fabiochiu/medium-articles huggingface dataset:
Pyvis: Visualize Interactive Network Graphs in Python
By: Khuyen Tran
Tags: Visualization, Data Visualization, Graph Database, Python, Network

Wouldn’t it be nice if you could visualize their connections using an interactive network graph like below?

GIF by Author

That is when pyvis comes in handy.

What is Pyvis?

Pyvis is a Python library that allows you to create interactive network graphs in a few lines of code.

To install pyvis, type:

pip install pyvis

Add Nodes

To add nodes to the network graph, simply use net.add_node(id, label) . id is unique to each node. label is used to display the node’s label in the graph.

After running net.show('nodes.html') , a file named nodes.html should be saved to your current directory. You can interact with it like below.

To view the graph in your Jupyter Notebook, simply add the parameter notebook=True to Network .

Image by Author

Add a List of Nodes

If you have many nodes, you might wish to add a list of nodes instead. That could be done with the add_nodes method.

Nice! Let’s make our nodes look a little bit more interesting by adding colors to them.

Having nodes alone is not fun. Let’s figure out how to connect these nodes together with edges.

Add Edges

To add edges to the graph, use the add_edge method. This method takes the source of the edge and the edge destination.

To add multiple edges at once, use add_edges , whose parameter is a list of tuples.

Cool! But what if some edges have larger weights than the others (.i.e, Oliver might like Alex more than Michael)?

We can specify the weight of each edge by adding the parameter value to add_edge or by adding the third value to each tuple of add_edges .

Now edges connecting to a specific node will be highlighted when you select that node.

GIF by Author

Adjust Node Distance and Spring Length

Node distance is the distance between nodes. Spring length is the rest length of the edges.

We can adjust the distance between nodes and the spring length by using the repulsion method. Let’s see how the plot changes as we change the parameter node_distance and the parameter spring_length .

Default:

Increase spring length:

Increase node distance:

Solve a Matching Problem with a Network Graph

Let’s apply what we learn so far to solve the problem mentioned at the beginning of the article.
CXL Institute Digital Analytics Minidegree Review — Week 2
By: Alex Spelucín
Tags: Google Analytics, Audit, Digital Analytics, Cxl

Review of my second week of learning Digital Analytics at the CXL Institute. I will publish a post every Monday reviewing what I’ve learned on the mini-degree. This is the second of twelve posts. Enjoy!

The case for a Google Analytics Audit

Google Analytics is one of the most used tools in digital marketing. Despite its accessibility and zero-cost, is not a plug-and-play affair.

Google Analytics is a data storage platform underneath and its reports and based on very well-defined rules of pre-set conditions to determine what data represents what and how to interpret it for reporting purposes.

It becomes increasingly paramount for a Google Analytics implementation to be as aligned to the platform’s data interpretation requirements as possible.

That said, any Google Analytics expert should be able to call any inconsistency and flaws in the data collected. This is when a fully-fledged Google Analytics audit comes into place.

In an ideal world, analysts would be worried about exploration, analysis, learning, and visualization. The reality is vastly different: we have deadlines, deliverables, and actions you need to take on data. This is why we need to spend time and resources auditing our data collection, so we can reassure we have quality data assets.

To achieve this end-goal, it is essential to determine the current state of the implementation and what it will take to make it successful and deliver value to the business from now on.

Where to start?

A successful audit is a combination of technical skills, analytical thinking, and common sense. Like most audits, the Google Analytics audit begins by analyzing the basics and then digging deeper into each area of the implementation.

The audit report categorizes each finding into one of the four categories of the Eisenhower matrix:

Important and Urgent

Important but Not Urgent

Not Important but Urgent

Not Important and Not Urgent

The Eisenhower matrix is a four-quadrant matrix to prioritize what problems we should handle immediately and what problem we can eliminate because it is not important and not urgent.

The ones to focus on rectifying the implementation based on the auditor’s report are the first two — Important and Urgent & Important but Not Urgent.

Tools of the trade

We need the following tools to perform a successful audit:
REMARKETING CAN YOU MOST POWERFUL LEAD GENERATION TOOL
Tags: Remarketing, Video Marketing, Google Analytics, Lead Generation, Youtube Marketing

Remarketing is known as one of the most prominent methods for boosting your return on investment (ROI), especially spent over paid advertising campaigns. Nevertheless, the PPC feature is something that can even assist you in getting back your previous visitors back to the website.

This article will highlight some remarketing tricks that you can use for nurturing your sales process for getting back your existing customers back to make more purchases.

Below are 3 remarketing strategies for B2B lead generation you must try:

YouTube is The Most Powerful Lead Generation Tool:

Leveraging YouTube should be your priority when remarketing as this approach works firsthand and augments lead generation.

How does it work?

You can start with creating your YouTube video data or a brief video content describing your brand story. This is a most powerful tool been practiced by key B2B players because if an individual comes to view any of your videos and then visits your website, you know who they are. This aids you in covering a more specific targeting method for maximizing your power over who you are targeting.

Moreover, you can even retarget your video’s viewers who have also visited channels similar to yours but don’t belong you. The only condition that is applicable is: you can target only those users who have visited your channel first.

Video campaigns

Content marketing is a buzzword that is very common these days and is used by almost everyone. However, not everyone is leveraging video content marketing, a most powerful trick of generating leads. Wondering how to start? You can start the Director Onsite program by YouTube for creating a premium quality video, where you don’t need to worry about working on a script and post-editing tasks. Everything will be done by YouTube’s team.

You just need to start focusing on remarketing as soon as you receive your video asset.

Google Analytics

This is one of the easiest known methods of identifying visitors with maximum purchase intent for B2B marketers. For achieving the best possible result you can create segments for Google Analytics depending upon different user behaviors and criteria. For instance: Visitors who convert easily and Visitors who are just spending time on your website can either be a reader or a competitor.

Segmentation will not only help you in quickly identifying the percentage of website visitors meeting your set criteria, but it can easily be compared with your average website visitor generating useful insights.
Nugget of the week — Turning a funding failure into a win
By: John Siracusa
Tags: Podcast, Fundraising, Founders, Google Analytics, Fintech

This nugget was pulled from episode 160 from an interview with Brett Crosby, co-founder & COO of PeerStreet. This nugget is on turning a funding failure into a win.

Subscribe to Bank On It podcast on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spotify and iHeartRadio and you’ll get these nuggets delivered every Wednesday morning.

What happens when a failed funding round occurs? Sometimes it means systemic failure, and sometimes it means one door closed for a better one to open.

This happens all the time, but building a company from scratch only to have a funding round disappear at the last moment can be painful. But if we’re prepared and paying attention, something better shows up. Luck is a mixture of hard work, preparation and being in the right place at the right time. In this clip Brett talks about a failed A round at his company Urchin Software. And then selling to Google, which became the origin of Google Analytics.

What is a nugget of the week?:

To date I’ve recorded over 300 episodes on my shows Bank On It & Before the A fintech podcasts where I interview founders building the future of fintech and the VCS/Angels who fund them.

With each interview there’s this wow moment when the person interviewed has shared something really special, unique or a reminder on how founders or investors should think. So, here we are delivering those moments to you in the form of a bite sized nugget.

This nugget is about 11 minutes:

About Brett Crosby:

Brett is the co-founder and COO of PeerStreet, a platform for investing in real estate-backed loans. Crosby was previously the director of product marketing at Google, where he co-founded Google Analytics, helped start Google’s mobile advertising business and recently ran the global marketing teams responsible for the growth of Chrome, Gmail, Docs and Drive.

About me:

I’m the host of the ‘Bank On It’ podcast recorded onsite in Wall Street at OpenFin and ‘Before the A’ podcast recorded onsite in Flat Iron at Barclays/Techstars Rise NYC. Stay in the fintech know by subscribing to ‘Bank On It’, ‘Before the A’

Follow me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Medium
Relative Mobile Conversion Rate Dashboard
By: Nicolás Deyros
Tags: Google Analytics, Data Studio, Analytics

Below you’ll find a step by step procedure for reproducing Rel mCvr report in Google Data Studio. In order to create this dashboard you need to take into consideration the following steps:

1. Data Source

You should use the blended data of the same data source.

The join keys you should select are:

Date

Week of year and Week of the year

Month of year and Month of the year

After that you should proceed and select the following metrics:

Speed Metrics Sample

Ecommerce Conversion Rate

Sessions

Avg. Page Load Time (sec)

Revenue

As you can see, in the image below, you should rename the metrics adding “Mobile” or “Desktop” for differentiation purposes.

2. Filters

You should apply filters to each data source before you blend them.

You should create two filters, one for mobile and the other for desktop. To perform this task, just include the information from the metric “Device Category” equal to mobile or desktop (example below)

3. Relative Mobile Conversion Rate Formula

The process, for calculating the formula of the Rel mCvR, is that you should create a custom field. The formula is the following:

SUM(NARY_MAX(Mobile Ecommerce Conversion Rate,0))/SUM(NARY_MAX(Desktop Ecommerce Conversion Rate,0))

The image below shows you the process for creating a custom calculated field, adding the formula and the define the type as a percent.

Video

Final thoughts

As mentioned at the beginning of this article, Lina’s post is a must-read in order to get a deep understanding of the Relative Mobile Conversion Rate (Rel mCvR).

Don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any doubts or if you need help.

Originally published at https://www.linkedin.com.
The James Niu Wolfgramm Charitable Foundation (formerly First Hand) is building healthier tomorrows…
By: James Niu Wolfgramm Foundation
Tags: Google, Google Cloud Platform, James Niu Wolfgramm, Google Image Charts, Google Analytics

The James Niu Wolfgramm Charitable Foundation (formerly First Hand) is building healthier tomorrows and stronger communities around the world through individual medical grants and wellness programs, engaging volunteerism, community initiatives and strategic partnerships.“Thank you for giving us hope.” A patient said that to me at the first Operation Safe vaccination clinic, and the sentiment has been echoed by countless others throughout the 12 weeks, 32 clinics and nearly 100,000 COVID-19 vaccines administered since.Our covid-19 Vaccine program patients were guided every step of the way by dedicated volunteers. Whether directing traffic, registering patients, administering vaccines or sanitizing the recovery area, volunteers powered every component of Operation Safe. Led by the James Niu Wolfgramm Charitable Foundation team, volunteers from Jane Niu, coalition partner organizations, and the community worked together to deliver hope and ensure a world-class patient experience for all in Hawaii.
Quick Tips: How To Reduce Spam and Bot Hits in Google Analytics
By: Kubix Digital
Tags: Data Analysis, Spam, Data Analytics, Google Analytics, Analytics

Although the spam problem mostly disappeared from the email-world, that doesn’t mean it no longer exists. There is still a huge spam and bot activity going on, on the web. Especially on free tools like Google Analytics, spam and bot activity can add noise to your data. Spam-generated data can range from a small percentage to more than a quarter of your overall traffic.

To keep your Google Analytics data clean and safe, here are 5 things you can do to reduce spam and bot activity:

Tick the Bot Filtering checkbox inside the Google Analytics View Settings.

checkbox inside the Google Analytics View Settings. Create filters for spam and bot activity. Remove Campaign Sources like “.*seo.*|.*free.*|.*get-google.*”

Block IP addresses of known spam or bots.

Check your Network or Hostname sources inside Google Analytics to see if there is any unknown activity. Accept only the ones from your own hostname.

Check for Language Spammer. Some sophisticated spammers use non-standard language settings.

Pro tip: Check for ‘ zero page view’ or ‘ zero time spend ‘ on-site reports and their sources. Those might already show you the source of the spam.
Calculate Remaining Days of a Month in Data Studio
By: Alexandra Poulopoulou
Tags: Visualization, Google Data Studio, Dashboard, Digital Marketing, Google Analytics

The process

For my own task, I used a Google Ads data source. You can, of course, use your own data source, but you have to adjust the fields properly, in order for the solution to work.

The thought behind the process: What fields do I need?

One field with the Days of each month One field with the Remaining days of the current month

We will need some extra modifications through the process, but the main idea, is the creation of these two fields.

Let’s see that in practice…

As you may already know, Google Data Studio custom fields, cannot combine dimensions & metrics in a CASE function — bummer. So, a field like the following will not work eventually:

CASE

WHEN Month = 'January' THEN 31

WHEN Month = 'February' THEN 28

...

END

The trick is to behave as the two fields were both dimensions.

Field 1: Month of the Year

For my solution, we want to modify the Month dimension, from Date type, to Text type. I do not like to modify my original fields, so we will create a new field, with just the Month dimension in it. Just like the following:

Custom Field: Month of the Year

Automatically, Data Studio recognizes your field as Date type.

Go to the data source to change the type of our custom field

Click the item in the Type column

Select the Text option

Field 2: Days of each Month

Now that we have our Month of the Year field, we can create a new one to assign the correct number of days, for each month:

Custom Field: Days of each Month

⚠️In order to call my “Month of the Year” field within my calculation, I created a table to see the format of my field. I advise you to do the same for your own data source.

Field 3: Num(Days of each Month)

As you may have noticed in my calculation, I assigned to each month a number as a dimension. We need to fix that with a new custom field…

Custom Field: Num(Days of each Month)

⚠️When you add the “Num(Days of each Month)” field into a visual or a table, you have to use MAX, as your aggregation method.

By now, we should be able to create a data table with your Month dimension and the Num(Days of each Month) we created, and be able to see the correct number of days for each month (!!!do not forget to use MAX!!!).

Field 4: Remaining days of the Month

Next in line, the “Remaining days of the month”. Which is — of course — the ultimate goal of this post!

Custom Field: Remaining Days of the Month

One last step in our process, when you use our “Remaining days of the Month” field, you should define the Date Range that fits to your needs. I like to use “Month to date”, which excludes the current day, but you can also use “This Month” in order to get the total number of days. In the table below, you can see the fields in action:

Actual date: 17 January 2021

Hooray!!! 🎆
4 ways you can go plastic-free right now!
By: Ahelee Dutta Gupta
Tags: Wellness, Plastic Pollution, Save, Planets, Pollution

‘Plastic-free July’ is a global initiative to work towards a plastic-free world. It's a way of educating people on how to reduce plastic pollution on this planet for the better today and tomorrow. The plastic which we discard mostly ends up in landfills or the oceans. This article is a small compilation of 4 changes everybody can make in their daily life to make this place a better place to live.

Carry your own bottle

When we step out for a while, a lot of times we end up buying a bottle of packaged water to quench our thirst. Now imagine the number of plastic bottles that are discarded by so many people each day. It's a LOT! Instead of buying a bottle of water, we can start carrying our own bottle whenever we are leaving the house. That way, you save money and you also don't add more plastic to this planet.

Use Menstrual cups or Cotton pads

Did you know the conventional pads or tampons we use every month during our menstruation are made out of plastic, chlorine, and other toxic chemicals? Not only it is non-biodegradable and harmful to the environment but it also puts women at great risk of causing rashes, infections & ovarian cancer. There are alternatives like menstrual cups & cotton pads available that can be reused and completely safe to use.

Carry your own shopping bag

When we go out to buy groceries, we often buy plastic carry bags from the shopkeepers. Then these plastic bags will end up in landfills, causing more pollution. Instead, we can carry a cloth bag every time we step out to buy our groceries. By doing this we save our planet from a lot of non-biodegradable waste.

Say goodbye to plastic straws

Next time when you drink a glass of juice, coconut water, or your favorite cocktail ditch that plastic straw and opt for reusable metal or glass straws. You can always carry them with you so that you can just take them out whenever you need them to drink something.

Plastic waste impacts the earth's ecosystem and hugely affects the people, wildlife, and environment. But I understand that there are many instances where we end up using plastic or buying things that come in a plastic package. In that case, reuse that plastic as much as you can and refuse whenever you can. Make sure that you segregate the plastic waste and it reaches the right people/organizations who can recycle the plastic waste without harming the environment. Let's all join hands and be a part of the solution and not the problem.

I am doing my bit every day in whatever ways I can, make sure you do yours. :)
Environmental management by preventing pollution
By: Global Tamil Tech
Tags: Environmental Issues, Save The Planet, Pollution, Earth

Environmental management by preventing pollution

INTRODUCTION Any substance that causes environmental pollution is called environmental pollution. Environmental pollutants include chemicals, geochemicals (including dust, sediment, sand) organisms and their wastes that release harmful (undesirable) effects on the environment (heat). Environmental pollution is the concentration of solid, liquid and gaseous substances that can cause harm to the environment. Natural and synthetic materials emitted from metals, household and industrial effluents, radioactive effluents from nuclear power plants, heat emitted from thermal power plants, gases such as carbon monoxide, sulfur oxides, Nitrogen oxides can also be waste products. Even the remnants of the materials we use and throw away are pollutants. Pollution is caused by household and industrial effluents and the use of agricultural waste. Water levels in nearby lakes and rivers are polluted by effluents from chemical companies and factories. Atmospheric air pollution is caused by smoke from vehicles on the road, as well as smoke from factories and thermal power plants. Waste products, including pollutants emitted by various human activities, such as atmospheric gases or contaminants in water bodies and floors Join into our environment. These pollutants change the nature of the environment and thereby cause the worst possible harm to mankind, animals, plants and other substances. POLLUTION PREVENTION Prevention of environmental pollution can be of two types. One is to detect and prevent environmental pollutants from where they originate. The other is to eliminate or reduce the formation of environmental pollutants using the following methods.

· By preventing contamination the costs of cleaning, purification and disposal can be avoided. Usually factories can save a lot of money while preventing pollution. It can sometimes cost a bit to carry out pollution prevention work, but this cost can be offset by saving on the costs of waste treatment and waste disposal.
Gold is now a green Bitcoin
By: Franck Leroy
Tags: Energy, Gold, Bitcoin, Mining, Pollution

G old mining is an absolute disaster for environment, but nothing can compete with the footprint of bitcoin.

Fewer and fewer Bitcoin proponents still claim that this crypto can be used as a daily currency. Bitcoin is now considered a purely speculative asset, like gold.

So how does bitcoin mining compares to gold mining from an environmental perspective?

Bitcoin mining consumes 2 to 7more energy than gold mining

For energy usage, nothing can beat Bitcoin. Mining 1$ of bitcoin consumes 2 to 7 times more energy than mining gold :

Bitcoin mining is basically metal extraction

“Ok, but it’s not just about energy is it ? The mining industry is also known for being extremely polluting for the soils, right ? “

Indeed ! And on this topic also, Bitcoin doesn’t fail to amaze us :

Bitcoin mining requires very specific hardware, designed exclusively to process hashes, and nothing else useful. This hardware evolves very rapidly and is obsolete every 1.5 year.

We estimate that, each year, around 12 000 tons of specific electronic devices are produced and destroyed. More that 80% of the weight is metal (iron, aluminum, copper, …).

This means than around 10 000 tons of metal is extracted and transformed each year only for the bitcoin mining industry. This is 4 times more than the amount of gold extracted each year (around 2500 tons).

Also, the value of bitcoin production is 1/6 of gold production (17 B$ vs 100 B$).

Hence, overall, 1$ of Bitcoin requires 24 times more mining of metal than 1$ of gold.

Bitcoin mining is metal extraction

One single bitcoin transaction emits more CO2 than 1 ton of gold sent around the earth

“And what about the impact of moving gold around, vs a digital transaction”.

Good question ! The deeper we look into it, the crazier it looks …

One single bitcoin transaction emits around 325 kg CO2. The carbon footprint of freight is around 8 grams CO2 per km.ton for a big cargo ship.

Which means that, for the carbon footprint of a single transaction, you could send 1 ton of gold around the earth (40 000 km).

Sounds crazy ? It is.

1 ton of gold shipped around the world has the same impact as a single bitcoin transaction

Conclusion

While gold mining is an absolute disaster for the environment, we see that its “digital” replacement is far worse : bitcoin mining is basically dirty metal mining plus a tremendous amount of burnt energy.

Any crypto-currency based on a proof of work, like Bitcoin, is ecologically and physically unsustainable.
An Iconic San Francisco Swan From the Palace of Fine Arts Has Died of Suspected Lead Poisoning
By: Matt Charnock
Tags: Animals, San Francisco, Outdoors, Palace Of Fine Arts, Pollution

“We are saddened by the passing of Blue Boy, one of our two beloved Palace of Fine Arts swans,” reads a tweet from the department. “Our hearts are with his longtime mate Blanche and all of the Palace visitors who loved him.”

Unfortunately, zinc and lead poisonings are common among birds, especially waterfowl. When metallic materials — pellets, fishing hooks, material hardware, and even post-1982 pennies, which are constructed from an alloy composed of 97.5% zinc and just 2.5% copper — accumulate in the birds’ wading waters, they slowly begin to absorb the mineral elements. Over time, the toxins accumulate inside the animal’s bodies. Should they become oversaturated with compounds, the birds can begin suffering adverse side effects.

Alas, this was the case for Blue Boy. Blanche, his 25-year-old mate—swans typically pair up for life, barring a nesting failure—also has the illness but seems to be responding to treatment.

“[San Francisco Zoo] veterinarians continue to investigate the cause of his death, as well as the source of the zinc & lead in both swans,” the department continued in a follow-up tweet. “We are awaiting laboratory results for the necropsy & the soil in their habitat. We hope to have answers soon, so we can bring Blanche home to the Palace.”

Both of the Polish mute swans — an invasive species introduced in North America from Europe in the late 1800s for their aesthetic value — were taken in by the city’s zoo earlier this year after experiencing health issues. Each swan had issues with standing upright on their feet and were experiencing cognitive issues; they had problems going back into the small pond at the Palace of Fine Arts.

Though the pair have reared many cygnets (young swans) over the years, the past decade has seen the lives of these otherwise peaceful, unbothersome creatures interrupted by human malice. In 2010, a “still-unidentified individual” killed a five-year-old swan named Monday by snapping her neck, per SFGate. This occurred just six months after Friday, her 19-year-old mother, was stolen, leaving Blanche (Monday’s sister) to exist and survive by herself.

Like us humans, swans mourn the loss of those sentient beings close to them — particularly their mates. In December, German firefighters had to physically remove a wayward swan from a high-rail train track that refused to leave the area after its mate had died. Swans and other birds have been known to remain at the locations of where their mate has died for hours, days — sometimes weeks.

RIP, Blue Boy. Your whimsical residence at the Palace of Fine Arts will be immeasurably missed. And here’s hoping Blanche can someday find some peace and closure amid your absence.
MAiD and Death Doulas: tête-à-tête
By: Anne-Marie Keppel
Tags: Death And Dying, Death Doula, Death, Medical Assisted Death, Life

Infinity or the number eight? Depends on how you look at it. Photo: ©keppel

I will not approve of your medical assisted death. I will not tell you, you are doing the right thing. I will not say to you that your reasons are justified. I will not tell you this is the right way to hasten death if you are terminally ill or tell you this is the way out of your pain.

I will not disapprove of your medical assisted death. I will not tell you not to seek it. I will not tell you to let your body die a “natural death.” I will not tell you to hold out for a miracle or a cure, or more time.

At your request of wishing to know more about MAiD, I will provide you with as much information as I have at that time. The information will consist of laws, of timing, of concoctions or injections. I cannot tell you what it feels like to ingest or receive the medication. I cannot tell you how your family and friends and community will react, think and feel, after your death — no matter what manner of death is chosen. I cannot tell you what it is like to die.

I do not condone, I do not condemn, I do not judge. I do not make the laws, I do not advocate for the laws, I do not protest against the laws.

I am watching. I am listening. I am feeling from one body away from yours trying to anticipate your needs.

I will pen your goodbye letters. I will draw the curtains or open the door. I will rub your temples; I will massage your feet. I will pray with you, help you find “the key” and be awestruck as you say to me, “my mother is here.” I will sit along side you for your last breath and remain still through the time that your breath does not take up again in your lungs and instead… I will focus on my own.

I serve to help you feel loved, safe, and witnessed — in your state of, and exit from — Being. This is a doula assisted death.
Perhaps the most eloquent expression of this viewpoint that I've ever read. Thank you for that.
By: Richard Crim
Tags: Personal, Death And Dying, Commentary, Sexism

Perhaps the most eloquent expression of this viewpoint that I've ever read. Thank you for that.

My perspective on this is somewhat different due to the reality of what my wife and I are going through. She has been dying of progressive lung disease for the last four years and is end stage now. She has no children or grandchildren to be with her and provide her comfort and support because her only child died in a car accident in 2006.

Without me, she would be slowly dying alone and that would be terrible. That kind of death is something to be feared no matter what your gender is.

Does she need a man to be with her through this?

I doubt it. At this point my gender is not relevant. I'm sure if G-d offered her a choice between me and her daughter she would choose to have her daughter back. Even though I am childless I understand that and would urge her to take that deal. Because it would make her happy and because she wouldn't be alone at the end.

I know that soon I will be alone. My wife worries about what will happen to me. I am a high functioning autistic man in my early 60's. Despite having four women in my life who loved me enough to marry me, it seems unlikely that there will be a fifth. In all likelihood I am going to die alone.

I only hope it will be quick. Like the man in your piece who pulls the car over and dies of a heart attack. If you have no one, that's the best way to go out.
I Woke Up in the Wee Hours This Morning But Couldn’t Get out of Bed
By: Fred Ermlich
Tags: Death And Dying, Covid 19, Diet, Life Lessons, Weakness

It’s pretty cheap to live here in Las Tablas, Panama. After I pay rent I have $550 to last me for a month. I have to eat a lot of calories — I’ve always been that way. But most months I end up short of food near the end of the month, so this time I bought many kilos of rice, lentils, green split peas, yuca root and fresh veges, and some chicken and pork for protein (and the pork for also making lard, my favorite fat).

So as evening approached, I got to thinking that even though I seem able to digest all these varied seeds and vegetables, maybe they are inadequate in fat content or protein. They should be okay for protein with their varied amino acids, but maybe I’m somehow wrong. Anyway, I’m adding more of my high-protein sopa to the grainy foods and adding a dollop of lard to each meal. And I’m eating twice what I’d been eating, and now I seem to have my mind and my energy back.

I’ve always read and written about diet, so at least I was open to thinking about the subject. I know I’m a carnivore, there is no doubt about that. Maybe I’ll raise my own chickens: I could buy a flock (of chicks) for $20. They get very big very fast, and also, of course, half of them lay eggs. Neighbors don’t care — there really aren’t any rules here in rural Panama that I’ve noticed, so maybe that’s what I’ll do. I’m surrounded by cows, but aside from petting them at times I never think about killing one. Where would I store a ton of cow meat? Plus I grew up in California, where there was still a strong opinion by the ranchers and sheriffs that cattle poachers should be hanged.

So that’s my story. I’ve now lived another day and my energy is better.

I’m still trying to figure out how to earn a couple hundred dollars a month extra here in Panama. I could teach math and science in an expat area, but I’d have to move to do that. And otherwise, even if I used remote teaching tools, nobody including Medium knows how to send money to Panama. (Hint: Western Union.)

Fred

Oh, a postscript here:

I read, many decades ago, about some novelists who were talking to each other about the idea of narrating their own deaths when that time came. That’s why I wrote this little piece — I was thinking I was done for. I think it came close, and I ain’t out of the woods quite yet. But see, I’m cheerful.
LIVING IN A BI-POLAR MATRIX (PART VII)
By: Marcus Austin
Tags: Death And Dying, Mindfulness, Mind, Death, Mindset

So how could it be one can relate to someone they do not know via just a television show or random connection developed from a coffee at Starbucks? It is hard to believe that the relatability of something or a person unfamiliar can be easier than folks just one phone call or five minutes living under the same roof. The characters of people that I do not know is easier, as twisted as it seems, than the genuine investment through close relationships. How can it be that friends could be the result of choices an individual makes versus family that is in somehow selected from a higher source of intelligence and energy.

Many people have argued that such an understanding is a mistake and whatever source is allowing for what could seem as an inconvenience to be the right context to live within. Therefore, as we look at the choices to be made or perceived less ideal state of affairs, one can see how the battle of a more in depth scrutiny. Not always know the why means life must happen to figure out the reasons as to the explanation. Sometimes the mystery of the present and the future can only be enjoyed unless we go through them in real time.

Click below link to receive complimentary printable from initial purchase of CCEL Art & Design Store by sending contact name, email address, and contact number to mjabizgrowth@gmail.com
HAVE YOU SEEN ENOUGH? (PART VI)
By: Marcus Austin
Tags: Death And Dying, Vision, Personal, Personal Development, Death

The unfortunate magnetic pull for death to call so early almost seems unfair. How could it be that the Creator, Universe, God, and representatives of the infinite can allow or even accept for these things to take place? How could it be that those so full of life in sharing all of who they are must come face to face with a spell and sign that their show has come to an end. Life can be viewed very much so as a stage in being observed even by some you do not even realize are watching. To be honest, it seems to be unfair that life can deal such a tough hand to those we might feel deserve just a little bit more consideration. Annelies Marie “Anne” Frank, a young Jewish diarist, wrote one of the most well known published works, “The Diary of a Young Girl”, in being a victim of the Holocaust and dying at the age of fifteen (15). This prior example of the hatred directed through human strife can have no consideration to who it decides to take aim at.

The proficiency to be popular versus smart is a tremendous struggle. Could it be much easier to just fit in? When attempting to fit in, do you still stick out like a sore thumb? Would it be better for you to do what everyone else is doing which could provide tactic approval? For some this scenario can not work because the fulfillment of innovation to transcend beyond cultural norms must be breached. The assimilation prevents the necessary acceleration which causes you to be ordinary. For some leaders there must be more. Therefore, instead of letting that cup pass, some must drink from the water that flows even at times when the taste leaves much more to be desired.

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HAVE YOU SEEN ENOUGH?(PART VIII). The question of the matter is never…
By: Marcus Austin
Tags: Death And Dying, Personal, Personal Development, Personal Growth, Death

The question of the matter is never really what but why? This is critical because within our logical minds we are always in search for the algebraic value of the unknown (x). It is so funny that would be the case when there are always unexplained things that happen to us without matching a formulaic description to yield digestible results. However, we use this matrix to justify the infinite energy and spirit which supersedes any and all of those questions. The attempt to put the totality of ourselves and energy/spirit in some logical box repeatedly fails over and over again.

The celebration of midnight for these selected few might be noon for the rest of us. The fight for a deeper realization could be that these individuals had given and even superseded what they were suppose to do. It was time for ascension or graduation after overcoming the barriers and obstacles that so few are willing conquer. Having seen and experienced the success and also tremendous failure, they had come to a place of maturity in knowing why they have come. After watching those who are closest turn their backs but still have the ability to forgive and empathize with that decision, it was time to cross over. Some of those we honor now might have had enough of the drama within this physical realm and learned to reaffirm the inner presence of their creation as well as calling.

So we must ask have we worked hard enough to redefine and touch others to see enough? Have we struggled, fought, pulled, and grind to push to a higher consciousness? Have we picked up enough of the cross or challenge to eventually experience a peace that passes all understanding?

It is up to each individual to answer these key inquiries.

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HAVE YOU SEEN ENOUGH? (PART VII). Although sometimes our awareness in…
By: Marcus Austin
Tags: Death And Dying, Personal, Personal Development, Personal Growth, Death

Although sometimes our awareness in looking at others makes it seem that another’s struggle is less than the one we are experiencing, societal norms makes it acceptable to put benchmarks as to what is and what is not a certain level of success. The levels of resilience to not identify yourself and value to what other people think must be at an unprecedented height of acknowledgement. To break the sense of knowing who you are is bigger and many times better than just a job or materialistic things. It is at the core of your passion and gifts that drive you to push and fight against what might be viewed as a standard without the appropriate level of discernment as to why such is the case.

So when the traumatic battles come, one’s character requires them to elevate to highest degrees of magnification. The insecurity, neglect, pressures, and undue temptation must be conquered in a repetitive way. The balance necessary becomes key to evaluate and analyse what the next steps to the goal should be. It is not that encouragement is needed for people within this special lot, just some space and time to gather their thoughts and emotions in the appropriate direction.

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The Day I Learned About Death
By: Melissa Kerman
Tags: Death And Dying, Personal Essay, This Happened To Me, Death, Loss

The Day I Learned About Death

Photo by Roy P. on Unsplash

When I was a toddler, my aunt lost her life to cancer. Tongue cancer. A rare cancer, the cancer that no one knows could sprout until I mention how my aunt died. Such prompts the ubiquitous “Was she a smoker? Tobacco chewer?” questions, because there has to be an explanation for such an obscure illness. Nope and nope. She was an ostensibly healthy thirty-four year old. Not all chaos requires a catalyst.

Although I was young, I have vague memories of my aunt. She wasn’t only my mother’s sister — she was her best friend. I remember accompanying the women on their errands, strapped in my car seat and clutching my sippy cup. My aunt didn’t have a daughter — only a son, my age — so she loved me like her own, gifting me clothing and Barbie dolls and princess accessories. My aunt wanted multiple children, but her expiration date ticked like a bomb.

I don’t remember my aunt’s passing nor how I processed her absence. According to my mother, she told me my aunt “went away,” and I reckon this placated my three-year-old mind. However, my aunt never fully “went away” because my family immortalized her spirit. My aunt was almost mythical, a woman of whom I heard countless stories, but could never know. Her death left an indelible stain on my grandparents, and they never smiled the same after.

Some folks grow through loss. Their hearts expand; they’ll eschew arguments for dialogue and pettiness for compassion because they’ve realized life is ephemeral. But when my grandparents lost their youngest daughter, they viewed the remainder of their lives in sepia. How did this happen? And why? If God existed, how could he allow it? My grandparents believed they’d been hexed. Children are supposed to outlive their parents. In what world is it commonplace for parents to weep over their daughter’s hospital bed, after the doctor’s informed them that — in thirty seconds — the neon life support line will run horizontally?

Growing up, I regarded my grandfather — a retired lawyer — as stoic, like a statue. But my uncle witnessed the moment my grandfather lost his daughter and said he’s never seen a grown man sob so viscerally. The mental image pains me to conjure.
Harmonic Raven
By: Maya Boman
Tags: Death And Dying, Crime Fiction, Ravens, Blood, Control

As horrible as it seemed, Raven was alone…

Thinking back to the murder of my parents, I wondered if I could’ve done something different. Seeing their lifeless bodies mutilated that way and seeing the perpertrator for that instant, burned into my mind. I try to remember every little detail, but all I remember was that it was a women with blonde hair. She left out of the bathroom window as I focused on all the blood that lay pooled around them and the terror that filled me, as I realized I was now alone…

As a high school senior about to graduate, I felt things were getting better. I had been two years since that horrible incident, but it greatly impacted me. Perhaps in the wrong way. Still, I am productive in what I do now. It’s not much better than that bitch that killed my family for virtually no reason.

She was caught eventually. Her name was Rebecca Green. They found her about six months after the horrible crime, and since she had no time to get rid of the evidence, she was found guilty and sentenced to life without parole. She has a sister though. Her name is Amy Green and she had everything to do with the murder, but there wasn’t ever any way to prove it. They lived together and never texted, so it was normal for them to call each other, but not one way to find out what they discussed during these calls.

Anyways, what I do now is not killing innocents, but killing criminals and the ones that have tried to kill me or one of my members. Ian, Sam, J.D., Kevin, Aiden and Gage. They all had the need to kill as I did and needed me to guide them in the right direction. I think people had an idea of what we did, but chose to believe it wasn’t true. We killed for a reason, not just pure fun. The worst part was always the clean up, but after a while, we got good at it.
Mother’s anniversary is today
By: Erjona Gashi
Tags: Death And Dying

Mother’s anniversary is today

It’s been 16 years, longer without than with.

It feels heart shattering.

16 years ago, today, I was just a sad little child in the messiness of an unprepared-for trauma

Nobody walked me through it,

Grown ups didn’t like to talk about it,

So I had to come to terms with death on my own.

I remember thinking we were going back home to see mother. Then I saw dozens of cars parked right by the valley outside of my uncle’s old house and I thought there was a wedding. I genuinely thought there was a wedding, but I didn’t even finish that thought when the bitter one aggressively crossed over it.

It’s a funeral, It’s a funeral, it’s a goddamn funeral

My heart sank

I couldn’t hear anything. It was all just noise. I was numb. I couldn’t breathe. I was nauseaous.

My little heart sank and I felt silent tears coming down my face as I was blankly staring out of the unwashed window of the back seat of our old car

Quick, wipe your tears off Be strong . Be strong . . Be strong

I avoided looking at people

I felt exposed, embarrassed, a burden.

I felt people stare at me with their brimming with pity looks and tightly pressed lips

I kept looking down, as if avoiding eye contact would help avoid this whole funeral scene

We had never talked about a funeral before

We had never been in a funeral before

We were part of a funeral now and I had no script, I didn’t know what to do, or what to say

So, i did what felt natural to me

I avoided looking at people

. I looked down

. Heart shattered, voice shaking, embarrassed
The Bullwhip Effect
By: Dipankar Sonwane
Tags: Supply Chain Solutions, Operations Management, Forecasting, Optimization, Bullwhip Effect

Let’s take an example to understand the bullwhip effect

Suppose you, as an end customer goes to a retail store near your house to by a packet of detergent. Now as an end customer you may buy one pack, but to fulfill the demand of customers like you, store has to keep a stock of around 1000 packs. Similarly, the retail store will order stock from a wholesaler who may have to keep a stock of 50000 packs and similarly as we keep going up the supply chain ultimately the manufacturer may have to keep an inventory of more than 5000000 packs readily available to be shipped. Now suppose you decided to two packs instead of buying one pack. This will create a spike in the demand from the end customer and this demand gets magnified at every stage of the supply chain and by the time it reaches manufacturer the demand spike is so huge that the manufacturer may end up producing more than the actual demand required by the end customer. This creates a problem as the manufacturer does not have a clear visibility of the end customer demand and cannot forecast how much production is required to meet the demand without over filling the warehouses. Due to this planning as well as the operations management for the manufacturing becomes really difficult.

This will definitely reduce profit margins at least if not incur losses for non perishable products but, just replace detergent in the above example with fruit juice boxes, now at each level of the supply chain you cannot hold a huge stock of the product, as now we have a smaller time window between manufacturing and consumption by the end customer. Suddenly this magnifies the problem and optimization now becomes really critical for the manufacturer.