#formal verification

[ultragamerz]

Cardano (ADA): Sell it for Solana? 

New Post has been published on https://www.ultragamerz.com/cardano-ada-sell-it-for-solana/

Cardano (ADA): Sell it for Solana? 

Cardano (ADA): Sell it for Solana?

Cardano (ADA), the brainchild of Ethereum co-founder Charles Hoskinson, has been a hot topic in the crypto space. However, with a recent barrage of bearish news and influencer skepticism, some are questioning whether ADA is all it’s cracked up to be. Let’s delve into the world of Cardano, separating hype from reality.

Influencer FOMO and the Solana Shadow:

Social media is flooded with “Cardano killers” like Solana (SOL) boasting lightning-fast transaction speeds and lower fees. Influencers, often swayed by short-term gains, are hyping SOL to the moon, leaving Cardano seemingly stuck in the dust.

Cardano’s Different Path:

However, Cardano takes a much different approach than the “move fast and break things” mentality of some competitors. Cardano prioritizes meticulous research and a peer-reviewed development process. This methodical approach, while slower, aims to deliver a more secure and scalable blockchain in the long run.

Cardano vs. The Hype Machine:

Recent bearish articles highlight Cardano’s slow development progress and missed deadlines. While these criticisms hold some weight, it’s important to remember Cardano is building a complex ecosystem.

The ADA Price:

Cardano’s Bullish Trajectory: A Technical Analysis Glimpse

Cardano (ADA) has been on a tear lately, and technical analysts are using charting tools to predict its potential price path. Here’s a breakdown of three possible targets based on different timeframes:

Short-Term (1-2 Months): Applying the Fibonacci retracement tool to ADA’s recent price surge suggests a first target of around $2.20. This level represents the 61.8% retracement of the current upswing, a common support zone after a price increase.

Mid-Term (3-6 Months): If the bullish momentum continues, a more ambitious target could be $14. This aligns with the 161.8% Fibonacci extension level, indicating a potential doubling of the current price within the next half year. However, reaching this target zone would require sustained buying pressure and positive news surrounding the Cardano ecosystem.

Long-Term (1+ Years): For the long-term hodlers (holders on for a dear life), some analysts are charting a much more aggressive target – a staggering $55. This aligns with the 261.8% Fibonacci extension, signifying a potential 25x return on investment from current levels. However, reaching this price point would require significant adoption of Cardano’s blockchain technology and widespread recognition of its functionalities.

Remember: This is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Technical analysis is just one tool, and market conditions can change rapidly. Always conduct your own research before making any investment decisions.

Is ADA a Worthy Investment?

While some influencers are quick to dismiss ADA, it’s crucial to conduct your own research and understand Cardano’s unique value proposition. Here are some key aspects to consider:

Scalability: Cardano’s Ouroboros proof-of-stake consensus mechanism aims to achieve high transaction throughput without sacrificing decentralization, a challenge faced by many blockchains.

Smart Contracts: Cardano’s smart contract platform, Plutus, is built with security and formal verification in mind, aiming to minimize bugs and vulnerabilities.

Interoperability: Cardano’s vision includes interoperability with other blockchains, allowing seamless transfer of data and assets across different ecosystems.

Bearish News and Price Performance:

Despite the recent bearish sentiment, it’s worth noting that ADA started the current market cycle at around $0.20 and reached a peak of over $3.00, a significant increase. This demonstrates that long-term investors still see value in Cardano’s long-term vision.

Is ADA Right for You?

The decision to invest in ADA depends on your risk tolerance and investment horizon. If you’re looking for a quick pump based on influencer hype, Cardano might not be the best choice. However, if you believe in Cardano’s long-term vision of a secure and scalable blockchain platform, ADA could be a worthwhile investment for your portfolio.

Remember:

The cryptocurrency market is notoriously volatile and prone to hype cycles. Always conduct thorough research, understand the risks involved, and never invest more than you can afford to lose.

[meirimerens]

Ehem where might one see your uhm. art that you can't post on tumblr please?

it's on a twitter account (that you can access with nitter if you don't have twitter becos otherwise you will be asked to log in/create an account) that for obvious reasons i don't give out publicly or to anons. it's not much but it's the smallest step of Age Verification i can do, even if it hinges on your good faith alone. you come into my DMs/off anon you ask me and if you are of age i will give it to you. my DMs are always open. You come and ask me. you come knock.

[haru-dipthong]

Gendered pronouns in Japanese vs English

In Revolutionary Girl Utena, the main character Utena is a girl (it says so in the title), but very conspicuously uses the masculine first person pronoun 僕 (boku) and dresses in (a variation of) the boys school uniform. Utena's gender, and gender in general, is a core theme of the work. And yet, I haven’t seen a single translation or analysis post where anyone considers using anything other than she/her for Utena when speaking of her in English. This made me wonder: how does one’s choice of pronouns in Japanese correspond to what one’s preferred pronouns would be in English?

There are 3 main differences between gendered pronouns in Japanese vs English

Japanese pronouns are used to refer to yourself (first-person), while English pronouns are used to refer to others (third-person)

The Japanese pronoun you use will differ based on context

Japanese pronouns signify more than just gender

Let’s look at each of these differences in turn and how these differences might lead to a seeming incongruity between one’s Japanese pronoun choice and one’s English pronoun choice (such as the 僕 (boku) vs she/her discrepancy with Utena).

Part 1: First-person vs third-person

While Japanese does technically have gendered third person pronouns （彼、彼女） they are used infrequently¹ and have much less cultural importance placed on them than English third person pronouns. Therefore, I would argue that the cultural equivalent of the gender-signifying third-person pronoun in English is the Japanese first-person pronoun. Much like English “pronouns in bio”, Japanese first-person pronoun choice is considered an expression of identity.

Japanese pronouns are used exclusively to refer to yourself, and therefore a speaker can change the pronoun they’re using for themself on a whim, sometimes mid-conversation, without it being much of an incident. Meanwhile in English, Marquis Bey argues that “Pronouns are like tiny vessels of verification that others are picking up what you are putting down” (2021). By having others use them and externally verify the internal truth of one’s gender, English pronouns, I believe, are seen as more truthful, less frivolous, than Japanese pronouns. They are seen as signifying an objective truth of the referent’s gender; if not objective then at least socially agreed-upon, while Japanese pronouns only signify how the subject feels at this particular moment — purely subjective.

Part 2: Context dependent pronoun use

Japanese speakers often don’t use just one pronoun. As you can see in the below chart, a young man using 俺 (ore) among friends might use 私 (watashi) or 自分 (jibun) when speaking to a teacher. This complicates the idea that these pronouns are gendered, because their gendering depends heavily on context. A man using 私 (watashi) to a teacher is gender-conforming, a man using 私 (watashi) while drinking with friends is gender-non-conforming. Again, this reinforces the relative instability of Japanese pronoun choice, and distances it from gender.

Part 3: Signifying more than gender

English pronouns signify little besides the gender of the antecedent. Because of this, pronouns in English have come to be a shorthand for expressing one’s own gender experience - they reflect an internal gendered truth. However, Japanese pronoun choice doesn’t reflect an “internal truth” of gender. It can signify multiple aspects of your self - gender, sexuality, personality.

For example, 僕 (boku) is used by gay men to communicate that they are bottoms, contrasted with the use of 俺 (ore) by tops. 僕 (boku) may also be used by softer, academic men and boys (in casual contexts - note that many men use 僕 (boku) in more formal contexts) as a personality signifier - maybe to communicate something as simplistic as “I’m not the kind of guy who’s into sports.” 俺 (ore) could be used by a butch lesbian who still strongly identifies as a woman, in order to signify sexuality and an assertive personality. 私 (watashi) may be used by people of all genders to convey professionalism. The list goes on.

I believe this is what’s happening with Utena - she is signifying her rebellion against traditional feminine gender roles with her use of 僕 (boku), but as part of this rebellion, she necessarily must still be a girl. Rather than saying “girls don’t use boku, so I’m not a girl”, her pronoun choice is saying “your conception of femininity is bullshit, girls can use boku too”.

Through translation, gendered assumptions need to be made, sometimes about real people. Remember that he/they, she/her, they/them are purely English linguistic constructs, and don’t correspond directly to one’s gender, just as they don’t correspond directly to the Japanese pronouns one might use. Imagine a scenario where you are translating a news story about a Japanese genderqueer person. The most ethical way to determine what pronouns they would prefer would be to get in contact with them and ask them, right? But what if they don’t speak English? Are you going to have to teach them English, and the nuances of English pronoun choice, before you can translate the piece? That would be ridiculous! It’s simply not a viable option². So you must make a gendered assumption based on all the factors - their Japanese pronoun use (context dependent!), their clothing, the way they present their body, their speech patterns, etc.

If translation is about rewriting the text as if it were originally in the target language, you must also rewrite the gender of those people and characters in the translation. The question you must ask yourself is: How does their gender presentation, which has been tailored to a Japanese-language understanding of gender, correspond to an equivalent English-language understanding of gender? This is an incredibly fraught decision, but nonetheless a necessary one. It’s an unsatisfying dilemma, and one that poignantly exposes the fickle, unstable, culture-dependent nature of gender.

Notes and References

¹ Usually in Japanese, speakers use the person’s name directly to address someone in second or third person

² And has colonialist undertones as a solution if you ask me - “You need to pick English pronouns! You ought to understand your gender through our language!”

Bey, Marquis— 2021 Re: [No Subject]—On Nonbinary Gender

Rose divider taken from this post

[ddarker-dreams]

mini love report — albedo

relationship health diagnosis — 90%*

symptom one — reserved

albedo favors a reclusive lifestyle. dealing with social nuances and niceties is a draining prospect, he'd rather forgo them altogether. it's for this reason that rumors swirl around the alchemist. he's been described as cold and calculating. which, to be fair, isn't completely wrong. if he'd rather be elsewhere it isn't difficult to tell. still, that unquenchable thirst to peel back more layers of this mysterious world hasn't made him unfeeling.

this public perception never bothered him until he realized it may influence your opinion of him. this explains his uncharacteristic effort to seek you out. it starts off awkward, as you're certain the chief alchemist has more important matters to tend to. his attempts win you over slowly yet surely. it’s endearing, how his stoic visage belies frustration when he struggles to keep the conversation going, having exhausted platitudes.

you being the exception to his preference for isolation is rather flattering.

symptom two — knowledgeable

albedo is a natural educator. there's hardly a moment where his field of study isn't bouncing around in his mind. with sucrose and timaeus, he keeps his teachings succinct and formal. when he's sharing his recent findings with you, however, it's a different story. his monotonous voice takes on a lively cadence. comparatively speaking, at least. no one else is privy to his nerdy side. self-consciousness catches up, when he notes thirty minutes have gone by and he's only on his second of ten samples.

there you sit. bundled up to stave off the dragonspine's unforgiving weather, contentedly sipping hot cocoa he had ready for your arrival (a suggestion from klee). you tilt your head and ask why he's stopped. it's in that instant he realizes miracles aren't limited to physical manifestations. they can come in any form. even one as simple as you trying to resume the conversation, despite getting tongue-tied by the alchemical jargon.

future discoveries that will amuse you hold more weight to him than anything actually groundbreaking...

symptom three — conscientious

if you ever happen upon albedo's dense collection of relationship-related reading material, please keep it to yourself, lest he die of embarrassment. he wants to get this right! interpersonal relationships aren't his forte, he's not so blinded by pride to acknowledge this shortcoming. he knows he can be blunt and accidentally trample over feelings. he refuses to seek the counsel of his peers, which leaves him at the mercy of klee's tutelage.

he hypothesizes that the lack of self-awareness in children makes them conducive to offering unfiltered advice. gift-giving is her field of choice and her standards are high. almost every trinket, flower, or artwork you've received has undergone rigorous quality control. he was amazed that this klee verification system went over so well with you, hence his reoccurring patronage.

he cares a lot. expressing it might not come naturally to him, but he's willing to overthrow his nature for your benefit.

primary area of concern

...

albedo has some baggage regarding his creation. his search for unraveling the mystery behind his creator's parting challenging, while not all-consuming, influences him to some extent.

truthfully, there isn't anything that'd place major strain on your relationship. there are times he discovers a secret of the world that would've been better of remaining unknown. so long as it isn't anything that'd endanger you, he handles overwhelming information quite well.

although he's often holed up in his laboratory, you're welcome to come and observe. he doesn't allow his research to isolate him from you. he involves you whenever he can and gladly engages in your interests as well. he tends to absorb them, returning a few days later with the expertise of a scholar.

you've scored yourself a solid homunculus.

prognosis

his interest in you is a flame that'll never wane. you add warmth and color to his life, he adds stability to yours. the memories you cherish are always the small, seemingly insignificant ones, that steadily build. the sticky notes you leave on his desk reminding him to take breaks. a homemade meal he's left for you to warm up for those busy mornings. enjoying a tea party with klee where albedo gives a 'toast' to his generous host, dodoco, spoken with a straight face.

these scintillating fragments form a greater whole.

*the universe has tried (and failed) to wrench you apart (0-20) your friends are praying that you'll break up (21-40) 'well it could/has be worse' bargaining mindset (41-60) a lil messiness as a treat (61-80) pure and wholesome (81-100)

[welcometoqueer]

U.S. Recount Updates/News:

Pennsylvania's U.S. Senate race will officially go to a recount. GOP candidate David McCormick is leading incumbent Democratic Sen. Bob Casey by less than 0.5% in the vote total, triggering an automatic recount under state law.

Furthermore,

Election and cybersecurity experts sent a formal letter to Vice President Kamala Harris urging a recount in key states, citing potential breaches in voting machines and the fact that voting systems were breached by Trump allies in 2021 and 2022.

https://freespeechforpeople.org/computer-scientists-breaches-of-voting-system-software-warrant-recounts-to-ensure-election-verification/

Cited evidence within the footnotes include:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2022/08/15/sidney-powell-coffee-county-sullivan-strickler/

Additionally,

The Nevada Secretary of State issued a violation notice regarding election security. A police report has been filed after evidence emerged indicating that Nevada officials may have removed 26,902 ballots from their reported mail-in ballot totals.

[ID:

Three images.

The first is a statement regarding a recount being triggered in the Pennsylvania Senate race. It reads:

“Unofficial Results in U.S. Senate Race Trigger Legally Required Automatic State Recount

Harrisburg, PA — Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt announced today that unofficial results in the Nov. 5 general election race for U.S.

Senate have triggered a legally required statewide recount.

Senator Bob Casey and Dave McCormick have vote totals within the one-half of 1 percent margin that triggers a mandatory recount under state law.

As of today, the unofficial returns for the U.S. Senate race submitted by all 67 counties show the following results for the top two candidates:

Robert P. Casey Jr. - 3,350,972 (48.50%)

David H. McCormick - 3,380,310 (48.93%)

Once counties finish counting their ballots, they must begin the recount no later than Wednesday, Nov. 20. They must complete the recount by noon on Nov. 26 and must report results to the Secretary by noon on Nov. 27. Results of the recount will not be published until Nov. 27.

The Department estimates that the recount cost will exceed $1 million of taxpayer funds.

This is the eighth time the automatic recount provision has been triggered since the passage of Act 97 of 2004. In the four cases in which the recount was carried out, the initial results of the election were affirmed. Those recounts and the costs for each were as follows:

2022 primary: Oz vs. McCormick, Republican race for U.S. Senate, $1,052,609.

2021 general: Dumas vs. Crompton, Commonwealth Court, $1,117,180.

2011 primary: Boockvar vs. Ernsberger, Democratic race for Commonwealth Court, $525,006.70.

2009 general: Lazarus vs. Colville vs. Smith, Superior Court race, $541,698.56.

For more information about the legally mandated automatic recount procedures, see the Department's directive on this topic (link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com).

Update on outstanding ballot totals

As of this afternoon, county election officials reported there are 60,366 uncounted provisional ballots and 20,155 uncounted mail-in and absentee ballots. That 80,521 total includes all ballots for which county boards of elections have not yet made a final resolution regarding their validity or eligibility to be counted.

As of the issuance of this release, the Department's election returns page [link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com] reflects the unofficial totals that counties have reported. These numbers will change beginning Thursday morning, Nov. 14, as counties continue to canvass provisional ballots and otherwise count ballots. These changes are unrelated to the recount.”

The second image depicts the first page of a formal letter addressed to Vice President Kamala Harris from election security experts urging an election recount in key states. It reads:

“November 13, 2024

The Honorable Kamala Harris

The White House

Office of the Vice President

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N. W.

Washington, DC 20500

Dear Vice President Harris,

We write to alert you to serious election security breaches that have threatened the security and integrity of the 2024 elections, and to identify ways to ensure that the will of the voters is reflected and that voters should have confidence in the result. The most effective manner of doing so is through targeted recounts requested by the candidate. In the light of the breaches we ask that you formally request hand recounts in at least the states of Michigan, Nevada, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania. We have no evidence that the outcomes of the elections in those states were actually compromised as a result of the security breaches, and we are not suggesting that they were. But binding risk-limiting audits (RLAs) or hand recounts should be routine for all elections, especially when the stakes are high and the results are close. We believe that, under the current circumstances when massive software breaches are known and documented, recounts are necessary and appropriate to remove all potential doubt and to set an example for security best practices in all elections.

In 2022, records, video camera footage, and deposition testimony produced in a civil case in Georgia' disclosed that its voting system, used statewide, had been breached over multiple days by operatives hired by attorneys for Donald Trump. The evidence showed that the operatives made copies of the software”

(The page cuts off here).

Below there are footnotes with cited evidence for grounds to request a recount.

“No. 17-cv-02989-AT (N.D. Ga. filed Aug. 8, 2017).

1. Emma Brown, Jon Swaine, Aaron C. Davis, Amy Gardner, "Trump-allied lawyers pursued voting machine data in multiple states, records reveal," The Washington Post, (August 15, 2022). Available at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2022/08/15/sidney-powell-coffee-county-sullivan-strickler/

3 Kate Brumback, "Video fills in details on alleged Ga. election system breach," The Associated Press, (September 6, 2022). Available at: https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-technology-donald-trump-voting-92c0ace71d7bee6151dd33938688371e

The third image is an excerpt of the Election Security Violation Notice issued by the Nevada Secretary of State. It reads:

“ELECTION INTEGRITY VIOLATION REPORT

The information you report on this form may be used to help us investigate violations of Nevada election laws. When completed, mail, email, or fax your form and supporting documents to the office listed above. Upon receipt, your complaint will be reviewed by a member of our staff. The length of this process can vary depending on the circumstances and information you provide with your complaint. The Office of the Secretary of State may contact you if additional information is needed.

INSTRUCTIONS: Please TYPE/PRINT your complaint in dark ink. You must write LEGIBLY. All fields MUST be completed.

SECTION 3.

COMPLAINT IS AGAINST

Please detail the nature of your complaint. Include the name and contact information (if known) of the individual, candidate, campaign, or group that is the subject of your complaint. Your complaint must also include a clear and concise statement of facts sufficient to establish that the alleged violation occurred. Any relevant documents or other evidence that support your complaint should be listed and attached. You may attach additional sheets if necessary.

On 11-8-24, the mail ballot accepted list deleted 28,320 ballots from Clark County. At this same time, Sam Brown lost his lead. These ballots were accepted on 11-7-24 and then on 11-8-24 for the first time since 10-16-24 and reporting began, ballots were deleted from 2 counties. Washoe and Clark.

See ATTACHED.”

/end ID]

[nanowrimo]

A Message from the NaNoWriMo Board of Directors

Dear NaNoWriMo Community Members,

Thank you for reaching out to us with your inquiries about the forums, your support, offers to volunteer, and your legitimate concerns.

Our inbox has been flooded, and we appreciate all of the thoughtful responses from participants and volunteers who genuinely care about NaNoWriMo, our fellow writers, and the community as we do. It is impossible to respond to each message individually, but we wanted to let you all know we are working with purpose and sincerity.

Please see below the breakdown of the work that has been done since we last shared an update with the community. Our intention is to keep you abreast of all we are doing to make NaNoWriMo a better, safer, place:

We’ve overseen a full-scale review of business practices led by former Board Member, Kilby Blades, who has stepped in to assist the organization on an interim basis.  

We’ve begun to implement new procedures around community safety, including:

Full revision and legal review of our employee handbook and codes of conduct.

Full revision and legal review of our Municipal Liaison(ML) agreement.

Development of a formal contract agreement for all (non-ML) Volunteers.

Development of a stricter vetting process for all volunteers (which includes identity verification and background checks, wherever necessary).

Licensing of a digital constituent management system that will enhance volunteer management capabilities.

Comprehensive background checks for all current employees.

Checks and balances to ensure that standards of conduct and ethics are adhered to (e.g., better leadership training, volunteer training, tech mechanisms, and active oversight).

We’ve made staffing changes and revised our staffing plan.

We have rescoped certain roles and initiated some staffing changes. (However, certain employees who left the organization voluntarily are in pursuit of their next opportunities.)

We believe that learning from this moment through addressing skill gaps in the organization is healthy and we will go through a hiring process to fill necessary gaps in open roles.

We’ve listened to other community feedback and are still in listening mode.

We’ve disabled the mechanism on the YWP website that allows users to self-identify as educators for the purpose of creating classrooms, and we are researching mechanisms that will allow us to verify adults as educators.

We’ve revised our technology roadmap to address usability issues and are hoping to introduce new features in 2024.

We are midway through a deep dive on forums and forum moderation; this has included benchmarking with other organizations with similar challenges.

In February, we will hold focus groups for continuing MLs. We are also thinking through the logistics of Town Hall meetings and other gatherings.

We’ve processed dozens of pages of community member feedback and are integrating it into our thinking.

With the staffing changes mentioned above, we are open to hearing from those of you who have reached out with offers to help and/or be a part of the organization’s future. Get notified about future job opportunities at NaNoWriMo.

We are excited about the future, and expect it to be brighter! We hope you feel seen and heard, and that you will stick with us as we continue supporting the writing community and our organization.

Kind regards,

NaNoWriMo Board of Directors

[andmaybegayer]

FPGA tooling has come a long way since the Bad Old Days, there's quite a few open source tooling options and affordable bits of hardware.

Hobbyist FPGA mostly targets ECP5 and Lattice Ice40 FPGA's. Toolchain stuff on that is done with Yosys and Nextpnr, and there's a surprisingly large pile of resources available for this. Details are kinda collected here but it is still pretty scattered.

The classic starting point for the FPGA hobbyist is ZipCPU

This guy teaches FPGA's through the eye of formal verification which is. About the best you can do for doing FPGA well.

Also when I say tooling has gotten better, mostly that's Whitequark's fault. Whitequark has been building Amaranth (previously nMigen), which is a Python framework for building FPGA code. It compiles to verilog and is very usable. Also because Whitequark is insane and recently went on a WASM kick there's a website that implements the compiler toolchain of Yosys and Nextpnr in webassembly and uses webusb to allow you to write, compile, and program physical hardware from your browser.

Even if you don't have hardware, the Amaranth Playground includes a simulator that can let you view waves and see how your code runs (which you'll do even once you have hardware because monitoring a simulated FPGA is way easier than a real one.)

I had a bitch of a time finding an Ice40 or ECP5 for a reasonable price back in ZA but in some parts of the world it's pretty easy to find and I get by with the closed-source toolkits, and while I haven't played with Amaranth yet it does support Quartus and Xilinx because it puts out Verilog which you can then put into whatever place-and-route you like.

How hard is it to get into FPGAs as a hobbyist (compared to microcontrollers)? Ones that will cronch numbers at a few MHz.

No idea :D

[the-body-improvement-club]

Help a family from Gaza

hey folks! i've been talking to Marah @marah-xx and she needs our help. she lost 40 family members in the war and is currently trying to escape Gaza. Her campaign is very low on funds right now - only $3,055 CAD out of $30,000 goal

as you know, verification is slow right now and many fundraisers don't get enough attention because of that. this campaign hasn't been formally verified but:

it has been shared by bilal-salah0 here, who is #132 on el-shab-hussein & nabulsi's spreadsheet (info courtesy of tumblr user applejupiter)

it appears legit through surface-level research + i've been talking to Marah in private messages so i'm certain this is a real person who really needs our help.

please donate to her campaign here:

if you send me proof of donation, i will draw a sketch of one character of your choice!

$1-10 - black and white traditional sketch

$10-20 - traditional sketch colored with pencils

$20-50 - uncolored digital sketch

$50-... - digital sketch with flat colors

you can see examples of my art here

please help Marah get to safety!

[paitei4234]

is BCM something like a politician? Public speaker?

He's not, but there's a chance he could be around these people

"Blue Check Mark usually refers to the Blue Verification Check Mark on social media platforms, which is used to prove that the account is the official account of a public figure, celebrity, brand or organization, and is not a fake or impostor account. Blue Check Mark is awarded by the platform and is a mark of credibility and identity authentication, making it easier for users to identify real, official accounts."

BCM is a symbol of identity verification, representing the official identity of a public figure, celebrity or brand, and has a high degree of credibility.

BCM has a strong self-protection and defensive mentality and strives to ensure that its behavior complies with regulations and displays a professional and formal image to ensure safety and credibility and reduce negative impacts.

The behavior of BCM is regulated and restricted, and a certain social distance may be maintained, making it difficult to establish close relationships with others.

Power:

BCM is able to sense false information and rumors.

BCM can bring himself or others into the spotlight.

Because he is "symbolic" he is immortal.

Good at:

Capture people's hearts

Evacuate

Acting out fake/necessary emotions

Follow the rules

Not good at:

Fighting

Expression of emotion

Other:

Neutrality and the principle of avoiding conflicts as much as possible

Treat everyone equally

The goal is to live a leisurely and ordinary life

[apenitentialprayer]

i've read that mormons and JWs are considered heretics because they don't affirm the trinity, so i was wondering what the sort-of 'cut off' point is. like would the ACOE be considered heretics because they say mary isn't the mother of God, only the mother of christ, for example

Alrighty, this is a big one. So, as far as the Jehovah's Witnesses and the (mainstream) Latter Day Saints movement go, things are.... a little more complicated in terms of whether their doctrine is "heresy" or if they are just plain non-Christian (and thus wouldn't count as heretical).

The crux of the argument that they are not Christian is that they do not affirm the Nicene Creed, which was articulated during the Councils of Nicaea (325 AD) and Constantinople (381 AD). While Mormons and JWs can affirm the most primitive of Christian creeds ("Christ is Lord"), the Nicene Creed very quickly took on the status of the σύμβολον, or symbolum in Latin; the "symbol of faith," the creed whose affirmation is itself a verification of one's Christian identity. That's why during the Council of Trent, for example, the Tridentine Fathers invited Protestants to participate in the Council on the condition that they could still affirm the Creed.

Of course, Mormons and JWs do not see it that way. They self-identify as Christians; and each group doesn't see themselves just as Christians, but as restorers of a purer, more original Christianity that had existed before the creation of that Creed.

But, anyway, if the conclusion of this argument is accepted, and members of the (mainstream) Latter Day Saints movement and Jehovah's Witnesses are not considered Christian, they by definition cannot be considered heretics; per the Baltimore Catechism, heretics are "baptized Christians, but do not believe all the articles of faith" (Q 1170).

The Assyrian Church of the East affirms the Nicene Creed, have Apostolic Succession, and have limited intercommunion with the Catholic Church. And, Christologically, they have an interesting situation going on. The Assyrian Church has not formally accepted the dogmatic Christological definitions of the Council of Ephesus (431). And, on that alone, the ACoE would seem to fit into the Baltimore Catechism's definition of heretic.

But over 1550 years after that split, the leaders of both the Assyrian Church of the East and the Catholic Church signed a document that affirmed that both Churches saw the other's Christological doctrines as valid, and that both theologies were expressions of the same Apostolic faith. You can read the full document, which is not very long, here.

But to abstract the discussion of heresy for a moment (bold of me to do, admittedly, after saying the last ask was a little vague); we need to make a distinction between formal heresy and material heresy. As Pope Benedict noted in 1993, which itself was an echo of the 1912 Catholic Encyclopedia's description of heresy, the defining characteristic of formal heresy is pertinacia, which can be translated as "stubbornness." What makes a person a "heretic" in a condemnable sense is this pertinacia, this holding fast to falsehoods in defiance of correction by proper authority.

So while the first generations of Protestants may be considered formal heretics, Pope Benedict noted that this does not reflect the actual social and religious conditions of Protestants living today, who are simply living out their Christian faith in the traditions that have arisen since the Reformation. They may be material heretics, and the doctrines of Protestantism may be considered heretical from the Catholic viewpoint, but being a Protestant does not automatically incur the guilt of heresy.

And, in all honesty, most Christians alive today (and most Christians in all ages) have in all probability been material heretics - i.e., they hold some wrong or incorrect opinions concerning the faith, but simply out of ignorance and not in defiance of proper authority. And that is not a sin.

[triviallytrue]

Math is in this very fascinating place where most math research is both completely impenetrable to the layman and lacks any method of empirical verification, and yet it's so rigorously formalized that upon review, the academic community typically comes to a nigh-universal consensus on the correctness of research.

There are exceptions to this - there is a claimed proof of the abc conjecture first presented in 2012 that is widely disputed, and while I think we should consider it refuted, the author hasn't given up on pushing it. But this is, as far as I can tell, pretty rare.

There are also finitist types, but their point of view seems less that mathematicians are wrong in terms of having incorrect proofs and more that axiom sets that allow for infinity are fundamentally wrongheaded. Which is dumb but w/e

[rhyzvee]

September is the month of mental pain. I understand why it is suicide prevention month (at least here in Japan), but at the same time, I wish I didn't recognise it.

I have been questioning my identity since around the time Covid struck. And I came out as trans last April - online only, NOT exposed in real life. Why? ..Best not to ask right now.

All this time, I feel like I am alone in this situation... Everything I’m going through… It’s far too complicated for anyone to understand. Multiple issues cross over, creating one large issue, and there are several of those…

I wish I could move to another country.

Keep in mind that Japan, like the majority of Asia, do not recognise and support neutral genders or “third option.” They act as if those does not exist in the world. Most if not all physically transitioned people via surgery do not get verification of transitioning, meaning that their “gender” (sex) does not change. Heck, HRT medications do not exist. And if those do exist, there would likely be a court battle (a formal request) before starting them. Much worse than UK’s 5-year waiting queue.

If you wish to move to Japan… You must make a sacrifice. You can’t be queer in this place. You won’t get rights.

Gender roles are a crucial part of Japanese society, and I wish that could change.

My personality and tendencies are NOT that of typical men’s. If I don’t talk much even when given the chance, I often walk with my hands waving sideways (only the right hand), or put one of my hand on my chest. I tend to lengthen my hair, and people around stops me from it. I wear oversized clothings with natural-looking colours now that I can choose on my own. I check my body, especially the tops, wishing I had different body shapes.

Every day, it’s just.. fighting mentally to live. I can’t ask people around me for help… I only ask to those who I trust.. online. None of them are in Asia. Could had been better if we were close.. and hug them. It’s only painful to be here.

I am falling through a depression loophole. No bottom to land on. Is there no hope for me..?

[funnier-as-a-system]

I got a different ask from someone about donations, but I don't know how to vet them. How did you vet the one that sent you an ask?

A very good question. I cannot vet requests myself, so what I do is I look for vetting that appears credible, especially if it can be corroborated by other credible sources. In this way, even if there are fraudulent cases that slip through the cracks, the risk of any particular request actually being a scam is reduced as much as possible.

... That sounds overly complicated, doesn't it? Let me break it down.

On Tumblr, there are a decent amount of different people and groups who claim they vet financial aid requests. Now, this vetting varies from actual verification using multiple sources and personal discussions to... just accepting every request without care. Since I hate when people take advantage of genuine tragedies to scam people out of their money, I try to avoid organization or individuals who do the latter. As such, I look for people and groups who have established credibility in some way – the requests they verify are also verified by others, they provide evidence of their process, and so on. These are vetting sources that are generally trustworthy.

To look for a source vetting a particular request/GoFundMe, search through the pinned post (and notes of the pinned post) of a blog that has sent you a request. That's usually where evidence of vetting can be found. Once found, decide for yourself if the vetting is credible enough to be considered trustworthy, and check if the GoFundMe in the initial/pinned post matches the GoFundMe that people are saying is verified. This last part is an important step because recently, a new scam practice has appeared: scammers will pose as a vetted blog/request but with a completely different (and fake, of course) GoFundMe. That relates to my next paragraph...

Sometimes, a blog that's requesting financial aid may be taken down and have to make a new blog, which can screw with finding verification/a vetting source because it was specifically the old blog that was verified. In these cases, I prefer to check documents compiled by trustworthy vetting sources to see if that blog's GoFundMe matches the listed GFM on the document. Here's a link to one such document that I consider pretty trustworthy.

Some requests may appear scammy at first glance but actually have a lot of vetting, so it's important not to judge just based on gut instinct. Always look to see if they're just doing their best to ask for help in a language they don't really know. After all, we all appear awkward, strange, stilted, or overly formal when speaking in a language and engaging with a culture we don't know that well.

While the risk of a scam is never zero – no one is perfect, and sometimes things get missed – I'm someone who would rather give to someone who doesn't need it and risk getting scammed out of a couple dollars than risk leaving someone genuine in need. There's a post I can't find that summarizes this thought process of mine pretty well... "Whether he was lying or not says something about his character, but whether I had the choice to help someone and didn't take it says something about mine." or however the quote goes. That said, I refuse to post requests with no sources or vetting at all.

In the end, these are difficult times and we are all doing our best. I hope this helps you, and I hope you can use this to help others.

[southeastasianists]

In Dili, Indonesia’s future means trying to forget about Timor-Leste’s past

Indonesian President-elect Prabowo Subianto, a former military officer, has been linked to alleged atrocities in Timor-Leste.

At Timor-Leste’s museum of memory, Hugo Fernandes supervises exhibits chronicling resistance and oppression during the Indonesian occupation – an era when Prabowo Subianto, now Indonesia’s president-elect, is alleged to have overseen atrocities.

Fernandes runs the Centro Nacional Chega! museum, a former prison in the capital Dili that dates to when Timor-Leste was a Portuguese colony. Faded photographs of Timorese resistance fighters and messages scrawled on the walls by prisoners who languished here during Indonesia’s brutal 24-year rule line its galleries. 

Despite the shadows cast by history, the impending ascent to power of Prabowo, a former army special forces commander who was declared the winner of the Feb. 14 Indonesian general election, has been greeted with diplomatic decorum in this tiny young nation of 1.3 million people also known as East Timor.

“Prabowo’s specific actions remain unclear due to limited information,” Fernandes, the museum’s director, told BenarNews. “Accusations of human rights violations have persisted, but concrete evidence and verification are difficult to obtain.”

“Chega!,” which means “enough! in Portuguese, stands as a testament to Timor-Leste’s efforts to navigate the delicate path between preserving the memories of its dark past and promoting reconciliation with its giant neighbor next-door.

“There are differing voices within the nation,” Fernandes says. “Some activists advocate for answers regarding past atrocities, while others emphasize the importance of moving forward with Indonesia.”

In 1999, East Timor voted overwhelmingly to break away from Indonesian rule, through a United Nations-sponsored referendum. Before and after the vote, pro-Jakarta militias engaged in widespread violence and destruction. East Timor gained formal independence in 2002 after a period of U.N. administration.

The occupation, which followed after Indonesia invaded East Timor in December 1975, was marked by famine and conflict. The number of deaths attributed to that era ranges from from 90,000 to 200,000, the Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation in East Timor reported.

This figure includes nearly 20,000 cases of violent deaths or disappearances. The commission’s findings indicate that Indonesian forces were responsible for about 70% of these violent incidents, set against the backdrop of East Timor’s population of around 900,000 in 1999.

And according to the Genocide Studies Program at Yale University, “up to a fifth of the East Timorese population perished during the Indonesia’s 24-year occupation … a similar proportion to the Cambodians who died under the Khmer Rouge regime of Pol Pot (1975-1979).”

Since 1999, the relationship between Timor-Leste and Indonesia has evolved, with Jakarta acknowledging its former province as a “close brother” and supporting Dili’s bid to join the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Timor-Leste President José Ramos-Horta welcomed Prabowo’s election win and expressed readiness to collaborate with Indonesia’s upcoming new leader.

“Very pleased, very pleased,” Ramos-Horta told BenarNews when asked about Prabowo’s victory. 

As a young man, Ramos-Horta, now 74, was a founder and leader of Fretilin, the armed resistance movement that fought to liberate East Timor from the Portuguese first and then the Indonesians.

He said he had personally called Prabowo, now Indonesia’s defense minister, to congratulate him, and that the ex-general planned to visit Timor-Leste before his inauguration on Oct. 20.

Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão, a former guerilla leader who spent years in an Indonesian prison, was also happy with the news, Ramos-Horta said.

“President-elect Prabowo will contribute a lot, first to Indonesia, continuing stability and prosperity in Indonesia, and then in the region, as well as strengthen relations with Timor-Leste,” he said, adding Prabowo had “many friends” in his country, including his own brother, Arsenio.

When asked about Prabowo’s human rights record in Timor-Leste, Ramos-Horta said, “That is past. It’s already almost three decades, and we do not think of the past.”

Prabowo was a key figure in the military operations that crushed the East Timorese resistance.

The Timor-Leste National Alliance for an International Tribunal (ANTI), a coalition of civil society organizations, survivors, and families of victims, said reports had implicated Prabowo in a 1983 massacre in Kraras.

Some estimates said that  200 people were killed there, earning the area the nickname the “town of widows.”

In a statement released in November, the alliance said that as the head of the Indonesian army’s special forces command, Prabowo had directed actions resulting in severe human rights abuses and crimes, including the establishment of pro-Indonesian militias blamed for post-referendum violence in 1999.

In addition, Prabowo is linked to a 1991 massacre at the Santa Cruz cemetery in Dili, where some 250 peaceful demonstrators were killed, the alliance said.

In 1998, Prabowo was discharged from the military after a council of honor officers found him guilty of several violations, including involvement in the abduction and disappearance of pro-democracy activists during the 1998 student protests that led to the downfall of Indonesian dictator Suharto.

Prabowo, 72, has denied any wrongdoing and said he was only following orders from his superiors. He has never been tried in a civilian court for the alleged crimes.

Prabowo’s presidential campaign team said that witnesses, including religious figures in Timor-Leste, had denied his connection to the Krakas killings.

For many Timorese, the memories of Indonesian occupation are hard to erase. 

Naldo Rei, 50, a former child guerrilla-fighter who was repeatedly imprisoned during that period, said he could not overlook Prabowo’s human rights record.

“While I don’t want to meddle in Indonesia’s internal matters, when it comes to human rights issues, Prabowo has a very distressing track record,” Rei told BenarNews, his soft-spoken and gentle demeanor belying his resistance years.

Rei spent his youth evading capture in the Los Palos jungle after the loss of six family members, including his father, to Indonesian military action.

In the early 1990s, he sought refuge first in Jakarta, then in Australia, before settling in an independent East Timor.

Rei, who is the author of “Resistance,” a memoir detailing his experiences, voices apprehension about the trajectory of Indonesian democracy.

“Prabowo’s victory, from my perspective, squanders the democracy that the people have fought for,” he said. “How many lives have been lost? He and other generals have blood on their hands.”

Januario Soares, a second-year medical student at the National University of Timor Lorosae, represents a growing sentiment focused on the future.

“Indonesia has chosen its leader. We need to focus on the future,” Soares said as he sat in the shade of a mahogany tree outside his campus in Dili.

He believes strengthening relations between the two countries is vital.

“The civil war left us divided, and in that division, we inadvertently opened our doors to Indonesia,” Soares said. “What followed was a period of violence against our people, a scar in our history.”

Yet, when it comes to Prabowo’s role in that history, Soares admitted he did not know much.

“The Indonesian people have made their choice. Perhaps Prabowo is the best among the contestants; that’s why they chose him,” he said.

Soares said he opted for a pragmatic approach toward the past, focusing on improving the quality of life and seeking benefits for the present and future.

“People change over time, and I believe Prabowo has changed too.” 

Damien Kingsbury, a political expert specializing in Timor-Leste, said Timorese leaders were obligated to maintain a delicate diplomatic stance due to the small nation’s reliance on Indonesia for imports and its aspirations to join ASEAN, the Southeast Asian bloc. Indonesia is one of ASEAN’s founding members.

“Of course, Ramos-Horta must be diplomatic,” said Kingsbury, a professor at Deakin University in Australia, who has written extensively on Timor-Leste and Indonesia.

“He is president of a small country that has an unhappy history with Indonesia and does not want to create any possible problems,” he told BenarNews.

Kingsbury pointed out that while Ramos-Horta, a Nobel laureate and prominent diplomat, is well-versed in the language of diplomacy, there is a generational gap in awareness of the nation’s tumultuous past.

“Younger people may not be aware of events of 20, 30 and 40 years ago, but that does not mean they did not happen,” he said.

“It must leave a bitter taste in the mouths of many that Timor-Leste’s leaders need to be polite to Prabowo.”

[fierceawakening]

About asking for clarification on something that seem obvious to other people, if they don't assume you're just dense, they'll often assume you're a troll deliberately playing dumb. Back when she was more active on Tumblr, funereal-disease mentioned consent principles as a topic particularly prone to this sort of assumption of bad faith: if you have any confusion or doubts, you can come off as potentially predatory, whether because people think you genuinely don't understand and that you're therefore unsafe to be around, or because you're deliberately trying to rules-lawyer your way into technically getting consent.

Yep.

In the particular case I was referencing, it was

Rule of the Shelter: Clients should make separate requests for each accommodation they need. This person needs a lower bunk AND a diabetic meal, so that’s two forms. We ask for separate forms so we can keep track of each accommodation we approve.

The Actual Policy Under US Law: An accommodation can be requested informally. There is no required process. As soon as the accommodation is requested, it’s incumbent on the party to whom the request is made to reply fully and formally.

My confusion was “the law that applies here puts the burden on us. What could possibly be missing from these forms? We’ve obtained a doctor’s verification, which I am not sure we should even need for the bottom bunk one anyway. Client is visibly very large and uses a walker and moves slowly.”

The answer was “there are supposed to be two of them.”

FML.

[cyber-sec]

How we prevent conflicts in authoritative DNS configuration using formal verification

Source: https://blog.cloudflare.com/topaz-policy-engine-design/

Paper: https://files.research.cloudflare.com/publication/Larisch2024.pdf