#business analytics in Germany | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

forsoobado137 · 5 months ago

Note

I know you talked about America/Alfred going to college a few times, but if other personified nations went to college, what would their majors be, and how would they decorate their grad caps? (I feel like Alfred's grad cap would have a star-spangled design with the words “Go Big or Go Home!” in glitter. Maybe even a bald eagle or fireworks motif. His cap would be over-the-top and loud, just like him.)

Let's start with America's brother. Canada would major in biology or forestry because he's a nature guy. Decorating caps is more an American thing, but if he did it, he wouldn't go overboard. He'd probably just put a maple leaf on it and proceed worry the entire time if he did too much.

England would definitely be a lit. major. He loves reading, and he's very analytical. In addition, he likes remembering the historical context of the works. He wouldn't decorate his cap because his university would be quite strict.

France would be a chemistry major. The reason he wouldn't major in fashion is because he doesn't want someone telling him how fashion works (because he's like the expert). To him, chemistry is like cooking. He's very in tune with the relationships between elements and their reactions. I'm not certain if his country has graduation caps, but if he decorated, he write his name in a fancy cursive font and glue some roses onto a thin white border. Simple and elegant.

Italy would be an art major because he loves to paint and reminisce in art history. he'd wear a laurel wreath because I think that's the tradition. Romano wouldn't go to uni in the first place because it's too much work. But if he did enroll, he'd choose culinary and try to one-up his brother. Then he'd actually realize that he enjoys cooking.

Germany would absolutely major in engineering. He literally spent all night building a machine with a smile on his face. Meanwhile, Prussia would be a business major because of course he would. big business major vibes from him.

Japan would be an architect major. He loves designing things and building tiny models. He'd definitely start with super crazy designs before his final draft is just a boring skyscraper. If he decorated his cap, he'd probably add a funny anime reference for the people behind him to see.

Russia would major in either astronomy or psychology. Astronomy because he loves space, and psychology because he wants to learn about how make good friends. Also no sane person enrolls in psychology (/hj).

China would definitely be a med student. He'd either major in Biochem or pharmacy so he can help people with medicine and stuff. Physical therapy also seems like a strong choice for him, because he can help people get back on their feet.

111 notes · View notes

mariacallous · 4 months ago

Text

The United States Federal Trade Commission is taking action against two American data brokers accused of unlawfully trafficking in people’s sensitive location data. The data was used, the agency says, to track Americans in and around churches, military bases, and doctors’ offices, among other protected sites. It was sold not only for advertising purposes but also for political campaigns and government uses, including immigration enforcement.

Mobilewalla, a Georgia-based data broker that’s said to have digitally tracked the residents of domestic abuse shelters, is accused by the agency of purposefully tracking protesters in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in 2020. In a court filing, the FTC says Mobilewalla attempted to unmask the protesters’ racial identities by tracking their mobile devices to, for example, Hindu temples and Black churches.

The FTC also accused Gravy Analytics and its subsidiary Venntel of harvesting and exploiting consumers’ location data without consent, alleging that the company used that data to unfairly infer health decisions and religious beliefs.

According to the FTC, Gravy Analytics collected over 17 billion location signals from approximately a billion mobile devices daily. It has reportedly sold access to that data to federal law enforcement agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security, the Drug Enforcement Agency, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Gravy Analytics could not be immediately reached for comment.

A spokesperson for Mobilewalla says the company's privacy policies are constantly evolving, adding: “While we disagree with many of the FTC’s allegations and implications that Mobilewalla tracks and targets individuals based on sensitive categories, we are satisfied that the resolution will allow us to continue providing valuable insights to businesses in a manner that respects and protects consumer privacy.”

“This data can be used to identify and target consumers based on their religion,” the FTC says. The location data collected by the two companies makes it possible, the agency says, to “identify where individual consumers lived, worked, and worshipped, thus suggesting the mobile device user’s religion and routine and identifying the user’s friends and families.”

According to the two settlements, which must be finalized in court before they would go into effect, Gravy Analytics and Mobilewalla are barred from collecting sensitive location data from consumers and must delete the historical data they gathered on millions of Americans. Mobilewalla would be banned from acquiring location data and other sensitive information from online auctions known as real-time bidding exchanges, marketplaces where advertisers compete to instantaneously deliver ads to targeted consumers. This case marks the first time the FTC has moved to police the collection of data directly from an ad exchange.

In another first, the proposed Gravy Analytics settlement would introduce military installations to the list of “sensitive locations” where the FTC bans location tracking. Under the terms, the company would be prohibited from selling, disclosing, or using data drawn from these locations, which include mental health clinics, substance abuse centers, and child care service providers.

In November, a collaborative investigation by WIRED, Bayerischer Rundfunk, and Netzpolitik.org revealed that over 3 billion phone location data points, collected by a US-based data broker, exposed the movements of US military and intelligence personnel in Germany. These movements included visits to nuclear vaults and brothels. In that story, WIRED first reported on FTC chair Lina Khan’s efforts to shield US military and intelligence personnel from data brokers.

US senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, who first urged the FTC to take action against Mobilewalla in 2020, praised the announcements, calling the companies’ actions “outrageous violations of Americans’ privacy.”

“These companies enabled US government agencies to surveil Americans without a warrant and enabled foreign countries to spy on service members with just a credit card,” says Wyden, who also previously investigated Venntel with other members of Congress.

While the FTC’s orders don’t directly tackle the issue of government agencies purchasing Americans’ location data—information for which a warrant is normally required—Wyden says the cases nevertheless undermine the government’s case for allowing the purchases. The orders make clear, he says, that federal agencies are hiding behind a “flimsy claim that Americans consented to the sale of their data.”

In a statement, FTC commissioner Alvaro Bedoya notes that while surveillance conducted by private companies won't raise the same constitutional issues as surveillance by government, the difference between the two is “porous if not irrelevant” to the people being watched. "Governments have long relied on private citizens for work that would be impractical or illegal for law enforcement," he says.

Whether the orders against Gravy Analytics and Mobilewalla will be enforced remains to be seen. Major changes are coming to the agency under the future Trump administration—most expected to undermine years of work by Khan and her staff. Many of Donald Trump's allies have been vocally critical of Khan's aggressive pro-consumer approach, including Republican megadonor Elon Musk, who has taken command of an ad hoc office that will purportedly advise the White House on improving “government efficiency.”

FTC commissioner Andrew Ferguson, whose name was floated last month as a potential Khan replacement, partially concurred with the agency’s decision to bring cases against the two data brokers on Tuesday. He agreed the companies had taken insufficient steps to ensure consumer data was properly anonymized, adding that they’d failed to obtain the “meaningfully informed consent” of the consumers they targeted.

Unlike Khan, however, Ferguson argues that the companies did not run afoul of the law by “categorizing consumers based on sensitive characteristics,” such as whether they attend church or political meetings. “These are all public acts that people carry out in the sight of their fellow citizens every day,” he says.

Ferguson likewise chastised the agency for attempting to restrict the power of data brokers to target protesters specifically. “Treating attendance at a political protest as uniquely private and sensitive is an oxymoron,” he says.

In a separate action Tuesday morning, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced it was taking steps to crack down on predatory data brokers that traffic in people’s financial information, calling the practice a gateway for “scamming, stalking, and spying.”

Musk, who donated more than $100 million toward Trump’s reelection, called publicly last week for the bureau to be “deleted.”

13 notes · View notes

worldofwardcraft · 24 days ago

Text

Tough times for Teslas.

March 24, 2025

Tesla, purported business "genius" Elon Musk's electric car company — a major source of his wealth, by the way — is undergoing a global meltdown. In the US, its January sales were down about 11%, according to data from the S&P Global analytics group. Worldwide it's even worse. In Germany, EV sales are up 30% over last year, but Tesla sales are down more than 70%! And according to Reuters, Tesla recorded a 50% drop in sales in Portugal and 45% in France between January and February. Sweden, Norway and Australia also report similar numbers.

Meanwhile, the company's stock price has plunged nearly 50% since its mid-December peak — with four top officers at the company selling off over $100 million in shares since early February. Musk himself has lost nearly $200 billion.

Much of the company's woes are due, of course, to Musk's personal unpopularity as Donald Trump's hatchet man in the ongoing destruction of the federal government. Which is causing enraged Americans to protest at Tesla dealerships and vandalize the cars themselves. But a contributing factor may be that Teslas are simply not very good cars.

For a start, they have a reputation for catching fire, often following a crash but also occasionally while just charging. Other drawbacks include suspension issues, battery degradation, door handle malfunctions, defective paint and faulty heat pumps. Plus, its self-driving Autopilot software has caused 736 crashes and 17 deaths since 2019. In fact, a study on data from 2018 to 2022 found Tesla had the highest fatal accident rate of any automaker.

But the company's recently introduced, ugly stainless steel-paneled (and rust-prone) Cybertruck is even more problematic. Since coming out last year, it has seen eight separate recalls to fix not just software but actual build problems, including an accelerator pedal that sticks, failing windshield wipers and plastic trim flying off.

Last month, a report found that, in just one year, the Cybertruck had a higher rate of fatal fire incidents than the infamous Ford Pinto. And only last week Tesla announced it was recalling all Cybertrucks manufactured to date (46,000 of them) because a panel could come unglued, which could be potentially dangerous if it happens while the vehicle is being driven.

Given their exorbitant price ($80,000 for the Cybertruck), poor design, hefty maintenance costs, low reliability and high insurance rates, it's not surprising sales of Teslas are cratering and used car lots are overflowing with discarded ones. So hurry on down to Honest Don's White House Tesla Sales, and you might get yourself a pretty sweet deal.

#tesla cars #cybertruck #elon musk #tesla takedown

5 notes · View notes

weirdestbooks · 4 months ago

Text

Wrong Reflection Chapter 13

A Difference in Morals (Wattpad | Ao3)

Table of Contents | Prev | Next

America had started to feel…off over the past couple of days, something that he knew was linked to the fact that he was so far from home, from his states, from the things that made him feel normal. He felt…distant more often than not, his DID worsening with the stress and making it harder to focus and remember things.

America missed his states a lot. Alabama’s Self-Reliance, Delaware’s Pride, Oregon’s Analytical Mind, Wisconsin’s Friendly Nature, and New Mexico’s Adaptability, those missing lights and feelings within him, he missed dearly.

It wasn’t just the states he missed, but the land itself. The land here soothed that ache little, but it was less alive than his own, less comforting, less…real.

It wasn’t his land. And he needed his land the same way he needed his states.

He was nothing without them. It was a burning, persistent ache that never went away, never calmed, and remained there, hollowing out his chest, dividing himself from himself.

The micronations and cities could feel it, too. This was their land, but a pale imitation of it, something that might temporarily block whatever side effect was coming from being away from their land but wouldn’t hold it off forever.

Not even being in the Land In Between felt like this. Even there, America could feel his land, like a second heartbeat alongside his own.

It was gone, and it hurt.

So, America began to do anything he could to distract himself from the pain.

Starting with figuring out what the hell was wrong with the personifications of this world.

First, no Britain. That was fine. Great, even. It didn’t make sense, but if America had to get help from his abuser’s counterpart, he knew he would be in a worse headspace than he already was. There was no reason why there shouldn’t be a Britain, but they had a system worked out, and if it saved Alfred and the other British colonies from the pain of Britain’s abuse, America couldn’t be happier about it.

The British Isles all being brothers was equally as strange, especially Northern Ireland, who was born so much later, and from what America had gathered after the mother of the British Isles had died, so either family trees were really fucked up here, or the others were lying to Northern Ireland about his parentage.

America elected to stay out of that business. Things involving Northern Ireland and their parents, at least in his world, always had a tendency to get messy.

America would leave that one alone.

There were other strange things he had noticed, like the overabundance of people with blond hair, but the one thing that confused him most of all was Prussia.

Their Prussia was alive. It made no sense. There was no land or people to anchor him, no country to allow him a body, and therefore no way for him to be alive.

It made no sense.

“And even if there were people for him to anchor to, France and USSR were insistent on seeing Prussia dead. Especially France. She was on the warpath. So even if he did survive, why would the others let him live?” James asked. America shrugged.

“I don’t know. They seemed to have had the same Germany since the empire, which is equally as odd, considering…” America trailed off, knowing James would be able to complete the statement.

“Too many live here that would have been killed back home,” Caleb commented, and America could practically hear the wry grin stretching across his face.

“Should we ask Alfred about that?” Mabel suggested, “He would have been involved in many of the events that we know have killed people and might be able to offer a perspective on why the personifications of the Axis powers were allowed to live.”

“I don’t know. He seemed to be friends with this world’s Prussia, and I don’t want to step on any toes,” America said.

“Uh, hi, am I interrupting something?” America then heard Matthew ask from behind him. America turned around, a polite smile on his face.

“No, just talking with the headmates about differences between our worlds,” America explained, fidgeting slightly. He knew they knew about the system, but talking with them and being overheard still made him so nervous after centuries of hiding them out of fear of being killed or put away in an insane asylum.

“About Gilbert being alive here?” Matthew asked. America blinked.

“If Gilbert is Prussia, yes. It seems…odd to me,” America said, trailing off before he really finished the thought. He had stepped on toes bringing up Prussia’s death and didn’t feel like souring relationships.

“If you get a new personification every time there is a new government, I can see why. Gilbert is East Germany now. That’s how he survived,” Matthew explained, causing America’s confusion to grow.

“You still have an East Germany?” America asked. Matthew grimaced.

“Yeah. I should have realized you didn’t. Sorry,” he said. America shrugged.

“It’s okay. But, uh, how does that work?”

“Oh, well, there can be more than one personification for a country sometimes. We have a North and South Italy as well,” Matthew explained. America frowned.

“It seems they are much less willing to kill each other if two countryhumans can exist at the same time with a civil war or internal domestic disputes,” James commented.

“I don’t understand this world,” America eventually said.

“Don’t worry, I don’t either,” Matthew said, smiling slightly as if he was trying to put America at ease. It was working, much to America’s chagrin.

“Hey guys, I was thinking about making pasta for dinner. Does that work for you?” America then heard Alfred ask as his younger counterpart walked into the room.

“Yeah,” America said, stretching slightly. Alfred frowned, turning to Matthew.

“Am I missing something?” he asked.

“Just another conversation about world differences,” Matthew explained, “Based on…well, you know, what we learned at the last world meeting.”

America looked away from Alfred, not wanting to see the look on his counterpart’s face at the reminder.

“Oh, that,” Alfred said, voice tight.

“I’m sorry,” America said. He hadn’t been as involved in Prussia’s death as the others, but he still had a role to play in it, and if it provided Alfred with a sense of comfort, that was good enough for America.

“It’s not your fault. We’re lucky that our Prussia survived. I guess…I guess it hadn’t hit me how lucky we were until I learned your world didn’t have that same luck,” Alfred said.

“Luck then? Were they trying to keep their Prussia alive, then?” Caleb asked, voice confused.

“I mean…” America began, unsure how to word it, “I wouldn’t say we were unlucky.”

“What does that mean?” Matthew asked, a strange look on his face, a look that was mirrored by Alfred. Well, Alfred looked a little bit angrier, but it was close enough.

“I mean that it wasn’t an accident that she died. France and the USSR were on the warpath and wanted Prussia to die like Nazi Germany did. Britain and I agreed, and together, we killed her through Law No. 46 within the ACC. We didn’t murder her by hand, but…we didn’t try to save her. We knew that the law was going to kill her, and we were glad about it. Nazi Germany was dead, and we were going to ensure the other personification we blamed for the war died as well,” America said, eyes fixed on the wall behind them so he didn’t have to look them in the eyes.

“Okay, but that was just a political thing—I… that’s politics and typically spearheaded by humans. You just went along with it, right?” Alfred asked. America shrugged.

“Not when it came to the Empire of Japan,” Mabel said, “Although you would have been justified in killing after what she did to Kentucky.”

“Most political stuff, yes. Some I was more or less involved in, some I wanted dead, and others I wished that there was a way to preserve the life of those who were about to die. It changed based on the situation and circumstances,” America offered.

“Okay, okay,” Alfred said, sounding panicked, “But it’s just political stuff that you’ve been involved with. You haven’t actually killed anyone with your bare hands.”

The question was rhetorical, but that didn’t stop America from flinching anyway, panic growing in his throat.

He hadn’t wanted to kill New England Confederation or New Sweden, but Father didn’t give him a choice, and he made America do it.

He didn’t have a choice. His body was taken from him, and dimly, America realized he was shaking. America tried to push the thoughts of those two from his mind, hearing James whisper gently to him. “James, please,” he whispered, retreating and letting James take control.

#countryhumans #countryhumans america #wrong reflection by weird #alfred f jones #hetalia canada #hetalia america #hetalia

7 notes · View notes

toshootforthestars · 3 months ago

Text

From the essay, posted 5 Jan 2025:

The private equity goons did not eviscerate [Gawker Media] because of their political beliefs. They did it because they only valued making money. This is the standard incentive in most industries, but in journalism, it has the effect of turning a publication into shit.

Journalism is not a business that responds well to the usual American capitalist imperative to treat your customers as victims to be tricked and sucked dry. The overall health of the free press is therefore a handy barometer to tell how the balance of power between humanism and cutthroat capitalism stands at any given moment in history.

Right now, that balance is tilting in the bad direction. In the past few months, the billionaire owners of both the LA Times and the Washington Post quashed anti-Trump presidential endorsements. In LA, Patrick Soon-Shiong has made it clear he intends to meddle in, at least, the opinion section to make it more right wing. Jeff Bezos must be a bit more circumspect with the Washington Post because of its institutional heft, but it is equally clear that he has concluded that nothing about his newspaper is worth pissing off Trump, who could retaliate against Bezos’ other, real business. Yesterday the Post’s longtime editorial cartoonist Ana Telnaes resigned after a cartoon mocking Bezos and other billionaires was killed by her editor. The editor, David Shipley, claimed the cartoon was just too repetitive, but Telnaes, who has been at the paper long enough to know, said it was the first time in her career that she’d had a piece rejected “because of the point of view inherent in the cartoon’s commentary.”

We’re not really on the slippery slope at this point. We’re sliding.

The only choice is when to jump off. What Telnaes did was heroic. Most journalists, regular people who need jobs to live, would (for good reason) think long and hard about quitting their jobs when they are unlikely to be able to land a comparable one.

The important takeaway here, though, is: This is how it happens. This is how nations decline. You don’t always turn into Nazi Germany. You turn into Russia, or Hungary, or other creaky and corrupt strongman states where everything is kind of a scam and everyone is hustling to please the gangster in charge. That, my friends, is the path we are on here.

America’s basic problem is that we have an economic system that concentrates great wealth in few hands and we have a political system in which money is allowed to buy political power in a straightforward way and now, on top of that, we have a President who fully embraces—who lives for—the opportunity to make the world bow to him by exploiting those systems.

It’s a bit surreal watching this all unfold right in front of us. This is the script of imperial downfall, of a mighty nation that has been teeing itself up to crumble by having no moral scruples finally jumping onto the garbage chute with both feet. Watching all of the highly respected CEOs of America’s most powerful and respectable and, according to a widespread characterization, “liberal” companies donate millions of dollars to the Trump inauguration, unalloyed bribes paid for political protection, is just—it’s not subtle. Detecting the grand direction of America has never required less insight.

I mean, 40 years ago, looking at Carter and Reagan deregulate industries and cut taxes, watching union power slowly decline, watching the public’s embrace of celebrity over substance, if you looked ahead and said, “Hey, over the next few decades, this is really going to eat away our shared prosperity and cause an inequality crisis that will ultimately obliterate the very legitimacy of America’s leading institutions”—well, that would be a canny call. That would require some real analytical foresight. But analyzing what is happening right now requires nothing but the ability to describe events accurately without succumbing to delusion.

We have a dozen people in this country who are worth more than $100 billion each and the richest one of all has teamed up with a gutter con man to buy the White House and now everyone who does not kiss the ring will be targeted for retaliation. This is the final form of unregulated capitalism, where fantastically rich and often childlike titans run the world’s most powerful nation for their own pleasure, and what was once thought of as “civil society” cowers in the corner in an effort to avoid provoking the beast..

* * * *

Even though I have spent years writing about all the ways that the mainstream press has failed and all the reasons why the New York Times sucks, I retain my sentimentality about the press. Where else, in this scam-ridden country, can you bring down the rich and powerful and corrupt with nothing but words?

Journalism, for all the flaws in the way it is practiced, is a great thing. To see high quality publications bought and broken by rich people is like watching a drunk hedge fund dickhead throwing up on a Picasso that he hung in his yacht. It’s just a fucking shame.

As you watch this all accelerate over the next four years, just remember that the slow decline of the public’s belief in journalism was not an accident. It was an assassination. I hope we all make it out the other side.

#hamilton nolan #the way things work #journalismism #news #the 2020's #2020's america #2025 #us politics #war on facts #war on truth #war on reality #the slow assassination of.the free press

4 notes · View notes

04k96 · 1 month ago

Text

[Prompted by ChatGPT]

Best cities for the 16 personality types

⸻

🧠 INTJ (“The Mastermind”) – Strategic, independent, visionary

1. Berlin, Germany – Intellectual, innovative, and filled with ambitious professionals. 👀

2. Zurich, Switzerland – High efficiency, structure, and business-oriented culture.

3. Tokyo, Japan – A balance of structure and technological advancement.

4. Toronto, Canada – Diverse opportunities, ambitious work culture.

5. Copenhagen, Denmark – Well-organized, minimalist, and future-focused.

Why?

• INTJs thrive in cities with intellectual stimulation, strong infrastructure, and career growth potential.

⸻

💡 INTP (“The Thinker”) – Curious, analytical, abstract thinker

1. San Francisco, USA – Tech-driven, innovative, and full of deep thinkers.

2. Berlin, Germany – A haven for intellectuals, artists, and researchers.

3. Amsterdam, Netherlands – Open-minded, progressive, and encourages deep conversations.

4. Stockholm, Sweden – Efficient, futuristic, and full of research opportunities.

5. Seoul, South Korea – Highly technological and intellectually stimulating.

Why?

• INTPs need intellectual freedom and like-minded, deep-thinking people.

⸻

📊 ENTJ (“The Commander”) – Ambitious, strategic, natural leader

1. New York City, USA – Fast-paced, business-driven, and full of opportunities.

2. London, UK – Global business hub with strong leadership culture.

3. Shanghai, China – Powerful economy, rapid growth, and entrepreneurial spirit.

4. Singapore – High efficiency, innovation, and corporate leadership.

5. Dubai, UAE – Competitive and fast-growing, ideal for business-minded individuals.

Why?

• ENTJs excel in high-stakes, competitive environments with career advancement opportunities.

⸻

🚀 ENTP (“The Debater”) – Bold, energetic, loves debating ideas

1. Los Angeles, USA – Creative, fast-moving, and full of ambitious people.

2. Berlin, Germany – Ideal for thinkers, entrepreneurs, and innovators.

3. London, UK – Intellectual debates, career opportunities, and cultural variety.

4. Barcelona, Spain – Vibrant, social, and full of adventurous people.

5. Bangkok, Thailand – Chaotic but full of opportunities and excitement.

Why?

• ENTPs love innovation, lively debates, and adventure.

⸻

🎭 INFJ (“The Advocate”) – Deep thinker, idealistic, seeks meaning

1. Kyoto, Japan – Quiet, spiritual, and culturally rich.

2. Vancouver, Canada – Nature-focused, peaceful, and full of deep thinkers.

3. Stockholm, Sweden – Progressive, humanitarian, and balanced.

4. Reykjavik, Iceland – Isolated, introspective, and philosophical.

5. Portland, USA – Alternative, artistic, and values individuality.

Why?

• INFJs need deep meaning, quiet reflection, and inspiring environments.

⸻

🌊 INFP (“The Dreamer”) – Creative, deeply emotional, introspective

1. Edinburgh, Scotland – Romantic, historical, and creative.

2. Reykjavik, Iceland – Quiet, artistic, and deeply introspective.

3. Wellington, New Zealand – Natural beauty, relaxed, and inspiring.

4. Florence, Italy – Aesthetic, artistic, and full of history.

5. San Francisco, USA – Liberal, creative, and full of dreamers.

Why?

• INFPs need beauty, introspection, and inspiration.

⸻

💎 ENFJ (“The Protagonist”) – Charismatic, inspiring, social

1. Paris, France – Romantic, passionate, and socially engaging.

2. New York City, USA – A place to lead, inspire, and connect.

3. Barcelona, Spain – Vibrant, expressive, and full of energy.

4. Buenos Aires, Argentina – Artistic, passionate, and socially rich.

5. Copenhagen, Denmark – Humanitarian, progressive, and balanced.

Why?

• ENFJs thrive in social, expressive environments with leadership opportunities.

⸻

🌍 ENFP (“The Campaigner”) – Adventurous, energetic, full of ideas

1. Barcelona, Spain – Artistic, spontaneous, and full of life.

2. Sydney, Australia – Sunny, energetic, and socially open.

3. Amsterdam, Netherlands – Free-thinking, liberal, and exciting.

4. Bali, Indonesia – Bohemian, open-minded, and spiritual.

5. Cape Town, South Africa – Adventurous, social, and full of exploration.

Why?

• ENFPs need freedom, adventure, and engaging people.

⸻

🔍 ISTJ (“The Inspector”) – Practical, structured, disciplined

1. Zurich, Switzerland – Efficient, structured, and well-organized.

2. Munich, Germany – Stable, traditional, and business-focused.

3. Vienna, Austria – Clean, structured, and historically rich.

4. Copenhagen, Denmark – Well-functioning, progressive, and efficient.

5. Tokyo, Japan – Orderly, disciplined, and advanced.

Why?

• ISTJs prefer structured, organized, and highly functional environments.

⸻

🛠 ESTJ (“The Executive”) – Hardworking, decisive, leader

1. New York City, USA – Fast-paced, results-driven, and competitive.

2. Singapore – Structured, ambitious, and business-friendly.

3. London, UK – A hub for power, business, and leadership.

4. Frankfurt, Germany – A financial powerhouse with structure.

5. Hong Kong – Competitive, high-achieving, and disciplined.

Why?

• ESTJs need fast-moving, structured environments with strong leadership roles.

⸻

🎯 ISTP (“The Craftsman”) – Logical, hands-on, independent

1. Berlin, Germany – DIY culture, tech-driven, and open-minded.

2. Austin, USA – Alternative, innovative, and independent.

3. Melbourne, Australia – Adventurous, hands-on, and DIY-oriented.

4. Osaka, Japan – Blends order with creativity.

5. Helsinki, Finland – Tech-driven and highly practical.

Why?

• ISTPs need freedom, hands-on work, and creative problem-solving.

⸻

🏕 ESTP (“The Entrepreneur”) – Bold, spontaneous, action-oriented

1. Las Vegas, USA – High energy, excitement, and risk-taking.

2. Miami, USA – Party scene, adventure, and business opportunities.

3. São Paulo, Brazil – Fast-paced, lively, and full of action.

4. Bangkok, Thailand – Chaotic, unpredictable, and full of opportunities.

5. Dubai, UAE – Business-driven, ambitious, and high-energy.

Why?

• ESTPs thrive in fast-moving, high-stimulation environments.

#04k96

4 notes · View notes

scotianostra · 1 year ago

Text

15th February 1817 saw the birth in Glasgow of Robert Angus Smith.

You may not have heard of him, or maybe you read about him in my previous post? Anyway we have all heard of acid rain, defined by National Geographic magazine thus: “Acid rain describes any form of precipitation that contains high levels of nitric and sulfuric acids. It can also occur in the form of snow, fog, and tiny bits of dry material that settle to Earth.”

The words “acid rain” were coined as long ago as 1859 by Angus Smith, who seven years earlier had made the discovery that northern cities across Britain were suffering from rainfall that contained heavy pollutants that were the result of the burning of coal that was rich in sulphur. His research found that the worst-affected city was his home town of Glasgow.

Robert Angus Smith was born in Pollokshaws the seventh son and 12th child of John Smith, originally from Ayrshire, and his wife Janet, daughter of James Thomson who owned a mill at Strathaven in Lanarkshire.

His elder brother John was a big influence on Angus’s life. John eventually became a senior teacher at Perth Academy, and was himself a scientist who would research theories on colour and light. He encouraged his younger brother to read the works of Joseph Priestley, the pioneering English chemist, and Angus Smith was greatly influenced by Priestley’s writings.

He attended Glasgow University from the age of 13, apparently to prepare for a career in the Church of Scotland ministry, but he left without graduating and then became a tutor to families, first in Scotland and then in England. In 1839 he accompanied the Bridgeman family to Germany where he remained to study under the Professor Justus Liebeg, gaining his PhD in 1841.

On returning to England he took a post at Manchester Royal Institution as assistant to Lyon Playfair, an Indian-born Scot and a scientist and politician.

Playfair passed on his own interest in the sanitation of towns and cities to Angus Smith, who left the Institution to set up in business as an analytical chemist. As concern grew about pollution, his services were in demand, and in one famous experiment he waited until a crowded room had emptied then collected the residue on windows to prove that human breath exuded not just carbon dioxide but organic matter dangerous to health.

Smith once graphically described the effects of Manchester’s polluted atmosphere, in a letter to the Manchester Guardian published on November 2, 1844.

He wrote: “Coming in from the country last week on a beautiful morning, when the air was unusually clear and fresh, I was surprised to find Manchester was enjoying the atmosphere of a dark December day… Those who would defend such evils, who would remain careless as long as any probable cause is unremoved, must surely be devoid not only of mercy, but of clear perception and of good taste. The gloominess of uncleanness is everywhere around us.”

In 1851 he began the research that would make him the “father of acid rain” as he is often known. Smith proved that sulphur compounds in the air of towns and cities were the result of burning coal and coke transported in air and rainwater, and even as the industrial revolution was bringing more and more factories into being, Smith was arguing that manufacturers should be held responsible for their pollution.

He investigated poor housing and water quality, and published numerous papers that formed the basis of the developing science of environmental chemistry. One report on the problems of pollution for the Royal Mines Commission was particularly devastating in its scientific indictment of the polluters.

Smith was called as an expert witness in a court case over factory and mine pollution and his testimony was convincing. Consequently when the British Government decided to legislate – in the Alkali Act of 1863 – to try and cut pollution from mining and manufacturing, there was really only one man to turn to as the first chief of the alkali inspectorate and thus Smith spent much of the next two decades transforming attitudes to pollution.

In 1872 Smith published his Air and Rain, the beginnings of a Chemical Climatology, in which he collected the result of his experiments. It proved how ground-breaking his work had been.

With honorary degrees from both Glasgow and Edinburgh University, Angus Smith was honoured in his own lifetime. His health declined badly in his later years and he died at at Colwyn Bay, North Wales, on May 12, 1884, being buried in the churchyard of St Paul’s, Kersal, Manchester.

He was paid a most generous tribute in the first edition of Nature magazine following his death: “For upwards of 40 years he laboured unceasingly to show how chemistry might minister to the material comfort and physical well-being of men — not in the manufacture of new compounds useful in the arts, or in the establishment of new industries – but in raising the general standard of the health of communities by checking or counteracting the evils which have followed in the train of that enormous development of the manufacturing arts which is the boast of this century.

“In his true vocation, as the chemist of sanitary science, Smith worked alone, and we have yet to find the man on whom his mantle has fallen."

#Scotland #Scottish #science #scientist #environmetalists

12 notes · View notes

nomadicrogue · 9 months ago

Text

BASICS

FULL NAME: WACHIRAPHON BUATHONG

» MEANING: Wachiraphon [ วชิรพล m Thai From Thai วชิร (wachira) meaning "diamond, lightning bolt" and พล (phon) meaning "force, strength, power." ]; Buathong [ บัว (bua) meaning "lotus" and ทอง (thong) meaning "gold." ]

VERSES: Paratime.

NICKNAME(S): War.

AGE: 31-years old.

DATE OF BIRTH: 1992 September 13th, Sunday.

PLACE OF BIRTH: Bangkok, Thailand, Earth156.

OCCUPATION: Well known parallel worlds criminal by the Organization - suspected of various crimes; currently employed by the Organization to pose as the late Officer War from Earth001.

RELIGION: Non-practicing.

ORIENTATION: Bisexual; Biromantic.

GENDER: Cisgender male.

PERSONALITY

STRENGTHS: Loyal, Analytical, Hardworking, Practical, Organized.

WEAKNESSES: Stubborn, Restless, Manipulative, Deceitful, Cheater.

APPEARANCE

FACE CLAIM: Zee Pruk Panich.

HEIGHT: 6'0 ft. [182.88 cm]

WEIGHT: 154 lbs. [70 kg.]

BUILD: Lean, toned.

GAIT: Relaxed.

HAIR COLOR: Black.

EYE COLOR: Dark brown.

BIRTHMARK:

OVERVIEW: » SCARS: Some scars. » TATTOOS:

BACKGROUND

HOMETOWN: Bangkok, Thailand, Earth156/Earth001.

RESIDENCES: Bangkok and in various countries. Currently, in Germany.

NATIONALITY: Thai.

ETHNICITY: Asian.

FINANCIAL STATUS: Middle Class.

EDUCATION LEVEL: War Earth156 is a high school drop out. His counterpart is a university graduate in Bangkok and was trained by the Organization through their academy in space.

DEGREES: Degree in Forensics.

SPOKEN LANGUAGES: War is fluent in Thai, English, German, Japanese, and French.

RELATIONSHIPS

PARENTS: Deceased.

SIBLINGS: Yes, younger siblings.

CHILDREN: None.

PETS: None.

SIGNIFICANT RELATIONSHIPS: » War from Earth001 work closely with Hari Schütz.

HISTORY

War was born on Earth156, a rather very rough and tougher version of Earth001. He had a challenging life and struggled to survive by working various odd jobs while growing up until he got involved with one of the dangerous gangs in the area where he lived. This group terrorized various businesses and people and as they grew and became powerful, they expanded, posing threat to other parallel worlds.

The Organization began work on disbanding such criminal groups within various Earths however, due to other well-known criminals acquiring ways to travel to other Earths, it became easier to form bigger groups making the Organization's job a bit harder.

War from Earth156 became a prominent figure, almost as successful as his parallel self in Earth001, a parallel worlds officer who hunt down criminals like War Earth156.

Earth156 War was added to the most wanted list of the Organization after skipping multi-Earths and causing imbalance in the parallel worlds. At the same time, Earth001 War who was one of the officers leading a big investigation into these parallel world groups was ambushed and unfortunately killed during a mission. The incident caused a ripple effect in the parallel worlds, pushing War from Earth156 into the lap of the Organization. The Org realized that without their own version of War, the investigation and mission to bring down the parallel world criminal groups won't succeed so they made a deal with War156; in exchange for a lighter sentence, War would pose as War from Earth001 under the control of Lead Investigator Hari Schütz.

War accepted the deal deciding that for now, it's his best chance of staying out of intergalactic prison and began devising a plan to escape...

ROMANTIC HISTORY: There were lovers in the past but none at the moment.

PLATONIC RELATIONSHIPS: To be added.

THOUGHTS ON LOVE: "None."

HEALTH

PHOBIA(S): None.

HANDICAP(S): None.

MENTAL DISEASE(S): Depression, anxiety.

PHYSICAL DISEASE(S): None that he is aware of.

PREDISPOSITION(S): Alcoholism.

#{ character sheet: war }

5 notes · View notes

kieraplaysthesims · 4 months ago

Text

July 1927

The summer of 1927 brought a festive air to Windenburg, where the idyllic beauty of the countryside mingled with the whispers of history. Katarina Zora Janosovski, a spirited 21-year-old schoolteacher known for her warm smile and thoughtful intellect, prepared to marry Klaus Wilhelm Köhler, a 38-year-old restaurateur with a booming business and a reputation for charm and ambition.

The wedding took place in the village’s Lutheran church, its tall spire standing like a sentinel over the cobblestone streets. Inside, the pews were filled with a blend of Katarina’s family, traveling from Britechester, Wales, and Klaus’s associates, who arrived from all over Germany’s countryside. Katarina’s dress was a masterpiece of soft ivory silk, embroidered with delicate floral motifs that mirrored the lupins in bloom outside. Klaus, in a tailored charcoal suit with a crisp white tie, stood with quiet confidence at the altar.

As they exchanged vows, there was a solemnity to the moment that spoke to the commitment they both shared, but also a tenderness that lit up the room. Klaus, ever the analytical businessman, had found something in Katarina that no ledger could quantify: a partner whose passion for life matched his own. Katarina, for her part, saw in Klaus not only a successful man but someone who shared her dreams of building a life rooted in beauty, love, and legacy.

Following the ceremony, the celebration moved to Klaus’s largest restaurant in Windenburg, a sprawling timber-framed building adorned with ivy and overlooking the glistening lake. Tables were set with white linens and adorned with lupins, honoring the couple’s new home. The air was filled with music, laughter, and the tantalizing aromas of Klaus’s renowned cuisine. Katarina’s younger brother, Emil, gave a toast, humorously recounting his sister’s fierce independence and wishing Klaus luck in keeping up with her.

Afterward, the newlyweds moved into their manor on the Crumbling Isle, a place where nature and history intertwined. The house was a vision: its stone walls softened by climbing roses, its gardens a riot of lupins in shades of purple, pink, and white. The Crumbling Isle itself was steeped in mystery, its ancient battlements and ruins telling tales of battles fought long ago. For Katarina, the setting was perfect—a blend of old and new, much like their marriage.

Klaus, ever meticulous, had ensured the manor was in pristine condition. The high ceilings, polished wood floors, and large windows overlooking the lake spoke of timeless elegance, while the sprawling gardens reflected Katarina’s love for nature and serenity. Here, they planned to build a life together, combining Katarina’s passion for education with Klaus’s culinary empire.

In the days following the wedding, neighbors on the Crumbling Isle often caught glimpses of the couple strolling hand in hand through their gardens or hosting intimate gatherings in their home. Klaus, known for his sharp mind and business acumen, seemed softened by Katarina’s presence, while Katarina flourished in the stability and support of her new life.

5 notes · View notes

addictarnage · 19 days ago

Text

Heaven Vrakēndorf K. Von-Nächtruf was born on July 10, 2001, in a setting as fascinating as it is contradictory. The daughter of Viktor Von-Nächtruf, an internationally renowned German physicist, and Anastasia K. Vrakēndorf, a talented Russian singer. Heaven grew up between two cultures, both intense and equally complex, but it was the story of her maternal grandmother that truly shaped the young girl’s heart and soul.

Viktor, with his analytical and distant mind, and Anastasia, with her sensitive and warm spirit, were fundamental figures in the childhood of the blonde with blue-green eyes, but the true influence on her identity did not come directly from them. It was Heaven’s grandmother, Silvia, who had the greatest influence on the way she saw the world. Silvia was born in Brazil and has always carried with her a story that seemed more like a fairy tale, full of contrasts. She was the granddaughter of Brazilian immigrants, but over the years her adventurous spirit took her to Russia, where she married a Russian nobleman. Silvia’s love for Brazil, however, never waned, and she always made sure to pass on her passion for Brazilian culture to her granddaughter.

Heaven spent much of her childhood with her grandmother. When her parents were busy with their own worlds — Viktor in the laboratory, and Anastasia in her musical career — she found in her grandmother a refuge of unconditional love and profound teachings. The eldest taught her traditional Brazilian songs, folk stories that spoke of a magical and enchanted Brazil, and the rhythms of Brazilian music that seemed to be in the blood of each of its inhabitants. She made her dream of the tropical country, its beaches and its parties, and the little girl began to nurture a burning passion for Brazil, as if a part of her soul had been awakened by those stories and melodies.

It was during these moments with Silvia that Heaven began to understand that music was not just an expression of feelings, but a way to unite people and cultures. Her grandmother always spoke about the “Brazilian soul” and the importance of feeling free to be who you are, without fear of judgment. For Heaven, these words became a philosophy of life. She learned to love Brazil in a way that was not limited to its history or its rhythms, but through the vibrant energy that emanated from each song, each dance step and each open smile.

Although her father was German and very strict in his way of seeing the world, Heaven always felt drawn to the lightness and warmth of Brazilian culture, a stark contrast to the methodical structure of her upbringing in Germany. She learned to speak Portuguese before she even fully understood Russian, her mother’s language. Her connection with Brazil was deep and natural, something that no one could explain.

At eighteen, the girl made a decision that would change the course of her life: she would move to Brazil. It was there that she would finally feel that she could be herself, far from her father's expectations and the shadows of German culture that still seemed heavy on her shoulders. She did not want to follow her mother's career, and she knew that music should be a form of self-expression, something that transcended any external expectations. In Brazil, she would have the freedom she so longed for.

[…]

Dakota was a ballerina from great theaters. German, but with a spirit that seemed to detach itself from the rigidity of her origins. From a young age, Dakota demonstrated an exceptional ability for classical dance, and over time she stood out on the most prestigious stages in Europe. Her art was refined, and each performance conveyed a deep emotion, as if each movement were a poem told in silence. She was not just a ballerina, but an artist who knew how to communicate her essence through movement, creating stories of a complexity that touched the hearts of all who watched.

It was on one of the trips that Heaven made back to Germany, accompanied by her family, that she met Dakota. On an elegant evening at the city’s grand theater, where Dakota was performing, Heaven had the opportunity to witness a unique performance by the ballerina. With each step Dakota took, the Russian felt something inside her begin to move. It was as if, at that moment, her own soul was connecting with Dakota’s movement. The ballerina’s energy seemed to fill the theater, and Heaven knew, in that instant, that her own artistic journey was about to take on a new meaning.

She, already passionate about art in general, had no idea that this performance would shake her world. When Dakota walked onto the stage, her golden skin reflected the soft light, and her green eyes seemed to carry the weight of all the untold stories. The dance flowed with sublime grace, and Heaven felt as if time had stopped. There was something in Dakota’s expressions that spoke directly to Heaven’s soul. It was as if she was seeing the universe in a whole new way.

[…]

The two shared confidences during walks, laughing, talking about their pasts and dreams. At night, Dakota would dance for Heaven in private spaces, letting her movements flow freely, as if they spoke a language all their own. Heaven, fascinated, would spend hours watching her, capturing every nuance of her dance and absorbing the emotion that Dakota conveyed without words. Dakota, in turn, loved to hear Heaven sing, the purity and warmth of her voice filling the air with a rare intimacy.

Back in Brazil, Heaven began to compose some of the most intense and personal songs on Escândalo Íntimo. The album was a fusion of powerful melodies and lyrics filled with unique intimacy. Fans soon began to speculate about the inspirations behind the songs, especially the more romantic tracks. “Iguaria”, “Principalmente Me Sinto Arrasada”, “Surreal”, "Romance Em Cena" — all of these songs seemed to carry an unspoken love story, a romance that was absent but filled the space between the words and chords.

Fans dove into the search for clues, and many began to believe that the album was inspired by a secret relationship, a deep and unresolved passion. But Heaven never revealed who the true muse behind her songs was. She never mentioned Dakota, but the lyrics were imbued with her presence, with the intensity of what she felt when she saw the ballerina on stage.

The success of Escândalo Íntimo was global, but the aura of mystery that surrounded the songs only fueled the curiosity of fans. Who was the muse of Heaven's songs? Was it someone from the past? Or a figure of her own creation? Heaven's secret was well kept, but behind her voice and lyrics, Dakota's spirit, with her movements and her energy, continued to be the flame that fueled the singer's creativity. And so, the songs of Escândalo Íntimo became more than just hits, but fragments of a silent story, an unlived love that echoed in each verse.

1 note · View note

greenbirdtrash · 2 years ago

Text

Aaaand that's gonna be enough for me to assume he learned multiple languages (maybe only the bare minimum like formal greetings, questions and stuff, but still..it ain't that easy, i know what i'm saying) in his fame era to communicate with his business partners from different countries (France, Japan, Spain and Germany...i can't imagine how HUGE his empire was if they had that kind of partnerships with the biggest players out there) or maaaybe he learned 5-10 sentences just to look cool in people's eyes with everyone looking at him and saying something like "omg that once-ler is so smart", yk, to scratch his own ego.

The thing is, if we assume that he IS in fact somehow fluent in some of them it DOES make him pretty smart or at least very capable and analytical on top of the fact that he has a tech genius brain that allows him to invent and construct literally anything from scratch, from portable phones to huge machinery, and if he can do that, he probably can master languages as well, but how much free time did he actually had for that when he was busy with building the town and the entire infrastructure for it? It took him years to create an urban ecosystem that 100% depends on him and his business anyway, his factory is literally described as a huge beating heart of the city

Maybe he was multitasking, or maybe when the majority of things got stabilised he had some free time to learn languages in peace.

Who knows.

#kers ramblings #lorax musical #lorax musical analysis #the lorax #the onceler

14 notes · View notes

pureconsultantde · 1 year ago

Text

PMO-Beratung

Website: https://www.pureconsultant.de/de/beratung/project-management-office-beratung/

Address: Hohenstaufenring 57a, 50674 Köln, Germany

Pure Consultant bietet professionelle PMO-Beratungsdienstleistungen an. Unser erfahrenes Team von PMO-Beratern steht Ihnen zur Seite, um maßgeschneiderte Lösungen zu entwickeln und eine effektive PMO-Transformation in Ihrem Unternehmen zu ermöglichen. Wir bringen umfassende Expertise im Bereich PMO Consulting ein, um individuelle Strategien zu entwerfen und die Effizienz Ihres Projektmanagements zu steigern. Unsere Fokussierung liegt darauf, Ihre Organisation durch effektive Schulungen und praxisnahe Anleitung auf dem Weg zu einem effizienten PMO zu begleiten.

Provenexpert: https://www.provenexpert.com/pcg-pure-consultant-gmbh/

Xing: https://www.xing.com/pages/pcgpureconsultantgmbh

Trustpilot: https://de.trustpilot.com/review/pureconsultant.de

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/organization-guest/company/pcgpureconsultantgmbh

Keywords:

pmo beratung

pmo consultant

pmo consulting services

pmo consulting firms

pmo consulting companies

project management office consultant

platinum pmo consulting

atkins pmo consultant

consulting

business consultant

power bi consultant

it consulting

salesforce consultant

hr consulting

marketing consultant

hr consulting firms

seo consultant

consulting firms

sharepoint consultant

management consulting

netsuite consultant

strategy consulting

business consulting services

healthcare consulting

salesforce implementation partner

business consultant near me

accenture consulting

route consultant

small business consultant

cyber security consultant

sustainability consultant

franchise consultant

consulting services

digital transformation consultant

ai consultant

wealth management consultant

consulting company

google analytics consultant

mba consulting

digital marketing consultant

restaurant consultant

healthcare consulting firms

hr consulting services

human resources consultant

devops consulting

small business consulting services

environmental consultant

business plan consultant

technology consultant

salesforce consulting companies

sap consulting

bain and company

supply chain consultant

brand consultant

tech consulting

financial consulting

software consultant

ey consulting

hr consulting companies

dei consultant

starting a consulting business

data science consulting

product management consulting

business development consultant

project management consultant

safety consultant

software consulting companies

change management consultant

management consulting firms

esg consulting firms

2 notes · View notes

mostlysignssomeportents · 1 year ago

Text

This day in history

Next Tuesday (December 5), I'm at Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, NC, with my new solarpunk novel The Lost Cause, which 350.org's Bill McKibben called "The first great YIMBY novel: perceptive, scientifically sound, and extraordinarily hopeful."b

#20yrago Bruce Sterling hits his stride on his blog https://web.archive.org/web/20040505163610/https://wiredblogs.tripod.com/sterling/index.blog?entry_id=154868

#20yrsago Hayes Micro: the moral is, take the money and run https://web.archive.org/web/20031205001612/https://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/1103/23hayes.html

#20yrsago Fan builds 11,000 sqft Haunted Mansion replica https://web.archive.org/web/20031203011208/https://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/gwinnett/1103/26haunted.html

#15yrsago Neil Gaiman explains why he opposes laws banning speech he disagrees with https://journal.neilgaiman.com/2008/12/why-defend-freedom-of-icky-speech.html

#15yrsago Why Candyland doesn’t suck https://web.archive.org/web/20081205063135/http://playthisthing.com/candy-land

#15yrsago Vietnam’s amazing phone-unlockers https://www.cnet.com/culture/unlocking-iphone-3gs-the-vietnamese-way/

#15yrsago UK to punish “publishing police info” with 10 years in jail https://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/11/413023.html

#10yrsago Porno copyright trolls Prenda Law fined $261K https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/11/unhappy-thanksgiving-for-prenda-law-ordered-to-pay-261k-to-defendants/

#10yrsago Presenting political argument on Twitter, and the “prestige economy” https://www.mic.com/articles/48829/why-you-should-never-have-taken-that-prestigious-internship

#10yrsago Apps come bundled with secret Bitcoin mining programs, paper over the practice with EULAs https://www.malwarebytes.com/blog/news/2013/11/potentially-unwanted-miners-toolbar-peddlers-use-your-system-to-make-btc

#10yrsago Study shows removing DRM increased music sales https://torrentfreak.com/what-piracy-removing-drm-boosts-music-sales-by-10-percent-131130/

#10yrsago JP Morgan’s “Twitter takeover” seeks questions from Twitter, gets flooded with critiques of banksterism #AskJPM https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/30/shock-poll-reveals-gulf-britain-eu-france-germany-poland-hostile

#10yrsago UK Home Secretary Theresa May secretly charters private jet to (unsuccessfully) deport dying man to Nigeria https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/nov/30/theresa-may-hunger-striker-ifa-muaza-asylum-uk

#5yrsago To save Brexit deal, Prime Minister Theresa May dropped an assault rifle ban https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2018/11/something-crazy-happened-parliament-last-night-and-no-one-talking-about-it

#5yrsago David Byrne’s “Eclectic Music for the Holidays” playlist http://davidbyrne.com/radio/david-byrne-presents-eclectic-for-the-holidays

#5yrsago Incredibly detailed technical guide to camgirling is a mix of advanced retail psychology and advice on performing emotional labor https://knowingless.com/2018/11/19/maximizing-your-slut-impact-an-overly-analytical-guide-to-camgirling/

#5yrsago AI scientist who quit Google over Chinese censorship plans details the hypocrisy that sent him packing https://theintercept.com/2018/12/01/google-china-censorship-human-rights/

#5yrsago St Louis cops indicted for beating up a “protester” who turned out to be an undercover cop https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2018/11/30/its-still-blast-beating-people-st-louis-police-indicted-assault-undercover-officer-posing-protester/

#1yrago All the books I reviewed in 2022 https://pluralistic.net/2022/12/01/bookishness/#2022-in-review

It's EFF's Power Up Your Donation Week: this week, donations to the Electronic Frontier Foundation are matched 1:1, meaning your money goes twice as far. I've worked with EFF for 22 years now and I have always been - and remain - a major donor, because I've seen firsthand how effective, responsible and brilliant this organization is. Please join me in helping EFF continue its work!

#pluralistic

3 notes · View notes

cindylouwho-2 · 2 years ago

Text

RECENT ECOMMERCE NEWS, RESOURCES AND STUDIES, EARLY JULY 2023

As expected when I posted the recent Etsy and SEO news update in June, I didn't get much time during my road trip to work on the other portion. So here it is, covering ecommerce sites, social media, content marketing and lots of other things small and microbusinesses might need to know.

I've also updated my Tumblr theme to make it easier to read and more accessible overall. Please let me know what you think!

Finally, the next update will be out in a few weeks, and will contain everything together in one post again. If you don't want to wait for it, follow me on Twitter or on LinkedIn for more timely news.

SOCIAL MEDIA - All Aspects, By Site

Facebook (includes relevant general news from Meta)

You can now pay for a verified Meta account, and unlike Twitter, they actually verify your ID.

Speaking of Twitter, Meta’s copycat app Threads took off rapidly, hitting over 100 million signups in the first week.

If you have a Facebook or Instagram Shop, note that many countries will need to use Meta’s checkout as of April 24 2023. While the US is one of those countries, the following places will not have to change anything at this moment: “Australia, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, U.K. and Ukraine”.

Wonder how Facebook ranks posts these days? Search Engine Land covered the topic for you.

Meta is pulling all news content in Canada after a new law passed that makes platforms pay media sources for their content. Google followed.

LinkedIn recently changed its algorithm, and is giving more weight to people you follow, and to “knowledge and advice”.

Make sure you are using LinkedIn content analytics to see how your posts are performing. The company released some tips on how to get more views and interaction on your ads and posts.

Pinterest is introducing Amazon ads that lead directly to Amazon so browsers can buy there. This is expected to take a few years to fully roll out.

The Shuffles feature is particularly popular with Generation Z women.

Yes, you can use Reddit to promote your business, but it is tricky. “It’s perfectly fine to be a Redditor with a website; it’s not okay to be a website with a Reddit account.”

TikTok

TikTok is selling its own products through the app, called “Trendy Beat", although this is only happening in the UK so far. The items seemed to be based on trending videos.

TIkTok is the latest to test searching by image, in its Shop feature.

Twitter

The Twitter algorithm now promotes Elon Musk’s tweets above all others. Yes, really.

YouTube

YouTube ended Stories on June 26, but plans on doing more with Shorts in the future.

ECOMMERCE NEWS, IDEAS, TRENDS (minus social media)

General

Handmade alternative marketplace Artisans Cooperative has settled on its organisational structure now that they are moving forward with incorporating the co-op, and enrolling new members. Check their blog for all announcements on their plans.

A new California initiative involves both ecommerce and brick and mortar businesses to help track down stolen items. Each site agrees to “assign staff and tools—dedicate webpage, online portal, or point of contact—to address concerns of theft that come in from retails or law enforcement, and to monitor listings “to affirmatively prevent and detect” organized crime.”

50% of online shopping trips start at Amazon, amazingly enough. Google comes in second. After peaking last year, TikTok’s share of product searches has dropped.

Many merchants are reconsidering their return policies, and even free shipping.

Amazon

Some Amazon sellers had huge issues with verifying their information to comply with the INFORM Act. The deadline for completing verification was July 7, after which Amazon will place a hold on all payments.

Amazon will now charge US buyers for returns to UPS stores.

Many backpacks made for adults were removed from Amazon automatically, and sellers were told they needed to show proof the packs had met children’s safety standards.

BigCommerce

BigCommerce has followed Shopify in raising fees for the same amount, although existing users didn’t see the increase until June 1. As with Shopify, site owners can keep their current rate by opting for the annual package.

eBay

If you are worried about eBay showing your home address to prospective buyers (due to the INFORM Act), you can apply for an exception.

Ebay international shipping is available to US-based stores now, but there are a lot of complaints. Other recent eBay announcements and plans are discussed here in coverage of the summer Seller Update.

Sales on eBay continue to drop, as do buyers. Here’s coverage of the 4th quarter report written for sellers, and the 1st quarter 2023.

eBay is now offering Canadian collectible sellers a new “Expedited Lite” Canada Post rate that costs as little as $5.85 to send 200 grams from Toronto to Yellowknife. Tracking and $100 insurance are included. [Attention other platforms - Canadians need these cheap rates!]

Poshmark

Poshmark now operates in the United Kingdom.

Poshmark joined the vast majority of large ecommerce sites in the past year by laying off employees, although the reported numbers were just 2% of the workforce.

Shopify

After making big moves to enter the fulfillment market, Shopify sold off the logistics network to Flexport, which it will continue to work with, as well as owning 13% of Flexport’s stock.

Shopify is resisting a Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) request for 6 years of tax records for 121,000 stores. Note that the CRA must get a judge to approve such a request, which they filed for in April 2023.

Shopify managed to beat the market estimates for the 4th quarter 2022, but predicts growth will continue to slow

There are ways to make your Shopify site more accessible for various disabilities; for some larger merchants, this is a legal requirement.

All Other Marketplaces

Bonanza is trying to improve its shipping label options, with the first step being decreasing the cost of USPS labels. It also now has a synced eBay importer, and is expanding its loan program to more sellers.

Michael's has finally opened its maker supply online marketplace to third-party sellers. While this initial group of merchants was invited, the company is now accepting applications from experienced ecommerce merchants. Fees are a flat 15% commission, so no monthly subscriptions, listing fees or even payment processing fees (apparently). There is also a Shipstation integration. This could be a good channel for high-volume supply sellers who make/design their own products, especially if they work in a niche Michael’s doesn’t already service. Note that their makers website that would compete directly with Etsy is now taking a waitlist.

Kohl’s opened a third-party marketplace, which includes their loyalty program benefits for buyers.

All Other Website Builders

Squarespace bought Google Domains, but Google is still a domain registrar, and this should not affect your Google rankings.

Payment Processing

Apple is very late to the buy-now-pay-later game, introducing Apple Pay Later for some users.

Shipping

There is a UPS strike looming; the union contract expires August 1. This could not only affect businesses who ship products via UPS, but also those of us who order supplies etc.

Also note that the port workers in British Columbia are on strike as of July 1. “Analysts have said a strike could have a significant impact on worldwide shipping and the Canadian economy. According to the Maritime Employers Association's website, its members contribute $2.7 billion to the national GDP and handled roughly 16 per cent of Canada's total traded goods worth $180 billion in 2020.”

Chinese ecommerce businesses could lose their US tariff exemption, which allows companies in China to ship to the US cheaply. The bill is not yet law.

USPS raised stamp prices and combined several services into the new USPS Ground Advantage plan, as of July 9.

(CONTENT) MARKETING (includes blogging, emails, and strategies)

Is your small business making some common content marketing mistakes? 5 frequent errors and their solutions.

Email welcome pages are a good way to increase sales from your list. “Imagine a shopper subscribes and is sent immediately to a page that, first, shares the discount code and, second, includes a short (30-second) welcome video that explains how to apply the code — without having to check email.”

ONLINE ADVERTISING (NOT SOCIAL MEDIA OR ECOMMERCE SITES)

Advertising through “retail media” (such as Amazon) will probably be greater than television ad revenue by 2028. “Retailers from Amazon, Walmart and Target to grocers such as Carrefour, Ahold Delhaize, Tesco and Sainsbury's are working aggressively to attract big advertisers to their websites” which could constitute more than 15% of all advertising spend by 2028.

Google’s Merchant Center will be getting easier to use next year, with the introduction of Merchant Center Next. Looks like complicated product feeds will be a thing of the past.

Google Ads users are encouraged to import the conversion info from Google Analytics 4, to potentially improve ad performance.

STATS, DATA, TRACKING

Many sites are incorrectly reporting visits as direct when they actually come from sources such as social media; here’s a study showing how that can break down.

Google’s latest instructions for migrating from Google’s Universal Analytics to Google Analytics 4 even includes videos. If you don’t like Google’s explanation, here is another good tutorial [video and transcript] And here is a detailed outline of how to track organic search traffic in GA4, and how to set up site search. Don’t worry if you haven’t migrated your account yet - although it will not collect new data starting some time after July 1, 2023, Google will transition the account to GA4 for you, and will also let you download your old Universal Analytics data for the next year. If you didn’t update to GA4 yourself, you are in the majority of website owners.

Once you do start with GA4, make sure to connect with the Search Console and activate reports. There are also some reports you cannot get with GA4, but this article explains what you can come close to replicating from the old version.

You can now move all of your Google Search Console data into Google’s BigQuery, which is great for really large sites. If you struggle to digest the info provided by Google Search Console, then you might be interested in a few integrations to make things easier. Some are even free!

BUSINESS & CONSUMER TRENDS, STATS & REPORTS; SOCIOLOGY & PSYCHOLOGY, CUSTOMER SERVICE

How to answer common buyer questions to make purchasing easier (and more likely!)

Generation Z (born from 1997 to 2012) uses social media differently than other age groups, and that affects how you can market to them. Check out the different values and behaviours they have as a group.

Many sole proprietorships struggle with how to deal with demanding customers. Maybe you should fire them instead? [Twitter thread] Example: “Bad Clients are “un-leveragable”. You cannot

Learn from them

Use them as references

Earn a good margin to fuel your biz

Factor the intangibles when calculating your ROI. Not everything that counts can be counted.”

Consumers are always changing how they shop and buy; here’s some data from the end of last year, explaining that buying through social media is slowly growing, among other points. Also, “42% of consumers have chosen a product based on it being made by a small business in the last three months, up 8% from May 2022.” Hubspot also released more data on the social media angle of the research, giving reasons why some buyers are still hesitant.

US ecommerce sales were up 3% in the first 3 months of 2023. The total was $272.6 billion.

IMAGES, VIDEO, GRAPHIC DESIGN, & FREE ONLINE TOOLS

Need new icons for your website? Here are 20 free sets.

And here are some free web design tools, although you should note many use AI.

#ecommerce #microbusiness #cindylouwho2 #marketplace #social media #content marketing

4 notes · View notes