a very prominent VC the other day, and he said something that struck me. He said, “no one thought SaaS was going to be this big…”, and he’s right. Working in SaaS for the past six years, I haven’t really noticed how big it’s grown around me. Similar to visiting a niece or nephew, they seem to grow SO big between visits, but to their parents, the change is hardly noticeable.

Today, let’s dive into why SaaS is so powerful for complex operations (i.e: trucking companies).

The River You Stand In Is Not What You Stepped In

One of the larger benefits of SaaS for complex operations, is the software will continue to evolve and (ideally) get better the longer you’re a customer. This is in stark contrast to legacy software, where costly and time consuming upgrades are a major hindrance in business operations. Additionally, SaaS users benefit from the shared knowledge of all customers who will continually tweak features and requests. This allows for best in class learnings applied across the entire cohort of customers.

A Note on Security

Some customers might fear that sharing new features between SaaS customers will expose their data to the masses. Luckily, most of those concerns have been put at ease, now that reputable SaaS companies adhere to strict ISO standards for information security, and are subject to regular security audits.

Focus on Sales not Servers

This point is pretty self explanatory. Why waste valuable resources (both human and capital) by buying and maintaining servers. The moment you purchase them, they are already becoming obsolete. By switching to the cloud, businesses can quickly change the amount of service they’re paying for to match what they need at that moment.

Software Scales with You

The constant challenge of purchasing any asset for your business is walking the fine balance of buying enough without overspending on something you may never use. SaaS offers the best of both worlds. You can purchase less licenses or packages when you’re small, and expand you subscription as needed over time.

SaaS gives users a greater ability to flex to demand, bring on new customers, suppliers and upgrade service. With a leased solution, your business has the flexibility needed to reap the benefits of API connectivity.
EdPresso Roundup: Top 5 flavors of quick coding knowledge
By: The Educative Team
Tags: Coding, Programming, Beginner, Development, Object Oriented

EdPresso shots are a new kind of Espresso shot but, instead of waking your body up with caffeine, they wake your mind up with knowledge. Just like shots of espresso, EdPresso shots are short and concentrated bits of coding knowledge, organized in an open-access library for developers of all skill levels. The time it takes to read one rarely exceeds four minutes, no matter the difficulty of the topic.

Also, like espresso shots, EdPressos come in many different flavors, some more popular than others. There are five shots that seem to have won over developers around the world. In this post, we will explore the top 5 questions searched by developers like you.
3 Reasons Why You Should Do Shorter Workouts
By: Daniele D'Alessio
Tags: Self Improvement, Workout, Fitness, Health, Exercise

3 Reasons Why You Should Do Shorter Workouts

You get more bang for your buck

Photo by Karsten Winegeart on Unsplash

How long should your session last? There is much debate about how shorter workouts can affect the progress you make.

The fitness industry may encourage you to spend hours in the gym. But is this ideal for your health? Do you have to exercise 24/7 to achieve your goals? The concept of “training harder than last time” may suggest more extended periods to be better.

Yet, it depends on what you do during your workout. Until this day, I see people at my gym spending three hours there. But is it three hours of exercise? Nope. The more time you give yourself, the more you may procrastinate. So training for longer durations may not guarantee you train at a high intensity.

Still, exercising is one part of your life. Thirty to Sixty minutes is more than enough time to work your body and force it to improve. Since I have been lifting weights, I have found this to be the sweet spot. Long enough to make progress and short enough to be sustainable.

Here are three reasons why you should do shorter workouts.
Love Your Parents
By: Clarrisa Lee
Tags: Fear, Life, Love, Death And Dying, Family

They Won’t Always Be Around

Photo by Sven Mieke on Unsplash

Writing from a hospital waiting room, the very one that I’ve walked past for the last five days. It’s nice, surrounded by windows looking out on luscious green grass, trees and a large open field where you might see deer in the evening.

Last Thursday afternoon, my sweet, little mother-in-law was not answering her phone at her farm in the mid-west.

After several calls and a few hours gone by, my husband asked his uncle to go out and check on her. As she has seemed sick off and on for the past few months, not providing us with very much information as to what was wrong exactly.

Cancer, and lots of it.

And now, as we live day by day, waiting to see what the next will bring, we reflect on the time we have had her with us. Wondering how much longer that will be.

It’s hard to imagine, and even harder to actually live through it right now.

But the point is, don’t wait to show your love to your parents — or anyone! Don’t wait to talk to them, to thank them, to share what’s going on in your life, to spend time with them, to ask to hear their stories, to find out how great they are.

Because none of us know how long we will have them with us. And that of course can be said about anyone we care about really. So, stop what you’re doing right now, if you can, and call those people you love- tell them and ask them what you can do for them to make their lives just a little bit easier.

You will never regret showing your love and serving them while you have the chance.
Come and go
By: Yann Girard
Tags: Entrepreneurship, Poetry, Writing, Life, Life Lessons

Leaving is one of the hardest and most beautiful things at the same time.

Because only when you leave will you be able to come back.

Will you be able to experience the beauty of coming back again.

And because leaving is so scary and we’re so afraid of the thought of maybe never ever coming back again, we miss out on the beauty of coming back.

Of exploring.

Of experiencing new things.

And this fear of maybe never coming back is so strong that we tend to never ever leave again.

Even if we might not be happy where we’re at right not.

Even if we’re not happy with the things we’re doing.

With how the things are going.

Sometimes you just gotta leave to be able to arrive…
PMDD: The Monster Nobody Talks About
By: Alexandra Tsuneta
Tags: Women, Mental Health, Periods, Pmdd, Womens Health

PMDD: The Monster Nobody Talks About

What is Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder & why you should know about it.

Photo by Erol Ahmed on Unsplash

What is PMDD?

We all know about PMS or Premenstrual Syndrome, but what most people don’t know is that there is a severe form of PMS called PMDD or Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder, and more than three million people are impacted by it per year. PMDD can be chronic and last for a lifetime; and because many people don’t talk about it or even know about it, people who suffer from PMDD often suffer silently and unknowingly. This is why PMDD is so important to talk about, so people who are suffering can seek help for their symptoms.

When I was diagnosed with PMDD a lot of pieces of my personal puzzle came together, but before I get into my story, let’s talk about the symptoms of PMDD. Most of the time these symptoms are severe and debilitating, often keeping you from daily activities.

The symptoms of PMDD include:

Mood swings (often severe)

Intense anger & conflict with people, especially those closest to you

Depression, or feelings of hopelessness

Anxiety

Irritability

Fatigue

Decreased interest in daily activities

Feeling out of control

Insomnia or other sleep related issues

Headaches

Joint & muscle pain

All of these symptoms combine together with your regular PMS symptoms to create chaos, conflict, and feeling out of control of your life. PMDD can be a monster, and instead of suffering silently, PMDD needs to be discussed regularly so that people who suffer from the symptoms of PMDD know that they are not alone.
Song of the Night
By: Edie Tuck
Tags: Gaia, Poetry, Night, Spirituality, Magic

Song of the Night

Let the siren draw you in.

( Photo by Noah Silliman on Unsplash)

I drive slowly, windows rolled down. Have you ever noticed how the air smells differently at night? The darkness is heavy; the dew is falling like a blanket over the countryside. I can feel it on my skin, caressing me. Clinging to me. Enticing me.

I slow down, even more, listening to the chorus of the night. Yes, the night, she sings. Have you ever stopped to listen? She sings, and she calls to me; a siren song, out of the dark. The creatures of the Witching Hour.

As I slow some more, I am filled with the essence of the Earth. A scent that could never be bottled. I inhale deeply. Let it wash over me. Intoxicated. I pull to the side of the road and close my eyes, so that I may be fully immersed. Swallowed — at one with Gaia.

I am at peace.
Ovih pet tvrtki trenutno zapošljava
Tags: Posao, Graficki Dizajn, Poslodavac, Programer

in Eudaimonia and Co
Ask Your Grandparents Out As Long as You Still Have Them
By: Louis Petrik
Tags: Wisdom, Elderly, Life, Life Lessons, Gratitude

Gratitude Depends on Your Perspective

The reason why I advise you to get into a conversation with your grandparents, but also with older relatives and acquaintances in general, is to let them tell you about the times back then.

Of course, you can also pick up some history books or documentaries, but these neglect two critical points:

The authenticity and emotions in the narrative of a real person who has experienced these times.

The individual feeling and perception of a person, in these times.

The last point is perhaps not directly evident.

What we get in history books and documentaries is mostly objective information about the events of that time. And that’s a good thing, but for me, the magic only arises when you approach the past both objectively and subjectively — through a witness of that time.

An example. By now, it should be clear to everyone that the “wealth” was lower back then, especially in the industrialized countries of this world.

Nevertheless, this did not seem to play a significant role at all for many people who lived at that time, no, they were not even aware of it, because we compare the wealth of that time with that of today.

Of course, the society of that time could not compare its wealth with the society of the future.

Talking about how wealthy people felt then, with entirely different standards than today, such as the fact that not everyone had access to a television. Not even to a telephone and flying to another country was reserved for just a few.

This strengthens my belief that our gratitude, our appreciation for what we have, is based on what we could have — not what we have already, and what we could appreciate.

And precisely for this reason, I recommend that you talk to older people about the “good old days” — you will notice more than ever how well you are doing and especially what possibilities you have — because, despite the harsher conditions back then, many were still able to lead a fulfilled life.

From today’s point of view, the resources of that time seem limited to me — not even having the internet to do research and exchange would be a catastrophe for me.

To see how people got along in the years before your birth is an impressive experience — you will soon realize that you gain almost a whole world of possibilities, which you always had, but maybe didn’t use.

This experience made me very grateful.
Key-Works: The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch
By: Remy Dean
Tags: Art History, Painting, Art, Fantasy, Illustration

Fantasy art from the first surrealist tells the story of heaven and hell

At the time it was painted, circa 1500, this would have been a stunningly original and modern work. This folding triptych is believed to have been commissioned for the altar of a private chapel in one of the grand houses of Brussels, and it is now restored to its ‘original glory’ and displayed in the Prado, Madrid, where I stood before it on a recent visit.

Seen in its gallery room among other late Gothic works, what really strikes the viewer first is the brightness of the colours that leap off the oak panels. The palette appears so modern as does the content: the Surrealists of the twentieth century cited it, along with the sketches of Leonardo da Vinci, as being the earliest expression of their ideology.

When closed, the piece presents an image of a crystal sphere, with God at the top looking down upon the earthly realm he has created, represented by a disc at the equator of the sphere. Of course, the ‘flat earth’ theory was no longer convincing and when the panels are opened up, among the many strange and wonderful things revealed is an array of exotic fruits, which had only just been discovered in the New World during the voyages of Columbus.

the closed altar panel

The altarpiece opens like a big wooden book to reveal three linked paintings. The left panel shows God introducing Eve to Adam in the garden of Eden, populated with many animals and fantastical beasts including an albino giraffe, an elephant, a three-headed oriental pheasant, a unicorn and its seahorse equivalent...

All seems well, but there are couple of tiny details that imply that it may not be perfect after all and harmony is about to be lost: in the background an animal devours a gazelle and in the foreground a cat carries away its prey in its jaws. An owl can also be spotted. At the time, owls were often taken to be symbols of darkness and death and are a recurring symbol here.
A Poem by Kate Colby
By: The Awl
Tags: Kate Colby, The Poetry Section, Poetry

A Poem by Kate Colby

Integer*

1

Wind can’t move the light

only what’s in front of it.

Stirring shadow-

shaped leaves

or dead specimens

in Plexiglas? Dodo

is a word, a museum

of museums.

2

Every time I hear Rocket Man

I’m reminded of you

reminded of me

every time you hear Rocket Man.

3

* A thing complete in itself.

All that I can see from

the distance of the sun

the moon has broken

up with its light.

I was caught, kissed

in the teeth of a time-

worn cemetery —

love isn’t real

only how you feel it.
Synereo Kicks Off the WildSpark World Cup Challenge
Tags: Attention Economy, World Cup, Contests, Soccer, Cryptocurrency

Winners will take home 500 AMPs!

Football (soccer for our American users) fever is about to take over the world, and the Synereo team is no exception.

Just for fun, our Founder and CEO, Dor Konforty, and a panel of Synereo judges will choose the best FIFA World Cup Russia 2018 memes posted on WildSpark.

The World Cup runs from June 14 — July 15, and at the end of every week, two winners will be selected and will receive 500 AMPs each!

To participate in the contest, simply follow these three easy steps: Share a World Cup Russia 2018-related meme/picture/GIF from Imgur (i.e. a great play, a funny/emotional moment, bloopers, etc.) Amplify it under the Sports category of WildSpark. Share the WildSpark link on Twitter with the hashtag #WildSparkWorldCup and tag @Synereo

How to upload and tweet

There is no limit to participants or posts, so feel free to post your favorite World Cup moments via Imgur. Just don’t forget to Tweet your WildSpark link tagging @Synereo along with hashtag #WildSparkWorldCup.

Visit us for more details and contest rules.

Good luck in the contest and may the best posts win!

…

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The Math behind Machine Learning
Tags: Math, Machine Learning, Neural Networks, Problem Solving, Deep Learning

How far is math important when speaking about machine learning?

Many of us start looking at the coding part to improve programming skills.

Machine learning has become a debatable field in the last 5 years, especially after the bomb of ‘Deep Learning’. Within this wide rush towards it, it is important for any beginner in this field to understand the basics of machine learning and its core aspect, the one that is leading it to be here today, and the core that will lead machines to lead the world.

In this article, I will try to cover a simple yet effective part of the math behind machine learning which is the probabilistic view of models using probability simple rules only.

The following image has crossed my way today:

Probably .. the master of ML.

The five rules of probability. Mainly, all programmers have taken a probability course in their high school or college. As simple as it seems, these simple rules form the most important laws of machine learning.

To make things clear, I will start stating some examples that use these probability rules ( shown in the figure above) and others.

CTC algorithm

CTC ( Connectionist Temporal Classification) is one of the interesting algorithms used in sequence-to-sequence models, that is based on probability laws. For instance, it works as follows:

let x be a letter ( x : letter) , w be a word ( w:word)

The question is: what is the probability of having the letter x in the word w ?

p(x/w) = ?. The answer here determines the next step that the algorithm will take.

Now, to know its importance, check the impact of CTC in the following subdomains of machine learning:

Handwritten text recognition, Voice recognition

The reason behind using ctc in these models is that they rely mainly on the probability on the next step to decide the current one.

The figure above shows the baseline architecture of the handwritten decoding model. First of all, convolutional layers are used to extract features for the handwritten images. Next, their output is fed to bidirectional lstm layers, simply to save the current feature(letter) to compare it with the next feature(letter). In this case, we say what is the probability of letter x1 knowing that it is followed ( or passed by) letter x2? see? simple probability lows lead to gentle and great models that will take the world into another future!

Finally, after predicting the pattern of letters, they will enter into a decision-making tree, the CTC model is responsible for choosing the correct pattern of the word.

Probability is the science of studying uncertainty. Machine learning is the science of solving uncertainty by making it ‘mostly’ certain.

These two factors make a great combination of togerther.
The Origins of the Selfie
By: Ravyne Hawke
Tags: Poetry, Free Verse, Mythology, Technology, Narcissism

It’s all your fault, Narcissus

if only you had loved Echo

if you hadn’t pulled away

leaving her voice resounding

an eternity of woe —

Nemesis wouldn’t have lured you

to that reflective pond

you would never have gazed

fell in love and drowned

Yours was the first selfie

now every camera is a pond

and so many are drowning

in their own reflections

forcing their narcissism

out into the world — a click

of a button, a display

of self-love and admiration

“look at me, look at me!”

And just like lemmings

everyone follows you —

a suicide of souls

© 2020 Lori Carlson. All Rights Reserved.
Fresh Brewed by Keith R Wilson
By: Keith R Wilson
Tags: Mental Health, Newsletter, Writing, Emotions, Fiction

Image by Pikrepo

There are two things I’d like to introduce. The first is my newsletter, Fresh Brewed, where I can keep you informed of everything coming out of my laptop.

The second is my new novel, Who Killed the Lisping Barista of the Epiphany Café?, a murder mystery investigating the mysteries of life.

I’ll be releasing this book drop by drop, one chapter at a time in my own online publication by the same name.

I just posted Chapter One: Yeth. The scene is set, the Lisping Barista is met, and she does something that surprises everyone.

Maybe someday it’ll appear in print or all in one piece for your Kindle. If you subscribe to Fresh Brewed, I’ll be able to tell you when that happens. Meanwhile, you’ll get weekly links to the latest chapters, as well as other things I’ve been writing.

Please forward this information to others who may be interested.

Yes, I’ve written other things. If you’d like to check out my short stories, I have them collected on this page, The Narrative Imperative. The most recent one is Trimming, inspired by my years working in the vineyards of Western New York.

I’m working on a series of essays in which I reflect on my work as a therapist, The Reflective Eclectic. Recently, I wrote about the love/hate relationship we therapists have with time in Fifty Minutes Set Apart. In another essay, Cultivating Change, I write about what it takes to, well, cultivate change in others.

Another series of essays attempts to make sense of the strange phenomenon we all experience, the emotions. I call it A Field Guide to Feelings. The latest deals with the dominant feeling of our day, Outrage.

Then there are my books. My last novel was Intersections. Middle-aged, obese, depressed, and estranged from his children, the main character of Intersections sets off cross country, ambivalently seeking restoration amid the scraps of long-distance fatherhood.
Social Media Sleight of Hand
By: Hana Leshner
Tags: Poetry, One Lined Poem, Microfiction, One Line Poetry Prompt, Social Media

Gilles Lambert | Unsplash

The one who somehow swipes right to love not lust, scrolls through bliss not oblivion, conjures meaning out of memes; it’s the digital prestidigitator who wins the web.
Running Out Of Time: Brandon Lowden Has Only Two Years Left If He Wants To Die For Our Sins By The Same Age As Jesus
By: Gavin Byrnes
Tags: Jesus, Christianity, Brandhole, Brandon Lowden, Satire

Running Out Of Time: Brandon Lowden Has Only Two Years Left If He Wants To Die For Our Sins By The Same Age As Jesus Gavin Byrnes Follow Mar 23, 2018 · 2 min read

He might only be 31, but the clock is ticking for Brandon Lowden in a big way. With his 33rd birthday just around the corner, Brandon only has two years left if he wants to sacrifice himself for humanity by the same age Jesus Christ did.

Better get your rear in gear, Brandon! Time waits for no man!

It’s been nearly two thousand years since Yeshua of Nazareth was crucified by the Romans, taking upon himself the accumulated sins of humanity. Sure seems like the hour is ripe for somebody to take up that “cross” once more, but Brandon’s running behind schedule! By the time Jesus was Brandon’s age, he had already taught in the temple, healed lepers, and been baptized by John while God’s voice declared from heaven that Jesus was his son with whom he was well pleased; on the other hand, not only has Brandon never received direct communication from the Lord, he hasn’t cured so much as a case of the sniffles! Pressure’s on much?

When Jesus Christ was 31, he was preparing every day for eventually making the ultimate sacrifice; spreading the good news, performing miracles, even getting his followers ready to carry on after he was gone. I’m not saying that Brandon can’t pull it off; he works well under pressure, and he’s still got some time ahead of him. But the kind of mindset you need to be in to give your life so that humanity might be cleansed of their sin doesn’t just manifest overnight! Here’s hoping Brandon takes a cue from the original Lamb of God soon, or else time just might run out on his chance to be the Savior.
“1968: The Election That Changed America” Book Review
By: Shain E. Thomas
Tags: Politics, Richard M Nixon, Us History, Entertainment, Book Reviews

Professor Emeritus Lewis L. Gould, the Eugene C. Barker Centennial Professor Emeritus in American History at the University of Texas at Austin, has provided his audience with a comprehensive view of not only the presidential election that changed the face of American politics but also provides a vivid picture of what transpired in the election.

The Election that Change America, used as a political science textbook, provides students with a highly detailed analysis of events that led up to the 1968 Presidential Election.

Political history, not everyone’s cup of tea, is unquestionably an acquired taste. This is especially true for people with a short attention span; however, reading 1968 might change that for some people.

Gould, with unyielding clarity, brings into focus various racial issues which shaped the election.

Expectations and reality parted company during the race for the White House. Whilst it was the Vietnam War that was expected to take centre stage for the 1968 Presidential Election, it was actually raced issues that guided people to vote the way they did.

The book gives students a complete outline of the collapsing support for the Democratic Party. Interestingly, this is only four years after Lyndon Johnson’s landslide victory against Barry Goldwater. Within the pages of his book, Gould explores various opportunities Republicans exploited, giving them the edge they needed to not only win the White House in 1968 but hold it for no fewer than 24 years afterwards.

Gould, with clarity of thought, engages the reader with concise highly detailed writing which can easily be followed. The author presents the events in such a way that one feels the urge to continue reading. This is not typical of either history or political science books assigned to students by their professors.

In a surprising twist, Gould proposes that if Kennedy was not assassinated he would have still lost to Humphrey, the more popular presidential candidate.

On a readability scale, 1968 make a refreshing change from that which adorns many library shelves. The author, with effective use of a concise sentence structure, keeps readers engaged in the political context of 1968.

1968, as previously intimated, is different from other history and political science texts that we have been required to read for university-level courses. The content, in terms of language and the way the message is conveyed, paints a vivid portrait of what the 1968 Presidential Election was like.

This work gives students a glimpse of an important part of American history. Understanding events and how each event helps shape what was to come is only a fragment of what it is this author, in my opinion, was aiming to accomplish.
Walk a Mile in His Shoes
Tags: Poetry, Life, Adversity, Perseverance, Poetry On Medium

Walk a Mile in His Shoes

A poem about perseverance in spite of weariness

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

After

Sunset, beneath

Moonlight, I stroll about

Pondering life is simple

After all—

Too simple

For he who

Is weary but

Must keep on walking

Long into tomorrow.

©2020 MDSHall
Hackers Infiltrate South Korea’s Bithumb Exchange and Steal $30 Million
Tags: Blockchain, Bithumb, Exchange, Hacks, Cryptocurrency

Bithumb hacked, over $30 million gone. Will users be compensated for loss?

Bithumb, the second largest cryptocurrency exchange in Asia and world’s sixth largest exchange by trade volume, reported it has been hacked earlier today, and that cryptocurrencies worth $30 million have been stolen; the exchange has suspended all payments and deposits.

Bithumb announced Wednesday morning that it had suspended all trading and transferred all assets to cold storage after determining that

Some cryptocurrencies worth about 35 billion won were seized between late yesterday and early morning today.

The exchange reassured customers that they will be compensated for lost funds in a Tweet that was later deleted.

The hacking incident is the second one involving a South Korean exchange this month. Two weeks ago, Coinrail exchange lost at least $37.2 million in crypto which included a variety of ERC020 tokens. Bitcoin reacted by dropping almost $200 following the revelation losing much of what it had recovered over the previous two days.

Bithumb transferred a large amount of Ethereum to their cold wallet after noticing “abnormal access” as early as June 16, and later announced a quick server check “to maximize security settings”. The maintenance which was meant to end at 9:00 am KST went beyond the scheduled time. They then announced on June 19, 2018, at 12:49 UTC, that they temporarily suspended deposits to facilitate a wallet change with their exchange services.

Due to this dubious behavior concerns are now being raised that the exchange might have hacked itself, and that, judging by the deleted Tweet, the hackers got a hold of more than $30 million.
Why I Left New York City During the Pandemic
By: Sebastian Stone
Tags: Covid 19, New York City, Coronavirus, Cities, New York

Why I Left New York City During the Pandemic

Working from home amidst deteriorating conditions can only last so long.

Photo by Malte Schmidt on Unsplash

I hate to admit it. I am part of the exodus from New York City amidst the Coronavirus pandemic. My wife and I stuck it out for a while, working from home since early March, but as the walls closed in around our 700 square feet of living and now co-working space, we had enough. There were only so many places to escape when joining confidential meetings or calls (we are both lawyers). I had to wall myself off in our one bedroom, perched on an ottoman my wife previously used for handbag storage. By the end of each week, my back often screamed with pain as I slouched toward the computer screen resting on the bed across from me.

Needless to say, our apartment, much like the city around it, was not conducive to working from home. So much of New York City’s economy is dependent on workers going to the office, whether it’s spending money on lunch and coffee or entertaining clients after hours. With offices still only at a fraction of their capacity (at best), the entire economy of service, hospitality, and retail workers has suffered.

Now is the point where the Jerry Seinfelds of the world will chastise me for not being one of the “real, tough New Yorkers who . . . stayed and rebuilt it.” With all due respect to Jerry, he hasn’t cohabitated in a small New York City apartment full time in decades, let alone during a pandemic. I may be one of the fortunate white collar professionals who has been able to work from home, but keep in mind the cost and realities of New York City real estate. Even the modestly affluent can rarely afford anything more than a one bedroom apartment in Manhattan. Forget about second homes on Long Island or other bucolic environments that the “Jerrys” of the world enjoy. Try living and working full time in the same small space with your significant other for six months and come talk to me.

I have lived in the city for over 6 years. My wife went to high school here and has lived in Manhattan on and off for over 20 years. We know and love New York City, but the practical challenges of working from home day in and day out became too much. Those challenges coupled with the fact we were paying the same rent when surrounded by mostly shuttered businesses, rising crime, a summer of intense protests immediately outside our front door, and an out of control homeless population, were enough to push us over the brink. No longer could we justify the exorbitant costs of living in Manhattan. The convenience of walking to work or commuting for a few minutes on the subway were gone. We moved to Westchester.
Black Men Finally See Themselves on ‘The Bachelorette’
By: Momentum Blog Team
Tags: The Bachelor, The Bachelorette, TV, Culture, Black Men

Black Men Finally See Themselves on ‘The Bachelorette’

Even though my dudes still get way less screen time, the show gave me something I didn’t know I was missing

“Beyond the men’s efforts to win Tayshia’s heart, there remains an unspoken bond among the Black contestants. There’s no drama or infighting among them — only respect — as they plot their way through a well-constructed world that gives considerable air time to the immature stunts and petty arguments of White contestants. Bachelor Nation would benefit more with a focus on the substance many of the Black men bring to the show.” — Treye Green

Read Green’s story in its entirety below.
How to Survive the Chaos of Working at Home
By: Larry Cornett
Tags: Work, Productivity, Career Advice, Working From Home, Remote Working

REMOTE WORK

How to Survive the Chaos of Working at Home

Roommates and children, and pets, oh my!

Photo by Allie on Unsplash

I didn’t use to give much thought to classifying my work before sitting down to get things done.

Work is work. Right?

Of course, there were times that I knew that I needed to crank on some designs, work on a prototype, or finish a spec without interruptions. Trying to get work done under time pressure was a nightmare in an open office space.

Someone was always coming up to interrupt me. People were talking and taking calls. A myriad of other distractions ensured that I couldn’t focus.

So, I would leave to find a quiet room somewhere on campus. If I required a more massive block of focused time, I would escape the office entirely and find a coffee shop.

Sometimes, I would take a day off and work from home (i.e., blocking my calendar “WFH”) for better productivity. Funny, huh? Now every day is a work from home day.

Now you have your partner asking you to do something for them, instead of your boss. Your children distract you with their nearby play, instead of your coworkers chatting in the next cubicle. Your pet runs up and demands attention. Your neighbor starts blasting loud music.

However, things have changed a little this year, haven’t they? You can’t run back to the office to escape your WFH environment. Heck, in many places, you can’t even head over to your favorite cafe for an uninterrupted working session (e.g., they just closed again in California).

We all have to make the best of it. We need to adjust our working habits and processes to adapt to this new world. We must optimize our home environment to enable us to do our best work.

But, you aren’t required to do your best work every minute of every day. We have different types of tasks that we perform at any given time. Some activities don’t require a soundproofed isolation chamber, so there’s no need to use the same environment for every single thing that you do.

The first step is to categorize your work. Then, create a strategy for how you can be most effective for each category.
A Label-free Kid
By: Anthi Psomiadou
Tags: Behavior, Kids, Labels, Children, Parents

A Label-free Kid

And a difficult conversation for his mother

Photo by Erik Odiin on Unsplash

-Mom, what’s a “good kid”?

-What do you mean?

-Does it have a definition? Is there in the dictionary?

-Not that I know of.

-But, you use the term. And also, its opposite.

-It’s just something I know, without having to describe it.

-You describe it, in a way. You say — for example — “good kids don’t shout at their parents”, “good kids don’t walk in a room without knocking first”, “You were a bad boy today; you interrupted me three times while I was talking to Pit’s mom”.

-So, what?

-You shout at me all the time. You shout even when you say: “Don’t shout at me. Shouting isn’t a conversation”. You never knock before entering my room. You always interrupt my playing with Pit to make remarks.

-And?

-Are you a good “kid” or not? Are the rules different for you?

-I’m an adult. You are a kid.

-And?

-You have to do what your parents tell you.

-So, is this a general definition of the “good kid”?

-Maybe.

-I have heard other parents, too. Their “good kid”-term is accompanied by many descriptions. Sometimes conflicting to each other.

-What do you want now, Adken? I’m in the middle of something here. Get to the point!

-My point is, every parent forms the term “good kid” as they please. It’s like my plasticine. You form “good kid” according to your needs, and the term takes variant content, depending on your mood. I think there are no good or bad kids. Just “good” or “bad” behaviors. Or — better say — just behaviors. And we call them good or bad, according to ourselves. I leave you alone now, mom. I’ll be in my room, playing. And, please, knock before you come in.

^^^
Circularise joins the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance
Tags: Circulareconomy, Blockchain, Ethereum, Supply Chain, Startup

We are proud to announce that Circularise has officially joined the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance (EEA). We joined the Supply Chain working group, one of the 17 working groups of the largest open-source blockchain organisations in the world. Currently, EEA fosters nearly 300 members, from Fortune 500 enterprises (including Accenture, Deloitte, Microsoft, ING, Intel, JP Morgan, and others) to startups, enterprises, academics, and technology vendors.

Our aim at Circularise is to develop an open-source, transparent, and secure communications protocol that will allow the stakeholders in the value chain to share the information needed for achieving a circular economy. According to Reuters, the 2016 e-waste scrap has been estimated to reach more than USD 64 billion worth of raw materials, when only a small part of it has been recycled, reused and refurbished. Moreover, an Accenture research discovered that a transition to a circular economy could unlock an additional economic output worth USD 4.5 trillion by 2030. We believe that transparency and collaboration are key pillars of a circular economy.

The European Union has set many objectives with deadlines on circularity to be achieved in the next 10 years. In order to meet all these deadlines, an open protocol for collaboration between countries, industries and all the stakeholders in the supply chain is crucial.

Furthermore, collaboration is not only a key action for achieving the circular economy but a core value of our work at Circularise. Therefore, it is a natural step to join the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance. “We joined the EEA because we [at Circularise] feel that by working together with all these companies, we can truly revolutionise the supply chain industry,” Jordi de Vos, founder at Circularise, said.

Our startup was founded in 2016 by Jordi de Vos, a blockchain aficionado, and Mesbah Sabur, a circular economy expert. In 2017, we received funding from EIT RawMaterials, an organisation initiated and funded by the EIT (European Institute of Innovation and Technology), a body of the European Union. EIT RawMaterials is the largest and strongest consortium in the raw materials sector worldwide. Its mission is to boost competitiveness, growth, and attractiveness of the European raw materials sector via radical innovation and guided entrepreneurship.

***

Circularise aims to overcome the communication barrier that is limiting the transition to a circular economy. Join our journey on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.
How to Handle UserDefaults in Swift
By: Luca Pizzini
Tags: iOS, Swift, Userdefaults

Class structure

Now, let’s begin with the creation of your UserDefaults class.

Using the singleton pattern will grant easy and global access to the UserDefaults helper class through your code.

The use of this creational pattern guarantees that only one instance of this class is created and gives a universal access point to it.

First, create a new Swift file called Prefs.swift and declare your class in it:

class Prefs { }

Then, make it globally accessible.

class var shared: Prefs {

struct Static {

static let instance = Prefs()

} return Static.instance

}

This subclass contains a static instance of the Prefs class and it will return the same instance every time you reference it in your code.

Now, you can easily use your Prefs class just by calling:

let prefs = Prefs.shared

Handling UserDefaults

Now that we have our main class structure, we can start using it to manage our stored values. In my example, I’ll use the Prefs class to store and retrieve an integer variable.

First, declare a private variable to reference the UserDefaults standard object:

private let defaults = UserDefaults.standard

By calling the standard property you retrieve the shared defaults object, in which we can read and write the key-value pairs.

To store a value first, you need to declare its key.

A key is a unique string that identifies a value in the UserDefaults.

You can list the keys at the top of the file by declaring:

private let keyIntExample = "intExample"

To reference your values declare a public variable and specify its getter and setter methods.

Every time you reference the variable these methods will be called to retrieve or update the value associated to the key.

var intExample = {

set {

defaults.setValue(newValue, forKey: keyIntExample)

}

get {

return defaults.integer(forKey: keyIntExample)

}

}

Finally, you can easily get or set your integer value just by calling:

// Get the value

let exampleValue = Prefs.shared.intExample // Set the value

Prefs.shared.intExample = 9

Here is the final class structure:
Instagram Explains How it Uses AI to Choose Content for Your Explore Tab?
By: Claire D. Costa
Tags: Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Technology, AI, Instagram

What is this new AI that Instagram is Using in Explore Tab?

In a blog post, Instagram engineers explained some details about how the Explore Tab works. But due to obvious reasons, they have hidden some information. However, we still give you a basic understanding of it.

Let’s begin by saying that the content is varied on Instagram. Your news feed can feature ancient Vedas to Virtual Reality. Hence, it is very difficult to recommend content. So instead of displaying content which might users like, they focus on display content that might interest users. For this, they are using a machine learning concept called “word embedding.”

Word embedding is a method used to study the order of words during a caption or message. For example, a word embedding system would learn that hot is more likely to be followed by coffee or water than pigeon or TV. A similar process is used to find two accounts that are likely to interest each other.

Now you may ask that with a billion users, there may be many users whose content might relate. So, we need to filter down the recommendation. First, the AI looks at the user’s previous interaction and the type of post they like. Then a similar type of post and content are sorted in a group of 500. AI then filters this group on the basis of spam, misinformation, policy violation content. The remaining posts are then ranked on user-engagement to list a top 25, which is then viewed on the Explore Tab.

As this AI learns from your action, if you interact more on the Explore tab, the algorithm in AI would be able to rank the post better.

For example, if you see animal post, you saved it. You saw a football video and liked it. Then came a science video and you ignored it. Then AI would put an animal post on top, followed by football video, and science post will be eliminated from the tab.

So, if you want to improve the content on the Explore tab, we recommend you use it frequently to tell the AI what suits you. Using this process, people can create SEO optimized post to reach to more number of user’s Explore tab.

In theory, the AI looks very promising and could be a game-changer for both the users and marketers or influencers on Instagram. However, Instagram hasn’t revealed any details on how they will filter spams and misinformation.

For example, the platform is still manually deleting posts with such information as #cocaine #abuse, etc.

So, it is not clear yet if the new Artificial intelligence, which is equipped with machine learning, can deal with such filters and spam in the future. But this is a step in the right direction, and Instagram could introduce more technicality to update the Explore tab further.