fabiochiu/medium-articles huggingface dataset:
No Plans for the New Year Celebration? Join the Iconic Times Square Party in the Decentraland Metaverse — DailyCoin
Tags: Metaverse, Cryptocurrency Investment, Decentraland, Cryptocurrency News, Nft

No Plans for the New Year Celebration? Join the Iconic Times Square Party in the Decentraland Metaverse — DailyCoin DailyCoin Dec 31, 2021·2 min read

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The owner of the Times Square building in New York City entered the metaverse by recreating a virtual duplicate of the building for Decentraland. Decentraland will unveil the iconic One Times Square on the 31st of December night for the ‘MetaFest 2022’ event. It will be the tallest (26-story) building in the metaverse.

"There will be music, club parties, rooftop VIP lounges, CryptoArt galleries, immersive games, a Ball Drop you will never forget, and wearables and collectibles to take with you into the year ahead,"

the event’s description reads.

The real estate firm Jamestown partnered with Digital Currency Group (DCG) — a supporter of Decentraland that holds a large number of MANA and LAND tokens.

Jamestown President Michael Phillips said in the press release:

"The metaverse is an important part of the evolution of real estate and the built environment. Whereas physical real estate is largely limited to people with geographic proximity, the metaverse can give people around the world meaningful access to places through immersive virtual experiences."

The real-life Time Square has a 15,000 vaccinated attendee limit due to the Omicron outbreak.

Virtual real estate on the metaverse is gaining popularity at a rapid speed. This has lead to many real-estate agencies joining the digital land market.

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Interview Series: Nowhere Near Home with Stephanie Stone
By: The Stripes Magazine
Tags: Featured, Interview, Features, Issue 2, Magazine

Hello Stephanie, welcome to the Interview series. Tell us about you.

I start each day with coffee and alone time to recharge because I’m an INFJ living in a busy world that is both inspiring and exhausting. In my spare time, I enjoy laughing (and perhaps more coffee) with my friends. I also love music, yoga, and the colour purple.

Which side of the writer spectrum do you fall under, write by day or night and why?

I write almost exclusively at night. I think that being a perfectionist is the biggest hindrance to my writing because it causes me to question every word. It definitely blocks my flow when I over-analyze in the middle of a stream of thought. My perfectionism doesn’t go away at night however I find that it is more subdued and gives me more space to be creative.

We all struggle with the perfectionist in us. So, what is Home to Stephanie?

Mostly, I think home is where I can be me and accept myself. I am still working on creating that environment. For now, I feel most at home in the company of my friends who accept me and my quirks even when I don’t.

Where can we find more of your works?

My Instagram handle is stephstone91 and below are links to Faces to the Sun (E-book edition) as well as a link to one of my pieces “Exhaustion-2020”

Faces to the Sun: https://payhip.com/b/gP1d

Exhaustion 2020: https://www.bestpoetryonline.com/21835/exhaustion-2020-stephanie-stone
Esports Team Launched By Mumbai City FC. The Club Becomes First Indian Club To Field A Team In FIFA Global Series
By: Spawn Point
Tags: Fifaglobalseries, Esports, Fifa22, Esportsindia, Islanders

Esports Team Launched By Mumbai City FC. The Club Becomes First Indian Club To Field A Team In FIFA Global Series Spawn Point Nov 26, 2021·3 min read

Mumbai City FC, the defending champions of the Indian Super League, in a landmark announcement, launched their esports team, on November 25, 2021.

Mumbai City FC have signed Saksham ‘Sakky’ Rattan and Siddh ‘Jenasidfc’ Chandarana to represent the club in all FIFA 22 events on the national as well as the international stage. The duo would also be representing the club at the FIFA Global Series, in both the 1v1 and 2v2 competitions, as well.



Both Saksham and Siddh have stood third and fifth respectively, in India. They have also won various tournaments representing India at various international competitions, such as the ESL Asia Cup and the FIFA eNations Series.



According to the CEO of the Mumbai City FC, Kandarp Chandra, “Gaming and Esports have brought another dimension to sport and we recognise the potential it has and the impact it can have on the football landscape in India. Through the power of Esports, we intend to increase our presence not just in India but globally and harness it to give our fans a holistic experience of supporting their favourite club, both on and off the pitch”.



Saksham Rattan & Siddh Chandarana Will Represent Mumbai City FC At The FIFA Global Series This Year

Mumbai City are delighted to announce our entry into #Esports, becoming the 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 Indian club to field a team in the #FIFAGlobalSeries 🎮⚽

Introducing our professional FIFA players — Saksham ‘Sakky’ Rattan and Siddh ‘Jenasidfc’ Chandarana! 👋#MumbaiCity #AamchiCity 🔵 pic.twitter.com/okykpkfIsP



— Mumbai City FC (@MumbaiCityFC) November 25, 2021



Speaking of the announcement, the twenty six year old Saksham Rattan has to say, “It’s a huge honour for me to be representing the best club in India. Mumbai City have ambitions to be at the very top, and that can be seen through the success the Club has achieved not only on the pitch but also off it in recent times. Seeing the direction the club are in is an inspiration to me and I am ready to do my best for Mumbai City along with my good friend Siddh”.



Siddh Chandarana, the twenty one year old native of Mumbai, said, “Being a Mumbai boy and a Mumbai City fan, it was impossible for me to turn down the opportunity to represent my home club. I know what it means to be a Mumbaikar, to live and feel that spirit of the city. Saksham and I have played together and against each other plenty of times and we’re prepared to take this challenge head on”.



We post the latest updates and insights from the world of gaming. For the latest news, updates, rumours and insights from the video games industry, upcoming games, new releases, game recommendations and much more, do keep an eye out on our space!



Source: Twitter/Firstpost
Rainbow Six Siege: ATHERIS ESPORTS You will miss the qualifying to Six Invitational 2022
Tags: Latin American, Atheris, Esports, Closed Qualifier, Atheris Esports

Rainbow Six Siege: ATHERIS ESPORTS You will miss the qualifying to Six Invitational 2022 Marcospatellisy Dec 23, 2021·2 min read

OTHERS ESPORTS Winner a place in the closed qualifiers for the Six Invitational 2022. The Latin American set was on the list to travel and have one of its most important competitions, but the plans changed last second. Through an official statement, it was updated about the correctness of the Division of Rainbow Six Siege.

On December 21, Others Esports shared that, due to a situation out of reach, can not be in the closed qualifier for the Invitational Six. It was not in detail about what forced to withdraw from the competition. Travel restrictions have increased by the pandemic we continue to cross, for this reason and by not fully complying with the requested Protocol, we will not be able to travel to Brazil, resulting in the end of our competitive year, he wrote.

We regret that you have had to be so abruptly, which takes us by surprise both the players and the organization in general, the team added. Others Esports had a year at the Top 2 of the Mexican Championship, but failed to translate it into the ELITE SIX Cups. In the interregional, Phoenix ESPORTS achieved better positions to earn direct invitation to the closed qualifier. In the grand final of the tournament, he could not take the fifth map, leaving a few rounds from being champion.

The official statement closes with supporting its players and members. In Others, we respect the freedom of decision of each of our players, with all my heart, we hope to continue with their support in 2022, he said. In this way, the Snakes’ campaign 2021–2022 reaches an end, leaving waiting for the beginning of the Mexican Championship 2022.

On the other teams, so far there are no situations equal to those of Others Esports. However, being five squads instead of six, there is probably a slight adjustment in the competitive format.
Why I Joined Pluck
By: Erik Lydecker
Tags: Nft, Gaming, Esport, Metaverse

Lucas Mohamad, Regional Manager LATAM at Pluck

Wow, I hardly even know where to begin… I grew up on the outskirts of the Brazilian capital, Brasilia. I always loved gaming, but growing up, we could hardly afford the gear to play, let alone to develop games, so I never thought of it as a possible career path. As my father worked himself up the corporate ladder, we were able to move to a better area and I got inspired to study civil engineering and subsequently to follow in his footsteps.

While I was fairly successful in pursuing a “traditional” career path, I still felt that something was missing. Until an opportunity to work in esports came along and literally changed my world.

Not in my wildest dreams had I imagined that working with esports could be an actual career option — especially not for someone like me. While I have played video games since I learned how to tap a keyboard, the professional side of esports just hasn’t been available in my world…

However, while definitely in my element industry-wise, after a couple of years in one of the oldest and most traditional esports organizations in the world, some of its deeply rooted organizational challenges started to feel overwhelming and I began thinking about new opportunities.

That’s when Erik reached out to me and introduced me to Pluck. And it was love at first sight!

Pluck as an organization is much more than a company trying to enrich itself. The founders, as well as all people that have joined or are joining, share a vision to create a better and more democratically accessible world for gamers and, by extension, the human species, as we enter the “metaverse era”.

To me, Pluck as an employer is so much more than just that. It’s an enabler for me to do what I love most while helping people that share my passion for esports to earn a living while pursuing their dream.

Pluck is set to “empower one billion gamers”. I am one of those gamers. To have the opportunity to pay it forward, and to motivate, inspire, and enable like minded gamers to realize their wildest dreams and aspirations is frankly an honour.
The Ratio Post | Raleigh Recap
By: Katy Rigol
Tags: Gaming, Esport, Halo, Opinion, Halo Infinite

The Ratio Post | Raleigh Recap

What’s Next for FormaL?

The CoD retiree stepped in for Sentinels’ Royal2, who was was temporarily suspended for geo-filtering. Unfazed by his previous loyalty to OpTic Gaming, FormaL finished off the Green Wave with a rocket and the 50th Sentinel slay in Streets.

But with Royal2’s return inevitable, where will FormaL go next?

The majority of speculation is sending him to 100 Thieves, who are reportedly looking to enter Halo esports. I’d have to agree this is the most likely landing spot; Fnatic has already hinted their roster will be comprised of players we “probably haven’t heard of yet.” And we’ve definitely heard of FormaL.

I think it’s highly likely 100 Thieves, owned by someone very familiar with the CoD scene from which FormaL came, will offer the best incentives. Furthermore, it just feels like it makes sense: “100T FormaL.” It’s a gut feeling.

Renegade vs Lucid: Who’s Infinite’s Best?

Infinite’s latest LAN tournament is in the books, with Renegade-led Cloud9 on the cover. The Kickoff Major champs beat bitter rivals OpTic, who were led by arguably the best player until Sunday — Lucid.

Does C9’s massive LAN victory and OpTic’s elimination put Renegade ahead in this race?

To me, asking which player is the best is like asking who’s the better quarterback: Patrick Mahomes or Lamar Jackson? Well, it doesn’t really matter: Mahomes leads the Chiefs successfully, and Jackson leads the Ravens successfully. Neither team would trade their QB for the other.

The same can be said for C9 and OpTic, Renegade and Lucid.

~Like what you’ve read so far? Read the full article and rest of my opinions on The Ratio Post, a Patreon-exclusive.
MSI
Tags: Video Games, Gaming, Esports

We have some disappointing news to share with our fans today. After all of us received invitations and negotiated with Riot Games to join the broadcast crew for this year’s Mid-Season Invitational, we failed to arrive at an industry standard rate for our services and therefore cannot work as casters in Shanghai.

We set out at the beginning of this year to determine average freelance rates in the eSports market and conducted a survey of contracts received by casters across titles including Counter Strike: Global Offensive, DotA 2, Starcraft 2, Halo 5, and Hearthstone. We were surprised to discover from our peers that Riot’s offer to us was approximately 40% to 70% of the rate received by talent for major events in all of these titles. We shared these rates with Riot in the hope of reaching an agreement commensurate with the market but, while they offered a nominal increase, their deal remained far below industry standard for 2016.

Since we are freelancers and not Riot employees, we rely on these contracts for our income and feel that we would damage our careers in the long term by accepting below-market rates. Furthermore, by agreeing to a significantly lower wage we fear that we may contribute to the regression of standards for freelance casters in the industry as a whole.

We love League of Legends and working with Riot Games’ world-class production team, and we are disappointed we cannot contribute to an excellent event like MSI. We would also like to apologize to our fans who were expecting us to join the casting line-up in Shanghai since you have supported us over the years and we hate to let you down.

We hope that Riot Games will reconsider their rates for freelancers so we can collaborate again in the future. In the meantime, you can continue to watch our League of Legends broadcasts on OGN and at upcoming international events not produced by Riot Games.

Christopher “MonteCristo” Mykles

Erik “DoA” Lonnquist

Christopher “PapaSmithy” Smith
MetaPlayers Presale on PinkSale
By: Gg Metaplayers
Tags: Pinksale, Gaming, Esport, Presales, Crypto

We are pleased to announce that our presale has been created on Pinksale. At the same time we would like to inform our community that we’ve passed Pinksale’s KYC procedure and will be hosting an AMA in their official Telegram group on Dec 15th, Wednesday 19.00 UTC.

Link for the presale: https://www.pinksale.finance/#/launchpad/0x0dE6e2e9eFB656a83Ead3fc45c79caCbd54fBDfe?chain=BSC

Information on the presale:

Date: Dec 17th, Friday 19.00 UTC

Hardcap: 1000 BNB

Whitelist: 1000x Tier1 (Guaranteed spots) / 500x Tier2

Maximum buy: 1 BNB

Presale rate: 1 BNB = 156,800 FPS

Listing rate: 1 BNB = 156,800 FPS

Liquidity percent: 70%

Listing on: Pancakeswap (Within 24 hours after presale is closed.)

Vesting information:

25% unlocked on launch, 25% unlocked every 7 days after.

After discussing this topic with professional traders and project leaders from the industry, we have came to the conclusion that having vesting on the presale tokens is a good tool for us to build up more buying power post- launch. In the following weeks, we will be running hardcore marketing on several channels and will be publishing some further news and announcements.

If you don’t want to miss out on any updates, join our Telegram channels:

https://t.me/MetaPlayersGG

https://t.me/MetaPlayersAnnouncements
Get ready for the VCT Champions with PandaScore Valorant post-game stats
By: Laurent, Strift
Tags: Valorant, API, Esports, Esports Data, Statistics

PandaScore stats API go beyond post-game recaps. It provides dedicated endpoints for stats aggregates. Our flexible data structure enables computing stats over various time ranges. Want to get stats for the latest 5-game series? Or only during the playoffs? What about over the whole year? It’s now just one API call away.

Let’s say we want to get the Average Damage per Round (ADR) from Gambit Esports’ star player, Ayaz “nAts” Akhmetshin over the entire Berlin Masters.

curl https://api.pandascore.co/valorant/series/3919/players/32845/stats

nAts stats during the VCT Berlin Masters

Harnessing all of this data easily is now possible with PandaScore’s Valorant Historical Data plan.

Fixtures, results, and Valorant game data — for free!

Tournaments schedule and rosters are the foundation of most esports products. With PandaScore APIs, fixtures, results, and pre-match teams and players data all come for free. It’s why we’re expanding our plan so everyone can hop aboard the Valorant hype train 🚂

By making Valorant pre-match data available for free, we hope to witness more projects born in the industry. The pre-match data enables integration of calendars and results into any media, which has proven beneficial to user engagement and SEO for our customers.
Down to the Wire
By: Matthew St. Amand
Tags: Mental Health, Cycling, Exercise, Winter Exercises

It just wasn’t happening today.

My goal is to cycle 18,000 km in the calendar year of 2021, and I am very close. Close makes me nervous because “close” doesn’t mean it I have it. I don’t have it yet — but I’m close.

Woke this morning feeling terrible. I have cycled 48 out of the last 50 days, and I was struck this morning by how much exercise leaves me feeling like I have hangover. Body aches. Headache. Fatigue. Coffee chased most of it away.

My goal for this week was to ride between 33–35 km each morning. I’m cycling on my trainer in my basement. If I were riding outside, I can do 100 km a day in minimally acceptable weather (at least 40° F, wind at no more than 9 mph wind). In three days my goal for the trainer would equal 100 km. In six days, I’d have 18,000 km.

This morning, it just wasn’t happening.

I usually thrive only on coffee in the morning. Might put a Gatorade in the drink cage on the bike for during the trainer ride (and certainly for riding outside), along with my water. Sometimes I drink one of those espresso power drinks by Starbucks, but I try to do that sparingly. That said, they are like rocket fuel.

I have tried eating in the morning, before working out, but it’s just not for me. I don’t do well with food on my stomach. Everyone is different, and I’m tired of the advice that doesn’t work for me. For many years, I was stupid enough to share with others what I was doing, and I’ve only ever encountered tsk-tsking and correction: “Oh, you should be doing this…” No more. I still seek advice, but I am much more selective.

I’ve had people tell me, “Oh, you have to eat in the morning. It’s like turning up the thermostat in a house” — whatever that means.

I don’t need it. Feel better with out.

That advice is right up there with, “Oh, you shouldn’t be eating three meals a day. You should be eating eight small meals a day.”

Back when I was fat, I didn’t need anyone to twist my arm to eat eight times a day. It didn’t work for me. It set me back horribly.

But today, there was no hope. The fatigue caught up to me, and I did what I always do — listened to my body. I needed some rest, so I got off the bike rather than “powering through.” There are moments for “powering through.” Today wasn’t one of them.

At the risk of jinxing tomorrow’s ride, I wouldn’t be surprised if I was energetic enough to get the 51.55 km I need to put me at 17,900 km. And then three more rides of 33–34 km to achieve my goal.
I am sorry. You died last night.
By: Pamela Day
Tags: Humanity, Love, Death, San Francisco, Cycling

You were hit by a car at Howard & 7th in San Francisco when you were riding your bike through the intersection. I was a passenger in the orange prius. We saw the SUV hit you, and speed off. We screamed ‘No! No! No!’. But our screams were not heeded.

You did not know what hit you, how could you?

I wish you were made of steel

The man I was with and I ran to you. I tried to find your pulse. I couldn’t. I held your hand, someone yelled at me not to touch you. We stayed with you. You were not alone. We were loving you. We wanted to save you, help you, protect you.

The EMT came fast, and gave you CPR until they got your heart started. But you know it was not enough.

I am so sorry it wasn’t enough. I am sorry that we weren’t magic. That we couldn’t conjure a Patronus to protect you. That we were not superhuman or superheros. That we didn’t have miracles in our pockets from Elon Musk to bend time — just for 10 seconds. If we could have, we would have.

We were sorely lacking. We were just humans.

I am sorry you died last night. I knew last night you were young, I now know you were — just 26 years old. You were killed with so much life left to live, so much potential, so much in front of you. I am so sorry you died having been here so briefly.

You were loved.

Your friends and roommates have reached out — they love you so much. People who love and are loved have had the sweetest taste of life. I am thankful for those who loved you so, and I am sad you don’t get to be an old loved and loving woman.

Your friends and family know you were not alone. I told them, don’t worry. I wanted them to know that we strangers were with you, not as strangers but as your human family caring desperately for you as our own.

For a few hours last night I was holding you in full recovery. Imagining you riding your bike, laughing as if 8:24pm had never happened. Then I read that you had died.

I am so sorry you died. I am so sorry we couldn’t save you.

You did not suffer, you felt no pain. I believe you were enjoying the summer evening light, your mind thinking how beautiful it was, and that you were filled with life — with joy, because you are clearly that kind of young woman.

I know that you are now at one with your God in whatever name or form. I know that you are at peace.

I will continue to think of you in the sunshine, spending beautiful evenings, laughing with those you love. Godspeed.

I am so sorry you died last night. I will never forget you.

26-year-old Kate Slattery was killed last night, 22 June 2016 she was safely riding her bicycle and was struck by a speeding SUV running a red light at the intersection of Howard and 7th Street in San Francisco, California
Headphone Jack Repair in Bellaire TX
By: Gadget X
Tags: Headphone Jack Repair Tx, Headlines, Apple, Mobile Repair, Headphone Jack

In any case in the event that you need to get your headphone jack repair in Bellaire TX, we play out the work 100% to your determinations. If you are not ready to focus on the clear sound while the use of fingers-free or earphone, it might be the Headphone Jack Repair . You may before everything except that it’s far an earphone jack reestablish bother. If you have checked your earphone with various cell phones and it is functioning admirably, it’s miles a jack issue. This inconvenience can likewise show because of the stopped up soil inside the jack. The fundamental advances you may take is to simply the jack with a clammy toothpick.

Moreover, you may restart the cell and spot if the inconvenience has long gone. On the off chance that nothing from what was just mentioned expressed systems didn’t work, giving over the cell phone to the master’s palm is the incredible decision.

If you have a severe spending plan or a particular course of events, we carry out the responsibility right the first run through. At the point when you have to get your headphone jack fixed, ask our experts. For years, we have been giving five-star electronic fix services. Come to us and let us show you how repair services are done.

We give speedy and incredible strategy to your Headphone Jack Repair in Bellaire TX. You can want a stroll in reestablish and we will fix the cellphone inside speedy turnaround. Provide us a name and we’ll be thrilled to cope with your problem inside the first-class way viable. We are best in Broken Screen Repair in Bellaire TX.

TO VISIT OUR WEBSITE CLICK HERE ( https://gadgetx.co/headphone-jack-repair-in-bellaire-tx/)
“The Vaccine War,” “Stolen Election,” Wikipedia “badly biased”
By: Lucian Lucia
Tags: Media, Headlines, Controversy, Peace, Confrontation

Such headlines have become commonplace in our media.

More so than ever our polarization has reached new levels of uncompromise. We no longer feel that we can give an inch in our thoughts, arguments, ideals, attitudes, positions, negotiations, etc., because we believe that we would otherwise be betraying ourselves and our groupthink. Although we don’t admit it, we each subscribe to a groupthink which can create a new more powerful and comfortable identity. Groupthink generally occurs when a persuasive leader articulates a specific position inspiring members to agree with this opinion. It generally works because it validates preconceived opinions of each of the members. Its implementation is especially frightening in an organized society that relies on rules, respect, and tradition because it can turn a society upside down. We find many of these groupthinks in the US with respect to vaccinations, stolen elections, schooling, masking, and biasing. We find considerable chunks of the population subscribe to competing and often alternate views of reality. Although we can make the claim, justified or otherwise, one is right and the other is wrong, we should more than ever find the contributing factors for groupthinks and learn compromise. In other words, we should never expect to achieve 100% truth in anything in this life and must learn that its “messiness” requires new modalities or approaches for interpersonal peace-in other words, everyone owns a piece of the truth. Let us probe this idea more deeply: every society is based on the tenet, “to love one another as yourself,” which represents an internal logic we never embrace because it appears too religious, saccharine, or idealistic. Yet, at the heart of every society is the function of the whole and like any machine properly programmed, each part must work with the others regardless of how strong or weak each of them is. More importantly, each part has a different function and, therefore, we MUST plug into the “mentality” we have to integrate in order to allow the whole mechanism to work. Sometimes, a piece in this machine may represent a blind spot, or to endure more stress to allow another piece to work correctly. When this happens, should it be a matter of “fairness?” Or should we, for the good of the whole, understand that every piece is important no matter how different it is? Let me put it another way: do I think of what is best for me or do I realize that I am a cog in a wheel that works for the benefit of the WHOLE that ultimately helps me, too?
4 Tricks to Write Catchy Headlines
Tags: Writing, Content Marketing, Blogging, Headlines

How to improve your writing, and create not just a good headline, but a catchy one? No matter what your content type is, and if you’re either writing a small post or an in-depth report.

The headline is the first thing people will see on a page. Copyblogger estimated that 8 out of 10 people read the title. However, the title doesn’t keep them reading through your blog content. With these headline writing tricks, you’ll get attention from readers immediately.

Let’s get started.

Photo by Austin Chan on Unsplash

Step #1: Use numbers & data in your headline

Using numbers and data into your headline is an effective way to make your headlines more fascinating to readers. Several research studies have shown that headlines with numbers tend to generate 73% more social shares and engagement.

Step #2: Take a unique rationale into account

Use unique rationales to write great headlines. The word “rationale” simply means “an underlying reason on why something should be done.”

Some of the rationales that you can include in your headlines are: Tips, Reasons, Lessons, Tricks, Ideas, Ways, Principles, Facts, Secrets, Strategies

Step #3: Call for attention

‘Attention’ simply means mental focus and serious concentration on a given task. How to get it? Here are 4 rules to follow:

Make the headline unique

‘Unique’ means being one of a kind. In other words, your headline has to be different from others. But, how do you test for uniqueness?

Simple tip: plug it into Google and enclose the headline in double quotation marks.

Be ultra-specific

Your prospects have questions and they want answers. If you can provide them with an ultra-specific headline and the answer to their questions, you will convert them into loyal readers and customers. The more precise you are, the more authority you’ll gain in your industry.

It should convey a sense of urgency

Urgency-based headlines will always grab attention because it makes the reader anticipate what comes next. They don’t want to miss out on what’s on the other side of the headline, once it’s clicked.

Your headline has to be useful

Useful can mean several things — practical, helpful, valuable, informative, worthwhile, beneficial, advantageous and so on. The bottom line is to help the readers experience hope, knowing that their problem can still be solved.

Step #4: Use headline formulas

What makes a headline good is it’s a formula. Every content marketer has one or more formulas for writing headlines. When using formulas, make sure to include power words that will get people to buy your product or join your waiting list.
Saturday in the USA
By: Vic Fortezza
Tags: Conjoined Separated, Herb Adderly, Mini Trump And Biden, Headlines, Seal Team 6 Rescue

From foxnews.com, edited by yours truly: American hostage Phillip Walton has been rescued in Nigeria by SEAL Team 6 in a daring night raid — and there were no American casualties. Kudos to those brave souls.

If the reports are true, a NY state trooper has been transferred for the crime of dating Governor Cuomo’s daughter, who’s 25. Apparently, his totalitarian instincts go way beyond politics.

This headline from nypost.com certainly won’t fit the mainstream media’s narrative: “Man in alleged Gov. Gretchen Whitmer kidnap plot wanted to ‘hang’ Trump, Obama, Clintons.” At least someone’s non-partisan.

Lori Laughlin has begun her two-month jail sentence. Will she be shown the same consideration as the felons who have been released during the pandemic?

Headline from foxnews.com: “Fraudster attempts to register dead Americans as Dems in Florida.” I expect a record turnout in deceased voters, so many that even Haley Joe Osment wouldn’t be able to see them.

These two conjoined beauties, nine-month old Abigail and Micaela, were separated by California surgeons in a 24-hour operation. Kudos to the staff. Live long and prosper, ladies.

An Oklahoma mom came up with non-partisan Halloween costumes for her twin girls, Koti and Haven. Photo from FN:

RIP Green Bay Packers legendary CB Herb Adderly, 81. Drafted in the first round out of Michigan St. in 1961, his career spanned twelve seasons. The Hall of Famer was a member of all five of Vince Lombardi’s championship teams, including the first Super Bowl in 1967. He later added another ring under Tom Landry with the Cowboys. He intercepted 48 passes, returning seven for touchdowns, and had 14 fumble recoveries. He was first-team All-Pro four times, three-times second-team. He was named to five Pro Bowls and earned a spot on the 1960s All-Decade team. After retirement, he returned to his hometown, Philadelphia, to broadcast football games for Temple University and the Eagles. He also was an assistant coach at Temple and with the Philadelphia Bell of the World Football League under Willie Wood, a Packer teammate. Kudos, sir.

Another Packers legend, QB Brett Favre, has endorsed President Trump. Thank you, sir.

The return of the floating book shop after two days of rain was met with almost complete indifference by the public. My thanks to the gentleman who bought a book in Russia, who had me wondering if he would not have made the purchase had he been sober; and to Monse`, who donated five works of non-fiction; and to Lou and Bill, who stopped and schmoozed for a bit.

My Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Vic-Fortezza/e/B002M4NLJE

FB: https://www.facebook.com/Vic-Fortezza-Author-118397641564801/?fref=ts

Read Vic’s Stories, free: http://fictionaut.com/users/vic-fortezza
Backed by Science: the 25-Headline Upworthy Challenge
Tags: Content Marketing, Startup, Headlines

How we tested

Headline testing at Upworthy involves a dubious fairytale contraption to which they refer as the Magical Unicorn Box. If you’re not outfitted with one of these jobbies, that’s okay, because to test your headlines, all you really need is traffic, time, and Twitter. We followed Buffer’s protocol, which you can read more about here.

With Twitter as our lab, we sent out 4 title variations for each of the 4 articles we tested, then tracked which was the star performer. The system’s far from perfect, but the results were pretty clear.

Below is an example of one of our tests. I was deeply in love with the original title I concocted: it contained both a pun and a half-baked literary allusion to a classic Raymond Carver story. (Again — two lit degrees. I know.)

Sadly, it was not my beloved punnery that drummed up the most interest in the Twittersphere. Rather, the very simple, descriptive “4 Ways Sensational Headlines Might be Doing a Number on Your Brain” won out. And based on other tests we’ve been doing and even more reading, this makes sense. Here’s why:

What we know now

Truth #1: Descriptive headlines are the new black.

The “4 Ways” headline isn’t clever, it isn’t shocking, and there’s little curiosity gappage. According to our best source on which headlines grab the most eyes — (Yep, that’s Upworthy. They have data.) — descriptive headlines that reveal exactly what the content is are starting to rule them all.

Truth #2: We like being talked to like humans.

The above winning title talks to people like I’d talk to people if we were having a conversation. In fact, this entire article is written in a fashion I’d call conversational. Over all, people tended to respond best to headlines free from puns and any academic posturing. Turns out my mum was right: nobody likes a smartass.

Truth #3: A little jolt of fear or uncertainty goes a long way.

Nobody’s suggesting scare tactics here — in fact, I draw myself in full opposition to sensational headlineage. But the truth remains that by hinting in a headline at something a person might miss, that they might be being bamboozled, or suggesting that they’re doin’ it (whatever “it” is) wrong, you’re going to get more eyes.

Truth #4: People love numbered listicles.

They love them. You love them. I love them, even though I don’t like to admit it. The beauty of “4 Ways”-type lists is that they provide a simple, structured way for our brains to prepare for and organize the information we’re about to consume.

They also give us a very clear idea as to what sort of commitment we’re making to a text right up front, allowing us to choose to read now, read later, or TL;DR — read never.
Debts
By: Vic Fortezza
Tags: Fb Vs Parler, Books, Headlines, Loan Forgiveness, Modern Warriors

Headline from foxnews.com: “Attacker targeting pro-Trump marchers ID’d as journalism student.” He’ll fit right in with the mainstream media — immediate hire.

Here’s a sad headline from FN: “Twitter says Antifa-aligned group cheering alleged arson at police officer’s home is allowed.” What if it were a right-wing group cheering a Democrat’s house being burned down?

Another FN headline: “Michael J. Fox thinks his Republican ‘Family Ties’ character wouldn’t support Trump.” To no one’s surprise, Alex Keaton is a RINO.

Except for the political posts, I enjoy Facebook. Some of my friends are moving to a site named Parler. I balked because it asked for my phone number. I always refuse FB requests for it. I also got to thinking why would I want to join a site simply because it’s supposedly neutral politically. I would prefer a site completely without politics. Would it be possible for FB and Twitter to prevent political posts from reaching the feed of anyone who wished to opt out from them? Then again, as I’ve told many friends — scroll, baby, scroll! Duh!

Leftists icons AOC, Ilan Omar and Rashida Tlaib are pushing for student loan forgiveness. Each has such debt. The starting salary of a member of the House of Representatives is $174,000. What kind of economics is this? By the way, should such forgiveness include sending a check to anyone who has honorably honored his/her debt? If not, why not?

Here’s a book to be published 11/24:

It’s always great when someone comes along you hadn’t seen since pre-pandemic. My thanks to Ludmila, who picked up where she left off, buying four books in Russian; and to the woman who selected two of same; and to Wolf, who purchased one in Russian and one in Hebrew; and to Maria, who took home two books on Anne Frank, one on brain health, and How to Make Love to a Man by Alexandra Penney; and to Ira, who chose a book on pranks; and to my constant benefactress, who donated five works of non-fiction; and to whoever (whomever?) left the sealed plastic bag filled with books, half in Russian, half English, in the garden of the apartment building where I set up shop.

My Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Vic-Fortezza/e/B002M4NLJE

FB: https://www.facebook.com/Vic-Fortezza-Author-118397641564801/?fref=ts

Read Vic’s Stories, free: http://fictionaut.com/users/vic-fortezza
Land Rover | Range Rover
By: Say It Great
Tags: Print, Land Rover, Headlines, Cars, Advertising

The Range Rover must have been a tough car to sell when it first launched in 1970. A boxy, huge, gas-guzzling SUV that cost a pretty penny. It doesn’t exactly sound luxurious.

So, it makes sense that they would trot out some of the best ad headlines ever written, because beyond the obvious, unappealing qualities, they’re pretty bad ass vehicles.

If the different designs of the car isn’t enough to make it obious, these ads aren’t all from the same campaiang. I grabbed these off the Sporty and Rich Instagram profile, which can be a little NSFW sometimes, and thought I’d share here, because they’re sweet examples of well-crafted headlines. I’d probably never be out of work if I had even one of these in my portfolio. The voice is so crisp and subtle, some of the executions practically beg for a double take.

For example, I was tripped up by this one , until I realized the story it was succinctly telling.

You can’t get to that kind of view in most luxury cars and probably not any, in the year that this ran (I may be wrong, but Range Rover invented the category of Luxury SUV and I’m pretty sure it was all by it’s lonesome for a couple of years). This ad is simply a brilliant pice of writing.

Speaking of brilliant writing, what a great way to simply tell the audience that the car is safe:

They’ve got a bunch of others, of course, but below are some of my other favorites.

I’ll leave off with perhaps my favorite line of the bunch. Of course, it doesn’t work as well without the visual, but it doesn’t really speak to the visual. It’s a pretty straight line, but cleverly mocks two different uses of the vehicle at once. It says this machine is so amazing, you could literally drive to a desert cliff and be find, or you could just use it to drive down the street to pick or drop off stuff. If I could ever afford such a silly vehicle, I’d probably only do the latter, but I’d always feel like I’m doing the former.
Trash headlines and junk info, Fakey challenges a news pro
By: Happy Place Chronicles
Tags: Fake, Headlines, Fake News, Politics, News

Screenshot of Fakey game

I played Fakey on my laptop, and after reading the ID Tech blog about different types of games, I believe Fakey could fit into a few genres and subgenres. First I considered Fakey to be a Puzzle/logic game because it requires some analysis to determine if a news story is coming from a reliable source and can be trusted. All told, Fakey probably fits the Idle/educational genre the most as it is commonly referred to as “a news literacy game.”

Once I started researching who plays Fakey, it seemed like this game is mostly used as an educational tool. The game was developed by the Network Science Institute at the University of Indiana, and in an interview this year with Poynter, a doctoral student working on the project said he has heard from many people interested in using the game in the classroom.

I like that Fakey challenges players to consider different elements of a true story. When first introduced to this game, I learned how much a screenshot from a cable news source can legitimize a trash headline. Just when I thought I was an expert at spotting fake news, I’d play again and my score would be lower than the time before! I played Fakey a handful of times before I got disappointed in myself, but I would definitely play again.

I like that Fakey expects you to consider a news item by headline only, realistically portraying a common behavior these days to share junk news on social media without actually reading it. Developers had to somehow determine what types of outlets are truthful and which are not. If you are into politics (and this is where fake news gets us in trouble) you might be baffled when docked for trusting certain political news sites.

Fakey mimics common social media functions.

Fakey could very well fit into the simulation category because the game is designed to look like a social media feed, urging users to like or share a post depending on the link’s reliability as a new source. This is the primary way Fakey integrates social media.
3 “Must-Know” Headlines for the Holidays
By: Alex Singleton
Tags: Travel, Wellness, Headlines, Stocks, News

3 “Must-Know” Headlines for the Holidays

S&P 500 companies repurchased $234.6 billion in shares during this previous third quarter of 2021, surpassing the previous record of $223 billion set back in 2018 according to S&P Dow Jones Indices. Stock repurchases can be used by managers to reduce the number of company shares outstanding, which in turn drives-up shareholder value per share. Repurchases can also be used as a method to signal to investors optimism and confidence in the company’s financial position. Analysts expect this trend to continue into 2022 suggesting more “buybacks” of this magnitude are coming.

Singleton Explore’s top five U.S holiday travel destinations selection for 2021 include — New York, New York, Park City, Utah, McAdenville, NC, Leavenworth, Washington, and North Pole, Alaska.

At the top of the list, New York City during the holidays provides a wide range of experiences for travelers seeking an urban getaway. If you’re looking for skiing, Park City, Utah is the perfect escape with an annual Electric Parade in November. Back to the east coast, Christmas Town USA or McAdenville, NC displays an immersive show of around a half-million lights and over 200 evergreen trees. Located on the eastern side of the Cascades, Leavenworth, Washington is a beautiful Bavarian village with jaw-dropping snowcapped mountaintops. How about a trip to the North Pole? Drive through Santa Clause Lane or Kris Kringle Drive during the day and then catch a stunning light show in the evening — The Northern Lights.

As we approach our second year living and working through the pandemic, Americans are feeling the holiday pressures. A recent study from Eagle Hill Consulting revealed that about 53% of U.S employees are experiencing burnout. In particular, younger workers and women are reported to have the highest levels of stress. With end-of-year deadlines, performance reviews, and personal obligations approaching, this time of year can become stressful for many people. Some key ways to help mitigate the holiday stress include –

· “Chunk” tasks/work assignments

· Overcommunicate

· Integrate your work and personal schedules

· Leverage hybrid working
SA Vs IND: India Win At Centurion
By: Baba Cric
Tags: Cricket, Savsind, Asianteamtowin

India became the first Asian team to win a Test match at Centurion after a crushing 113-run victory over South Africa on Thursday. India became the first Asian team to win a Test match at Centurion after a crushing 113-run victory over South Africa on Thursday.

Read more: Happy Birthday England Cricketer Joe Root

Read more: STR vs THU Dream11 Prediction Today with Playing XI, Pitch Report & Player Stats

This is a historic win for India at Centurion-

After the Gabba, Team India has once again breached another fortress and this time it is the Centurion as the visitors win by 113 runs at SuperSport Park on Thursday (December 30). South Africa is still unconquered territory for India, and with this win, the Men in Blue have taken a 1–0 lead in the three-match Test series.

2021 — It is the second time India have had won four Tests outside Asia in a calendar year (Brisbane, Lord’s, Oval, Centurion). The last time this took place was in 2018 (Jo’burg, Nottingham, Adelaide, Melbourne).

Read more: Arjun Tendulkar included in Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy squad

India’s Test wins in South Africa:

123 runs Jo’burg 2006/07

87 runs Durban 2010/11

63 runs Jo’burg 2017/18

113 runs Centurion 2021/22
1954 FIFA World Cup — Football’s 83 moment?
By: Sameer Shekhawat
Tags: India, World Cup, Germany, Cricket, Fifa World Cup

In their run-up to the final, West Germany had to overcome two very good teams in Yugoslavia and Austria. But they were fortunate to avoid heavyweights like England, Brazil, and 2-time winners Uruguay. India, on the other hand, defeated former runners-up Australia and England to reach the final, making it a more comprehensive effort.

In the finals, both the underdogs found themselves at backfoot very early in the game. Hungary was up by two goals within the first 8 minutes itself. By sheer determination, a lot of luck, and some breath-taking football by Helmut Rahn, West Germany pulled two back within the next 10 minutes. The scoreboard read 2–2 by the 18th minute. From then onwards, the Germans put up very stiff resistance, fighting tooth and nail for each ball until Rahn scored the winner in the 84th minute.

Batting first in the 1983 final, India too was in for a shock when Gavaskar got out at the score of just 2. Apart from Srikkanth, no other Indian batsman got past 30 and the team was 6 wickets down for just 111. Important contributions from tailenders helped India put up a fighting total of 183. After the early wicket of Greenidge, Haynes and Richards were putting up a strong partnership before Madan Lal got them both out. Post this, India put on a disciplined bowling performance and managed to restrict the Windies at 140.

At this point, a word on Ferenc Puskas and Viv Richards. The former was the captain of the Hungary team while the latter was a figurative leader for the Windies. Both these names have gone down in history as one of the greatest ever exponents of their respective sports. At the same time, both of them came close to winning the concerned finals. Two minutes after Rahn made the score 3–2 in favor of West Germany in the 84th minute, Puskas appeared to have equalized for Hungary. But the goal was deemed offside (wrongly, as per some of the viewers). Richards, who had scored a century against India in the tournament before, was sailing at 33 of 27 before Kail Dev pulled a belter of a catch.