#best financial web development

[vasundhara-infotech]

Fintech Software Development - Everything You Need To Know

[bestwebsiteservices-01]

How IT Services & Consulting Drive Innovation in Business

IT services and consulting are essential for driving innovation in today’s digital landscape. As businesses face technological disruption and evolving customer expectations, these services provide the expertise and tools to stay competitive.

Tech-driven services like Digital Marketing, BPO Outsourcing, Cloud Computing, Financial Advisory, and Web Development are transforming businesses, fostering innovation and success.

1. Different Types of Digital Marketing Services

Traditional marketing is no longer enough in the digital age. Digital marketing enables real-time conversations with customers through online channels, making it essential for business innovation.

A digital marketing agency & services in Prayagraj can help businesses stay ahead by offering services like SEO, social media marketing, PPC, and email marketing, effectively reaching and engaging their audience.

Hyper-personalize User Experiences: With the convenience of personalized content, targeted ads, and targeted social media campaigns, businesses can help carry customers through experiences that demand attention, subsequently improving brand loyalty.

Informed Decision-Making: By analyzing their target market using data, businesses can understand their potential customers better and make data-driven decisions that serve as innovation-fueling strategies.

Adaptability in Speeds: Digital marketing services in prayagraj maximizes the potential of campaigns. Marketers are able to tweak strategies, test new content, and launch promotions in real-time, guarantee that businesses are always ahead of the curve in customer engagement.

2. BPO Outsourcing Services: Ensuring Efficiency and Saving Costs

BPO Outsourcing Services in Prayagraj have revolutionized businesses seeking cost savings and efficiency. To innovate in primary areas, businesses can outsource non-core tasks like customer care, human resources, and finance. This allows them to focus on growth while optimizing operations through trusted outsourcing solutions.

The BPO outsourcing services help transform business innovatively by:

Cost Minimization: Non-core activity outsourcing is a solution that reduces costs associated with hiring, training, and maintaining an in-house team. In turn, this minimization of overhead coupled with its massive global distribution power can be put toward R&D, innovation and growing the business.

Scalability: Businesses can avail of BPO services without major capital investments and will allow them to scale their operations. From seasonal demand to global expansion, BPO enables organizations to effectively respond to changing requirements.

Efficiency Enhancement: Outsourcing partners are typically equipped with industry expertise and sophisticated technologies that can help enhance operational efficiency. This streamlined approach enables companies to run more efficiently, promoting innovation both in product development and in service delivery.

Utilizing BPO outsourcing allows organizations to innovate quickly, improve customer experience, and redistribute resources to sectors that drive growth and innovation.

3.Cloud Computing: Allowing for Collaboration and Agile Teams

Cloud computing has revolutionized how businesses manage infrastructure, data, and applications. Providers like Google, AWS, and Microsoft Azure offer IaaS and PaaS, giving businesses virtualized resources on demand. For businesses in Prayagraj, Cloud Computing Services in Prayagraj offer local access to these solutions, enabling efficient and cost-effective scaling.

Cloud computing enables innovation via:

And the Cloud also helps to collaborate across teams and geographies, allowing businesses to work more efficiently. It facilitates quick decision-making and shared innovation.

Developing Agility: Cloud computing enables businesses to scale up or down on having demand, and hence giving agility in operations. They can respond to the rapidly changing business environment allowing new products and services to be rapidly brought to market.

Cost Efficiency: Cloud services frees organizations from the burden of maintaining on-premise infrastructure. These savings can be invested in new technology, better customer experiences, and new business ideas.

Informed Decision Making: The cloud enables data to be made more accessible and easier to analyze. This data can be used by businesses to generate actionable insights that guide innovation, product, and strategy.

Together, these cloud computing services help businesses stay competitive by improving operational efficiency and creating a culture of innovation via better collaboration and scalability.

Financial Advisory Services: Strategy for Success

Sustainable Innovation: The Importance of Financial Advisory Services in a Complex World Various organizations, corporations, entrepreneurs, etc, hire additional financial advisors.External expert financial advisors who give businesses insight and advice on investments, mergers, acquisitions, risk management issues, etc.

In business, financial advisory services drive innovation through:

Identifying Growth Opportunities Financial advisors services in prayagraj help businesses take advantage of new investment opportunities, be it exploring new markets or financing new product lines. Here, strategic advice helps in long-term growth.

Risk Management: Every organization or industry dreams to innovate. When businesses have financial advisors who know how to identify risks associated with their ideas, they are much more able to pursue them because they mitigate those risks.

Optimizing Capital: Every business needs capital to innovate and effective financial advisory services to structure transactions that support profitable investments. These services ensure resources are aligned with innovations, avoiding risks from lack of diversification.

Simultaneously, they are methodically redefining with the expert financial counsel to responsibly pursue their next great idea knowing they have a clear, sustainable path to success.

Web Development Services: Crafting User-Focused Digital Journeys

For businesses, a website is one of the first touchpoints with potential customers. A clean, user-friendly design is crucial to innovation, as it shapes how customers initially assess a brand and its services. Web Development Services in Prayagraj play a key role in creating these impactful first impressions, helping businesses stand out and connect with their audience effectively.

Web Development Services Encourage Business Innovation By:

Building Scalable Platforms: A nicely constructed website or application can effortlessly expand to support increasing customer bases and new business requirements. This scalability facilitates continuing innovation, especially in sectors which are subject to fast innovation cycles.

Domain-specific knowledge: Web developers specify more on creating user-friendly and easy-to-navigate websites which make the user experience better. Constantly enhancing these online experiences keeps customers coming back and allows them to be more receptive to new offerings from your business.

Mobile Optimization: As an increasing number of users use mobile devices to access the internet, it is essential for business innovation to have a mobile-optimized website. Responsive design can help users access a brand’s services, anytime, anywhere that drives engagement and growth.

Integration with Emerging Technologies: Modern web development should include integration with cutting-edge technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and chatbots, which provide innovative services and enhance customer experiences.

By implementing these innovative strategies, businesses can remain at the forefront of digital trends, leading to enhanced customer relationships and a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Conclusion

IT services and consulting, including digital marketing services, are essential for driving business innovation today. Digital marketing in Prayagraj empowers businesses to enhance their online presence, engage local customers, and achieve sustainable growth in a dynamic market.

[zapperrr]

Securing Your Website: Best Practices for Web Developers

As the digital landscape continues to evolve, website security has become a paramount concern for businesses and individuals alike. With cyber threats becoming increasingly sophisticated, it is crucial for web developers to adopt robust security measures to safeguard their websites and the sensitive data they handle. In this article, we'll delve into the best practices that web developers can implement to enhance the security of their websites and protect against potential threats.

Introduction

In today's interconnected world, websites serve as the digital storefront for businesses, making them vulnerable targets for cyber attacks. From data breaches to malware infections, the consequences of a security breach can be severe, ranging from financial loss to damage to reputation. Therefore, prioritizing website security is essential for maintaining the trust and confidence of users.

Understanding Website Security

Before diving into best practices, it's crucial to understand the importance of website security and the common threats faced by websites. Website security encompasses measures taken to protect websites from cyber threats and unauthorized access. Common threats include malware infections, phishing attacks, SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and brute force attacks.

Best Practices for Web Developers

Keeping Software Updated

One of the most fundamental steps in website security is keeping all software, including the content management system (CMS), plugins, and server software, updated with the latest security patches and fixes. Outdated software is often targeted by attackers due to known vulnerabilities that can be exploited.

Implementing HTTPS

Implementing HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) encrypts the data transmitted between the website and its users, ensuring confidentiality and integrity. HTTPS not only protects sensitive information but also boosts trust among visitors, as indicated by the padlock icon in the browser's address bar.

Using Strong Authentication Methods

Implementing strong authentication methods, such as multi-factor authentication (MFA) and CAPTCHA, adds an extra layer of security to user accounts. MFA requires users to provide multiple forms of verification, such as a password and a one-time code sent to their mobile device, reducing the risk of unauthorized access.

Securing Against SQL Injection Attacks

SQL injection attacks occur when malicious actors exploit vulnerabilities in web applications to execute arbitrary SQL commands. Web developers can prevent SQL injection attacks by using parameterized queries and input validation to sanitize user inputs effectively.

Protecting Sensitive Data

It's essential to employ encryption techniques to protect sensitive data, such as passwords, credit card information, and personal details, stored on the website's servers. Encrypting data at rest and in transit mitigates the risk of data breaches and unauthorized access.

Regular Security Audits

Conducting regular security audits helps identify vulnerabilities and weaknesses in the website's infrastructure and codebase. Penetration testing, vulnerability scanning, and code reviews enable web developers to proactively address security issues before they are exploited by attackers.

Choosing a Secure Hosting Provider

Selecting a reputable and secure hosting provider is critical for ensuring the overall security of your website. When evaluating hosting providers, consider factors such as security features, reliability, scalability, and customer support.

Evaluating Security Features

Choose a hosting provider that offers robust security features, such as firewalls, intrusion detection systems (IDS), malware scanning, and DDoS protection. These features help protect your website from various cyber threats and ensure continuous uptime.

Ensuring Regular Backups

Regularly backing up your website's data is essential for mitigating the impact of security incidents, such as data breaches or website compromises. Choose a hosting provider that offers automated backup solutions and store backups securely offsite.

Customer Support and Response to Security Incidents

Opt for a hosting provider that provides responsive customer support and has established protocols for handling security incidents. In the event of a security breach or downtime, prompt assistance from the hosting provider can minimize the impact on your website and business operations.

Implementing Firewall Protection

Firewalls act as a barrier between your website and external threats, filtering incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predefined security rules. There are several types of firewalls, including network firewalls, web application firewalls (WAF), and host-based firewalls.

Configuring and Maintaining Firewalls

Properly configuring and maintaining firewalls is crucial for effective security. Define firewall rules based on the principle of least privilege, regularly update firewall configurations to reflect changes in the website's infrastructure, and monitor firewall logs for suspicious activity.

Educating Users about Security

In addition to implementing technical measures, educating users about security best practices is essential for enhancing overall website security. Provide users with resources, such as security guidelines, tips for creating strong passwords, and information about common phishing scams.

Importance of User Awareness

Users play a significant role in maintaining website security, as they are often the targets of social engineering attacks. By raising awareness about potential threats and providing guidance on how to recognize and respond to them, web developers can empower users to stay vigilant online.

Providing Training and Resources

Offer training sessions and educational materials to help users understand the importance of security and how to protect themselves while using the website. Regularly communicate updates and reminders about security practices to reinforce good habits.

Monitoring and Responding to Security Incidents

Despite taking preventive measures, security incidents may still occur. Establishing robust monitoring systems and incident response protocols enables web developers to detect and respond to security threats in a timely manner.

Setting Up Monitoring Tools

Utilize monitoring tools, such as intrusion detection systems (IDS), security information and event management (SIEM) systems, and website monitoring services, to detect abnormal behavior and potential security breaches. Configure alerts to notify you of suspicious activity promptly.

Establishing Incident Response Protocols

Develop comprehensive incident response plans that outline roles, responsibilities, and procedures for responding to security incidents. Establish clear communication channels and escalation paths to coordinate responses effectively and minimize the impact of security breaches.

Securing your website requires a proactive approach that involves implementing a combination of technical measures, choosing a secure hosting provider, educating users about security best practices, and establishing robust monitoring and incident response protocols. By following these best practices, web developers can mitigate the risk of security breaches and safeguard their websites and the sensitive data they handle.

[adasitecompliance]

User-Friendly Financial Website Design

User-friendly financial website design not only enhances accessibility but also improves the overall browsing experience for all visitors!

[anneapocalypse]

Not gonna lie, analysis of Minfilia that rests on a reading of her as some kind of hiring manager at a company really doesn't sit right with me, not just because it lends itself to some particularly uncharitable readings of Minfilia, but because it seems to me like a pretty inaccurate reading of what the Scions actually are in ARR.

The Scions of the Seventh Dawn are the union of the Circle of Knowing, a group of activist academics who accurately predicted the apocalypse but failed to prevent it and lost their beloved mentor in the process, and the Path of the Twelve, a group for Echo-bearers to help them better understand and make use of their gift--all doing their best to pick up the pieces and protect the realm in the wake of said apocalypse. Minfilia, formerly the leader of the Path of the Twelve, has now been thrust into the position of leadership over both at the late Louisoix's behest. The Scions in ARR aren't a company, they're an activist group, and in ARR still a very small one without the massive web of political connections they fall into later. They don't have a lot of financial resources. They're largely working quietly and behind the scenes. They have a secret code phrase to identify friends of the organization. Being recruited into this group in ARR is closer to being recruited into a resistance cell than being interviewed for a formal job.

Minfilia's role prior to the Calamity was as the leader of a support group for people experiencing a frightening, isolating, and as-yet poorly-understood phenomenon, a group where they could find others like them, understand what's happening to them, and learn how to use their gift for good. And to some extent, this is still a part of her role. The Warrior of Light is brought in because they were witnessed experiencing the Echo, and Minfilia is reaching out to them as a fellow Echo-bearer. I think it's a mistake to interpret her words and actions without that context, particularly her expressed hope that this most recent Echo-bearer she's invited into her group will find something like family there. I mean, listen to the joy with which she says, "I too possess the Echo." She's telling the WoL that they're not alone, that there is a name and an explanation for what they've been experiencing, that they can find others like themselves here. Yes, she's also asking for their help. But this is a pretty far cry from a job interview. However flawed the Scions may be as an organization, I can only see Minfilia's overtures here as offered in the spirit of friendship and camaraderie. And framing that as her trying to build loyalty she can exploit in a corporate manner feels extremely ungenerous given what we know of her character.

I don't want to sound like I'm here to defend the Scions in ARR against any and all criticism--I've discussed my own in the past, from their concerning tendency toward self-sacrifice to the attitude they develop toward the WoL (which is kind of up for interpretation based on your character's relationship to them but which can come across as a cavalier attitude toward the WoL's safety, taking advantage of their unique abilities, etc). In particular, the Scions' experience as a small activist organization, and Minfilia's particular experience as Echo support group leader, has ill-prepared any of them to be thrust into an international spotlight following the defeat of the Ultima Weapon. The attack on the Waking Sands has already revealed the weaknesses in their opsec, and certain scenes in the ARR patch quests reveal something of a power struggle between Minfilia and Alphinaud--one which Alphinaud ultimately wins, because Minfilia lacks the kind of confidence in her position to stand against the force of his personality, and she, like most of the other Scions, starts to fall into the trap of seeing Alphinaud as the second coming of Louisoix and lets him push her around accordingly. Minfilia is simply not equipped or prepared to lead the kind of organization the Scions are turning into. (Urianger, incidentally is one of the few who seems to notice this and remark on it, but also seems to feel that he can't directly object.) The cracks begin to show, and then it all falls apart, and when the Scions finally begin to put themselves back together post-Heavensward, I think they all understand that they can't go back, that what they rebuild will be something new. Over the next few expacs I think we see them developing a new group identity, recognizing that that old model no longer serves them and doing their best to adapt to constantly changing circumstances.

The Scions in ARR have plenty of problems, but they're not a for-profit company and they're also not the same organization as the Scions of later expacs. I think that context needs to be taken into account when interpreting their actions, especially those of their leader.

[beesmygod]

we can all look back on and laugh at this when im wrong, but it seems like social media in its current incarnation is dying an undignified and overdue death. it turns out throwing all of humanity into one room and expecting everyone to develop a single ethos was beyond insane conceptually and the artists who built their following on social media are probably in a tail spin right now. people jumping to bluesky are insane lol. did you forget jack dorsey is the idiot who got us into this mess in the first place. why would you choose to subject yourself to this shit again. for what purpose?

the stock answer i got was that "for discoverability/audience" and if that's true thats a problem. i've been hollerin about this to anyone who would listen prior to this but the customer base of twitter (and all social media) is its advertisers. they have not been shy from the start about that fact because its the only way they generate income, as far as i know. YOU (the user) are the product. YOU (still the user) are also what draws people to the site. there is not a social media website on earth that has figured out that making a good website (which would require hiring and paying for quality labor over an extended period of time) is more likely to result in economic success than exclusively courting the businesses whose interest is in making the website worse to use with ads. at no point were our interests ever a factor.

in fact, imo, the number of people following you is not an accurate representational sample of your audience. the reasonable assumption you should make is that the vast majority of numbers involved with any website (esp those with a vested interest in showing off big numbers to VC investors or advertising execs) are inflated or just outright fake. the numbers exist solely to drive you insane and make awful people happy. the numbers cause you and everyone around you to start spontaneously spawning myths about a beast called "the algorithm" that possesses the incredible traits of being both something you can game for success or blame for your failures. it coerces you into enacting out nonsense superstitions to try to counteract or appease it in the hopes of, let's be honest, breaking it big and going viral. this way, you, the creator, do not have to do the hard work of building up a rapport with an audience. none of this goes anything but adds more numbers for the ceos to look at and nod approvingly or disapprovingly at.

the people running the world today are, without exaggeration, cartoon villains. they are deeply stupid, devoid of empathy, and open about their intent to do deeply evil acts in order to further their economic interests. trying to derive some kind of financial benefit from the creations of these unapologetic losers was always bound to be a wasted effort. the best thing i can say about twitter, a website i was banned from countless times and returned to out of stubborn desire, was that i got to make some great jokes with friends and cause some chaos lol. letting people know i have a web comic was always a secondary function once the realization of what social media was turning out to be set in like 7 years ago. any artist who insists that you have to do this or that on this or that social media site is trying to drag you down into the quagmire of online numbers poisoning.

run away!!! children heed my advice!!! the joy of creation does not lie on a path that encourages you to cater to the lowest common denominators while casting your net. just fucking have fun with it. if its not fun then it wont even be fun to do financially anyway. and isnt that, like. the point.

[swisccfinds]

50 ONE LEVEL CAREERS: Storytelling careers megapack by isy's the snake

Here is yet another career mod pack, but this one has no promotions, you just work and your job level stays at 1. As the title say this mod is best for story telling!

creator's notes-

This mod requires XML Injector by Scumbumbo. You can find it here. Pay attention if you don't already have it for another mod! In that case, you do not need to re-install it. Be sure it is updated for the last patch.

XML Injector is a mod required for some mods to work. So, you install it as any other mod in your Mods folder, no more than one subfolder deep.

This mod has been updated for the version 1.99.305 of the game (second update after Horse Ranch).

It doesn't required any DLC to work. Base game compatible

I've adopted this mod from the amazing ItsKatato who, due to her hiring at EA, couldn't continue to mod. I have made some changes: • I have changes all the pics of the careers — now they all show Sims (please check the credits paragraph at the end to see who was the amazing raccoon who helped me); • I have updated the mod for the Horse Ranch patch; • I have cleared ALL the tuning errors; • Fixed the description of some careers who appeared to be missing.

Now, here we go with the explanation of the mod (originally written by ItsKatato, edited by me):

Katato said: "Have you ever had a story planned out for your sims but you can't find the perfect career for them? Most of the time when I find the career it ends up being a complicated career with a bunch of promotion tasks and extra stuff. Well, I've made a pack of a bunch of single-level careers. All your sim has to do is go to work, that's it. This is perfect for the non-important sims in your life, like the forgotten children of your legacy challenge." In short: those are 50 careers you can use for NPCs Sims or random Sims you do not want to care about. As Amethyst said: "Go to work, make money, leave me alone". Your Sims won't need any task to perform to upgrade and get a promotion, as well as they do not really need an ideal mood to go to work since it won't change their performance. They just go and do their job. And now the list of all careers:

1. Anesthetiologist 2. Cartographer 3. Chiropractor 4. Compliance Officer 5. Data Scientist 6. Dental Hygienist 7. Dentist 8. Diagnostic Medical Sonographer 9. Financial Advisor 10. Financial Manager 11. Genereal Surgeon 12. Genetic Counselor 13. Home Health Aide 14. Information Security Analyst 15. IT Manager 16. Interpreter And Translator 17. Lawyer 18. Marriage And Family Therapist 19. Massage Therapist 20. Mathematician 21. Mechanical Engineer 22. Medical And Health Services Manager 23. Nurse Anesthetist 24. Nurse Practitioner 25. Obstetrician And Gynecologist 26. Occupational Therapist 27. Operations Reasearch Analyst 28. Optometrist 29. Oral And Maxillofacial Surgeon 30. Orthodontist 31. Orthotist And Prosthetist 32. Paralegal 33. Pediatrician 34. Personal Care Aide 35. Phlebotomist 36. Physical Therapist 37. Physical Therapist Assistant 38. Physician 39. Physician Assistant 40. Pilot 41. Podiatrist 42. Prosthodontist 43. Psychiatrist 44. Registered Nurse 45. Respiratory Therapist 46. Software Developer 47. Speech-Language Pathologist 48. Statician 49. Substance Abuse And Behavioral Disorder Counselor 50. Veterinarian 51. Web Developer 52. Wind Turbine Technician 

lets give some of our love and support to isy!

download

[formerlyashkatom]

I've been trying out Plottr and I really like it, the featureset jives really well with how I outline and what information I want around in that process and how I want to manipulate it.

You'd think that would be enough for me to recommend it, but for some reason it's followed suit with the enshittification of the internet and the primary way to access it is a subscription service. It's a fuckin' piece of software that you download to your computer and has files stored locally. It is feature complete and a full release so there is no real excuse for a subscription-oriented model except the company realising that a drip feed from your wallet is more profitable than selling you a piece of software that does not need any upgrades. The website attempts to justify this by saying 'lifetime updates' are included but it is currently fully functioning as is so I question the value proposition of paying in perpetuity to use a program on my computer to access and interact with files stored on my computer.

(There is an online version as well. I understand subscription models in this case as this is an area where continued development and maintenance are required, as well as server costs for your files etc.)

But, you say! There is a lifetime license! Problem solved!

It is two hundred fucking united states dollars.

I am in a good financial position these days. I can spend money on stupid shit I want. But I cannot get past the audacity of charging $200 for what should be the default fucking option for owning software.

There's nothing that quite does what Plottr does, at least that I've found. But for some comparison:

Scrivener is $59.99 once-off and is probably the best writing-oriented program out there

Aeon Timeline is $65 once-off including a year of free updates

Campfire Blaze honestly has a payment structure I am sideeyeing but at least you can get a lifetime license tailored to what you need out of the program and characters + timeline is still cheaper than Plottr

Wavemaker is donationware

Metos is a subscription model, but has Web-only considerations mentioned above, specific plans for features in development, and is $24 annually rather than $150

The entire Microsoft Office suite is $149.99. Between Word, Excel, and OneNote you could definitely figure something out from a writing perspective and also have all the functionality of a full suite of office software FOR LESS MONEY THAN PLOTTR.

There are of course a wide array of free softwares (Google docs/sheets, Libre Office, etc) but I specifically wanted to call out paid options here to demonstrate how ridiculous their pricing structure is

I dunno man. People are allowed to charge whatever they want for the things that they make, but this is just so blatantly out of step with the market that I can only assume the lifetime license price is specifically aimed at deterring lifetime purchases and extracting the maximum amount of money possible from their target market through subscriptions instead. I feel a particular kind of way about that target market being writers, a group notoriously not known for their financial stability.

Fuck subscription services with no ongoing value proposition taking over how we access software and fuck every company that makes the revenue-driven decision to engage in this tactic. Even if your motivations are honourable (we have people to pay! you want us to be able to pay our hard-working employees, right?) you are pursuing those goals through nothing less than the exploitation of your customers for maximum financial gain.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

By David Brooks

Opinion Columnist

You might have seen the various data points suggesting that Americans are losing their ability to reason.

The trend starts with the young. The percentage of fourth graders who score below basic in reading skills on the National Assessment of Educational Progress tests is the highest it has been in 20 years. The percentage of eighth graders below basic was the highest in the exam’s three-decade history. A fourth grader who is below basic cannot grasp the sequence of events in a story. An eighth grader can’t grasp the main idea of an essay or identify the different sides of a debate.

Tests by the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies tell a similar story, only for older folks. Adult numeracy and literacy skills across the globe have been declining since 2017. Tests from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development show that test scores in adult literacy have been declining over the past decade.

Andreas Schleicher, the head of education and skills at the O.E.C.D., told The Financial Times, “Thirty percent of Americans read at a level that you would expect from a 10-year-old child.” He continued, “It is actually hard to imagine — that every third person you meet on the street has difficulties reading even simple things.”

This kind of literacy is the backbone of reasoning ability, the source of the background knowledge you need to make good decisions in a complicated world. As the retired general Jim Mattis and Bing West once wrote, “If you haven’t read hundreds of books, you are functionally illiterate, and you will be incompetent, because your personal experiences alone aren’t broad enough to sustain you.”

Nat Malkus of the American Enterprise Institute emphasizes that among children in the fourth and eighth grades, the declines are not the same across the board. Scores for children at the top of the distribution are not falling. It’s the scores of children toward the bottom that are collapsing. The achievement gap between the top and bottom scorers is bigger in America than in any other nation with similar data.

There are some obvious contributing factors for this general decline. Covid hurt test scores. America abandoned No Child Left Behind, which put a lot of emphasis on testing and reducing the achievement gap. But these declines started earlier, around 2012, so the main cause is probably screen time. And not just any screen time. Actively initiating a search for information on the web may not weaken your reasoning skills. But passively scrolling TikTok or X weakens everything from your ability to process verbal information to your working memory to your ability to focus. You might as well take a sledgehammer to your skull.

My biggest worry is that behavioral change is leading to cultural change. As we spend time on our screens, we’re abandoning a value that used to be pretty central to our culture — the idea that you should work hard to improve your capacity for wisdom and judgment all the days of your life. That education, including lifelong out-of-school learning, is really valuable.

This value is based on the idea that life is filled with hard choices: whom to marry, whom to vote for, whether to borrow money. Your best friend comes up to you and says, “My husband has been cheating on me. Should I divorce him?” To make these calls, you have to be able to discern what is central to the situation, envision possible outcomes, understand other minds, calculate probabilities.

To do this, you have to train your own mind, especially by reading and writing. As Johann Hari wrote in his book “Stolen Focus,” “The world is complex and requires steady focus to be understood; it needs to be thought about and comprehended slowly.” Reading a book puts you inside another person’s mind in a way that a Facebook post just doesn’t. Writing is the discipline that teaches you to take a jumble of thoughts and cohere them into a compelling point of view.

Know someone who would want to read this? Share the column.

Americans had less schooling in decades past, but out of this urge for intellectual self-improvement, they bought encyclopedias for their homes, subscribed to the Book of the Month Club and sat, with much longer attention spans, through long lectures or three-hour Lincoln-Douglas debates. Once you start using your mind, you find that learning isn’t merely calisthenics for your ability to render judgment; it’s intrinsically fun.

But today one gets the sense that a lot of people are disengaging from the whole idea of mental effort and mental training. Absenteeism rates soared during the pandemic and have remained high since. If American parents truly valued education would 26 percent of students have been chronically absent during the 2022-23 school year?

In 1984, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, 35 percent of 13-year-olds read for fun almost every day. By 2023, that number was down to 14 percent. The media is now rife with essays by college professors lamenting the decline in their students’ abilities. The Chronicle of Higher Education told the story of Anya Galli Robertson, who teaches sociology at the University of Dayton. She gives similar lectures, assigns the same books and gives the same tests that she always has. Years ago, students could handle it; now they are floundering.

Last year The Atlantic published an essay by Rose Horowitch titled “The Elite College Students Who Can’t Read Books.” One professor recalled the lively classroom discussions of books like “Crime and Punishment.” Now the students say they can’t handle that kind of reading load.

The philosophy professor Troy Jollimore wrote in The Walrus: “I once believed my students and I were in this together, engaged in a shared intellectual pursuit. That faith has been obliterated over the past few semesters. It’s not just the sheer volume of assignments that appear to be entirely generated by A.I. — papers that show no sign the student has listened to a lecture, done any of the assigned reading or even briefly entertained a single concept from the course.”

Older people have always complained about “kids these days,” but this time we have empirical data to show that the observations are true.

What happens when people lose the ability to reason or render good judgments? Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Donald Trump’s tariff policy. I’ve covered a lot of policies over the decades, some of which I supported and some of which I opposed. But I have never seen a policy as stupid as this one. It is based on false assumptions. It rests on no coherent argument in its favor. It relies on no empirical evidence. It has almost no experts on its side — from left, right or center. It is jumble-headedness exemplified. Trump himself personifies stupidity’s essential feature — self-satisfaction, an inability to recognize the flaws in your thinking. And of course when the approach led to absolutely predictable mayhem, Trump, lacking any coherent plan, backtracked, flip-flopped, responding impulsively to the pressures of the moment as his team struggled to keep up.

Producing something this stupid is not the work of a day; it is the achievement of a lifetime — relying on decades of incuriosity, decades of not cracking a book, decades of being impervious to evidence.

Back in Homer’s day, people lived within an oral culture, then humans slowly developed a literate culture. Now we seem to be moving to a screen culture. Civilization was fun while it lasted.

[frankiefridayyy]

I agree with @radiowave-slushie!

Okay, I just found your blog due to a post in the Queer To The Core community, but I wanted to check out some of your other posts. And you seem really nice! Your parents don’t deserve someone as awesome as you!

Maybe it’s naive to some people, but I really do think that things do get better. Even if it takes 1 year, 5 years, 10 years, I always want to believe things will get better.

Do you want to chat about anything? Maybe it would help to vent to someone for a little bit! I’m also LGBTQ (aroace/“some not-cis gender”), and I’ll also go to college soon, one that also happens to be really close to my fairly religious parents and my dad specifically (albeit I do willingly want to go to that college). Granted, I live in California, not Missouri, so it’s not comparable to your situation. But maybe it’ll help to have someone to relate and talk to, even if the relations are nebulous at best?

Or, like, do you think you have anything else you like doing that could distract you from your parents? Me personally, I’ve tried to focus on planning for my own financial independence. I enjoy coding a lot, and I’m planning out a freelance web development business, job, project, thing, to launch in June-ish and do during college. So even if I don’t really want to be around my dad right now, I can at least look forward to having a semblance of financial independence during college, doing something I already enjoy doing.

Maybe you could try something similar? It’s not a permanent fix, but it can give you something to look forward to! It could help to try to distract yourself away from whatever in your life is making you feel down.

But please please please, don’t kill yourself (based on one of your other ask responses, you’re at least not committing to it, which is a hopeful sign). It’s a permanent solution to something that has other, healthier solutions/alternatives, even if those other solutions aren’t obvious.

I don’t know what else to say, I haven’t really done this sort of thing before (I’ve barely even used the ask boxes before T_T). I don’t know if my tone is inappropriate or too “advice-y” or overstepping anything or whatever. But please, I’ll say it a million more times if I have to, please don’t kill yourself, it will get better, even if that “better” takes a lot of time to come.

And if I you do decide you want to chat or vent to someone, I’ll gladly listen (well, read, but you get the point)!

🫂💕🫶🫂💕🫶

im watching netflix to try and distract me

[vasundhara-infotech]

Role Of AI In Fintech Development: Top Use Cases

[bestwebsiteservices-01]

What Makes Our Digital Marketing Strategy Stand Out?

Digital-first world demands a differentiated digital marketing strategy to garner attention that gets converted to measurable outcomes. What sets us apart is that we integrate a robust website with professional digital marketing on social media & search engine optimization (SEO) to deliver an engaging customer experience like no other. So let’s dive in deeper on the elements that really make our strategy unique.

We offer the Best Website Development Services in Prayagraj, creating websites that optimize both user experience and SEO. Let’s explore the elements that make our approach truly unique.

1.Website: Everybody’s going to forget about that.

A good website is the foundation of all digital marketing strategies. But it’s also the place where all online traffic funneled toward, and all the conversions happen. So to us, the website is more than a simple landing page— it’s a sophisticated interface that we optimize for user experience and search engines.

Our web development services in Prayagraj are designed to create websites that not only look great but also perform seamlessly, ensuring you get the best return on investment through enhanced visibility and conversion rates.

We focus on:

Mobile Optimized: With mobile traffic on the rise, our website is optimized for mobile use first, although desktop, tablet and smartphone will all provide a smooth and consistent experience.

A fast-loading website: It provides a better user experience and reduces bounce rate. We use speed optimization techniques to ensure our page load times are under 3 seconds so users stay engaged and happy.

User-Centric Design Focus: Our site is designed entirely with the user in mind, from the layout to the buttons to click. We focus on a design that is so intuitive that your visitors are able to find any piece of information and take the following action be it purchase or inquiring.

2. Social Media: Building Connection and Community

Social media is a great way to connect with your audience authentically. For us, we’re not just pushing out content, we’re creating a community around our business. Platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn offer us an opportunity to speak directly to existing and prospective customers. If you're looking to enhance your online presence, consider our SMM Services in Prayagraj to boost engagement and build meaningful connections with your audience.

What makes our social media so special?

Brand Consistency: Across all platforms, we provide a cohesive approach to visuals and messaging, ensuring our brand voice resonates with our target audience. Tone is friendly and professional and all our posts echo the philosophy we stand for.

We don’t just post promotional content: content that converts. We engage our followers with polls, behind-the-scenes footage and interactive stories. They do this to build trust, encourage curiosity, and inspire user-generated content.

Paid Social Media Campaigns: In addition to organic reach, we run targeted paid campaigns to target specific audience segments. This strategy is a part of our commitment to providing the Best SMM Services in Prayagraj, ensuring that businesses in the region can effectively engage their target audience and achieve measurable success."

3.Search Engine Optimisation (SEO): Generating Organic Traffic

SEO services in prayagraj are our best kept secret for driving traffic to our website. Rather than spend all day stuffing paid ads down people's throats, we aim to create organic presence with returns for many years to come. An effective SEO strategy means we can reach our specific audience with the help of search engines, such as Google.

Here’s what works for us, SEO-wise:

Keyword Research & Strategy: We perform extensive keyword research to determine what phrases our audience is searching for. We strategically incorporate these keywords into our content, product descriptions, and landing pages to drive visibility and ranking.

On-page Optimization: From meta descriptions to header tags, we make sure every page on our website is optimized to get the best possible search engine ranking. And working on the minutiae, e.g. image alt text, internal linking, and load speed all help to improve overall SEO performance.

Content Marketing: We focus on delivering value. We are producing blog posts, guides, and articles that cater to our audience’s pain points, questions, and needs. Publicizing quality content attracts traffic from search engines and establishes us as an authority in our industry.

Local SEO: Local SEO is important for businesses with a physical location or that serve a specific area. This then leads us to optimize our Google My Business profile, collect customer reviews, and show up in local searches.

4. Key Elements That Hit Our Audience

We specialize in Digital Marketing in Prayagraj by customizing strategies to fit each audience. Our focus on personalization and value-driven content ensures resonance with local businesses and their customers.

Hybridization: We use everything from dynamic website content to personalized email campaigns to speak to our audience directly with solutions that are unique to them.

Value over Promotion: We offer guiding articles, free resources, and tips—promoting the site to win a trust-based relationship longer than ten times a day sounding off discounted products or services.

While Data Driven Decisions: All of our actions with our digital marketing strategy are backed and informed by data. From analyzing website traffic to social media engagement to search engine ranking, we are continuously tracking and optimizing our strategy driving the best outcomes.

Conclusion

A website alone won't be enough to make your business visible, you need social media presence and solid SEO built into your website. So what sets us aside from the standard digital marketing agency and services in prayagraj is to drive value, relationships and use data to get results. Focusing on our audience’s needs, we can tailor campaigns that both attract and convert attention to action.

[stanford-photography]

Angela, Grand Canyon, 2008 By Jeff Stanford, 2024

Buy prints at: https://jeff-stanford.pixels.com/

I met Angela in Las Vegas, Nevada, November 4th, 2008, the night Barack Obama won his first election. I was on a two-month long road trip from New Jersey to the West Coast and back after the funeral of my youngest brother. I was lucky to be working for myself as a web developer with some wonderful customers that I only needed to meet IRL a couple of times a year. One to three hours a day working on projects was enough to keep me financially free so I would do that first in the morning and then either move on or stay someplace to see the sights. I also discovered a couple of sites where I could meet up with women at each destination who might like to show me around. I always made it clear that I was on a road trip and only around for a short while, but I was surprised by the number of people who replied. So, in Las Vegas it was Angela I met, and we hit it off wonderfully. Originally, I was supposed to meet up with my best friend, Mick, from England but he could not make it at the last minute. Angela was a great host and even though I never made a single bet I had a great time in all the clubs, bars, casinos, and restaurants in Vegas we visited. Eventually when it was time me to leave Angela and her daughter Jessica followed along as far as Memphis.

[adasitecompliance]

Financial Services ADA Checklist

7 Tips To Design ADA-Compliant Financial Services Websites

Banking and investment have recently changed a lot in the US, where more than 40% of adults access online financial services. With this ride in demand and need for online financial services comes the increased need for accessible web content. Despite only viewable pages of banking and financial sites considered to be places of public accommodation, only 1% of the most popular sites on the internet are compliant. And with more than 25% of US adults living with some disability, ensuring your site is compliant helps avoid ending up in expensive ADA lawsuits.

There is no need to worry if you do not know how to make your site ADA-compliant. We at ADA Site Compliance are here to help. We are the #1 source for all ADA website compliance issues and will check your site for accessibility while you focus on doing what you do best. Use the Financial Services ADA Checklist to tick all the accessibility boxes on your website.

Top 7 Best Practices to Adopt to Design ADA-Compliant Financial Services Websites

Here is a list of the seven best practices financial services should adopt while designing their website to ensure they adhere to website compliance standards:

1. Conduct Automated and User Testing

The first step involves assessing the current accessibility level of your website. Automated user testing is especially a better option for checking sites with hundreds or thousands of template product pages, which is tedious to perform manually. An automated test involves analyzing accessibility status based on real-time data. Upon completing the analysis, recommendations are made for the entire site to be easily integrated into the overall website design. However, your site requires user testing because automated testing cannot flag every WCAG violation. It is where usability and digital accessibility experts and people who use assistive technologies daily manually test your site for accessibility issues. The best user interface and testing program for a website is performed with the help of experts from:

Local activist groups or nonprofit organizations working with people with disabilities

The disability community

Friends, family members, or work colleagues using assistive technology or who have disabilities

Testers from different databases

2. Simple Fonts and Texts are Always Better

With the website’s text size, font, and style speaking a lot of your brand, its consistent and logical use helps prevent any confusion among site visitors. And to prevent confusion, it is always better to:

Use bold or italic text for important points

Avoid using large paragraphs, as it can be confusing for users with dyslexia to read

Divide information into bulleted lists

3. Simple Fonts and Texts are Always Better

You never know who may visit your financial website. That is why it should be accessible to users with auditory, mental, visual, physical, and visual impairments too. So your website needs some changes if users with disabilities cannot navigate the website using the help of only the tab button. These four tips help ensure your site content is easy to navigate:

Placing important information in the exact location on all pages

Ensuring disabled users can quickly find specific information on your website

Linearly presenting information on the website so that users with screen readers can easily scan the page from top to bottom

Having a “Skip Navigation’ feature at the top of the site so that screen readers can quickly find and access specific content

4. Clear and Concise Navigation

Accessibility issues due to poor color contrast may arise in websites that focus more on using colors consistent with their branding instead of using colors that promote effective communication. Users with cognitive disabilities, the color blind, and some other users with disabilities may find it challenging to access a site if the text and background colors are not in proper contrast. Some tips to consider to ensure proper contrast involve:

Maintaining a color-contrast ratio of 4.5:1 between all text and background colors

Using high-contrast visual aids or color schemes

Not depending solely on text of different colors for communicating messages

5. Using Proper Color Contrast

Your financial website audio and video assets determine your website accessibility. Accessing your website’s audio and visual content can be challenging for users with visual or cognitive impairments without the proper measures. Including descriptions of all audio and video files embedded in the website helps improve your website compliance. It is because it will help visually impaired users understand the purpose of all the website audio and video content. The following tips can improve your site accessibility:

Adding text captions, subtitles, and alternative text for images makes it easier for screen readers to read

Including audio descriptions and subtitles in multiple languages

Adding audio cues signaling changes in setting, color, gestures, and other visual elements

6. Including Descriptions on All Website Social Media Assets

Most users with disabilities resort to using screen readers to access ADA-friendly websites. So placing help text inline error messages below fields will help ensure visitors fill out forms. This helps in two ways:

The first is visitors can quickly contact your website through the form

Secondly, inline errors help users understand how to repair any incorrect fields

7. Include Labels and Inline Messaging in Website Forms

Ensuring the alt text in the website copy is as straightforward as possible lets visitors easily access the content they need. The best way to achieve this is by dividing the website text into headings and subheadings and correctly positioning them on the web page. Lastly, ensure all abbreviations and acronyms used in the website are appropriately punctuated using periods for better readability. And do not forget to have a developer review your website code once the website is ready. Not only should your website comply with all laws, but it should also function properly without a code.

More About ADA and Website Accessibility

The ADA law requires that users with disabilities should be able to access public physical structures with the help of wheelchairs and ramps. In addition, it requires that users with disabilities be able to access websites easily. This means that users with impairments should be able to read, use, and navigate page elements of the website easily without any problems. This is achieved with the right website color contrasts, alt tags, website navigation, and proper markup and coding.

What are the ADA Web Content Accessibility Guidelines?

The web accessibility standards WCAG 2.1 are presently the highest in the US for website accessibility. It is challenging to attain Title III compliance as the law does not specify any website accessibility procedure. However, despite no official ADA standard, web content accessibility guidelines WCAG 2.0 AA is the standard adopted for website compliance.

Conclusion

Whether you plan to design or redesign your financial services website does not matter. What does matter is ensuring it is ADA-compliant for two main reasons: To ensure your website is accessible to everyone and also to avoid landing up in a lawsuit. Following these steps ensures video content on your website is accessible to everyone, including users with various types of disabilities. Web compliance is a continual process wherein you must check your website to ensure it’s updated with the latest compliance issues. Do not worry if you find this tedious because we at ADA Site Compliance can help. It is what we are best at, ensuring ADA-compliant websites. We proudly say we are the #1 source for all ADA-accessible website and compliance issues. Our team of accessibility experts will check and fix all errors to ensure your website is fully ADA-compliant!

[vantaesfairie]

𝔭𝔦𝔠𝔨 𝔞 𝔠𝔞𝔯𝔡 𝔠𝔬𝔩𝔩𝔞𝔟 : 𝔴𝔥𝔞𝔱 𝔞𝔟𝔬𝔲𝔱 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔴𝔦𝔩𝔩 𝔞𝔱𝔱𝔯𝔞𝔠𝔱 𝔶𝔬𝔲𝔯 𝔣𝔲𝔱𝔲𝔯𝔢 𝔰𝔭𝔬𝔲𝔰𝔢

atlty’s tarot readings - dm for paid readings and prices!

this is my second tumblr tarot collab ateez version with the wonderful @hongjoongsmuse !!! go check out their blog and reblog too!

choose a picture below:

dear god this tumblr formatting has me going nuts it took me so long to piece these photos together on the web :( before anybody accuses us of not being ot8 there's mingi and jongho at the end :)

pile 1, yunho @vantaesfairie

your fs will like the fact that you always fight for what you think is right (if you're in the right ofc) and your perseverance. if you face your challenges head on and be more endurable to difficulties, it will bring your fs along as your own inner strength is developing. similarly to the seonghwa pile, being on 'higher ground' will help a lot. your fs will also be attracted to your queen energy. if you are a feminine, this is what you want to nurture and work on. they will love the way you are abundant in yourself and the way you connect with nature. they may also be an animal lover / like hiking or camping. the more 'mother' you are the better in this case. they also appreciate the way you think quickly and cleverly. other than being beautiful you need brains. they may be attracted to your hair / hair accessories / dress (or some clothes like a dress). they are attracted to your independent thinking and the way you communicate with others in a group setting. you may want to work on your knowledge and be more direct and candid about your opinions when others need your leadership. if you work on your inner strength, tap into your feminine energy and work on being more perceptive towards others, your fs will be attracted to you.

pile 2, seonghwa @vantaesfairie

your fs may be attracted to your status. you can attract your fs by being more financially independent as well as professional career wise. the more you rise up in your career hierarchy the more likely it is. if you want a provider person, you need to be a provider to yourself first in order to let go of that energy of loss. your youthful spirit and lightheartedness will help a lot a lot. if you have an rbf, try to surround yourself with people or things you like and relax with strangers. tapping into your 'cute', or 'childish' side will help a lot. if you are creative, start making art as you can manifest through art. they may love watching your art. when you have gone through such spiritual changes you will realize intuitive signs about your fs in your daily life more and more. you also have to be prepared for change as your fs may be coming in hot when they are attracted to said playful new infatuation energy. your passion for life and fire-sign like attitude to working and growing may attract them to you faster. overall, your material success, zest for life, artistic side, and perhaps travelling will help you attract your fs.

pile 3, san @vantaesfairie

i think your fs likes gold and wealth lol they might like bling luxury brands too just from the card imagery. your fs may like the way you talk, your voice is alluring. they like your leadership. you may want to work on your group communication or public speaking skills as they will be listening to you intently. you also have to give an aura of 'i am the best option out of all options you have but i don't really need you, you need me'. you have to shine amongst your peers. your fs may like the way you daydream or have goals that you are working towards. they like how realistic you are even towards 'unrealistic / dreamy' goals. they may like it more if you wear gold / yellow. they like the way you are charismatic and have a strong friendly energy like sagittarius. they like how enthusiastic you are. you should work towards trying to inspire others with your work and fashion, as well as being more independent and extroverted. in general, your fs will be attracted to your voice and assurance in speaking, your leadership, goal setting, strong social butterfly (but not too much) vibe.

pile 4, yeosang @hongjoongsmuse

yeosang's pile suggests that despite your many trials and tribulations, your future spouse will admire your determination and optimism for a better future. instead of letting things get you down, your ability to get back up and take another step forward is seriously impressive. they could also respect that in times of uncertainty, you can take accountability and work towards finding a solution. you have come a long way, and it looks like they'll be well aware of that. they could be very proud of your achievements and could continue to support you through anything. this may be someone you already know, or someone you will be friends with first. to get there, please be more forgiving of yourself, and hang in there, my love! things will get better.

the fool, the sun, 2 of swords, 8 of swords, 6 of wands, 8 of pentacles. rider-waite.

pile 5, hongjoong @hongjoongsmuse

hongjoong's pile suggests your fs might like be attracted to your warm, empathetic and friendly nature. they could find you enchanting, carefree and charming, yet a little whimsical and mysterious. they could admire you for your stability and for being "well put together", perhaps due to being very well dressed and financially stable. they could admire your poise and how you plan your sentences. to them, you could feel like a soulmate, and could have this sense of familiarity. they may see you as someone they would like to work together with to build a connection (instead of having to "win your heart") - a connection filled with love and cherish. to get to this point, consider continuing your studies, as your job seems quite influential and intellectual. the tarot also suggests keeping an open mind, and to be mindful of your words and those around you. try not to worry too much about what other people might think, as being who you are is the best self you could ever be.

queen of cups, 2 of cups, 3 of pentacles, 9 of pentacles, 4 of wands. rider-waite.

pile 6, wooyoung @hongjoongsmuse

our lovely wooyo suggests that your future spouse could admire you for your maturity and care for other people - falling for the heart, the soul - and especially the mind. you could end up being an inspiration to them, and they could often turn to your for support because they trust you more than anything. you could end up being their safe place. as mentioned, your mind could be something they love in particular. your open mindedness, your great advice and your ability to remain unbiased and rational, and perhaps a sense of authority and leadership? as a result of these traits, they could respect your stability, especially with finances and relationships. a good support system and nice flow of income could be very appealing, but of course - they wouldn't use you for it. more so, they could find it admirable, and could even aspire to be like you. if you haven't already, consider furthering your studies, and approach topics with a more objective view.

the empress, justice, king of swords, king of pentacles. rider-waite.

i hope you enjoyed this pac! please consider purchasing a paid reading by sliding into my dms. reblog and share if possible! i’d love to know if this resonates to you. thank you so much! 

[alkistisnetwide]

I'm going to make a sincere case against busting online piracy, prompted by recent EU and Greek laws

1. Art is a human right and necessary for personal development. People who can not afford the expense and those who do not have the ability to use money (= many children in restrictive, poor, conservative and ocassionally abusive households) are being deprived of most opportunities to have good influences and be exposed to constructive ideas

2. The intricacies of the legal and business world have made it impossible to access a large amount of obscure media, the creators of which wish to be available to the public. Streaming platforms are known to remove content unexpectedly, which becomes inaccessible even to those who are willing to pay. Media is nowadays rent, not bought, so piracy is often motivated by the desire to preserve it (also applies to higher level scientific knowledge)

3. It is outrageous to give corporations who are by no means struggling financially the power to control the dissemination of something intangible, to the extent where they can put people on trial for simply viewing. It is a violation of individual privacy and since there is no product being sold and the industry is extremely centralised said corporations can profit massively

It's important to see the laws for what they really are. They aren't there for the small artist who can't afford a lawyer. They serve the interests of the industry by not only forcing people to pay monthly for their slop but also by removing any alternative to it

I'll now make an additional argument, specific to myself, that could upset some people. My mother is someone who never embraced technology (and that's perfectly within her rights) and my father is rather prone to ideological thinking (wild conspiracy theories). I grew up without a television, without a phone until my teens and without the ability to make payments over the internet (we did have a laptop). Thankfully, YouTube back then wasn't so disgustingly censored, but being a young child that didn't have the ability to navigate the web I was restricted in how to entertain myself and didn't possess much critical thought. I never knew what my peers were talking about (maybe that was for the best, but it did contribute to my isolation) and when I was a preteen I was stuck reading a certain kind of far-right material on forums. At that age, where I was beginning to develop my ability to think like an adult, I should have had access to media that wasn't teaching me all the ways in which I, a little girl, had to change myself in order to appeal to men, be accepted and not be "contrary to nature". Instead, I developed body dysmorphia, bought into some theories about evolutionary psychology, began to intensely fear everyone around me and eventually found myself in some *really peaceful and non-violent group chats* (I had already been getting along with people who liked their "women" "pure" by that point). I was in an echo chamber and I have been really lucky to have gotten out *in time*.

I credit the fact I'm not in a big mess right now to:

Naoki Urasawa's Monster, the anime form of which is now a Netflix property, back then someone had uploaded the whole thing. The manga is available online

The work of an extremely talented musician who I won't shill here

Genshin [f*ck*ing] Impact, which despite it's flaws is an amazing story, as long as you aren't prone to gambling that is

Yes, there were a lot more factors contributing to my indoctrination than the content I consumed and what I didn't engage with. However, any one of them has some influence and any one of them might tip the scales for somebody