#technically Mathematics links to Theory - Mathematical

[bubbloquacious]

The current (2024-7-23) first-link chain on Wikipedia containing mathematics goes

Mathematics -> Theory -> Reason -> Logic -> Logical reasoning -> Logical consequence -> Concept -> Abstraction -> Rule of inference -> Philosophy of logic -> Philosophy -> Existence -> Reality -> Universe -> Space -> Three-dimensional space -> Geometry -> Mathematics

and I think that's delightful.

[tearsinthemist]

Want to learn something new

Want to learn something new in 2022??

Absolute beginner adult ballet series (fabulous beginning teacher)

40 piano lessons for beginners (some of the best explanations for piano I’ve ever seen)

Excellent basic crochet video series

Basic knitting (probably the best how to knit video out there)

Pre-Free Figure Skate Levels A-D guides and practice activities (each video builds up with exercises to the actual moves!)

How to draw character faces video (very funny, surprisingly instructive?)

Another drawing character faces video

Literally my favorite art pose hack

Tutorial of how to make a whole ass Stardew Valley esque farming game in Gamemaker Studios 2??

Introduction to flying small aircrafts

French/Dutch/Fishtail braiding

Playing the guitar for beginners (well paced and excellent instructor)

Playing the violin for beginners (really good practical tips mixed in)

Color theory in digital art (not of the children’s hospital variety)

Retake classes you hated but now there’s zero stakes:

Calculus 1 (full semester class)

Learn basic statistics (free textbook)

Introduction to college physics (free textbook)

Introduction to accounting (free textbook)

Learn a language:

Ancient Greek

Latin

Spanish

German

Japanese (grammar guide) (for dummies)

French

Russian (pretty good cyrillic guide!)

Jan 2, 2023

Want to learn something new in 2023??

Cooking with flavor bootcamp (used what I learned in this a LOT this year)

Beekeeping 101

Learn Interior Design from the British Academy of Interior Design (free to audit course - just choose the free option when you register)

Video on learning to read music that actually helped me??

How to use and sew with a sewing machine

How to ride a bike (listen. some of us never learned, and that's okay.)

How to cornrow-braid hair (I have it on good authority that this video is a godsend for doing your baby niece's black hair)

Making mead at home (I actually did this last summer and it was SO good)

How to garden

Basics of snowboarding (proceed with caution)

How to draw for people who (think they) suck at art (I know this website looks like a 2003 monstrosity, but the tutorials are excellent)

Pixel art for beginners so you can make the next great indie game

Go (back) to school

Introduction to Astronomy (high school course - free textbook w/ practice problems)

Principals of Economics (high school course - free textbook w/ practice problems)

Introduction to philosophy (free college course)

Computer science basics (full-semester Harvard course free online)

Learn a language

Japanese for Dummies (link fix from 2022)

Ukrainian

Portuguese (Brazil)

American Sign Language (as somebody who works with Deaf people professionally, I also strongly advise you to read up on Deaf/HoH culture and history!)

Chinese (Mandarin, Simplified)

Quenya (LOTR fantasy elf language)

Dec 26, 2023

Want to learn something new in 2024??

Beginner-oriented video on how to sail

This guy has so many videos on baking different types of bread. SO very many.

Coding in Python - one of the most flexible and adaptable high-level programming languages out there - explained through projects making video games

Learn to swim! (for adult learners. I don’t care if you live in Kansas or Mali or wherever. LEARN TO SWIM.)

Learn how quantum mechanics works. Then read some more about it

[Learn about quantum mechanics again, but in a more advanced engineering/mathematics class. Then read more about the math and physics of it]

Poetry Handbook, by Mary Oliver

Something I learned this year: how to sew a quilt (Here’s a very easy beginning pattern that looks amazing and can be done with pre-cut fabric!)

How to hit the ball in softball

Tutorial video on what is under the hood of most (gas) cars + weird engine sounds and what they mean

Full beginner mechanics technical training, if you want to go more in depth

Playlist on how car engine physics work if you want to go ultra in depth

Lecture series on architecture design through study of buildings

How (American income) taxes & tax law work (choose “audit course” at checkout for free class)

Pickleball for beginners (so you can finally join your neighbor/friend/distant cousin who is always insisting you join their team)

+ Para-Pickleball for beginners (for mobility aid users!)

School is so much more fun when there’s no tests:

American Law - Contracts

Shakespeare’s Life and Plays

Fairy Tales: Meanings, Messages, and Morals

Modern Poetry

World History [Part 1, Part 2]

Learn a language:

Arabic + Resource Guide compiled from Reddit (includes info on different dialects)

Chinese (Cantonese) (audio)

Urdu (frequently recommended course on Reddit) + Resource Guide

Yucatec Maya

[best-international-schools-2025]

Why Schools Need to Embrace Art as Part of STEAM Education

Education is evolving rapidly, and with it comes the need to prepare students for a future where creativity and innovation matter more than ever. Incorporating art into the traditional STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) curriculum has given rise to STEAM education. This approach not only enhances learning but also ensures students are well-rounded individuals. But why is art important in schools, and how does it connect to the value of education? 

The Role of Art in STEAM Education

Art is often seen as separate from subjects like science or maths, but it plays a critical role in developing essential skills. When students engage in art, they improve their ability to think creatively, solve problems, and communicate effectively. These are the same skills needed to excel in STEM fields.

For example, an engineer designing a bridge needs creativity for aesthetic appeal and functionality. Similarly, a scientist presenting research must convey ideas visually to make their findings accessible. Art teaches these transferable skills, making it an indispensable part of education.

Boosting Innovation Through Art

At its core, art fuels innovation. It encourages students to experiment and think outside the box. In a world driven by technology, we need people who can bring fresh perspectives and innovative solutions to global challenges.

Adding art to the curriculum helps students think differently about problems. Instead of focusing solely on formulas or processes, they begin to see possibilities. This mindset is what drives progress in fields like design, architecture, and even artificial intelligence.

Fostering Emotional Intelligence and Empathy

Art also contributes to emotional development, teaching children to understand and express their feelings. By engaging in creative activities, students build empathy, learn to value different perspectives and grow as compassionate individuals.

This aligns closely with the principles of value education. Is value education necessary in schools? Absolutely. It’s through such learning that students grow into responsible and ethical citizens. Integrating art into STEAM education ensures they don’t just excel academically but also develop the emotional intelligence needed to thrive in the real world.

Making Learning More Engaging

One of the biggest challenges in education is keeping students engaged. Art has a way of making learning fun and interactive. Whether it’s creating visual projects for a science lesson or designing a prototype in engineering class, art adds an element of excitement that motivates students to participate actively.

By linking art with STEM, we create an environment where students feel inspired to explore and experiment. This approach not only boosts academic performance but also helps reduce the pressure often associated with STEM subjects.

Bridging the Gap Between Theory and Practice

Art transforms theoretical concepts into practical experiences. For instance, a lesson on geometry can come alive when students use shapes to create patterns or designs. Similarly, understanding physics becomes easier when students build models or sketch out ideas.

This hands-on approach makes learning tangible and helps students retain concepts longer. It also prepares them to apply their knowledge in real-world situations, a skill crucial for success in any career.

Conclusion

Art is not just an extracurricular activity; it’s a vital part of education. By embracing art as part of STEAM, schools can prepare students to succeed in a world that values creativity and collaboration as much as technical expertise. Art builds a bridge between academics and life skills that promote value education in schools. And is value education necessary in schools​? Absolutely—it ensures students grow into empathetic, innovative, and balanced individuals.

[aktuhub]

Comprehensive AKTU B.Tech IT Syllabus for All Years

The AKTU B.Tech 1st year syllabus lays the foundational framework for engineering students, covering essential concepts across core subjects, practical labs, and professional skills. The first year is divided into two semesters, focusing on mathematics, science fundamentals, engineering basics, and programming skills, vital for higher technical studies.

First Year B.Tech IT Syllabus

Semester 1

Core Subjects

Mathematics-I Introduces calculus, linear algebra, and differential equations for engineering problem-solving and applications.

Physics-I Covers mechanics, wave motion, and thermodynamics, tailored for engineering contexts.

Introduction to Programming (C Language) Focuses on programming fundamentals, data structures, algorithms, and hands-on coding practice.

Electrical Engineering Basics Provides a foundation in circuit theory, electrical machines, and power systems.

Professional Communication Enhances communication, writing, and presentation skills essential for professional growth.

Practical Labs

Physics Lab

Electrical Engineering Lab

Programming Lab (C Language)

Semester 2

Core Subjects

Mathematics-II Delves into advanced calculus, vector calculus, and linear transformations.

Chemistry Covers physical, inorganic, and organic chemistry, with emphasis on engineering materials.

Engineering Mechanics Introduces statics, dynamics, and mechanics of rigid bodies.

Computer System & Programming Explores computer architecture, assembly language, and structured programming.

Basic Electronics Engineering Focuses on electronic devices, circuits, and fundamental applications.

Practical Labs

Chemistry Lab

Basic Electronics Lab

Computer Programming Lab

Second Year B.Tech IT Syllabus

Semester 3

Core Subjects

Data Structures Using C Covers arrays, stacks, queues, linked lists, and trees for efficient data manipulation.

Discrete Mathematics Explores set theory, combinatorics, graph theory, and logic, forming a mathematical backbone for computing.

Digital Logic Design Introduces binary arithmetic, logic gates, combinational and sequential circuits.

Database Management Systems (DBMS) Focuses on relational databases, SQL, and the fundamentals of database design.

Computer Organization and Architecture Delves into CPU structure, memory hierarchy, and I/O systems.

Practical Labs

Data Structures Lab

Digital Logic Design Lab

DBMS Lab

Semester 4

Core Subjects

Operating Systems Covers process scheduling, memory management, file systems, and more.

Software Engineering Introduces software development life cycle, methodologies, and quality management practices.

Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) Using Java Covers OOP principles using Java, focusing on classes, inheritance, and polymorphism.

Theory of Automata & Formal Languages Studies automata theory, regular expressions, and context-free grammars.

Design and Analysis of Algorithms Focuses on algorithmic strategies, complexity analysis, and optimization techniques.

Practical Labs

Operating Systems Lab

Java Programming Lab

Algorithms Lab

Third Year B.Tech IT Syllabus

Semester 5

Core Subjects

Computer Networks Covers networking layers, TCP/IP, routing algorithms, and data communication.

Compiler Design Explores lexical analysis, syntax analysis, semantic analysis, and optimization techniques.

Web Technologies Introduces front-end and back-end web development using HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and server-side scripting.

Microprocessors and Interfacing Covers 8085/8086 microprocessors, interfacing, and assembly language programming.

Elective I Allows students to specialize in a subject area based on their interest.

Practical Labs

Computer Networks Lab

Microprocessor Lab

Web Technologies Lab

Semester 6

Core Subjects

Artificial Intelligence Covers foundational AI techniques, knowledge representation, and learning algorithms.

Distributed Systems Focuses on distributed computing models, coordination, and replication.

Mobile Computing Emphasizes mobile app development, wireless communication, and mobility management.

Advanced Database Systems Covers NoSQL databases, data warehousing, and database security measures.

Elective II Provides an additional specialization option.

Practical Labs

AI Lab

Mobile Application Lab

Distributed Systems Lab

Final Year B.Tech IT Syllabus

Semester 7

Core Subjects

Machine Learning Focuses on supervised, unsupervised learning algorithms, and evaluation models.

Cloud Computing Introduces cloud service models, deployment, and cloud security.

Information Security Covers cryptographic methods, network security, and security threats.

Elective III Tailored to specific industry-oriented needs and interests.

Practical Labs

Machine Learning Lab

Cloud Computing Lab

Major Project Phase I

Semester 8

Core Subjects

Big Data Analytics Explores data mining, the Hadoop ecosystem, and advanced analytics.

Entrepreneurship Development Prepares students with business planning, innovation, and management skills.

Major Project The culmination of academic knowledge in a comprehensive project.

This structured curriculum equips students with in-depth IT skills and knowledge, preparing them for a thriving career in technology and innovation.

[unnatural-transformations]

My Favorite Mathematical Proofs [1 of n]

This is the first in another irregular series of posts I'm hoping to start. In these posts I'll talk about proofs that I find particularly clever or surprising or elegant or funny. To start the series off I'm going to talk about one of my favorite ever short proofs, by Don Zagier, of an old number theory result originally due to Fermat.

This is sometimes known as Fermat's Christmas Theorem, because Fermat wrote about it in a letter to Marin Mersenne on December 25th 1640 (as usual for Fermat, I don't believe he actually gave a proof). The theorem has since been proved by a lot of famous mathematicians including Euler, Lagrange and Dedekind. Zagier gave his proof [inspired by Lagrange's] as a "one sentence proof" (which it is ... technically?) in The American Mathematical Monthly in 1990. You can read it here, if you like. It won't take long!

What I like about this proof is how little number theory it seems to involve. The key is a (fairly intuitive) lemma about involutions on finite sets, which Zagier uses without proof. Recall that an involution is a bijection which is equal to its own inverse: applying the bijection twice to any element brings you back to your original element. The intermediate step might send your element to something new, or it might not: in the latter case we call the element a fixed point of the involution. The lemma tells us that if we know that any given involution on a finite set has exactly one fixed point, then every involution on the set must have at least one fixed point.

Zagier considers the set of positive-integer solutions to the equation x^2 + 4yz = p and defines two involutions on it. One of these involutions (interchanging y and z) looks very natural, and it is clear that any fixed point of this involution will give a way of wrting p as a sum of two squares. The other involution is much more complicated in appearance -- it isn't even clear that it's an involution at all at first -- but it can be shown after some calculation to have exactly one fixed point. By the lemma, then, the first involution must also have a fixed point, which proves Fermat's theorem.

I think I like this proof because it has something of the air of a magic trick to it. It's not at all clear where the second, more complicated involution comes from. We barely seem to use the fact that p is a prime of the form 4k+1 at all. And the proof is totally non-constructive: it doesn't give you even a hint of how to go about actually finding pairs of squares that sum to p.

Maybe to some people this would all be an argument against the merits of this proof, but ... well, I dunno. I just really like it.

If you're interested in the full gory details (and the "one sentence" version linked to is a bit too terse for you), I've writen out a much longer version below the cut which does all the required calculations and checks all the details in full.

[These are given as screenshots of LaTeX output, so I'm afraid they're unreadable on a screenreader. Please let me know if you'd like the raw LaTeX.]

Now finally we have:

[workforcesolution]

Modern Data Scientist: Technical and Soft Skills You Need to be successful

What skills are required to be a Data Scientist? OR Is strong mathematics background required to pursue a career as a data scientist? We at Rang Technologies see a lot of questions like this. It's hard when you're trying to break into the field to know exactly how much math & stats you need. Primarily, it depends on how a company is defining "data scientist." Some companies say "data scientist" but really mean "data engineer", which is much more focused on the software engineering side of things and strong with coding production systems, data storage and extraction, cluster management etc. The latter is less Math/Stats and more CS focused. Secondly it depends on how a company is dividing responsibilities. Some look for people who are either strong in programming or strong in mathematics/statistics, and then combine them in a team. Others look for "fully fledged" data scientists who have the deep insight in different models and when to apply which algorithms and can do all the implementation of the data. How the role you're looking at fits into these descriptions will affect how much math/stats you need to demonstrate. Given the variance, the trick is to carefully dissect the job posting and dig into the background of the current team. LinkedIn is a great place to do this. You can generally figure out the different roles (job titles) as well as see the skills/background people in these roles have. That said, there are a few mainstays that, irrespective of role, you should be demonstrating on your resume. Either through your academic courses/coursework, online courses you've taken, or project work you've completed (including write-ups that demonstrate your understanding). Specifically: 

Linear algebra (and ideally basic multivariate calculus)

Regression ... linear regression and the things that violate the assumptions of linear models (e.g., autocorrelation in time series data, non-independent observations)

Probability theory ... especially Bayes' Law and Central Limit Theorem

Numerical analysis (e.g., time series analysis and forecasting)

Core machine learning methods (clustering, decision trees, k-NN)

How to take action now?

Compare this list of mainstays versus your resume. Which do you cover off? Which are you missing? Of those, which have you used or are proficient with? Time to make space to mention them - and if it is via project work, think about linking to a more detailed write-up (for example on GitHub) so you can highlight a deeper level of understanding. This is especially important for non-Math/Stats candidates, as the burden of proof is higher! If you've covered more than the above, great! Make sure the most relevant courses shine through and get you noticed. Technical Skills: Analytics Education - Data scientists are highly educated - 88% have at least a Master's degree and 46% have PhDs - and while there are notable exceptions, a very strong educational background is usually required to develop the depth of knowledge necessary to be a data scientist. Their most common fields of study are Mathematics and Statistics (32%), followed by Computer Science (19%) and Engineering (16%). SAS and/or R - In-depth knowledge of at least one of these analytical tools, for data science R is generally preferred. Skills Required are as below: Technical Skills: Computer Science Python Coding: Python is the most common coding language I typically see required in data science roles, along with Java, Perl, or C/C++. Hadoop Platform: Although this isn't always a requirement, it is heavily preferred in many cases. Having experience with Hive or Pig is also a strong selling point. Familiarity with cloud tools such as Amazon S3 can also be beneficial. SQL Database/Coding: Even though NoSQL and Hadoop have become a large component of data science, it is still expected that a candidate will be able to write and execute complex queries in SQL. Unstructured data: It is critical that a data scientist be able to work with unstructured data, whether it is from social media, video feeds or audio. About Rang Technologies: Headquartered in New Jersey, Rang Technologies has dedicated over a decade delivering innovative solutions and best talent to help businesses get the most out of the latest technologies in their digital transformation journey. Read More...

[thebourisbox]

Human or not? Sam Altman's Worldcoin is betting the next big thing in AI is proving you are indeed human

See on Scoop.it - Design, Science and Technology

Fake virtual identities are nothing new. The ability to so easily create them has been both a boon for social media platforms — more “users” — and a scourge, tied as they are to the spread of conspiracy theories, distorted discourse and other societal ills. Still, Twitter bots are nothing compared with what the world is about to experience, as any time spent with ChatGPT illustrates. Flash forward a few years and it will be impossible to know if someone is communicating with another mortal or a neural network. Sam Altman knows this. Altman is the co-founder and the CEO of ChatGPT parent OpenAI and has long had more visibility than most into what’s around the corner. It’s why more than three years ago, he conceived of a new company that could serve first and foremost as proof-of-personhood. Called Worldcoin, its three-part mission — to create a global ID, a global currency and an app that enables payment, purchases and transfers using its own token, along with other digital assets and traditional currencies — is as ambitious as it is technically complicated, but the opportunity is also vast. In broad strokes, here’s how the outfit, still in beta and based in San Francisco and Berlin, works: To use the service, users must download its app, then have their iris scanned using a silver, melon-sized orb that houses a custom optical system. Once the scan is complete, the individual is added to a database of verified humans, and Worldcoin creates a unique cryptographic “hash” or equation that’s tied to that real person. The scan isn’t saved, but the hash can be used in the future to prove the person’s identity anonymously through the app, which includes a private key that links to a shareable public key. Because the system is designed to verify that a person is actually a unique individual, if the person wants to accept a payment or fund a specific project, the app generates a “zero-knowledge proof” — or mathematical equation — that allows the individual to provide only the necessary amount of information to a third party. Some day, the technology might even help people to vote on how AI should be governed. (A piece in the outlet IEEE Spectrum better spells out the specifics of Worldcoin’s tech.) Investors eager to be in business with Altman jumped at the chance to fund the outfit almost as soon as it was imagined, with Andreessen Horowitz, Variant, Khosla Ventures, Coinbase and Tiger Global providing it with $125.5 million. But the public has been more wary. When in June 2021, Bloomberg reported that Altman was at work on Worldcoin, many questioned its promise to give one share of its new digital currency to everyone who agreed to an iris scan. Worldcoin said it needed to be decentralized from the outset so it could deliver future currency drops as part of universal basic income programs. (Altman has long predicted that AI will generate enough wealth to pay every adult some amount of money each year.) From Worldcoin’s perspective, the crypto piece was necessary. Yet some quickly deemed it another crypto scam, while others questioned whether a nascent startup collecting biometric data could truly secure its participants’ privacy. Altman later said the press owed to a “leak” and that Worldcoin wasn’t ready to tell its story in 2021. Now, reorganized under a new parent organization called Tools for Humanity that calls itself both a research lab and product company, the outfit is sharing more details. Whether they’ll be enough to win over users is an open question, but certainly, more people now understand why proving personhood online is about to become essential.

Read the full article at: techcrunch.com

[freakybyte]

Ok before I start, let me say the following:

The explanation above was prompted by "what is the fancy abstract algebra term". Therefore, it was highly technical and full of jargon, because that was kind of the point there. This explanation would have been hard to understand for anyone who didn't do college/university level algebra before.

I don't know much about dyscalculia. I've heard of it, but I don't know the details. From what I understand, it makes it particularly hard to do calculations, which is a bit rough since arithmetic is kind of a key part of this subject. I'll try my best to give more conceptual and visual explanations and tone down on the formulas. But forgive me if my explanation is still hard to understand.

Now, to your question on group theory and fields: Mathematicians make, ehm, interesting choices when naming things. "Group theory" is rather harmless, since it's indeed about groups of things, in some sense. It doesn't really give you an idea what the subject is about, though. A more descriptive name would be "symmetry theory". There is a precise definition of a group, which essentially comes from trying to formalize what a symmetry of a thing is. For this small overview, it'll be enough to just visually think of symmetries, though.

The term "field" is much worse, since this has nothing to do with the nice green fields you might be thinking of. In mathematics, a field is basically a collection of things that you can do basic arithmetic (so addition, subtraction, multiplication and division) with. So an example of a field would be the rational numbers, i.e. the collection of all fractions.

Now with fractions, you can do a lot of stuff. But you can't do everything. In particular, there are some equations that you just can't solve with only fractions. But mathematicians are stubborn, so in order to deal with that, they just invented new numbers that help them solve the equations they couldn't solve before. It however turns out that there is often not only one way to invent those new numbers. To explain it visually, you could instead of inventing one new number, invent its "mirror image", and nothing would really change in the end. In other situations, you might need to invent multiple new numbers, and things might still be the same if you "rotate those new numbers around". These "reflections" and "rotations" are symmetries of some sort. So in the mathematical jargon, this is the link between fields and group theory I was talking about.

Ok, so this is super vague. To make it at least a tiny bit less abstract, I'll now give two examples. This means also giving the equations, but I'll keep calculations to a minimum.

As I said, the starting point is basically an equation you want to solve, but can't. Consider the equation

x² = -1.

We won't be doing much with this. All you need to notice is that on the right side, there is a negative number, whereas on the left side, we are squaring something, i.e. we are multiplying something with itself. Now a positive number multiplied by itself is positive again, so this wouldn't work. However, a negative number times a negative number is also going to be positive. So never when multiplying something by itself will you get something negative. This equation can't be solved with the numbers we know.

In order to deal with this, mathematicians just invent a new number and just define it to be a solution to the equation, cause fuck it why not. In this case, the new number would be called i. This number is new, so it's not anywhere on the usual number line, since that's already occupied. Instead, it's usually drawn above the number line.

However, this new i is not the only solution to the equation. With basically the same reasoning as we just did, it doesn't really matter whether we multiply i by itself or whether we multiply -i by itself, the two minuses compensate for each other. So -i is another solution. It lies where you would end up if you were to reflect the point i along the line, basically in the same way as 1 and -1 or 2 and -2 are reflections of each other.

Now, in this case, it doesn't really matter which one of the two you invent. So could swap them around and nothing would really change. Swapping them is a reflection along the line, a symmetry.

A more complex example would be the equation

x⁵ = 1.

I won't go into detail here since the post is already very long and justifying the following would involve a lot more calculations. The only thing I will mention is that here we have a 5 in the equation, whereas before we had a 2. Also, before we had two solutions (i and -i), so now it'd make sense to invent new numbers to have five solutions. Visually, these five solutions would look like this:

The arrows here again denote a symmetry for this equation, which here is again reflection along the line. For this equation however, there is actually more than one way to swap the solutions around without changing the underlying structure. The other symmetries are:

(also mathematicians usually count "changing nothing" as a symmetry too. we'll just ignore that here ^^)

Alright! I hope that was somewhat understandable, or at least interesting to read. ^-^

Why is √-1= i

√-1 don't know.

[ambvrs]

                   𝑨𝑫𝑽𝑬𝑵𝑻  𝑫𝑨𝒀  𝑻𝑯𝑹𝑬𝑬  :  𝑯𝑶𝑻  𝑪𝑯𝑶𝑪𝑶𝑳𝑨𝑻𝑬  .

                                       the  classes  that  she  is  taking  .

𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐖  ──  re  :  josephine  aydin,  second  year,  creative  writing  +  graphic  design  major,  math  minor  .

most  would  expect  that  a  dual  major  (  and  subsequent  minor  )  in  completely  differing  fields  of  study  would  fill  her  week  with  more  course  time  than  anything,  but  the  reality  is  that  neither  major  field  of  study  require  a  significant  number  of  compulsory  courses,  which  means  much  of  the  time  she  dedicates  to  them  goes  into  homework,  projects,  etc.  josephine  is  known  to  throw  herself  into  her  courses,  because  she  finds  much  of  it  very  interesting  and  it’s  things  she  likes  to  do  rather  than  needs  to  do,  but  is  still  carefully  chosen  to  best  suit  her  not  -  so  -  morning  person  tendencies.

𝐂𝐑𝐖𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟖  ──  𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐌𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐀𝐑𝐘  𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘𝐓𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆  .

course  description.     explore  various  modes  of  storytelling  in  a  contemporary  context,  with  a  view  to  developing  narrative  skills.  engage  with  contemporary  fiction,  poetry,  non  -  fiction,  film,  and  theatre  and  will  aim  to  investigate  and  understand  the  multiple  ways  readers  and  writers  engage  with  storytelling  and  narrative.  students  are  required  to  engage  with  and  analyze  their  own  writing  and  the  writing  of  others,  with  the  aim  of  helping  students  to  hone  their  ability  to  edit  and  create.

schedule.     this  course  lectures  once  a  week  for  an  hour  and  requires  a  two  hour  seminar  each  week  for  eleven  weeks.  josephine  attends  this  course  every  tuesday.  her  lecture  runs  from  10:10  am  to  11:10  am,  and  her  seminar  is  lucky  enough  to  fall  on  the  same  day  from  1:40  pm  to  3:40  pm.  

assessments.     the  end  of  term  assessment  for  this  course  is  primarily  a  summative  one,  which  includes  a  portfolio  of  creative  writing  (  2,000  words  or  equivalent  in  poetry  or  script  ),  a  self  -  reflective  critical  commentary  (  500  words  ),  and  a  review  of  a  literary  event  (  500  words  ).  there  is  also  a  formative  assessment  based  on  lecture  discussions  and  tutor  feedback  based  on  on  -  going  coursework.

standing.     she  currently  ranks  second  in  this  class  with  a  98.83%,  just  behind  isak  nilsson  (  small  talk  tells  her  it’s  a  small  margin  of  difference,  however  ),  not  that  she’s  too  concerned  about  that  fact.  out  of  all  her  courses,  she  considers  it  her  third  favorite  class,  mainly  because  she  loves  exploring  the  way  storytelling  presents  itself  in  a  variety  of  media  forms  (  with  a  preference  for  fiction,  poetry,  and  film  ),  and  it’s  taught  by  her  favorite  creative  writing  and  literature  professor,  and  published  author,  dr.  ophelia  parker.

𝐂𝐑𝐖𝟐𝟎𝟒𝟕  ──  𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐌𝐏𝐎𝐑𝐀𝐑𝐘  𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐔𝐑𝐄  :  𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑  𝐀𝐍𝐃  𝐒𝐄𝐗𝐔𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐘  .

course  description.     look  at  how  a  range  of  contemporary  literature  is  constructed  around  issues  of  gender  and  sexuality.  using  prose,  poetry  and  drama  written  by  men  and  women  from  britain  and  north  america,  it  explores  what  it  means  to  write  about  masculinity,  femininity  and  desire  and,  indeed,  how  these  concepts  affect  form  and  determine  meaning.  the  course  provides  a  theoretical  underpinning  that  will  enable  students  to  construct  links  between  contemporary  texts  and  relevant  theories.

schedule.     this  course  lectures  once  a  week  for  an  hour  and  requires  a  one  hour  seminar  each  week  for  eleven  weeks.  josephine  attends  this  course  every  thursday.  her  lecture  runs  from  12:30  pm  to  1:30  pm,  and  her  seminar  is  also  on  the  same  day,  from  1:40  pm  to  2:40  pm.  

assessments.     the  end  of  term  assessment  for  this  course  is  a  summative  one,  which  includes  an  essay  (  1,500  words,  due  by  the  end  of  week  eight  )  and  a  two  hour  examination.  additional  formative  assessments  may  occur  in  the  form  of  seminar  discussions  and  tutor  feedback.

standing.     she  currently  ranks  first  in  this  class  with  a  97.68%,  a  feat  given  how  complex  her  fellow  classmates  consider  the  content  and  execution  of  information.  out  of  all  her  courses,  she  considers  it  her  favorite  class,  and  the  one  she  is  most  excited  to  attend  each  week,  because  she  loves  dissecting  the  representation  of  gender  in  writing,  understanding  how  individuals  of  differing  genders  and  sexualities  perceive  others,  and  how  it  affects  the  overall  story  being  told.  it  is  also  taught  by  dr.  ophelia  parker,  which  one  may  argue  is  the  only  professor  she  consistently  seeks  to  take.

𝐃𝐄𝐒𝟐𝟏𝟎𝟒  ──  𝐀𝐃𝐕𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐃  𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐈𝐆𝐍  𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐈𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐒  .

course  description.     students  will  be  introduced  to  how  organizations  use  graphic  design  to  benefit  and  enhance  their  image  and  products.  students  will  continue  to  learn  more  about  the  principles  and  practices  of  graphic  design  in  the  context  of  business  in  addition  to  learning  industry  standard  graphics  software  by  applying  their  skills  and  knowledge  to  create  original  content.  content  will  be  in  a  variety  of  styles  and  formats  to  best  represent  a  student’s  range  and  understanding  of  the  principles  as  they  have  been  learned.

schedule.     this  course  lectures  twice  a  week  for  an  hour  each  week  for  eleven  weeks.  josephine  attends  this  course  every  tuesday  &  thursday.  her  lecture  runs  from  9:00  am  to  10:00  am.  

assessments.     the  end  of  term  assessment  for  this  course  is  a  summative  one,  which  includes  a  personal  portfolio  of  graphic  design  (  at  least  three  major  pieces  reflecting  some  part  personal  aspect  of  the  student’s  life  ),  two  reflection  papers  (  500  words  each,  one  mid  -  semester  and  one  at  the  end  ),  and  a  final  project  that  uniquely  uses  at  least  five  basic  principles  of  design.  additional  formative  assessments  may  occur  in  the  form  of  tutor  feedback.

standing.     this  course  does  not  use  traditional  grades  for  ranking  methods,  opting  for  letter  grades  based  on  submission  completion  and  understanding  of  the  assignment.  she  currently  holds  an  a+  in  the  course.  her  design  courses  are  not  necessarily  her  favorite,  because  of  how  monotonous  they  can  seem  at  times,  but  she  highly  enjoys  the  creative  liberties  that  her  professor  allows  them  to  take  with  each  assignment.  the  designing  process  is  her  favorite  part.  it  is  taught  by  the  head  of  the  graphic  design  department,  dr.  blake  adams.

𝐃𝐄𝐒𝟐𝟏𝟒𝟔  ──  𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐕𝐎𝐂𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒  &  𝐓𝐇𝐄  𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐔𝐀𝐆𝐄  𝐎𝐅  𝐈𝐌𝐀𝐆𝐄𝐒  .

course  description.     students  will  be  introduced  to  the  core  skills  and  essential  knowledge  associated  with  the  discipline  of  graphic  design,  as  well  as  a  range  of  conceptual  and  practical  approaches  to  image  -  making  in  relation  to  the  discipline  of  graphic  design.  through  technical  workshops  and  software  inductions,  students  will  explore  the  analogue  and  digital  construction  of  graphic  design,  informed  by  historical  and  contemporary  research,  as  well  as  find  a  great  deal  of  support  in  experimenting  with  both  analogue  and  digital  methods  of  production.

schedule.     this  course  lectures  once  a  week  for  two  hours  each  week  for  eleven  weeks.  josephine  attends  this  course  every  thursday.  her  lecture  runs  from  5:00  pm  to  7:00  pm,  though  generally  speaking,  her  professor  only  asks  that  they  work  for  the  first  hour  as  the  second  is  often  reserved  for  editing,  questions,  etc.  

assessments.     the  end  of  term  assessment  for  this  course  is  a  summative  one,  which  includes  a  portfolio  (  five  analog  &  five  digital  pieces  )  and  a  two  hour  examination.  additional  formative  assessments  may  occur  in  the  form  of  tutor  feedback.

standing.     this  course  also  does  not  use  traditional  numerical  grades  for  ranking  methods,  opting  for  letter  grades  based  on  submission  completion  and  understanding  of  the  assignment.  she  currently  holds  an  a+  in  the  course.  her  design  courses  are  not  necessarily  her  favorite,  because  of  how  monotonous  they  can  seem  at  times,  but  again,  she  does  enjoy  the  content,  and  quite  likes  this  course  in  particular  with  the  option  to  work  with  analogue  and  digital  means,  as  she  find  drawing  quite  relaxing.  it  is  taught  by  known  artist  and  professor,  julien  troy.

𝐌𝐀𝐓𝟏𝟎𝟑𝟑  ──  𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐁𝐀𝐁𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐘  &  𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐒  .

course  description.     an  introduction  to  probability  theory  and  statistical  methods.  the  course  leads  to  a  deeper  understanding  of  probability  distributions,  random  variables  and  their  role  in  sampling.  tools  such  as  hypothesis  tests  are  presented  and  a  basic  introduction  to  the  statistical  software  r  is  provided.  this  course  acts  as  a  foundation  for  mathematical  statistics,  general  linear  models,  and  stochastic  processes.  more  generally,  it  underpins  other  course  where  an  element  of  uncertainty  /  chance  /  randomness  exists  or  where  knowledge  of  the  software  package  r  is  required.

schedule.     this  course  lectures  three  times  a  week  for  one  hour  each  week  for  eleven  weeks,  meets  once  every  two  weeks  (  for  eight  weeks  )  for  a  one  hour  hands  -  on  lab,  and  once  every  two  weeks  for  a  one  hour  seminar  (  for  ten  weeks  ).  josephine  attends  this  course  every  monday,  wednesday, and  friday.  her  lecture  runs  from  10:30  am  to  11:30  am,  her  lab  meets  every  other  wednesday  and  her  seminar  is  held  every  other  monday.  

assessments.     the  assessment  for  this  course  is  a  summative  one,  with  one  in  -  term  test  (  worth  25%  of  course  grade  )  and  one  two  hour  examination  (  worth  75%  of  course  grade  )  taken  at  the  end  of  the  term.  additional  formative  assessments  may  occur  in  the  form  of  individual  written  feedback  (  or  auto  -  feedback  from  online  tests  and  quizzes  )  via  a  number  of  marked  formative  coursework  assignments,  as  well  as  verbal  group  feedback  during  lectures  and  by  a  seminar  tutor  at  fortnightly  seminars.

standing.     it’s  no  surprise  that  she  ranks  first  in  this  course,  given  her  math  history  and  proficiency,  with  a  current  grade  of  99.21%.  what  may  be  a  surprise,  however,  is  that  she  considers  this  to  be  her  second  favorite  course,  over  most  of  her  major  -  specific  coursework,  as  she  has  always  loved  numbers  and  enjoys  putting  in  the  time  to  understand  and  solve  complex  equations.  math  brings  her  a  certain  sense  of  happiness  and  considering  it’s  the  only  class  she  takes  on  mwf,  it  helps  break  up  the  long  hours  of  writing  and  design,  even  if  it’s  the  most  thought  intensive  course  she  has  to  take.  but  dr.  michiel  ivy  was  both  kind  and  made  the  class  entertaining,  and  was  among  one  of  the  more  helpful  professors  she’s  ever  taken.

[wisdomrays]

TAFAKKUR: Part 358

CAUSALITY AND THE QUR'ANIC WORLD-VIEW: Part 1

The universe has been made in the form of a book, intelligible, so as to make known its Author. The book addresses man. The aim is to make him read the book and its parts, and respond with worship and thanks to the will of the Author. Man attains to that worship by uncovering, through scientific study, the order in the book of the universe, and displaying the functioning of beings and the workings of the universe.

The universe is not passive. It is not neutral. We cannot interpret it as we wish. There is only one correct way of looking at the world, one universal world-view which is common to all humanity. This view is taught to us in the Qur'an as well as in the book of the universe by our Creator.

This does not mean that the Qur'anic world-view does not recognize that the perception of the world differs from one person to another. It allows for plurality within unity so that a universal dialogue is possible. In this world-view there is no fragmentation and no conflict. There is only harmony, assistance, peace and compassion.

The materialist scientific world-view is based on radical fragmentation. Materialist science takes nature to mean a mechanism with no inherent value and meaning. It isolates an object by cutting off its connections with the rest of the world and studies it within its immediate environment.

Whereas our perception of ourselves tells us that we are meaningful and part of the whole universe, and everything must have a meaning and must be part of the whole universe, materialist science has left the subject. i.e. man, out of the universe, and insofar as this science is taking over, people feel that they have no place in this world. They are isolated from other people. Their lives have no meaning, except in a very limited, egoistic sense. Man is alienated from his environment and from himself.

In the light of modern physics, the mechanistic view is an incoherent description of nature. The developments of modem physics call for a radical revision in our concept of reality. They shattered all the principal concepts of classical physics.

Many concepts, like the causal nature of physical phenomena and the ideal of an objective description of nature, changed with the advent of the new theories of modern science, quantum, relativity and, more recently, chaos theory.

However, these changes have not been matched by parallel changes in the world-view of science. The modifications took place only on a mathematical level. Because all that counts for scientists is the development of mathematical formulations of the behaviour of physical phenomena. Such a goal is not regarded merely for its technical utility; rather most scientists believe that prediction of this kind is all that knowledge is about.

They claim that our concept of reality is of little or no importance. However, it is clear that our concept of reality has a tremendous effect on how we behave in relation to nature and to other people, and also on the meaning life has for us as individuals. We cannot dispense with a world-view.

This attitude of the scientists is in contradiction with modern science. Classically it was thought that science could describe and explain everything in the world 'objectively' i.e. as it actually is in reality and that the 'observer' i.e. the scientist himself, could describe the world by means of mathematical models which were independent of his judgement. The discoveries of modern physics, however, point towards the unity of all things, an unbroken wholeness which denies the classical fragmentation of the world into separate and independent parts. In the quantum theory, every particle is linked to the rest of the universe and cannot be isolated from it. This oneness of the universe includes human beings as well. The quantum theory, together with abolishing the notion of fundamentally separate objects, has introduced the concept of 'participator' to replace that of the neutral observer. Modern science therefore restores man to his central position. It puts an end to the notion of neutral, objective description of nature and thus to impartial objective science.

Up to the present, materialist science has been based on a deterministic, causal view of the world. Although the latest theories like the quantum and chaos theories are leading to a world-view where there is no room for fragmentation and determinism, materialist scientists still insist on following the fragmented and causal approach. They have to be reductionist because they believe in causality. At the same time they do realize that their materialist world-view is collapsing. Theoretically they understand that, in order to explain one thing, they need to know its connections to all other things. This is obviously impossible because these connections extend in time and in space beyond human capacities; they are infinite and cannot be embraced by human beings who are also parts of those connections.

The materialist scientists understand that the unity of the universe points to an Absolute Creator. For the things we study do not bear meanings limited to themselves but testify to the Absoluteness of their Creator. But in order to be able to claim that their scientific studies produce knowledge, the scientists insist on denying the Absolute Creator. And because their scientific method is based on causality which cannot accommodate the unity of the universe, they ignore that unity and compartmentalize the universe so that they can study each compartment as the product of a limited number of causes. In this way, they can pretend the universe has no Creator and its meaning is limited to what they tell us about it. They thus claim their science to be the source of knowledge.

[amerasdreams]

I have been listening to True Spies podcast on Spotify. It’s apparently connected to a thing called Spyscape, which has a museum/experience thing in New York. They also have an online test for your personality and intelligence.... well those intelligence tests all of course have to do with math. and they are TIMED. somehow I got thru guessing most of them.... didn’t score 0 but didn’t score great. 

so guess what I scored on intelligence!  and personality scores mean I’m more prone to health problems and being unhappy.... :( 

(here I woke up thinking I can be uniquely me, I don’t want to be like anyone else anyway, I can embrace that... but how can I when what I am is this pathetic)

I shouldn’t have done this, I know what these tests do, make me discouraged and hate myself more. they even said I’m not imaginative and creative-- things I value most besides intelligence (and intuition/empathy...) 

they did say the “spy role” I was most suited for, which is what I’m most interested in, intelligence analyst. But in the more “practical” side, for jobs, it mentioned medical things, technical things, which I wouldn’t be good at and don’t like, business marketing-- working for a business I don’t care about, a job with no meaning....  it even had mathematician! when I’m obviously not good at math. the only jobs I might be interested in are psychologist/criminologist... idk.... to late for me to get any career anyway, let alone somehow what I really want

they did a risk assessment, where you blow up the balloon before it pops to get “money” - yesterday I started it and panicked when the balloon popped the first time and closed the window. then when I was walking the dogs it occured to me it was a test lol and I would just have to keep risking popping the balloon... so today I saw it as more of a game and not the ‘scary balloon popping oh no I lost money!” -not even real money. idk about fun.... all these things were stressful esp the intelligence test. 

today I started the test, thinking it might help me, get insight into what I can do, instead, it discouraged me, I’m what I thought, mediocre and not suited for much, they only gave a “role” to me because they had to give me something. It said the intelligence analyst is inquisitive--when it just said I wasn’t -  idk how this even fits with the test bc analytical? that wasn’t one of the dimensions and doesn’t seem like I scored high on implied analytical powers, same with determined-- 

how can i live with myself being like this, having no role and no future according to any dimension that really counts. don’t want to be plodding away at menial tasks when I want to do something Imaginative, Creative, Intellectual-- ha can’t even do that

oh I’m proving them right, easily stressed and sensitive and reactive -- 

I’m not including the risk assessment bc I don’t think it’s accurate-- I’m really very risk averse in all cases... oh we know that already so. 

~

results (bold/parentheses is mine)

MENTAL HORSEPOWER

Unlike Alan Turing would, you scored moderately low {yay!:(} on this attribute. The result, driven by your performance in the personality tests, suggests that, on the whole, you struggle with complex mathematical and analytical problems. {so how can I be an analyst?} That said, you can usually spot patterns and find links in data – as long as the information you have been given isn’t too abstract. (I like big picture things.... abstract things... apparently I’m not good at it)

IN YOUR DAILY LIFE

Like other people with a moderately low Mental Horsepower score, you are more likely to ‘go with your gut’ when making decisions rather than to apply logic and reason (that’s true.... logic is mystifying. fits with being INFP-- logic is my weakest point). It is unlikely that you will sit down and win a game of chess, and you probably rely on your satnav rather than read a map yourself. (yep.... chess is too much strategy... I can’t see ahead like that .. hm how could I be an analyst)

IN YOUR WORK

Because you are not a very conceptual thinker, you are better in roles where you can do things ‘automatically’ rather than applying any abstract reasoning skills. You are not bad at visual-spatial or mathematical tests though, and with training and practice, your skills will definitely improve.

THE SCIENCE

Mental Horsepower relates to our general cognitive ability and our capacity to think about, reason with, and understand abstract concepts. It particularly links to analytical and mathematical skills, but also covers memory, comprehension, language, learning capacity and judgement. These are hugely significant skills for success at work and in everyday life.

Psychologists have developed all kinds of tests to measure cognitive ability. Some of these involve predicting outcomes from patterns in data (also known as inductive reasoning), while others focus on mentally flipping and rotating images. We use both of these approaches in our Mental Horsepower tests at SPYSCAPE.

Recent neuroimaging research shows that intelligence is linked to brain patterns, and that these patterns are unique to each of us (meaning you can’t change them :(  )– much like our fingerprints. In one study, these brain ‘fingerprints’ were used to successfully predict people’s scores in IQ tests.

While IQ tests are probably the most common method for determining cognitive ability, there is some debate over whether they provide a complete picture. For example, theories suggest that there are many different types of intelligence which are not accounted for in these tests. Still, it is generally accepted that people who score highly on tests of cognitive ability are on the whole better at completing intelligence-related (so that career’s out... if it was ever in lol) tasks in the real world.

~

COMPOSURE

Unlike Jason Bourne, you scored extremely low (low on everything! what a wonderful person!) on this attribute. The result, driven by your performance in the personality tests, suggests that you are far more vulnerable to stressors than most people (I knew that). You are likely to have a very strong emotional reaction to negative events and your brain becomes highly active when you see something you perceive as unpleasant (like this test!). Although this means you find it hard to relax, it also means you are really tuned in to your surroundings ( and what’s the upside of that? nice consolation prize....)

IN YOUR DAILY LIFE

Like other people with extremely low levels of composure, you are highly likely to experience anxiety and burnout. (with things that aren’t really stressful to anyone else. just stepping outside. just being inside-- doing thigns like this.. doing most things actually-- help how can i live) You can be far too critical of yourself (well how do i stop? if this is how I am like), especially when you are stressed (which is almost all the time), and this can make it tricky for you to overcome problems (which is never, which is why I’m still living w my parents). You also dwell on the past far more than people with high composure.

On the positive side, you are responsive to your environment, which means you are more likely to anticipate negative outcomes and find ways to avoid them (like almost everything). You are also sensitive and caring, and your observant nature means you look out for yourself and the people close to you. (what���s the point of that when you can’t do anything, or get to know new people)

IN YOUR WORK

It is unlikely your colleagues will turn to you when there is an emergency or crisis at work. This is because you struggle to keep your emotions in check, and challenging situations can get the better of you. When this happens, you are not great at maintaining focus or making tough decisions.

THE SCIENCE

Composure relates to how our brains respond to stress. In tense situations, your brain activates an area called the hypothalamus, which releases adrenalin and cortisol – also known as stress hormones.

A bit of stress now and then is important for survival, because it alerts us to the dangers around us. Small amounts can be useful, but too much over a long period of time is bad for our health (oh goody). Studies show that the adrenal cortex, the part of the brain that releases stress hormones, is also linked to the healthy function of our immune system – and people who are more prone to stress are also more likely to get sick.

There is also a connection between composure and working (short-term) memory. Composed people perform better on tasks where they need to recall and use relevant information while they’re doing something else – for example remembering the steps of a recipe when cooking a meal.

PEOPLE SCORING HIGH IN COMPOSURE ARE

LAID-BACK

RELAXED

COOL

FOCUSED

POISED

PEOPLE SCORING LOW IN COMPOSURE ARE

EMOTIONAL

SENSITIVE

PERCEPTIVE

RESPONSIVE

VIGILANT

~

Contentiousness

Unlike diligent Mission: Impossible hero Isla Faust, you scored moderately low on this attribute. The result, driven by your performance in the personality tests, suggests that unlike Isla, you find it difficult to keep focused on long-term goals {Idk about this. goals are all i focus on.... well. I think about them often but Idk how to create the steps to get there and so things fizzle out and I get-- discouraged what else is new). You get distracted or bored quite quickly and are often drawn to new ideas and projects instead of finishing what you are currently doing (well.... hm. I finish novels...). You understand what is important in life, but you sometimes skip the details. (I’m not a detail person... I can be but they often seem irrelevant)

IN YOUR DAILY LIFE

Because you prefer not to a follow a schedule, hobbies that require regular training are not for you. In fact, your interests change quite regularly, and you find long-term commitment a challenge whatever the activity. Friends and family know that if they want you to do something, they need to encourage you to get organized. When they press you, however, you do things pretty well.

IN YOUR WORK

You take a relatively flexible approach to work. As such, you get distracted easily and do not always complete the task in hand. Because of your tendency to do this, you are likely to change jobs – and perhaps even career – fairly regularly (I want variety... Idk, this sort of fits, sort of doesn’t).

THE SCIENCE

Conscientiousness shapes how likely you are to follow rules, regulate your own behavior and get yourself organized. The more conscientious you are, the more motivated by goals and tasks you are likely to be.

According to what psychologists call the ‘Big-5’ model, conscientiousness is a core dimension of personality – and one of the five key traits that drive human behavior. Whether you are high or low in conscientiousness can help predict your success in social, academic and professional situations.

If you have high levels of conscientiousness, you are probably more productive and better at adapting to new situations (that’s true, I’m not) that come your way. However, this does not mean that being conscientious is always a good thing, because research also shows that being too conscientious can lead to overthinking. (I do that too...)

Some studies suggest that people who are more conscientious are healthier – and they might even live longer. This might be because conscientious people are more likely to exercise regularly, eat healthily, and avoid smoking or drinking too much alcohol.

It’s hard to say where conscientiousness comes from. One study found a link with areas of the brain relating to attention and cognitive control. There is also evidence to suggest that genes play their part. It’s likely that social factors such as your upbringing influence how conscientious you are, too.

PEOPLE SCORING HIGH IN CONSCIENTIOUSNESS ARE

HIGH-ACHIEVING

ACCOUNTABLE

THOROUGH

DRIVEN

SELF-DISCIPLINED

PEOPLE SCORING LOW IN CONSCIENTIOUSNESS ARE

IMPULSIVE

FLEXIBLE

EASY-GOING

SPONTANEOUS

ADAPTABLE

(I think I’m sort of this, sort of not because I’m borderline INFP -- P is flexible, impulsive while J is more structured-- I’m slightly more Perceiving. goes to show Myers-Briggs is pretty good at describing personality accurately....)

~

INQUISITIVENESS

Unlike Carrie Mathison in Homeland, you scored moderately low on this attribute. Your score was driven by your performance in the personality tests, and it suggests that you are pretty cautious about new ideas, beliefs, cultures and theories.

IN YOUR DAILY LIFE

Like other people who scored moderately low on this attribute, you are not so willing to take on board other people’s views (that’s true). You will consider what people have to say, but you are likely to stick with your own opinion. You feel more comfortable in familiar situations and surroundings (well, yes...), and you do not really feel the need to explore new places (I kind of do, though... I want to but I often... don’t. because it’s too hard).

IN YOUR WORK

Because you aren’t motivated to learn or acquire new skills (Idk about this... depends on if it’s something I’m interested in. I’m learning like 15 languages on Duolingo...), you are less likely to seek out new opportunities at work. And the longer you stay in a job, the worse your motivation is likely to get. In general, you tend to perform better when you start a new position, although you will carry this out using the same approach you always have, rather than approach it in a new way. You like real-world, practical work that has straightforward solutions.

THE SCIENCE

Inquisitiveness is an important trait for discovering new things and building a better understanding of people and of the world around us. Psychologists have developed tools for assessing and measuring how inquisitive a person is.

These are based on extensive research into personality and are designed to evaluate five facets related to inquisitiveness: (i) intellectual curiosity; (ii) aesthetic sensitivity; (iii) active imagination; (iv) attentiveness to inner feelings and; (v) preference for variety.

Furthermore, personality researchers have identified two types of inquisitiveness; ‘epistemic’, which refers to information seeking ( I think I’m more information seeking?) behaviour and ‘perceptual’, which refers to experience seeking.

PEOPLE SCORING HIGH IN INQUISITIVENESS ARE

CURIOUS

OPEN-MINDED

IMAGINATIVE AND INVENTIVE

CREATIVE

ADAPTIVE

PEOPLE SCORING LOW IN INQUISITIVENESS ARE

PRACTICAL

CONSISTENT

TRADITIONAL

HABITUAL

PRAGMATIC

~

SOCIABILITY

A bit like Alec Leamas in The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, you scored extremely low (yay. well I knew this... and from answering the questions... )on this attribute, which suggests that you prefer to spend time alone and keep yourself to yourself. You avoid parties, meet-ups and other noisy gatherings because you find them overwhelming (wayyyy). If you really have to socialize, you need plenty of quiet time afterwards to help you rest and recharge.

IN YOUR DAILY LIFE

Like others with an extremely low sociability score, you don’t like being the center of attention and often struggle to start conversations. You think a lot before speaking and regularly find it hard to express your thoughts and ideas. Because of this, you often let others do the talking, and you don’t take part in small talk either. This behavior means you might come across as socially reactive, and people may think you only talk to them when you feel you really have to (as in, extremely negative, and I shouldn’t exist. although... i do talk to them if I have to.... haha I do take part in small talk because I think I have to. or people will think I’m rude. but I don’t like it. I’m sensitive to how I’m perceived and don’t want to be seen as too antisocial, but I talk to others out of fear not of want... yikes. no wonder no one wants to be around me. well I don't want to be around them. well - I want to be around people I know well. for limited amounts of time... need less to recharge from people I know than strangers. I want to be with them, I don’t want to be with strangers-- it’s only stress and not fun at all. but how do i get past the stranger part to the friend part if I don’t like being with strangers and it’s all stressful adn overwhelming? How do i participate in society, have people to talk to, have any sort of success??? - shouldn't exist.).

IN YOUR WORK

Because you are more comfortable working independently (please. HOW???? besides working for myself... haha can’t work for anyone else bc can’t get past the interview, these ^ traits are obvious and not something any employer in their right mind wants), you will be more productive – and much happier – managing your own workload, tackling problems alone, and avoiding company brainstorms and powwows.

THE SCIENCE

How sociable you are can be linked to your levels of happiness, positivity, and wellbeing. In fact, sociability relates to a variety of positive outcomes in life, including how successful you are at work, how well you cope with challenging situations, and even how physically and mentally healthy you are. (yay. I’m doomed. I might as well kill myself now)

People who are highly sociable are more positive emotionally (case in point!) than those who are less sociable. In one brain imaging study, people with a high sociability score had higher levels of brain activity when they saw images of happy faces and other positive emotions.

The same part of the brain that processes emotions also helps interpret information from social contexts, which means we can judge a social situation and then respond appropriately (social situations, like math problems and logic, are mystifying to me. yay the things that are highest linked to success--).

There is some evidence to suggest that highly sociable people might be better at detecting and decoding the meaning of social cues –  including how they analyze and read people’s faces (oh, I know that. I have a hard time judging people’s faces, in fact I often think they are mad at me or judging me by their faces when they probably aren’t. I even have trouble finding out what emotions go with what emoji! besides the basics. i mean why, how are there so many emojis....). This means they are likely to find social interaction easier to deal with than others (lol yes. it’s . not easy. why. do i have to be born like this. always been. hell..).

There is also research to suggest that highly sociable people have more connections between regions of the brain that involve visual stimulus and regions that process social and emotional stimuli. (brains are better, we get it)

Sociability might also be associated with the neurotransmitter dopamine, which is linked to reward-seeking behavior. It is thought that people who are highly sociable may have an enhanced response to dopamine in the brain, which makes them pursue rewards such as attention, status, power or pleasure. This would explain why, when they get these things, they feel happier or more satisfied.

PEOPLE SCORING HIGH IN SOCIABILITY ARE

TALKATIVE

FRIENDLY

ENTHUSIASTIC

ENERGETIC

EXCITABLE

PEOPLE SCORING LOW IN SOCIABILITY ARE

QUIET

RESERVED

INTROSPECTIVE

PRIVATE

SHY

^ ALLL negative attributes, I need to just kill myself now, no future. 

[leahlikesbread]

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[yeniayofnymeria]

Arya Stark and Black Swan

(I don't know who the picture belongs to, I found it a long time ago.)

Hello/Selam,

In fact, as you know, Arya is one of the biggest five of GRRM. She has a key role in the books. The problem is that it's hard to predict exactly what this role is. I've been trying to piece together her puzzle pieces for years. The result I have achieved so far; Arya is on the side of the ice in the Battle of Ice and Fire alongside FM / Great Other ... Most people see this story as a classic good-bad battle, but I don't. The reason I think so is GRRM's statements.

Men are still capable of great heroism. But I don’t necessarily think there are heroes. That’s something that’s very much in my books: I believe in great characters. We’re all capable of doing great things, and of doing bad things. We have the angels and the demons inside of us, and our lives are a succession of choices…[Woodrow Wilson] was a racist who tried to end war. Now, does one cancel out the other? Well, they don’t cancel out the other. You can’t make him a hero or a villain. He was both. And we’re all both. - GRRM

...

Much as I admire Tolkien, and I do admire Tolkien — he’s been a huge influence on me, and his Lord of the Rings is the mountain that leans over every other fantasy written since and shaped all of modern fantasy — there are things about it, the whole concept of the Dark Lord, and good guys battling bad guys, Good versus Evil, while brilliantly handled in Tolkien, in the hands of many Tolkien successors, it has become kind of a cartoon. We don’t need any more Dark Lords, we don’t need any more, “Here are the good guys, they’re in white, there are the bad guys, they’re in black. And also, they’re really ugly, the bad guys.” - GRRM

So I don't see the side of ice and fire pure good and pure bad. They're both. Just like the Stark and Lannister war. So I don't see any problem putting Arya on the ice. After all, she's a Stark, and the Stark family is portrayed as "ice."

Lets continue.

The post was created using multiple topics(I combined them.): u/DutchArya 's https://asoiaf.westeros.org/index.php?/topic/146440-arya-the-singing-bird-stark/ post and u/Arya1100's https://www.reddit.com/r/asoiaf/comments/7vw332/spoilers_extended_black_swans_and_arya_stark_an/ post.

It's an old theory(of theirs), but it's been a year or so. I wanted to resurrect. I just added a few things. And I commented in my own words.

Black Swan Theory

The black swan theory or theory of black swan events is a metaphor that describes an event that comes as a surprise, has a major effect, and is often inappropriately rationalized after the fact with the benefit of hindsight**.** The term is based on an ancient saying that presumed black swans did not exist – a saying that became reinterpreted to teach a different lesson after black swans were discovered in the wild.

The theory was developed by Nassim Nicholas Taleb to explain:

The disproportionate role of high-profile, hard-to-predict, and rare events that are beyond the realm of normal expectations in history, science, finance, and technology.

The non-computability of the probability of the consequential rare events using scientific methods (owing to the very nature of small probabilities).

The psychological biases that blind people, both individually and collectively, to uncertainty and to a rare event's massive role in historical affairs.

Unlike the earlier and broader "black swan problem" in philosophy (i.e. the problem of induction), Taleb's "black swan theory" refers only to unexpected events of large magnitude and consequence and their dominant role in history. Such events, considered extreme outliers**, collectively play vastly larger roles than regular occurrences:**xxi More technically, in the scientific monograph 'Silent Risk', Taleb mathematically defines the black swan problem as "stemming from the use of degenerate metaprobability" - From wikizeroo.org

Black Swan in summary = A term used to refer to an unexpectedly large event, effect, event.

Arya Stark is thought to have a connection with the Black Swan... This is both a “theory i'm issue I mentioned above and a kind of ugly duckling that turns into a beautiful swan.

Black Swan

Arya felt as though the lake were calling her. She wanted to leap into those placid blue waters, to feel clean again, to swim and splash and bask in the sun. But she dare not take off her clothes where the others could see...

From up here, she could see a small wooded island off to the northeast. Thirty yards from shore, three black swans were gliding over the water, so serene . . . no one had told them that war had come, and they cared nothing for burning towns and butchered men. She stared at them with yearning. Part of her wanted to be a swan the other part wanted to eat one. - (Arya, A Clash of Kings)

The important thing in this quote is that he sees “3 BLACK SWAN as I mentioned above. In fact, the Europeans did not know Black Swan until the 1697s, and I think that this is the basis of the theory that I mentioned first. So, in essence, these animals are a very rare species. Considering that the ASOIAF universe is a kind of a different version of Europe... In other words, the author added a “black swan" instead of the common white swan.

In the next book (book 3) Arya meets some of the Brotherhood and Lady Ravella Smallwood. She treats Arya well, washes and dresses her.

It was even worse than before; Lady Smallwood insisted that Arya take another bath, and cut and comb her hair besides; the dress she put her in this time was sort of lilac-colored, and decorated with little baby pearls. The only good thing about it was that it was so delicate that no one could expect her to ride in it. So the next morning as they broke their fast, Lady Smallwood gave her breeches, belt, and tunic to wear, and a brown doeskin jerkin dotted with iron studs. "They were my son's things," she said. "He died when he was seven."

"I'm sorry, my lady." Arya suddenly felt bad for her, and ashamed. "I'm sorry I tore the acorn dress too. It was pretty."

"Yes, child. And so are you. Be brave."

This woman from House Swan. Their sigil is so interesting 

Battling swans black and white and so is the House of Black and White and that is where Arya is being reborn at every dark moon.

In the books Black and White was often touted as the struggle for darkness and light; therefore, we may interpret the question of swans as the struggle between dark and light parts of Arya or some kind of foreshadowing, which expresses an "enemy" in the future. In another comment 3 black swans; 3 can not be predicted to affect the story, may also express the great effect.

Water Dance

Arya stands on her toes, on one leg. This is indeed reminiscent of ballet. Ballet dancers learn to stand upright, on the tip of their toes, often on one leg. It's explicitly linked to the water dancing. So, "water dancing" = "ballet" and Swan Lake is a ballet that also has narrative similarities to Arya's story.

Ned stopped and looked at her. "Arya, what are you doing?"

"Syrio says a water dancer can stand on one toe for hours." Her hands flailed at the air to steady herself.

Ned had to smile. "Which toe?" he teased.

"Any toe." - (Eddard V, aGoT)

Later on, Arya wishes she could dance on water. This is what the Swan ballet dancers do!

Skinny as they were, her legs were strong and springy and growing longer every day. She was glad of that. A water dancer needs good legs. Blind Beth was no water dancer, but she would not be Beth forever. - The Blind Girl, ADWD

...

She was not far from the Gate as the crows flies, but for girls with feet instead of wings, the way was longer. - Mercy, Winds

Ugly Duck and Beautiful Swan

You all know the story of the ugly duckling. The swan, which started life as an ugly duck, is considered by all to be ugly and excluded. But one day something happens that when the ugly duck grows up, it turns into a beautiful swan and amazes everyone.

Readers think that the swan motif is also one aspect of it, which I'm sure everyone who reads the books carefully noticed it.

Arya considered herself ugly from the very beginning, and Sansa and Jeyne mocked her long face and subjected them to “Horse-faced” insults. According to Arya, her mother told her; if she wore beautiful dresses like Sansa and combed her hair, she could have been as beautiful as her sister.

But Jon and Ned always said she was beautiful; his father stated that she resembled his sister Lyanna, who is said to be a very beautiful girl. On the other hand, as she grew up during her adventure (such as Lady Smallwood), some began to emphasize that she was “beautiful.. For example, we have recently seen The Gentle Man said to her face is beautiful.

There is also a reference link to the swan and beauty in the series.

Arianne touched the pin that clasped [Balon’s] cloak, with its quarreling swans. “I have always been fond of swans. No other bird is half so beautiful, this side of the Summer Isles.”

“Your peacocks might dispute that,” said Ser Balon.

“They might,” said Arianne, “but peacocks are vain, proud creatures, strutting about in all those gaudy colors. Give me a swan serene in white or beautiful in black.” - The Watcher, ADwD

Thank you for read.

[therealuniverse]

MAYAN ASTRONOMERS Despite their lack of modern instrumentation, ancient Maya astronomers had a remarkable talent for observing and mapping the motions of the night sky. Their calculations have proved to be incredibly close to precise modern values and were achieved primarily through natural human curiosity and a lot of patience.

The Mayan civilization began to coalesce around 500 BCE. With a writing system and a calendar inherited from their predecessors, the little-understood Olmec civilization, Mayan culture began to spread across Central America. Much of recorded Mayan history was lost after Spanish conquistadors attempted to destroy their religion, but what we do know of their mathematical and technical sophistication arose from a series of codices that survived the subjugation of their culture. Studies of these surviving codices reveal that their complex calendar system was built around a base-20 numbering system (as opposed to our base-10). The famous Dresden codex contains tables predicting future positions of Venus and Mars, as well as a table of eclipses. The rigorous observation did not come without an esoteric flavor, which has persisted in modern-day conspiracy theories surrounding the divisions of the calendar. Mayan astronomy is inextricably linked with astrology. Ancient Mayans tracked the motions of the stars and planets not only for more pragmatic uses such as agriculture, but also to predict the future. Priests would use this early astronomical data to determine the most auspicious times for certain actions. Venus, for example, was associated with war and thus its positions would determine the best time to conduct a raid on a rival tribe. The diligence of Mayan astronomers was an attempt to foresee the machinations of the gods rather than observation for its own sake. Although their observations served a less-than-scientific purpose, the sophistication of Maya astronomers was admirable. However, the determination of the Spanish conquerors to stamp out all traces of Maya mythology quickly halted any potential for true scientific advancement, and Mayan astronomy reached a dead end. -RLO Source: http://ircamera.as.arizona.edu/NatSci102/NatSci102/text/extmayaastronomy.htm Image credit: Wolfgang Sauber

[unnatural-transformations]

Finished the book now.

I liked it rather more than the complaints above imply, I think. Certainly glad to have read it.

Only downside is that it has temporarily tricked me into thinking I'd like to spend more time actually studying finite group theory, something I know from experience is not the case. To cure myself of this delusion, I've moved on to an expository article about the proof of the Feit-Thompson theorem written by George Glauberman (as recommended in answer to this mathoverflow question, though note the link given there no longer works).

Like Ronan's book, Glauberman's article also aims at a "general" audience, in a sense, but just how differently they envision their audiences can be seen from this quote from early in the paper (emphasis added):

"Since this article is based on talks to a large audience, including graduate students, technical details have been omitted."

(The original proof of the theorem was over 250 pages long and was published as the sole article in an issue of the Pacific Journal of Mathematics in 1963. It's been revised down a bit in length and somewhat simplified since then; but the basic argument is (apparently) the same. It's also one of the biggest results -- maybe the single biggest result -- I know of that's been completely verified using the proof assistant Coq.)

I'm currently reading Mark Ronan's Symmetry and the Monster, which is a history of the classification of the finite simple groups, written for a popular audience and focusing just as much on the life stories of the people involved in the project as it does on a (very, very high level) overview of the actual mathematics involved.

About two thirds of the way through now and I'm definitely enjoying it, though I'm not really the target audience; I'd have loved this book if I read it in high school, I suspect. It does do a admirable job of humanizing mathematics as an intellectual activity: I keep recognizing the names of the mathematicians Ronan introduces, but other than their results I didn't know much about most of them as people before I read this. I imagine it would also work well to give people who started the book not even knowing what a group is some sort of idea of what it might actually be like to do research level pure mathematics.

That said, Ronan makes some rather odd choices in his quest to make the book more accessible. Some of them, I think, are almost self-defeating. He makes the point that mathematicians use words like 'group' in a technical way that might be off-putting to a lay audience, and I understand why he chooses to focus on talking about "groups of symmetries" and "group of permutations" as much as he does. It does seem a shame not to ever give the axioms of an abstract group though, not even in the appendices.

On the other hand, the repeated use of "atom of symmetry" instead of "finite simple group" gets pretty irritating after just a few pages. And using "cross-section" instead of "centralizer of an involution" doesn't make sense to me at all. (Surely just calling them 'centralizers' is the way to go? It's not like 'cross-section' is any more intuitive!) And these repeated attempts to avoid using technical terms become harder and harder to justify as we move into the 20th century. I mean: it's slightly surreal that a book which talks about symmetries of the Leech lattice and Tits buildings and quasigroups and multiply transitive group actions and that spends multiple paragraphs talking about the proof of the Feit-Thompson theorem refuses to even use synonyms for the words 'associative' or 'abelian' or 'solvable'.

If you were an undergraduate currently learning group theory for the very first time, all this is enough to make me think you'd be better of not trying to simultaneously read this book. Which is a shame, because I think that, aspirations to a more general audience aside, math majors and undergraduates and other people with some initial sense of why the classification of finite simple groups or the monster group might be interesting are otherwise exactly the sort of people most likely to want to read -- and to benefit from reading -- this sort of book.

[realtalkingpoints]

What happened with FB Notifications this weekend, and why do I care…???

By Staff realtalkingpoints blog

January 27, 2020 

So what did happen with Facebook (FB) notifications this weekend?  Anything?  If you look for news coverage as I have, of a major news event involving FB, you can’t find it.  I found one or two articles referencing ‘degraded performance’ in obscure publications I’ve never heard of before, and only after searching several search engines. Two articles… on something that I’m sure affected thousands, and thousands of users.  So why did some people post about their FB notifications being blank?  Why is that even a big deal, I mean, can’t you shut those off in settings anyway? What’s the big deal?

Not everyone has seen this subtle suppression technique in action, and perhaps most who haven’t, are using social media differently than those of us who have.  To turn it back a step or two, let’s talk about conservatives complaining they are being suppressed on social media.  You’ve heard this complaint, right?  Usually one of your Trump supporter friends, who’s quickly dismissed by their liberal friends as dreaming up conspiracy theories, and just brushed off because it’s publicly acceptable to not like them, ‘cuz, Trump... So, those people.  Conservatives, claiming they are being shadow banned or deboosted or censored on social media.  

I am one of those people. I will go on social media and discuss politics, usually with people who don’t agree with me.  I will openly express support for our president, Donald Trump, and make more enemies than friends in doing so.  And I will support other ideas, movements, and policies that define conservatism, by participating in conversations initiated by politicians and news personalities all over popular social media platforms.  I’ve been doing this for years, motivated not by the argument itself, but by the concern that the conservative perspective was under-represented in these online discussions, and by the realization that these online discussions were becoming the epicenter of the political discussion itself.

At the heart of it, it’s a demographics problem.  In general, conservatives are older. Not that there aren’t young conservatives, or old liberals for that matter.  But in general, most college kids want to protest something…  And tell them that college should be free, and of course most of them will agree.  As they get older, and many achieve success in career, family and finance, many of them begin to realize the value of the conservative principles they had rebelled against.  As in the college tuition for example.  Once they have struggled through the weight of the debt, and finally paid it off, there is a sense of accomplishment, and a greater understanding of the value of the dollar.   Perhaps they still hate debt, and that’s a good thing. But they have learned through experience, that debt is a temptation dangled throughout life, that can be conquered, but must be entered into carefully, and weighed against the benefits it will afford.  There might also be the eventual realization that our banking system relies on loans and interest, and the requirement that loans be paid back, so banks can make more loans and provide liquidity to the economy.  The wisdom of these experiences has simply not been achieved by the younger, ‘why can’t it be free’ ideologues.  

Ask yourself, how many 18 year-olds don’t know how to use the internet?  The answer is basically zero.  Now ask the same question of 75 year-olds?  It’s definitely not zero.  Perhaps a large percentage over 75 is technically using the internet, but many are using it only sparingly, to do email, mail order and basic browsing. The fact is, we still have several generations who grew up, went through their education, and much of their career before the internet was even invented.  Many of them are intimidated by the internet, perhaps rightly so, but they are definitely not participating in political debates on FB.  My basic understanding of mathematics suggests that the online discussions were more heavily influenced by younger, more liberal perspectives than their conservative counterparts, based on the demographics of the participants.  And as I became more and more involved in these conversations, it seemed obvious to me that this was in fact the case.  The conservative perspective was simply not getting the same representation on these platforms.  It was probably around the same time, that I also realized the social media conversations were driving the television news cycles, not the other way around.

Consider a news anchor or TV journalist with a twitter account.  Perhaps they have a show that comes on at 8 pm.  But they get a news scoop at 11 am.  Historically, viewers would hear about it at 8pm.  Today, it’s tweeted out almost as it happens.  By 8pm showtime, the news has been tossed about by everyone who approves, disapproves or is suspicious of.  I’d theorize, that the 8pm broadcast still benefits from the social media discussion.  It’s more informed and refined, having been both challenged and expanded upon as like minded followers along with oppositional personalities weigh in on the discussion.  The conversation moves forward at the speed of the internet, as passionately informed ideologues share their best arguments in support of, or in opposition to the conflict of the day.  The argument may well be settled by 8pm, regardless of how it gets reported on the individual networks.  The conclusion for me is easy.  News travels faster on social media, than on TV news broadcasts.  And this is revolutionizing news itself.  

So what does all this have to do with notifications?  Why are some people upset about not receiving notifications, and how does it relate to conservatives who think they’ve been censored?  Notifications are what you get when someone likes, shares, or responds to your comment on social media.  Think of an account you follow, that posts discussion of news events.  It appears in your news feed, and you can interact with it. You can like it, share it on your account for your followers, or you can comment on the issue being discussed. Liking, seems to be the least consequential interaction you can engage in.  When you like a post, or a comment, the ‘author’ of that post or comment will usually get a notification that it was liked.  The more likes, the more notifications, and the author gets a sense of community approval or indifference to their thoughts.  I’m sure the biggest accounts with hundreds of thousands of followers often do turn off their notifications, because it’s a given that they will receive hundreds or thousands of interactions every time they post, and to receive notifications of every one would be overwhelming.  But for the average user, notifications of likes are a positive reinforcement to their opinions.  It lets them know that they have accomplished an understanding of the issues being discussed and have expressed something that others agree with.  So why is not getting notified of likes, such a big deal?  We haven’t got there yet…

The effect that the notification suppression has on social media is at least two fold.  Many believe that it is used as a form of punishment by social media platforms to persuade accounts away from posting about topics they don’t want on their platforms.  I remember seeing a song parody by conservative social media personality Steven Crowder. (video here)  I had already experienced the notification suppression (along with other shadow banning techniques), but had struggled to find discussions from other conservatives that this was actually happening (resulting in the all too frequent ‘you’re a conspiracy theorist’ accusations).  Thankfully, Steven Crowder had turned the song into a gripe about all the suppressions and de-platforming that his video podcast had gone through. Their parody of “Man of constant sorrow” included an adapted chorus line that went something like ‘notifications don’t work for days’.  And then I knew.  It was happening, it was real, it was on purpose, and it was a punishment for content the platform developers disagreed with.  I wasn’t crazy.  Or if I was, then so was Steven Crowder, and I was in good company.  

But the effects of suspended notifications goes beyond a superficial punishment for content the platform disapproves of.  When applied to the comments of a deep debate, it has a chilling effect on the discourse being exchanged.  Take Russia collusion for example.  Some of us who followed the developments closely, realized long ago that the claims being made by leftist liberal media about the President’s alleged treasonous Russian contacts just didn’t add up.  Imagine a social media post about Russia collusion, and a discussion took shape in the comments.  Maybe there was breaking news, and the possibilities of what it could mean were being brainstormed for the first time, right there on FB.  Crowdsourcing at it’s finest.  But it was a work day, so average Joe quickly shared his thoughts in the comments section while eating breakfast.  Joe’s thoughts sparked a lightbulb in another participant who replied to Joe’s comment with the missing link to Joe’s idea.  When Joe checked his phone at work, he got the notification, read the reply, realized the missing link, added another comment with his conclusions, and a new part of the mystery was solved.  Much of Russia collusion was unraveled just like that. The major account they were both following, absorbed the developments, polished the theory, and it was ready for the 8pm news broadcast.  The information exchange had moved ahead at the speed of the internet.

So what if, Joe never got that notification…  Joe checked his phone, but there was no indication anyone had interacted with his comment.  Maybe Joe interacts with lots of posts and doesn’t have time to circle back and check them all for replies.  He relies on the notifications to tell him when it’s happened.  The next time he went on the social media site, he interacted with other posts on other topics, and never realized the missing link to complete his theory was waiting for him in the comments section, where he had participated earlier.  He never knew, so he never looked, and the discovery was never made.  By suspending the notifications, they interrupted the conversation and curtailed the exchange of information.  Whether by accident or by design, the platform developers and admins have realized that by suspending notifications, they can suppress the exchange of ideas and content.  Interrupt the dialog, and it will at the very least, slow the development of ideas and analysis.  And notification suppression likely has effects that we have not yet realized. Remember, they have all the data. They know how notification suppression effects the entire community when used in different capacities, and they are using it more and more.

So today, Saturday January 25, 2020, my notifications page on FB went blank.  I had experienced many inconsistencies with my notifications in the past.  Times when notifications for specific conversations seemed to roll in days after the actual interactions happened (perhaps what Steven Crowder was referring to in his song parody).  Also notifications about comments that don’t show up in the thread the notifications came from.  I’m sure there’s others.  Lots of games being played by the overlords with their precious notifications.  But never had my notifications page been completely blank.  Until today. And knowing the unique importance of notifications, I became quite concerned.  I posted immediately on FB, and other social media sites.  I asked if anyone else had blank notifications pages on FB.  The answers came in rather quickly.  Yes, yes, yes.  Many friends on FB said they had similar experiences today or had seen posts from their friends that were experiencing the issue.  Other platforms generated input that it was happening on FB in the UK, and seemed like a wide scale problem.  Of course many assumed it was the usual ‘technical glitch’ that so often explains the unexplained phenomena on the internet.  Yet another friend made curious observation, that I had been suspicious of.  He said something to the effect ‘all my friends who engage in partisan politics on FB are complaining about notifications today’.  It hadn’t affected his notifications, but he felt he had noticed a correlation among those claiming they had.  He thought it was affecting those who regularly espouse their political views on the platform.  

FB has been vocal about their displeasure with the politics playing out on their platform.  They have made public commitments to crack down and dissuade certain types of political content, including political ads during the election cycle.  So was this notification suppression, a deliberate attempt to punish politicos for opining on FB?  If it was a deliberate act, their timing was likely no accident either.

Today was the beginning of the President’s legal defense arguments in the Senate impeachment hearings. Today was the first day, that the President actually got to defend himself via legal representation on national TV in the impeachment charade that’s been going on for months now.  It was right after sharing a video of his legal team delivering devastating remarks and embarrassing the Democrat hoaxers that my notifications suddenly went blank.  Was my sharing a political video embarrassing Democrats, related to my notifications disappearing?  Was this the notifications punishment that FB has used so many times before but on a bigger, more obvious scale?  Were they exercising their leverage to interrupt the conversation and curtail the flow of information?   Where are the news stories about this?  I looked and looked and found very little. Did they choose today because they knew most news outlets would be focused on impeachment and therefor unlikely to spend much time on a silly FB glitch?  Surely, there were zillions of political posts on FB in recent days, as the Democrats delivered their case to the Senate.  Did they choose today specifically to send a different message? The day that the President mounts his legal defense is the day FB decides to punish users for political content…???  

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVEkDRgytCU)