Revisiting the goon squad Borneo Bulletin Online – Borneo Bulletin

Ron Charles

THE WASHINGTON POST Even in an era of boundless hype, Jennifer Egans The Candy House has a legitimate claim on the title of Most Anticipated Book of the Year.

This is, after all, a sequel to A Visit From the Goon Squad Egans astonishing demonstration of literary bravado that swung through 2010, grabbing a Pulitzer Prize, a Los Angeles Times Book Prize and a National Book Critics Circle Award. The Washington Post named Goon Squad one of the best books of 2010, and, later, other publications called it one of the greatest novels of the decade.

Egans creativity was so magnificent that commentators focused not on the storyline of Goon Squad but its multifarious forms, her confident array of perspectives first, second and third ranging through time and around the world, crescendoing with a 70-page PowerPoint presentation! It was a novel of such peacocking swagger that only its knockout triumph saved it from looking obnoxious.

Well, here we are more than a decade later, and even if you were a fan as I was the intervening years are likely to have beaten those characters from your memory. As someone in that earlier novel observed, Times a goon, and unfortunately, Egan is in no mood to help out, which means youre likely to be as baffled as dazzled by The Candy House.

The music that ran through Goon Squad and gave the novel its melody is far harder to hear in these new chapters. Also, 12 years later, readers are less likely to be awed by literary experimentation. A chapter of tweets earns no love now. A second-person narrator? You shouldnt have.

But if The Candy House is less uniformly successful than A Visit From the Goon Squad, it still contains terrific parts. The opening story reintroduces us to Bix Bouton, now a tech mogul whose social media company has made him very rich.

Exploiting the discoveries of an anthropologist name Miranda Kline, Bix monetised algorithms that explained trust and influence to build a luminous sphere of interconnection. Now, in his early 40s, despite his fame and vast wealth, Bix worries that he has no vision beyond the one hed nearly exhausted.

Its a fear that gives him a haunted, hunted feeling as he struggles to divine what should happen next.

We eventually learn that Bix went on to invent a program with the ironic name Own Your Unconscious, which completely reshaped human culture. Egan explains: By uploading all or part of your externalised memory to an online collective, you gained proportionate access to the anonymous thoughts and memories of everyone in the world, living or dead, who had done the same. Its a clever parody of the Faustian bargain weve made with social media, relinquishing our privacy for access to the comments, likes and images of others. The Candy House ties this sci-fi brain technology back to Napster, that revolutionary largely illegal peer-to-peer file-sharing platform that let people share their song files and their most intimate musical tastes with everyone.

Who, Egan asks, could resist gaining access to the Collective Consciousness for the small price of making our own anonymously searchable? In the world she imagines, most people sit down for a painless mind-dump on their 21st birthday, never fully reckoning, in our excitement over our revelatory new freedom, with what we surrendered by sharing the entirety of our perceptions to the Internet. Its the candy house from Grimms fairy tales: the sweet, free bounty that comes with a horrible, unforeseen cost.

Thats the last time we see much of Bix, which is a shame, because hes a singularly fascinating character. Making him a Black man was an interesting element of Goon Squad, but its one that Egan seems uninterested in pursuing.

What, after all, might America be like if our all-pervasive social media were shaped by the dreams of an African American? Much of The Candy House takes place in a future influenced by Bixs revolution, but the novel rarely contends with the implications of that premise for Bixs life, the tech industry or the world shaped by it. Instead, Bixs skin colour remains about as relevant as his hair colour.

Partly, this is simply a matter of the books structure, which insists on constantly fracturing and abandoning its forms, themes and characters. But as other chapters leap to other lives, we see people who do resist the Webs mind-absorbing candy.

Alfred Hollander, for instance, is so desperate for authenticity that he randomly screams just to discombobulate passing strangers for a moment. Theres also a whole cadre of eluders.

Theyre separatists bent upon hoarding their memories and keeping their secrets. And radicals who can afford it hire fiction writers to impersonate them on the Web so that they can live outside this sphere of supposedly benevolent surveillance.

Miranda Kline, the anthropologist whose research on affinity and trust laid the foundations for Bixs social media revolution, may be one of those mysterious radicals. In a chapter narrated in the plural first person, one of Klines daughters explains, The omniscience of the Collective Consciousness is what the eluders want to escape so desperately that theyre willing to leave their identities behind. Some liken eluders to trapped animals gnawing off their own legs as the price of freedom.

While Goon Squad gave readers the celebrated PowerPoint chapter, The Candy House offers a spy thriller conveyed in aphorisms tweeted in the second person. A decade ago, Egan actually posted this whole thing on Twitter, and then she published it in the New Yorker.

The chapter contains such observations as, The fact that you feel like youre dying doesnt mean that you will die, which reassured me during some particularly frustrating sections of this book.

Somewhat more effective is a chapter constructed from a great thicket of nested email conversations. But here again Egan presumes a lot on her readers ability to know what shes talking about. It would have taken so little additional information to make this more inviting that I cant help feeling the author was overindulged by her editor.

The chapters that work best embrace their radical forms more gently or even mock them. One of the best is about Chris, the adult son of Bennie Salazar, the music producer who served as the axle of Goon Squad. Now an adult, Chris works at a shadowy software company trying to translate every element of every story into a mathematical formula.

Through a series of awkward encounters, Chris falls into a cerebral comedy of absurdity in which he realises that he has shifted from being the Protagonist to being an Enabling Sidekick: Toward the end of The Candy House, we come back to Bixs 28-year-old son, who rejected his fathers work and wealth. Hes a struggling fiction writer who knows that we dont need some new development of social media to access each others minds.

We already have these ancient things called books that allow us to feel the collective without any machinery at all.

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Revisiting the goon squad Borneo Bulletin Online - Borneo Bulletin

Daniel Hannan: No, the Government has not abandoned the rule of law – ConservativeHome

Lord Hannan of Kingsclere is a Conservative peer, writer and columnist. He was a Conservative MEP from 1999 to 2020, and is now President of the Initiative for Free Trade.

My friend David Gauke wrote a provocative essay for ConHome on Monday. He began with the uncontentious assertion that the rule of law is central to what we are about as a country.

He then went on to argue that this Government has a problem with the rule of law, citing three examples of its supposedly cavalier attitude: Partygate, the Northern Ireland Protocol, and the Rwanda asylum plan.

Ill come to the three charges in a moment. But first, I hope we can all agree with the Gawksters opening proposition.

Central to the identity of the United Kingdom is that it is (to quote the seventeenth-century radical James Harrington) an Empire of Laws, and not of Men. The people in charge dont get to make up the rules as they go along. Laws are general, equal and certain.

That principle guarantees our liberty because it ensures, as John Locke put it, that we are not subject to the inconstant, uncertain, unknown, arbitrary will of another man.

The rule of law is what distinguishes free societies from despotisms. It is arguably Britains greatest export, our chief contribution to the happiness of mankind.

For precisely that reason, almost no one admits to being against the idea. When governments bend the rules in their own favour, they naturally claim that they are acting in accordance with the letter and the spirit of the law.

Gaukie is quite right, then, to put each case under the microscope. A country needs constantly to interrogate itself, to invigilate its standards, to hold its leaders accountable.

So lets do precisely that, starting with the Partygate affair.

We keep hearing that it is an example of one rule for them [i.e. politicians] and one rule for everyone else. But endlessly repeating that accusation does not make it true. There is no evidence that the Prime Minister or senior civil servants have been more leniently treated than others in their position. Quite the contrary.

How many keyworkers have been fined for having a drink in the office? How many nurses, for example, have been prosecuted for sharing pictures of themselves with cakes, or uploading TikTok routines?

To the best of my knowledge, none. And quite right, too. It would have been preposterous to charge a group of workers who were already sharing indoor space under rules designed to reduce unnecessary meetings let alone two years after the event.

To complain about people being separated from sick or dying relatives strikes me as fundamentally dishonest. There were indeed harsh rules in place rules which I condemned at the time, unlike many of those who now shed crocodile tears about their effect.

But those rules applied as much to Boris Johnson as to the rest of us. He went unvisited when he was in hospital. He could not spend time with his mother (who died not long afterwards).

The fair comparison is with what other keyworkers did while at their offices. On that basis, if it reallywas one rule for Boris, it was in precisely the opposite way from that which his critics intend.

On the Northern Ireland Protocol, things are more complicated. The Government has an overriding duty to uphold the Belfast Agreement, which depends upon power-sharing. If the Protocol remains unmodified, that deal will collapse, because Unionists will not agree to serve in a devolved government.

The two treaties pull in opposite directions and, if the tension becomes too much, the Government will have no choice but to give priority to the Belfast Agreement, which has been the basis of peace in Northern Ireland for a generation.

Yet it is not clear that dropping parts of the Protocol would amount to abandoning the rule of law. As Peter Lilley argued not long ago on this website, the Protocol was always intended to be temporary, and contains provisions for its own replacement.

It would not be the first treaty to lapse or to be overtaken by events. Where now is the 1729 Treaty of Seville, the 1836 Anglo-Egyptian Treaty, or the 1907 Pact of Cartagena? When an accord is overtaken by events, or repudiated by one of the signatories, the rule of law does not collapse.

Ireland, for example, abandoned the 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty in stages, cutting its residual constitutional links to the UK, declaring itself a republic and leaving the Commonwealth. Did that mean the end of the rule of law in Ireland? No. It was accepted that a treaty signed under duress had ceased to be valid.

As far as the Rwanda plan goes, we dont yet have full details. But there is nothing wrong, on the face of it, with two countries reaching an agreement on the processing of asylum claims.

Nor is there any obvious human rights violation.Whereas an immigrant aims to get into a particular country (and I am in favour of immigration into the UK), a refugee aims to get out of a particular country.

As long as asylum-seekers do not face persecution or oppression in Rwanda and, for all the low-level racism now being aimed at that country by Leftists, no one has shown that they would they might as well secure sanctuary there as anywhere else.

Yes, we should be watching carefully. It is human nature to care more about outcome than process. We need only look at the United States to see how easily a law-based republic can start to treat elections as contingent, something to be challenged automatically by the losing party.

But, precisely because we live in a world where the rule of law is fragile, where democracies decay into dictatorships, where armies cross borders in anger, we need to keep a sense of proportion.

Britain remains one of the good countries. When Ukrainians say that they want to break with their past and live in a normal country, it is our model or something very close to it that they have in mind. Lets not devalue what we have.

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Daniel Hannan: No, the Government has not abandoned the rule of law - ConservativeHome

Pro-war memes, Z symbols and blue and yellow flags: Russian influencers at war – The Guardian

Dasha smirks at the camera and says in a baby voice: Hi, I missed you all. It is 11 March, a few weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine, and the blond 19-year-old Moscow-based influencer with 126,000 Instagram followers is posting to her stories. I wasnt on social media for over a week and I want to talk about my news and the news of the world, she says.

After taking a weekend trip to a friends dacha in the countryside, Dasha posts videos of her friends laughing, making pancakes or playing party games. The atmosphere is warm, the alcohol flowing. The next tile shows Dasha looking solemnly at her phone. I was constantly watching the news to understand what was going on in the world and one thought wouldnt escape my mind she writes. Next tile: Maybe I should leave Russia? in bold red letters. In smaller black text underneath, she elaborates: At least for a little bit of time, until the situation calms down and we have a better understanding. There is a question box for followers to answer: What do you think about this?

Does Dashas concern about world news extend to criticism of Putins war in Ukraine? Not exactly. Later, she clarifies for her followers that what prompted her to consider leaving Russia is the potential hit to her income now that the Russian government is blocking access to Instagram. She also worries that the military situation might mean someone called Denis, whom I take to be her boyfriend, could be conscripted into the army.

On her TikTok page she appears to briefly participate in a trend associated with nationalist messaging. In a video featuring the Soviet folk song Katyusha, Dasha writes: I hope my position is clear and adds the Russian flag and heart emojis. She later deletes the video.

Russia is home to a thriving community of influencers and content creators, who live a life of luxury compared with the average citizen. Among the most popular is Dina Saeva, 22, who has more than 7.6m followers on Instagram and 24.5m on TikTok, where she posts short dance routines to viral songs and sports an ever-changing fashion aesthetic (including dressing as a goth, an e-girl and a Kylie Jenner-esque Insta baddie). Like many of her peers, she references designer clothes, travel and her latest ad campaigns. Dinas friend Rahim Abramov became the countrys highest-paid TikTok creator in 2020. He made his name with comedy skits on Instagram, often with his grandmother, but now his reel features music, fancy cars, custom clothing and sponsored posts. Blogger Nastya Ivleeva, who also grew her platform by posting relatable, humorous videos, is a bit less flashy, though still incredibly wealthy thanks to 18.7m followers on her main Instagram profile, 8m on her personal one and 4.4m on YouTube. She hosts popular talkshows there, presents on TV, vlogs about her life and does arty campaigns with brands such as Prada.

Until Russia invaded Ukraine, it seemed nothing could get in the way of these young peoples fame. There is a huge audience for their content: 63.7% of Russians aged 16-64 use Instagram, and 46.6% are on TikTok. But as the war spills over into online spaces, the influencer landscape seems to be losing its gloss. For the last month or so, I have been following dozens of these social media accounts to get a deeper insight into the minds of young Russians. I wanted to find out about the influencers feelings on the war, the limits to their freedom of speech and how they are reacting to a deluge of sanctions and social media restrictions. How is the pervasive atmosphere of fear, denial and discontent affecting them and their young fanbase?

Russia first restricted access to Instagram on 14 March. The government decision followed a confusing week in which it appeared that Meta, the social networks parent company, was relaxing its hate-speech policies to allow posts condoning violence in response to the invasion of Ukraine. It then clarified that this applied only to posts made in Ukraine. A week earlier, TikTok had suspended livestreaming and the uploading of new content to its service in Russia while it reviewed the safety implications of the countrys new fake news law. The legislation can result in up to 15 years in jail for those spreading false information about the special military operation, as Russia calls the war; or calling for sanctions. Later in March, Russia banned Instagram and Facebook altogether, citing its extremism laws and describing the platforms as carrying out extremist activities, cutting off 80m users.

When war was officially announced, views among influencers were divided. Instagram food blogger and socialite Veronika Belotserkovskaya became one of the first to be charged for her Instagram posts, which investigators said contained knowingly false information about the use of the Russian armed forces. On her feed, she posted vibrant pictures showing the blue and yellow of the Ukrainian flag, and openly mocked propaganda based on Russias pro-war Z symbol.

Others, including Ivleeva, posted a black square on their feeds with the caption No to war or called for peace. TV presenter Ivan Urgant also posted a black square to his 10m Instagram followers, with the caption: Fear and pain, no to war. That night, his late-night show on the major state-owned Channel 1 was taken off-air and hasnt returned. Urgant flew to Israel with his family, later explaining it was a holiday. Other influencers carried on posting as before, only briefly mentioning the situation. A few, such as Abramov, took a break from posting, only to start again weeks later. Still others openly supported Russia in the war, expressing patriotic sentiments in lengthy captions. Some of the most loyal came from outside the country, with Dubai-based Russian influencers such as Sonia Plotnikova writing: We will deal with all hardships! Russia is the strongest country This whole situation will bring us all together! We have become even bigger patriots.

Although restrictions on western social media platforms have undoubtedly reduced their reach, Russians who know how can still access influencer content by using virtual private network (VPN) services, which create a secure encrypted connection that hides the browsers location. And the platforms are still being used by pro-Kremlin domestic users to spread misinformation and propaganda. TikTok has been named one of the worst, thanks to its vast user base and minimal filtering of content. The proliferation of accounts in which young people speak to the camera, seemingly parroting pro-Kremlin statements, has led some to wonder if they are being paid to do so. With many identical videos, often word for word, almost like bots, they make for dystopian viewing. These younger influencers, it seems, have become a tool in Putins propaganda war, to quash unrest and political discontent.

A Vice News investigation revealed something of the workings of this coordinated campaign. A secret channel on the messaging app Telegram reportedly directs influencers on what to say, how to capture videos, which hashtags to use and even what time of day to post content. In one case, content creators were reportedly instructed to use an audio track featuring Putin calling for all ethnic groups in Russia to unite at this time of conflict. The same phrases crop up regularly, such as: The freeing operation in Ukraine is necessary and Children deserve a peaceful sky above them. A few of these videos have since been deleted.

On TikTok, videos under hashtags such as #RussianLivesMatter have hundreds of millions of views. The folk song Katyusha makes regular appearances, with videos of users juxtaposed with images of Putin, Chechen warlord Ramzan Kadyrov or even Jesus, captioned: Who will help the Russians? or holding their Russian passports to the camera, with the caption: I hope my position is clear. Other posts use the mirror TikTok filter: on one side, the user stands under the word Russia; on the other, under Donbas, the coal-rich region on the border of eastern Ukraine where pro-Russian sentiment is high. The background track is Brother for Brother; influencers beat their chests with their fists, lip-syncing: We dont leave our own.

As recently as April, young people could be seen holding signs or showing text on their phones with Russophobia, Donbas, Hate Speech, Cancelling, Luhansk, Sanctions, Info Wars, Nationalism and Russian Lives Matter. The videos, and TikTok dances in which young people use their hands to form a Z sign, are tagged under #RLM.

Yevgeny Kuklychev, a senior fact-check editor at Newsweek magazine, who tracks Russian-language misinformation, has seen similar online behaviour in response to internal protests before, specifically in February 2021 after the Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was imprisoned. This coordinated campaign extended to Instagram, Facebook and the Russian social network VKontakte. Last year was the first time we saw that among TikTokers and Telegram channels and influencers, Kuklychev says, adding that details on their operation were leaked by users who declined to take part. They shared the online job offers; either someone reached out to them, or they found an ad that offered people small payments a few dollars per video. Back then the talking points were to denigrate Navalny and his supporters, and the overall message was that people were tired of talking about protests.

Kuklychev says a disordered dispersal of online information has been the predominant strategy used by the state to quell dissent. The idea is to put so much information out there that people are confused into apathy and inaction. Another strategy digital astroturfing refers to generating pro-Kremlin messaging or events that can be amplified online. One example was the Putin rally For a World Without Nazism, held on 18 March. Viral content was made of protesters, Putins speeches and other musical performances. Youre also seeing the Z sign and schoolchildren being led outside to make that shape which means organised flash mobs. Its essentially rallying students or state workers to pseudo organic gatherings, Kuklychev explains.

Though this type of content has outraged those who see it as propaganda, users supportive of the government line will continue to interact with it and share it, no matter how obvious the staging. The aim is to polarise Russia even more and its working.

Masha (not her real name), 25, a teacher from Moscow, says the climate online has made her more conscious of how she behaves: I archived all my photos on Instagram so no one can place me anywhere. Ive tried to make my accounts as impersonal as possible. She says shes lucky to be surrounded by family and friends who are against the war, but being exposed to so much pro-war propaganda has made her realise she is living in a bubble. Looking at some of the TikTok videos, I was honestly taken aback: Ive never come across posts like this in my feeds.

She has been particularly frustrated by influencers escaping Russia and showing their patriotism from abroad. Suddenly it turns out everyone knows someone who has a visa or the necessary documentation to just leave at any moment. It feels incredibly disheartening maybe I wont get the chance to travel any more, and its rubbing salt in the wound seeing other people do it.

Katya (not her real name), 22 and from St Petersburg, senses the information war is stoking paranoia and anger among the wider population, and tearing people apart. I have a friend who was never into politics, but recently I opened her Instagram page and saw a post where she says that, now, Russians should be more unified than ever, she says. Shocked by hashtags at the end of the post saying We are for peace and We dont abandon our own, Katya sent it to a mutual friend: He was, like, this is 100% sponsored, because there are other posts like this one. While not surprised that influencers and celebrities are engaging in pro-Putin propaganda, Katya didnt expect to see people she knows doing the same: One woman published a post where her husband shaved the letter Z on the back of his head. And she put a very patriotic caption underneath.

During the final hours before the Instagram ban, Russian influencers reactions flooded my timeline. The loud and charismatic video blogger Karina Lazaryantz laughed about the platforms closure, posting a last-minute comedy sketch. She pointed out that her university degree might finally come in useful, if she has to get a new job. Fashion blogger Karina Nigay livestreamed her tears while declaring: Instagram is my life. Singer and TV presenter Olga Buzova recorded a video in which she, too, cried about losing her audience. Most posted links to their Telegram channels and VKontakte profiles in a bid to transfer their fans. That said, business as usual has become a far harder image to sell as international companies cut ties with Russia, brand deals with Prada, Hugo Boss and even Dominos Pizza disappear, and the reality of sanctions sinks in.

In the early days of the war, some influencers such as Gusein Gasanov, the YouTube star best known for his comedy and random acts of charity videos in which he rewards ordinary people for good deeds were posting guidance on how to use VPNs or what services were best on Telegram, in a desperate attempt to keep things as they were. Though clearly gutted to lose their platforms, not a single content creator I came across blamed the government for cutting access to Instagram; perhaps they were too scared to speak out.

Its depressing. I started my Instagram account 11 years ago and its 50% of my income, says Karina Istomina, a popular DJ and influencer based in Moscow, with more than 400,000 followers. She has been on the cover of Marie Claire Russia, appeared in advertorials for Swarovski crystals and Calvin Klein, and hosts a web series on mental health. Her page is also filled with photos of herself and long captions of self-help advice. Recently these have focused on the concept of radical acceptance, but she has also written about burnout and sobriety. Of course, there are people dying right now and other problems are far more outrageous, but it feels like I have lost my job. I hope we will find a way to monetise our content again after some time, she says.

Nearly a month into the ban, how are Russian influencers coping with the new social media rules? Some people are in psychotic hysteria and screaming that everything is falling apart; some are just trying to adapt to a new world. My daily routine is the same as it was, Istomina says. Friends abroad keep texting to ask if there is any food in the shops. Yes! We have food, sugar, other supplies! But everything has risen in price.

Telegram is by far the most popular app for Russian influencers looking for a new home. It can be used as a messenger app and to create channels where people can post videos, photos, voice notes and polls. Overall, the platform is a lot less visual, making it harder to sell a lifestyle or an aesthetic than on Instagram. Dina Saevas 170,000 Telegram followers pale in comparison with the millions of followers on her other accounts. Even Buzova, one of Russias biggest media personalities, hasnt been able to hit 1m on her Telegram channel, despite posting constantly, and temporarily deleting her Instagram account with more than 23m followers.

Yet Russian influencers are doing all they can to monetise themselves, pushing song promos, ads for homegrown fashion brands, promoting non-fungible tokens and other peoples channels; some are even posting get rich quick schemes on new, less regulated platforms. Saeva is hosting cash competitions on Telegram to grow her audience, while others, such as Lazaryantz, have turned to posting about western pop-culture news, memes and personal videos. No one who wants a future as a mainstream influencer in Russia is explicitly talking about the war, unless its to discuss which international brands are leaving or which countries are banning Russian nationals.

Given their relative mobility, its perhaps no surprise that some influencers have decided to skip the headache of internal social media restrictions and leave Russia altogether. Even Buzova, who since the war has repeatedly played her 2017 song My People Are Always With Me over her Instagram stories, went for a long holiday with her mother in Ras al-Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates. She posted videos of herself at the beach, enjoying camel rides and eating at expensive restaurants to entertain her followers during a difficult time. She is back now and has resumed normal output.

Initial rumours of martial law, closed borders and military conscription sent hundreds of thousands of people with anti-war views off to catch any available flights out of the country. The Kremlin denounced those who left as traitors. Among them were content creators whose material wouldnt work in a changing Russia, including Grigoriy Mastrider, who has a talkshow discussing literature, philosophy and art on his YouTube channel, which has 200,000 subscribers. Naturally, these themes veer into politics, and he has been unable to hide his criticism of Putin and the government.

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This is not a special operation but a real war, in which many people are dying for no reason, he says in one of his videos. This war was started by a person we didnt elect, but its a situation we will all have to deal with as a consequence. From a hotel room in Turkey, Mastrider told his audience some creators are pivoting to target an international base by switching to English or having an English-language mirror account. Yes, I do have plans to work on English-speaking content, but my main focus will still be on my Russian audience, I wont abandon my country, he reassured viewers.

Where could the Russian government go next in tightening its grip on social media? Kuklychev thinks there may be more restrictions to come. Weve seen the clampdown has been gradual and the tightening of the screws incremental, which has eventually led to a complete lack of freedom. Its a boiling frog effect. The government has so far given the extremist label only to western social media platforms, not to individuals who use them. But who is to say this wont change?

That would be the worst-case scenario for social media users such as Masha, who hopes loopholes to access social media channels and news outlets via VPN wont get taken away within Russia, especially as international platforms provide an alternative stream of information about the war in Ukraine and play a major role in keeping alive any form of Russian anti-war movement. Like many young Russians, Masha feels shut off from the rest of the world but is afraid of what a more robust digital curtain could bring. Despite their usefulness for pro-Kremlin propaganda, the internal shutdowns of western social media platforms will undoubtedly affect how mainstream Russian society understands the countrys actions in Ukraine.

I ask Istomina why she didnt leave Moscow. I dont have any documents, any international bank accounts, any relatives, she says. Nobody is waiting for me anywhere, and I dont have enough money. Plus, for her, leaving would be an act of Russophobia; she doesnt want to leave the government, her family, friends or city behind. I love Moscow. Thats why I stay, because I have support here. Im not alone. But she is worried. Im against people dying and dont support bloodshed. I really want everything to be over as soon as possible.

One thing has been clear for the past month: whatever social media restrictions are introduced, Russian influencers will find a way to work around them. Says Istomina: This is a test of strength for all of us.

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Pro-war memes, Z symbols and blue and yellow flags: Russian influencers at war - The Guardian

Elon Musk says humans could eventually download their brains into robots and Grimes thinks Jeff Bezos would do it – CNBC

Elon Musk says a lot of seemingly fantastical things. For example: The billionaire Tesla and SpaceX CEO seems to believe that humans will eventually be able to live forever, by downloading their brains into robots.

"I think it is possible," Musk, 50, recently told Insider. "Yes, we could download the things that we believe make ourselves so unique. Now, of course, if you're not in that body anymore, that is definitely going to be a difference, but as far as preserving our memories, our personality, I think we could do that."

By Musk's account, such technology will be a gradual evolution from today's forms of computer memory. "Our memories are stored in our phones and computers with pictures and video," he said. "Computers and phones amplify our ability to communicate, enabling us to do things that would have been considered magical ... We've already amplified our human brains massively with computers."

The concept of prolonging human life by downloading consciousnesses into synthetic bodies has been a fixture of science-fiction for decades, with the 1964 sci-fi novel "Dune" terming such beings as "cymeks." Some experts today believe that "mind uploading" technology could, in fact, be feasible one day but the timeline is incredibly unclear.

In a 2019 Wall Street Journal essay, Michael S.A. Graziano, a psychology and neuroscience professor at Princeton University, wrote that mind uploading would require two pieces of technology: an artificial brain, and a scan of a person's brain that could "measure exactly how its neurons are connected to each other, to be able to copy that pattern in the artificial brain."

Creating the artificial brain, Graziano noted, would be relatively straightforward. "But to upload a human brain, we probably want a scanner that doesn't kill the subject, and we would need it to scan about a hundred million times as many details," he wrote. "That technology doesn't yet exist. The most wildly optimistic predictions place mind uploading within a few decades, but I would not be surprised if it took centuries."

One of Musk's current start-up ventures, Neuralink, is working to develop "brain-machine interfaces" that in Musk's own words could one day allow people to "store your memories as a backup, and restore the memories." But speaking with Insider, Musk emphasized that his company's current goals are much more immediately practical.

"Neuralink in the short term is just about solving brain injuries, spinal injuries and that kind of thing," he said. "So for many years, Neuralink's products will just be helpful to someone who has lost the use of their arms or legs or has just a traumatic brain injury of some kind."

Notably, Musk himself doesn't seem to want to live forever nor does he endorse the idea for anyone else. "I don't think we should try to have people live for a really long time," he said. "That would cause asphyxiation of society because the truth is, most people don't change their mind. They just die. So if they don't die, we will be stuck with old ideas and society wouldn't advance."

If mind uploading does become possible within the relatively near future, there's some speculation in the Musk household as to who'd want to try it: In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, Musk's co-parent and ex-partner Grimes identified Amazon and Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos as someone who "is gonna be a cymek."

Bezos, 58, has not publicly expressed any interest in such technology, though he does have a track record of investing in longevity and anti-aging research. He did not immediately respond to CNBC Make It's request for comment.

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Elon Musk says humans could eventually download their brains into robots and Grimes thinks Jeff Bezos would do it - CNBC

Selena Gomez has switched off from the internet. If only we all had that privilege – iNews

Could you get by without using the internet for four and a half years? Thats exactly what singer and actress Selena Gomez has done in a bid to improve her mental health and she told Good Morning America that going offline had changed her life completely.

While she helps her team to produce the promotional pictures and videos regularly shared on her Twitter, Instagram and other social media feeds, the 29 year old isnt the one actually uploading the content to her millions of followers. I am happier, I am more present, I connect more with people, she said. It makes me feel normal.

Ms Gomez has spoken extensively about the relationship between her social media usage and her mental wellbeing, recalling feeling like an addict when she became Instagrams most followed user in 2016. At one point Instagram became my whole world, and it was really dangerous, she told InStyle magazine in January. Taking a break from social media was the best decision that Ive ever made for my mental health The unnecessary hate and comparisons went away once I put my phone down.

So, should we ordinary people follow in Ms Gomezs footsteps step away from the internet? Its one thing to ditch social media and Im sure we can all agree that creating and following a more considered, balanced approach to accessing apps and platforms is no bad thing.

Ditching the web at large, however, is a far more nuanced and complicated prospect. The increasing digitisation of our society means that everything from paying a gas bill and taxing your car to plotting a route to a friends house and even making a phone call are at the mercy of your internet connection. Actively opting out of using the internet becomes a matter of privilege.

Ms Gomez multi-millionaire status has allowed her to take the social out of social media, handing over the passwords to her accounts so she can continue to leverage her colossal fame while keeping the trolls at bay. The fact shes still the second most-followed woman on Instagram (behind cosmetics billionnaire Kylie Jenner) suggests its entirely possible to maintain a significant web profile to promote various projects by way of a dedicated team without being exposed to the cruel comments, hate mail and rape or death threats. While other A-listers Benedict Cumberbatch, Scarlett Johansson and Kate Winslet, among others, opt out of social media entirely, Ms Gomez has created a kind of halfway house that meets both her financial and health needs, but relies upon others to properly function.

It goes without saying that this is fundamentally different to how the rest of us without beauty deals and films to publicise use the likes of Instagram, TikTok and Twitter, but even the concept of a digital detox requires having a device and connectivity to choose to disconnect from.

The UKs digital divide has worsened over the past two years of Covid restrictions, with poorer families significantly less likely to have working broadband connections in their homes. Around 1.1m households, equating to five per cent of the population, are struggling to afford broadband, according to a recent report from Ofcom. Meanwhile, telecoms giants plans to move all 29m UK homes to a new digital phone system that works over the internet have been sullied by tales of pensioners left without phone lines. Digital exclusion is a major threat to wider societal equality in the UK, so witnessing companies like Facebook championing the metaverse as the next great frontier when schoolchildren are struggling to complete their homework feels particularly grating.

Consequently, its worth bearing in mind that while deleting all social accounts will undoubtedly make some, including Ms Gomez, feel infinitely better when it comes to prioritising their mental health and wellbeing, many other people benefit from the strong sense of community that sharing and entertainment platforms (or wider internet access generally) can simultaneously engender.

Internet access will continue to grow in importance as we edge further towards web 3.0, and greater resources and initiatives are needed both to help those in the UK feeling underprepared and to connect the families without the connectivity they desperately need to learn, work and live. Its crucial that people who feel that social media is having a detrimental effect on their mental health are allowed to switch off and for those living in digital exclusion to be able to switch on in the first place.

Rhiannon Williams is a technology journalist

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Selena Gomez has switched off from the internet. If only we all had that privilege - iNews

Order VII Rule 11 CPC | Existence Of Cause Of Action Cannot Be Equated With Merits Of Suit Filed: Delhi… – Live Law – Indian Legal News

The Delhi High Court has observed that existence of the cause of action cannot be equated with the merits of the suit filed.

Justice Asha Menon was dealing with an application moved under Order VII Rule 11 read with sec. 151 of CPC on behalf of the defendants in a suit seeking rejection of the plaint.

The suit was filed for recovery of a sum of Rs.5 crores, by the plaintiff, daughter-in-law of the defendants. Her case was that the defendants had, by their words and actions, including a press-conference addressed by them, openly accused her of being guilty of and conniving and conspiring to have her husband murdered.

On account of the wide publicity of the said statement, including in the print media, the plaintiff had submitted that her reputation had been shattered and being a businesswoman, was also maligned through wrongful impressions being created not only with the general public, but also with her business associates.

The defendants, on the other hand, had contended that the plaint did not disclose any cause of action and since the defendants had only one thought in their mind, which was the apprehension of the true murderer of their one and only son and that malice could not be attributed to them and therefore, the plaint was liable to be rejected.

It was argued by the applicants/ defendants that the Court had no jurisdiction to try the suit, as the cause of action had not arisen in Delhi and that the interview was given in Faridabad, Haryana. It was also argued that no details of the URLs were given and in any case, the uploading of the video was never done at the instance of the defendants.

On the other hand, it was argued on behalf of the plaintiff that the Court had jurisdiction vested in it under sec. 19 and 20 of the CPC. It was also submitted that the plaintiff resided in Delhi and the impact on her reputation was suffered by her at Delhi, as a consequence of the statements of the defendants.

Noting that the application sought rejection alone, the Court said:

"In the circumstances, considering that the nature of relief under both provisions are different from each other, this Court deems it appropriate to consider the instant application only as one under Order VII Rule 11 CPC i.e., whether or not the suit has to be rejected on any of the grounds mentioned thereunder."

The Court was of the view that in cases, the Apex Court and the High Courts have held that while dealing with an application under Order VII Rule 11 CPC, the court can only consider the averments in the plaint and documents relied upon by the plaintiff. However, the stand of the defendant is irrelevant.

"If, on a demurer, a cause of action is disclosed or the averments appear to be such that none of the grounds under Order VII Rule 11 CPC are found applicable, there can be no question of the rejection of the plaint," the Court said.

The Court said that a perusal of the application revealed the frivolous nature of the application. It added that while claiming that the plaint did not disclose a cause of action, the defendants pleaded justification, lack of malice, privilege, freedom of speech and fair comment, as the grounds for rejection.

"Clearly, these are the defences that are normally raised by defendants to a suit for damages on account of defamatory and slanderous words having been allegedly used by the defendants. The contentions that the plaintiff has not justified how she has claimed Rs.5 crores, is again extraneous to the determination of whether the plaint is to be rejected," the Court said.

It added "The existence of the cause of action cannot be equated with the merits of the suit filed. It will be only after trial and on evidence produced that it could be determined whether the defendants were justified in making the statements they did to the media, whether there was any privilege involved in it and whether the plaintiff was entitled to damages of at least Rs.5 crores, as claimed. These are all questions of fact and require evidence to be adduced during trial."

Accordingly, the application was dismissed with costs of Rs.10,000.

Case Title: MANSI GUPTA v. PREM AMAR & ANR

Citation: 2022 LiveLaw (Del) 304

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Order VII Rule 11 CPC | Existence Of Cause Of Action Cannot Be Equated With Merits Of Suit Filed: Delhi... - Live Law - Indian Legal News

The Five Easiest Ways to Take a Complete Backup of Your Mac – Lifehacker

Photo: Kaspars Grinvalds (Shutterstock)

No one wants to be the person who accidentally spills coffee on their MacBook and ends up losing all their data. The laptop can be easily replaced, but if you dont have a backup, you face the uninviting prospect of permanent data loss. Luckily, backing up your Mac right now is effortless and cheap, and there are multiple ways to get it done.

Before you start, a few things to keep in mind: While one backup is better than none, its a good idea to store at least two copies of your computers data in different locations. This could be as simple as backing up your entire computer to an external hard drive and saving all your photos on a cloud storage service. That way, the data thats most important to you is saved in two locations, so if one of the backups gets corrupted or lost, you have a second copy to fall back on.

Secondly, there is a difference between cloud sync services and true backup services. A sync service, such as iCloud or Google Drive, isnt always the best choiceif you accidentally delete a file from your computer, it gets deleted from the servers of sync services too, putting you at risk of losing it forever. The better choice is a dedicated online backup service provider.

Here are five of the easiestbackup solutions for your Mac, with the best options listed first.

Time Machine ships with macOS, and its the most convenient backup solution for most people. You can get started by going to System Preferences > Time Machine and selecting a backup disk. This can be a second hard drive on your computer, an external hard disk, or even an SD card or a pen drive. Or choose a more expensive, robust solution like NAS (network-attached storage).

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Keep it cleanFeatures three different brush types, learns the layout of your home to avoid getting stuck and damaging things, and can be controlled via an app on your phone.

Time Machine takes an hourly backup of your computer every day and retains a daily backup for each day of the month. If your computer crashes, you should be able to pick the most recent backup, or an older version if you wish to. This feature works best when the backup disk is permanently connected to your computer, so you should buy a good external drive to store Time Machine backups.

For most people, an external hard disk is good enough, but it gets inconvenient to permanently block off a USB port, especially on MacBooks that might only have two open slots, so consider a network-connected hard drive such as the WD My Cloud Home. It costs around $160 for 2TB but provides a huge advantage for the money: As long as its plugged in and connected to the same wifi network as your computer, itll keep storing your Time Machine backups automatically.

If youre looking for a more advanced solution, a dedicated network-attached storage device is an option. These devices can be paired with a dedicated hard disk to back up all the devices in your house, and often can run apps allowing you to stream stored media or act as a web server. Many people use a NAS with double-digit terabytes of hard drive space as a home server to access all their data. If you only need to back up one computer, an NAS is obviously overkill.

Time Machine is great for most people, but its biggest problem is that its slow. If you want a faster backup solution, consider using a dedicated backup app such as SuperDuper! ($30) or Carbon Copy Cloner ($40). Both apps offer a free trial to let you check out features without committing.

With these apps, creating your backups take much less time, and youll also be able to create bootable copies of your computer. That ways if your machine crashes and you cant even boot into the system, you can plug in your backup hard disk to your computer and use it to boot the computer, making the recovery process a lot faster.

Your next option is an online backup service such as Backblaze or Carbonite. Both cost less than $10 a month and offer a complete online backup of your computer. If your computer dies, you can download files off their servers or request your data be copied to a hard disk and shipped to you. This courier service is available on both Backblaze and Carbonite, but with different terms and conditions, so be sure to check out the fine print before signing up.

Online backup services are ideally offsite backup solutions, as in case of a disastrous event such as a hurricane or a forest fire, keeping your backups inside your house could be catastrophic. If your data is valuable to you, a secondary offsite backup is essential.

If you try to download all your data from one of these services, it could take a lot of time, depending on your internet speeds and the server loads at the backup services data center. Thats why its not ideal to use an online backup service as your primary backup option. However, its still a better choice than no backup at all.

You can back up most of the files stored on your Mac to iCloud. This feature, like Time Machine, is built into macOS. You can turn it on by going to System Preferences > Apple ID > iCloud and checking all the options in the right pane.

This setting will start syncing your Macs files to your iCloud account, but dont consider it a substitute for a true backup service. If you delete files on your Mac, theyre also deleted on iCloud, which isnt always what you want from a backup service. iCloud can also be frustratingly slow at times, even if your internet speed is fast. You may be able to recover large files quickly, but smaller ones may take forever to download. This unreliability, coupled with iClouds measly 5GB of free storage space, makes it hard to recommend as a primary backup solution.

You can also use the computer backup features provided by cloud storage services such as OneDrive and Google Drive. This works best if youre already paying for cloud storage and want an online copy of your data. OneDrive and Google Drive are also sync services, so you should be doubly sure about deleting anything synced to these services.

The backup apps designed by these cloud storage providers often clunky and slow. If thats getting to you, Arq Backup ($50) is a faster alternative. It can back up your data to multiple cloud storage services and even external hard disks or your NAS. To address privacy concerns, the app encrypts your data before uploading it to cloud storage services.

The only negative of using Arq Backup is that youll need to use the app to restore your backups. If the app isnt installed on the computer youre trying to restore (or it wont boot, so you cant open the app), you wont be able to restore your data.

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The Five Easiest Ways to Take a Complete Backup of Your Mac - Lifehacker

4 Ways To Make Money From Home In 2022 – Salon Priv Magazine

Figuring out how to make money online will be a priority for many people this year. Business building depends completely on your enthusiasm, knowledge, experience, and the ability to organize your own schedule so that nobody interrupts you and all other obligations are fulfilled in time. There are many opportunities you can nowadays make money from home, so you can easily choose the ones that suit you best.

All youll need is a computer, reliable internet access and loads of enthusiasm. Without these, there is nothing you can do, but you do not want to give up without even trying. And if you try hard enough, you can achieve whatever you want.

Being a virtual consultant is an adaptable choice, offering clients a wide scope of help they need. Businesses often have a problem with meeting people because of a heavy schedule. Thats where a consultant will come in more than handy. If you choose to become an online consultant, things will be moving on easier. Individuals also often need help from an online consultant, when searching for stuff to buy or sell, or for a new job.

You have to do some research to find out what kind of consultant is best for you to become, considering your skills and experience, to provide customers with proper help. People are willing to pay good money for a good consultation.

There are lots of options for consulting, such as social media consulting, financial consulting, career coaching consulting, travel consulting, marketing consulting, PR consulting, fitness/wellness consulting, IT consulting, sales consulting, HR consulting, and many more.

Are you passionate about playing games online? If so, live casino sites could be a perfect fit for you. Picking the right live dealer casino site is the first step to make if you want to experience the excitement of playing live casino games online. Bonding to just one live online casino and proclaiming it the best is the wrong way to do it. There are plenty of amazing offers available.

They operate thanks to numerous dedicated and passionate players. Whats best about online gaming is that no matter where you are in the world, you can easily give it a shot.

And with top-rated casinos targeting international audiences and offering numerous bonuses that include new customer bonuses, matched offers, cashback bonuses, and loyalty programs, youll really be spoiled for choice.

If you are a writer deep down in your heart, but you had no opportunity to write and publish a book, writing an eBook and uploading it on the right platform is a great way to express yourself. You wont need to look for a publisher, have deadlines, or be expected to write it the way somebody else wants you to. Instead, you can stick to your own idea.

Make sure that the topic you choose to write about is something you are knowledgeable or passionate about. Keep in mind that no grammatical errors are allowed, for readers do not want to read something of bad quality. Moreover, choose an attractive cover design to make your eBooks more visually appealing.

Identifying the right market is also very important when it comes to selling the book, so youll have to find the right audience as well.

You can use a blog or publishing platform to reach the readers. It is important to stay in contact with the readers to be able to monitor your success.

If you are a professional photographer doing weddings or some other events, you do not have to stick strictly to this way of making your income. Photographs are almost as equally important as content is in the advertising industry. You can present various products, or even try out food design photography.

Even if you are not a professional, you can earn good money if you have the skill to recognize what people are willing to pay for. Keep in mind, however, that youll need to create a website or some other platform where youll advertise your services.

These are some of the easiest ways to make money from home with little equipment and a low budget, but lots of enthusiasm and effort. Organize yourself well, approach your money-making efforts responsibly and you can easily reach success with your endeavor. Good luck!

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4 Ways To Make Money From Home In 2022 - Salon Priv Magazine

YouTube Makes Modifications to Upload Details and Analytics – Digital Information World

Creators have become a bit of a precious commodity for most platforms, and YouTube is no exception especially when you consider the fact that it was perhaps the first ever hub for online creators to be able to just post whatever they wanted to based on their creativity.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that YouTube has just made a relatively small change that would nevertheless make it so that content creators would have a much easier time uploading lots of videos with ease. This change is coming to YouTube Studio, and it is basically making it so that you can reuse the same details that you might have added to older videos because most content creators have a set of signature information that they add underneath the details regarding the video itself.

Another change that YouTube is making is that it is adding a lot more analytics to its mobile app. While these are all analytics that you could already get on the desktop version of the service, you should bear in mind that being able to access this information on mobile is crucial. It can allow you to stay up to date on the state of your channel on the go. Most creators need to move around a lot while they are making their content, so this is a change that would definitely come in handy for most them in a really big way.

Read next:YouTube Is Adding Preview Thumbnails To Android TV and Google TV, While Also Testing Out Preview Comments For The Mobile App

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YouTube Makes Modifications to Upload Details and Analytics - Digital Information World

The Gadget Show’s Ortis Deley reveals his favourite tech from the show – Metro

Ortis thinks rollable TVs are the future (Picture: Getty/ Metro.co.uk)

Ortis Deley, 48, is best known for trying out cool bits of tech on The Gadget Show.

But what gadgets does he like to use in real life?

We chatted to the TV presenter about rollable TVs, foldable phones and wasted vinyl.

Rollable TVs a flat TV screen that rolls into a box and, when youre done with it, you put it away. Its like an overheard projector but a fully functional TV screen.

The TV is usually the centrepiece of the living room but with this you can just roll it out of the box when you need it.

I liked the Microsoft HoloLens. You can be in different parts of the world but get together around a holographic image of, for example, a machine youre all working on so you can see your colleagues take pieces apart.

A few years ago, smart fabrics blew my mind. I visited a company that developed a fabric that conducted electricity and allowed you to power torches.

I have bought things after weve tested them. I bought a TV from the Sony Master series. Over the years, TVs have become thinner so you need a soundbar to go with it.

Im not a huge fan of soundbars and with this TV there are eight speakers directly behind the screen.

Foldable phones. Samsung are leading the charge with that. I like tech getting smaller and more discreet.

One day you wont see my phone, it will be woven into the fabric of my clothes.

Theres a growing market for nearly new tech you can find stuff that has a small defect like a slight scratch but that works just as well for a fraction of the price.

Fiit, which is for training at home. I started using investment apps over lockdown. Ive been using Kucoin, Binance and Coinbase. Im currently up but its been a mad ride.

As a young teenager I really liked the Lego Technics range. I had one that was a chassis of a car with a working gearbox and you could opt for two- or four-wheel drive. My daughter has reignited my love for Lego.

Ive bought the big Batmobile from the Tim Burton film and the Ghostbusters Ecto-1 car.

About ten years ago I bought a Pro-Ject turntable because I still have around 100 pieces of vinyl.

My plan was to get a piece of vinyl out and play it every day, then it went to playing it once a week, then once a month and now Ive probably only used it six times. Its just because I dont make time to use it.

Its concerning. My wife and I can spend an hour on the sofa not talking to each other, just scrolling through Instagram and uploading things. If its that bad for adults it can be damaging for young children. We limit our childrens screen time. Balance is important theyre young and wed prefer them to go outside and do activities.

Were trying to build resilient human beings so when they do see things online they can make judgements about what theyre seeing rather than thinking, I want to see more.

Deley is a judge of this years Royal Society Science Book Prize. The winner is announced on Monday

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The Gadget Show's Ortis Deley reveals his favourite tech from the show - Metro

How to fundraise for nonprofits and charities on every social media app – Mashable

There's no denying the power of a skyrocketing social media post millions of likes, views, or shares later, and people have suddenly built a fanbase, or raised tens of thousands of dollars, or finally reconnected with a long lost friend. Social media, with all its ills, can still be a startlingly impactful tool.

The majority of us may never have a viral post change a life, but social media apps allow users to make small differences for causes that matter. From Facebook's full fundraising platform to Instagram's donation stickers, your social profiles can see frequent use as mini-donation centers for nonprofits and charities. And, in a small way, maybe that can help soothe the complicated relationship we have with social media as a whole. Here's how it all works within each app.

While the app recently removed its personal fundraising tool that allowed users to receive funds directly for personal causes or small businesses (like its own version of a GoFundMe), users still have a ton of options to raise money for outside organizations. To support a verified nonprofit or charity, account holders can post fundraisers in their Instagram bios, use Instagram's Donation sticker, or host an Instagram Live for charity.

Instagram users can use posts and profile bios to create 30-day fundraisers for organizations of their choice. Just make a post as you normally would, by selecting the "plus icon" on either the Instagram home page or your profile page. Under the New Post settings, right below the location tag, select "Add Fundraiser" and choose your organization.

Credit: Mashable / Instagram

Credit: Mashable / Instagram

The post will link to a donation site, and a fundraising notice will be added to your profile's bio. The link will stay live for 30 days; 100% of donations go directly to the organization.

First, create a story on your personal profile by tapping the "plus" icon. Take or upload a picture something relevant to your cause would probably be helpful. Before uploading, add a sticker by clicking the square smiley face icon in the top right corner of the post draft page.

From there, simply click the sticker labeled "Donation" and scroll through or search for nonprofits and charities accepting donations on Instagram. Select the one of your choice.

Credit: Mashable / Instagram

Credit: Mashable / Instagram

You can also edit the text on the donate button to personalize your fundraising campaign.

To start a fundraiser on an Instagram Live, hit that same "plus" button and select the "Live" option. Before starting your Instagram live feed, select the "Fundraiser" icon on the left side of the screen (you might only see a small heart inside of a coin icon), and then choose your fundraiser.

Credit: Mashable / Instagram

Credit: Mashable / Instagram

Start your Live broadcast, chat with your followers, and raise money at the same time. During your Live, you can keep track of how many donations you've received by tapping the "View" button on the bottom of the screen and acknowledge donors by sending them "Waves" after they contribute.

Any TikTok user can add a fundraising campaign to their profile bio, which links followers to an in-app donation portal that keeps track of the campaign's progress.

Go to your profile page, tap "Edit Profile," and scroll down to the "Nonprofit" section. Click to select your nonprofit and save your changes. A pink link will show up under your bio alerting your followers that you're supporting an organization.

Credit: Mashable / TikTok

Credit: Mashable / TikTok

Users can also add their campaigns to TikTok LIVE broadcasts. Start a Live video by clicking on the "Create" (or plus) button at the bottom of your screen. Swipe to the right to go to a Live video, and then start your broadcast. During the session, click the three dots in the bottom right corner to add a donation sticker to your LIVE, which will allow viewers to donate while watching. Keep in mind, the sticker will link to whatever organization you are currently supporting in your TikTok bio.

Unfortunately for those of us who use the app mainly to surf others' content, TikTok's LIVE fundraising tools are only available to users with more than 1,000 followers (and are at least 16 years old). For more information on how to use TikTok LIVE, visit TikTok's support center or view the in-app guide by going to your profile settings, clicking creator tools, and then going to the LIVE Center.

Credit: Mashable / TikTok

Facebook's integrated charity platform, Facebook Fundraisers, allows users to raise money for nonprofits and personal causes through their own profiles.

To start a fundraiser, log into your account and go to the account menu. (For app users, find the bottom right icon with three lines, or use the scroll bar on the left side of your screen for desktop.) Scroll down to "Fundraisers" you may have to select "See More" to find it.

At the top of the Facebook Fundraisers page, select "Create Fundraiser" to start either a nonprofit campaign or a personal fundraiser for yourself, a friend, or a business you must link a bank account to use personal fundraising tools.

If you select a nonprofit fundraiser, you'll be directed to a searchable list of organizations and a page where you can edit the campaign name, description, monetary goal, and even currency. Once your details are in, create the campaign and revisit the Facebook Fundraisers page at any time to check your progress, post updates, and manage the fundraiser. The campaign will also be displayed at the top of your Facebook profile.

Also, be aware: Facebook's fundraising tools vary by country.

Credit: Mashable / Facebook

Credit: Mashable / Facebook

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How to fundraise for nonprofits and charities on every social media app - Mashable

Eagles All-22 Film Review: Observations from the win over the Saints – Bleeding Green Nation

Another Eagles win! I could get used to breaking down good football. More of this please!

The usual disclaimer - I will be breaking down film on my Twitter account and then uploading the tweets with some more analysis in this piece. I obviously cannot post everything so I will focus on certain things each week that stand out to me. I might see something a few times on film but only upload one example as you dont need to see everything, so you will have to take my word if I say that I have seen something multiple times.

First big 3rd down conversion was a beauty. Eagles run these deep outs really well (although - the Saints took them away later on) and this a perfect throw by Jalen Hurts and a great route by Dallas Goedert. I think its interesting looking at the Saints pass rush too, it highlights the benefit of a really mobile QB. They are very concerned about him breaking contain like he did last week so they dont really go all out to get him.

What can you say about the Eagles run game right now? It is truly unbelievable. The offensive line is playing so well its almost absurd. They are so well coached and ran so many different concepts effectively this week. Game planning for this run game must be an absolute nightmare. There were so many different examples of successful run plays I could have pulled for this article but I have tried to keep it to just a few to show you some of the different concepts.

Jordan Howard contract extension just because of this in my opinion...

I think Nick Siranni noticed how the Saints always move a defender out of the box to deal with motion and took advantage of it this week. Look at the size of this hole? What more can you say about the execution and design of the run game this week? The Eagles have used the shotgun more in the run game the past couple of weeks to take advantage of Hurts mobility more but they still had under center snaps where they pounded it with 3 TEs on the field. Some teams see the run game as an accessory that is needed to keep the defense honest but the Eagles are building the offense around the run game and it is working right now.

Oh yeah, the Eagles can still just line up and run inside zone well too. Give Jeff Stoutland a pay raise or whatever he wants because this offensive line is playing out of its mind right now. Remember - this was against the number 1 run defense!

I didnt actually think the passing game was great on Sunday. Hurts was a touch late a couple of times and missed a few throws I would like him to make. This play is a fantastic example of Hurts slight limitations with arm strength and lack of anticipation. Some QBs make this throw by throwing it earlier, others with elite arm strength and velocity. Hurts is just a touch below par in both areas but I am glad he is making the throw and reading the defense correctly, I just want him to speed it up ever so slightly.

I felt sorry for the Saints defensive ends at times this game. When you line up against the Eagles in the shotgun, there is absolutely no way you can ask a defensive end to play Jalen Hurts in the run game unless he is an unbelievable athlete. Hurts is one of the top athletes on the field each week and defensive ends cannot be expected to contain him like this.

Another minor example of an area I would like to see progress from Hurts. Hurts is exceptional at not taking negative plays or making back breaking mistakes. However, on 3rd and long, risking a sack by stepping up in the pocket is worth it occasionally. I think there was an opportunity for him to step up here and complete the ball downfield but he chose to roll to his right as he often does.

I really have been so impressed with Siriannis game planning and play calling the past few weeks. I thought he had a great understanding for what the Saints wanted to do on defense and was very successful sequencing his plays in a way that confused the defense. This is just a very clever play call based on what the Eagles were doing on offense earlier on in the game.

So, I am not going to go all-in on Jalen Hurts as a franchise QB. The NFL is a strange league and some players play well in spells and poorly in others. Personally, I still have concerns about Hurts ability to process quickly and make big throws late in the down when the Eagles have fallen behind in the game.

However, anyone who does not think Hurts is playing himself into a starting role next year is kidding themselves. You cannot evaluate his role in the passing game without also looking at his impact in the run game. He has runs that are absurd. He is not on Lamar Jacksons level as a runner, but he is not that far away.

Philosophically this is not the type of offense that I would build if I was in charge of a franchise and I do believe you need an elite passing offense to win it all in the NFL. However, the Eagles are showing that they can build a unique offense around Hurts skill set and if he continues to develop as a passer he clearly has earned another season (on a very cheap rookie contract) to see how far he can take the Eagles. Sirianni and Hurts both deserve huge credit for the turn around the past few weeks. I have been impressed with both of them and are really happy with what they are doing at this stage in the season.

As much fun as I had breaking down the Eagles offense down this week... I found the defense to be even more fun. Gannon was bringing the heat consistently. Yes, they gave up some points (Siemian made some absolutely insane throws late in the game) but I am totally fine with them being an aggressive defense who gives up some plays but also makes a lot of big plays. As I have highlighted the past few weeks, the Eagles have moved away from being a 2 high defense and have started to disguise their coverages far more than at the start of the season. Now they are starting to throw all sorts of blitzes at QBs too. They seemed to run a different blitz or coverage every single 3rd down this game.

As you know, I am a bit of an Alex Singleton fan so I didnt think the Eagles lost too much but it sucks to see Davion Taylor go down with an injury as he was finally starting to play well.

Darius Slay is playing as well as any Eagles cornerback I have watched in a long, long time. His understanding of route concepts, ability to break on the ball and stay in a receivers pocket is elite right now. He is playing exceptionally well right now. I would be willing to bet he is buying into what the defense is doing and grinding the tape hard right now because he seems to have such a good read on what opposing offenses are throwing at him.

Ive been saying the past few weeks how well he has been playing... well this was his best game all season! He had more than a few snaps where he flat out dominated the guy in front of him.

This right here is my favorite play of the week. The way Maddox/Slay/McLeod communicate so quickly and effectively after the Saints motion tells me that this defense is on the same page right now. Its a little thing, but it tells me a lot about the way that the Eagles defense is playing right now.

Ending on a slight negative but... I dont mind this? The Eagles gave up no big plays earlier in the season but were getting killed by short passes and they were too passive. Now they are playing more man coverage, more single high, disguising coverages and all the defenders are getting downhill quicker. The downside is that they will give up plays but I can live with that!

Overall, a fantastic team win and I am excited to see how this team continues to grow.

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Eagles All-22 Film Review: Observations from the win over the Saints - Bleeding Green Nation

6 Steps That Will Help You Start Your Music Career – The Roanoke Star

Most people describe music, not as a profession but lifestyle. If you are one of the rare with musical talent, good music taste, and you want to present it to the world then you should not wait for the wind to be still but take action instead. Good groundbreaking never went unnoticed. With some technological improvements, things are easier and more available to both future music artists and music enthusiasts who enjoy listening to and studying new music. In this line, here are six steps that may help you in making your own music career.

If you want to be remarkable and authentic then your music should follow this attitude as well. So, you need to make a sound that will make a statement, leave a mark, and make people follow you. Time is the key. Take as much time as you need to study new things, make new and different concepts, make outstanding combinations of sound and lyrics, compose music that is not only conventional and suitable to the greater masses, improve yourself every day, etc. Having feedback from your dear people with a good ear can be very valuable and help you elevate both your own skills and the music you make. This is especially important for you since people outside the studio will notice some mistakes or flaws of the sound more easily than yourself having in mind that you already got used to sounding. Additionally, always save and keep your sounds as you might need them later.

Once you are sure about your music it is high time for you to start thinking like an artist and businessman at the same time. There is no point in you not living your dreams and things you are passionate about. You need to establish yourself as a brand and have your work integrated into the entire concept. This means that your brand, logo, name, appearance, and music comply with each other. Once you have these things planned and executed then you need to breakthrough and have your music published for a better reach. In sum, you need to come up with a business plan and label your music so that it is noticed and heard by big names in the music industry.

You must think of your music as the means you use for your business going. You can use all of the famous music platforms, social networks, or search engines for promoting your work. One of the best ways for promotion is mouth-by-mouth and creating a chain of your family and friends posting it on social media. Also, you can do the promotion of your work in agreement with Internet advertising policies. This means that links to your content or video material can pop up on the browser or channels like YouTube.

Nowadays, it is quite easy to upload your music on huge platforms like YouTube and SoundCloud. The key for platforms like SoundCloud is constant activity. Try uploading your content at least once a week. Set up the account solely for your music and upload as much as you can. This way you will get more noticed and greater masses of people will follow you. The more followers you have, the more streamed you will get. But, do not let instant success put you in a state of hibernation. You must keep up and be productive. Additionally, you should learn about advertising and selling tactics in order to build and expand your audience. The faster you get featured the faster you will get the results.

Even the greatest artists started with small and short steps. For you to expand you need to let people hear your music. You can use some platforms like TuneCore that will distribute your music efficiently and for free to some bigger platforms like Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Music, etc. But, online streaming is not the only way of letting people hear your music. You can play gigs in local areas and secure a reputation, which is immensely important from the very beginning.

Once you start making money, it is high time for you to start investing in yourself. Start from the top priorities, like equipment which will make your business easier. Finally, you can set up your home studio and have the proper background for sudden inspiration waves. Buying lyrics from reputational lyric writers can also boost your music and help you grow even more.

Starting a musical career as tough as it is, is living your dream to the fullest. Sometimes, you might find it to be too overwhelming, but all beginnings are. Just as for any other career, the long path starts with a single step.

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6 Steps That Will Help You Start Your Music Career - The Roanoke Star

Illuminate by TEDxMcGill – The Bull and Bear

On Saturday November 13th, 100 audience members gathered from 11AM to 6PM at LAstral in Montreal to watch a series of 13 speakers share what the concept of illumination means to them. The international panel of speakers was brought together by Illuminatea public and independently organized TEDx event by TEDxMcGill. As the title suggests, the theme of Illuminate was to reflect on what the concept of illuminations means following a difficult year of uncertainty. Throughout the event, audience members heard 13 unique interpretations of illumination, influenced by each speakers passions, profession, and life stories.

As the title suggests, the theme of Illuminate was to reflect on what the concept of illuminations means following a difficult year of uncertainty.

Jonathan Spencer set the stage by describing a typical stroll through the city. He pointed out that, although the average person is likely to notice the art around them, one rarely questions its meaning. Jonathan then introduced ArtworxTO, a project that maps and offers interactive ways to explore the public art around Toronto, which he believes is instrumental to appreciating the hidden messages of city artwork.

Laurence Liang, an Engineering student at McGill, argues that the falling costs of bioengineering, increased access to patient data, and developments in AI will expand medical innovation beyond the confines of expensive laboratories. Laurence believes that the rapid pace of medical innovation is illuminating a path to a future where people can cure incurable diseases from the comfort of their own homes using increasingly user-friendly software interfaces.

Laurence believes that the rapid pace of medical innovation is illuminating a path to a future where people can cure incurable diseases from the comfort of their own homes.

In a similar vein as Laurence, Trevor Cotter sheds light on the growing impact of technology on medical applications. Trevor is a PhD candidate in Mechanical Engineering and works on developing physics-based simulators that allow spinal surgeons to practice surgery. By mimicking the texture of muscle tissue, bone and nerves with robotics, this technology would allow surgeons to hone their surgical skills before they enter the operating room. Trevor highlights the importance of his work with a single question: when you or a loved one enters the operating room, would you rather this be the hundredth time, or the first time your surgeon operates?

Ida Derish, a PhD candidate at the department of Experimental Surgery at McGill University and a medical entrepreneur, begins her talk by illustrating how current methods to test heart disease medication are inefficient. Instead of using a one-size-fits all approach, Ida advocates for patient-specific heart disease treatment, made possible by her innovative research. By drawing blood from patients and deriving stem cells from their samples, Ida is able to grow human heart cells in her lab, where the effects of medication can be uniquely tested on a patients heart cells. Idas research is revolutionizing cardiovascular disease treatment, and she is convinced it will light the way for future advances in medicine.

In his talk, Naeem Komeilipoor, a well-versed scientist with backgrounds in neuroscience, biomedical engineering and artificial intelligence, asks the audience a series of questions: Can you imagine controlling technology with your thoughts? Or perhaps being able to speak to everyone on the planet in their native tongue? Or what about uploading any file of information into your brain? Although the answers to these questions may seem out of reach, Naeem believes that the future of innovation lies at the intersection of technology and neuroscience, where external devices, such as a pair of glasses or a headset, will allow us to perform these very tasks. Naeem drives his point home by demonstrating examples of neurotechnologies used today such as the cochlear implant, a device used by deaf people to hear, and bionic limbs, which allow humans to control their robotic appendages with their mind.

The talks discussed so far revealed illuminations in knowledge and innovation that will change lives for the better, but Dr. Alexandra Simonds speech showcased that illumination does not always reveal good things.

The talks discussed so far revealed illuminations in knowledge and innovation that will change lives for the better, but Dr. Alexandra Simonds speech showcased that illumination does not always reveal good things. Dr. Simond is a McGill graduate, science educator and researcher. In her talk, she disclosed an event that happened to her at her research lab when her experiments groundbreaking results were not taken seriously by her supervisor. For over a year, Dr. Simond battled for her results to be published, but her ideas werent taken into account until a male coworker presented similar findings of his own. By sharing this experience, Dr. Simond hopes to shed light on the obstacles and double standards women face in science and by doing so, advocate for their place in academia.

This article showcased a select number of speakers, most of whom believe illumination is synonymous with innovation, but TEDxMcGills Illuminate featured many other interpretations of the concept as well. Whether it be by writing a book, overcoming an autoimmune disorder, or being thrown into a pool by your friends, the speakers shared the common message that illumination is the process of discovering something new. By presenting a diverse range of speakers, whose talks highlighted both positive and negative aspects of illumination, TEDxMcGill succeeded at transmitting an all-encompassing and well-balanced definition of Illuminate.

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Illuminate by TEDxMcGill - The Bull and Bear

Stacey Solomon reveals bombshell new look on date night with Joe Swash – Metro

Stacey gave herself a drastic makeover and did a great job (Picture: @staceysolomon, Instagram)

Stacey Solomon is rocking a bold new look after dying her hair bright red before heading out on a rare date night.

The Loose Women star quite literally painted the town red as she got glammed up for a night out with fiance Joe Swash, while their newborn baby girl Rose also joined them for the evening.

In her latest Instagram post, Stacey, 31, debuted her striking new hairdo with cute photos of her posing with Joe, 39, and multitasking by breastfeeding Rose at the restaurant. At one point, Rose was seen adorably gazing at Staceys new hair colour and it looked like the tot approved.

Sharing an update with her followers, the TV presenter explained: Date Night We had our first night (well late afternoon) out today I may have had a little moment and decided to dye my hair bright red before we went

I havent been out and felt like Ive looked human for a long time so I may have gone overboard but lashes didnt feel like enough.

She continued: You only live once. And I dont want to live it always looking like a foot 99% of the time i dont mind but ever so often its nice to feel nice .

Stacey clarified that Rose accompanied them on their evening out as she hasnt mastered the art of expressing yet and she doesnt feel ready to leave her alone but, at the same time, was keen to get a break and leave the bedroom.

Earlier in the day, the TV star had teased the process of her makeover by uploading a hilarious photo of her pulling a silly face with red dye in her hair and smeared across her forehead. She explained that would usually visit the hairdresser for such a job, but her stylist is also on maternity leave so she settled on the DIY job instead.

Stacey offered some encouragement for other mums and wrote in one Instagram story: On a serious note though it was nice to do something for myself.

Sometimes I think dont bother because maybe somewhere subconsciously I think it should never be about me and always about the pickles.

But it should definitely sometimes be just for us.

Stacey and Joe welcomed Rose, their second child, in October while the couple are also parents to two-year-old son Rex. She also has older sons Zach, 13, and Leighton, nine, while the former EastEnders actor is dad to son Harry, 13, who he shares with ex Emma Sophocleous.

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If youve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page wed love to hear from you.

MORE : Im A Celeb 2021: Tensions flare between Naughty Boy and Frankie Bridge in row over rice

MORE : Coleen and Wayne Rooney glam up for date night at Robbo: Bryan Robson Story premiere

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Stacey Solomon reveals bombshell new look on date night with Joe Swash - Metro

Old and new memories of Santa at the REES – Pilot News

* Originally printed in the Pilot News on November 26, 2018

As I was discussing my memories of the REES Theater from my childhood with REES volunteer Denny Bottorff about a week ago, one memory stood out in my mind above the rest for the simple child-like nature of it all.

When I was quite young, though the exact year escapes my memory, my father took me to the theater for a Christmas themed movie.

Much to my surprise I found myself standing in line to meet Santa Claus after the show was over.

I remember growing increasingly anxious to meet this mystical being that I had only heard about but never met face to face.

I could hear my heart in my ears pounding so hard in my chest as I was next in line.

Santa motioned for me to come sit on his lap and much to my dismay he asked me a question.

Though I was anxiously delighted to meet the jolly elf I had been painfully unprepared for any questions.

He smiled behind his white beard looking at me with sparkling eyes and asked, What do you want for Christmas?

For whatever reason I hadnt mastered the art of creating a wish list at this point in my life and had really always left the gift giving to Santas better judgment.

Not wanting to miss my chance to make this monumental request I answered in my small voice, A teddy bear.

A wave of relief swept over me as I slid off Santas lap and returned to my dad after successfully answering Santas question.

Though I had not set my heart upon that bear before meeting with Santa, I had been sure Santa would bring me a bear as he heard with his very own ears that a teddy bear was what I wanted.

Christmas morning came and to be honest I dont remember what Santa brought me that year because I noted what he didnt.

What he did not bring me was a teddy bear.

Please dont judge me too harshly.

It was not that I was ungrateful for the beautiful gifts Santa had brought me that year.

I simply marveled that perhaps he didnt hear me.

Perhaps he thought better of the teddy bear and wanted to give me something else instead.

Over the years that interaction with Santa became one of my cherished memories.

With age it became more precious to me for reasons that people as they grow older might understand without spelling it out here.

I was given the honor of covering the annual Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony in downtown Plymouth this year.

I spent the morning, afternoon, and evening enjoying the spirit of the holidays in Marshall County unlike I ever had in the past.

From Shop Small Saturday to the beginning of Saturdays festivities at 5 p.m., I marveled at how much joy was in my heart just to be seeing the community come together in nothing less extraordinary than a Whoville-like celebration with the only visible Grinches being in the form of decorations only.

The parade of lights, followed by the Christmas Tree Lighting by the bridge, and the photographs with Santa at the museum reminded me of the old movies I used to watch of a time which seemed simpler.

As I reflected on that I began to wonder if perhaps those times really werent simpler for the people living in them.

Hardship and beauty are as relevant in all walks of life as they are at any time.

Love in all it's forms are as timeless as any human conditions or emotion.

I sat in my office uploading festive photos from the evenings enchanting events.

I was contacted on my phone with a request to run down to the REES to meet a very special guest who would not be in town long and would make for a great interview.

I grabbed my coat from the back of my chair, ran down the stairs, and hurried toward the theater among those who were still walking along the sidewalks of downtown Plymouth taking in the last of the evening.

I was greeted by REES volunteer Denny Bottorff who opened the door for me.

As I peered around to see who this must meet interview was, I beheld Santa Claus wanting for me in the same theater where I first met him.

This time I was given the additional honor of being in the presence of Mrs. Claus.

All of my unpreparedness for the inteview of my lifetime reminded me again of that fateful interaction with Santa as a child over 30 years ago.

I couldnt help but laugh at the sweetness of it all.

I was invited to sit on Santas lap just as I had when I was a little girl.

He reminded me of when we met when I was young as he smiled behind his white beard looking at me with sparkling eyes.

We spoke about the teddy bear and Mrs. Claus pulled Santas bag out from beside his chair.

He pulled from his red velvet bag a beautiful, vintage brown teddy bear whose nose was slightly worn and his fur just the slightest bit aged.

Santa and Mrs. Claus brought for me the teddy bear that I had not received many years ago.

My precious gift was the same age as me - as if perhaps he had been mistakenly left behind in Santas bag those many years ago.

I want to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt thanks to the REES for providing me an opportunity to meet Santa so many years ago and for reuniting us this weekend.

I want to thank Santa and Mrs. Claus who brought me my teddy bear over 30 years later.

I couldnt help but think sitting on Santas lap at the theater how grateful I am that it is being renovated.

It is still one of my favorite memories from my childhood.

I couldnt help but think of an editorial that many of us are familiar with, Is There a Santa Claus?

I could almost hear the same words in my heart so many years later in the theater Saturday night, Yes, Virginia (Jamie), there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life it's highest beauty and joy.

That editorial was printed in the New York (Sun) Times in 1897.

I cant help but think how many times Virginias letter has been referenced in old books and movies in some form.

I am beyond humbled that this local reporter got to experience anything so precious over 100 years later.

I am thankful for all of the people who's existence are similar to Santas as described above.

An existence of love and generosity and devotion to their fellow man, woman, and child.

As the author of the editorial stated above, and I believe this is certainly true in Marshall County. (They) give to your life its highest beauty and joy.

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Old and new memories of Santa at the REES - Pilot News

RRB Group D Modification Link 2021 Notified! Railways Giving Last Chance To Edit Photograph, Signature For Rejected Candidates – AglaSem News

Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) has today, November 26, 2021, issued a public notice announcing the facility for RRB Group D modification link 2021. As per the notice, candidates who had registered for the recruitment drive, but their forms were rejected, can modify certain aspects of their application form. This link will be made available on the official websites of RRBs. Although candidates have been informed about the modification facility, dates about the same are yet to be intimated. Read ahead to know more about this facility.

According to the RRB public notice, authorities have decided to provide candidates a modification link to help them make changes in their application form. This will help registered aspirants to upload new version of their signature and photograph.

The notice clarifies that this is a one-time opportunity for candidates whose RRB Group D 2021 application form has been rejected. Such candidates must avail this facility as no further facility will be rectification requests will be accepted. Applications have been rejected due to invalid or inaccurate photograph and signature. Possible reason for this include lack of clarity, wrong format for uploading, incorrect dimensions, etc.

Although the exact date for the RRB Group D 2021 modification facility has not been provided, candidates are instructed to keep their documents ready. The photograph and signature must be in accordance with the format and dimensions specified by authorities. No other format will be accepted. Moreover, candidates cannot afford to upload incorrect documents as this is only a one-time facility.

The photograph, signature specifications which one must keep in mind during use of RRB Group D modification link 2021 are as follows.

Post modification facility, all received applications will be reevaluated by the Railway board and their decision regarding acceptance or rejection of form will be full and final. No further requests for modification will be entertained by the board.

RRB Group D Modification Link 2021 Notice

Exact text of the notice is as follows:

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RRB Group D Modification Link 2021 Notified! Railways Giving Last Chance To Edit Photograph, Signature For Rejected Candidates - AglaSem News

Eagles All-22 Film Review: Observations from the loss to the Chargers – Bleeding Green Nation

What a frustrating game the Eagles loss to the Chargers was... lets get to the film quickly. The usual disclaimer - I will be breaking down film on my Twitter account and then uploading the tweets with some more analysis in this piece. I obviously cannot post everything so I will focus on certain things each week that stand out to me. I might see something a few times on film but only upload one example as you dont need to see everything, so you will have to take my word if I say that I have seen something multiple times.

I am going to break down the offense followed by the defense each week and I will post the plays in order so you can see how the game played out.

This week I am going to focus largely on the defense because I think a lot of people have questions about this unit. As always, let me know your thoughts in the comments and I look forward to discussing the game with you all. Lets get to the film!

Right, lets begin with this miss! Meant 11 personnel clearly, but I think this is a bad miss but not a terrible one? I am glad to see Jalen Hurts getting off his 1st read but you would like a top QB to make this throw. All QBs will miss throws like this. Id just like Hurts to make more big time throws than he does currently.

Ill be honest, I dont usually break down running plays in detail because I find studying the pass game more interesting. But this was the same gameplan as last week. A ton of under center running. One drive was literally just 13 personnel under center runs, which was awesome. I thought all the OL run blocked pretty well and Scott and Howard both looked really good. The run game is looking very, very good right now.

Sirianni done a fantastic job keeping Hurts reads simple for the most part. There was a lot of 1-read isolation routes to Smith on the outside and a lot of simple reads such as the one below. You basically read the safety, throw the post or the cross depending on what the coverage is or check it down. Just a feeling I have, but I think Hurts throws the ball with much better timing and accuracy on simple reads when he stays calm and he isnt being asked to read too much. I could write a whole article on DeVonta Smiths route running from this game too - it was awesome.

It was weird how bad the Chargers were at containing Hurts this game. I cant see many teams making it that easy... but fair play to Hurts for taking advantage. Would love to see him keep his eyes downfield here but I am nitpicking as it was 3rd down and he got the 1st so, I am not going to complain!

Everyone was talking about this play on Sunday! Its another example of a bad miss (not a terrible one) but one you would like a top quarterback to make. For Hurts to really get to the next level, you want to see these completed. Personally, I actually dont mind him drifting slightly as it makes it a better angle to complete the ball but he has to reset his feet before throwing. People often say arm strength doesnt matter but it does because certain quarterbacks can throw this ball off platform (Josh Allen, Aaron Rodgers etc) but Hurts doesnt have the ability to. He needs to be properly set in order to complete this.

I dont like picking on individuals much but Ill just say this - I am surprised the Eagles are not starting Nate Herbig at right guard.

Oh baby. My favorite position to break down is wide receiver and I already cant wait until the offseason where I can study Smith in more detail. This guy gets how to get open. This stuff is so hard to teach.

Lets talk offensive design for a second. In a good, well-designed offense, you ideally want each play to have an option against coverages and to be prepared for blitzes. Normally, if you sense the defense is bringing more men than you have blockers (it looks like 6v5 presnap) then you should have a hot route built into the play. I cant see it here. I am guessing (total guess) the running back is meant to turn around if there is a blitz and catch the checkdown. Good offenses would do this. This passing game sadly is not great. Its hard to blame Hurts unless he is meant to check it down to the receiver running the drag but that is a weird hot route to have built into the play. I want to see immediate improvement in this area.

My favorite throw by Hurts all game. He seems to grow in comfort throughout the game each week and when he trusts his protection and steps up he looks very good usually.

I am going to talk about the defensive system and coaching in the second half of this article. Lets get one thing clear though... do not criticize Jonathan Gannon for not blitzing (he did about 30% of the snaps) and dont criticize him for playing 2 high all the time (he played a ton of single high) or for playing zone coverage all the time (he played a lot of man). This game plan was not the same we saw earlier. But... it yielded the same results. And that is a problem. I still think the Eagles have too many snaps like the one below where there is no presnap disguise and the cornerbacks are too soft. I think Gannon needs to trust his corners more, especially on 3rd down like below.

The Eagles played a lot more single high man coverage this game. I thought it was Darius Slay and Steve Nelsons worst game of the season. I think it is very likely that those two things are linked.

We spoke offensive design earlier... now lets talk defensive design. There are way too many plays where a mistake happens. Its not always easy to see why or who made the mistake but they happen to frequently. I dont know if its poor coaching. Too much change. Bad players who cant handle change. I dont know. But it happens too much. Personally, I would lean towards the coaches changing the defense a lot throughout the season and the players struggling to remember every play or every call. Or the coaches arent coaching each play properly. I dont know... I just hope it gets better.

Here is a simple corner blitz but no one covers the flat. A good quarterback will take advantage of this all day long. This is an aggressive play call but still gives up an easy completion.

Heres another one! Avonte Maddox is clearly playing with outside leverage and expecting inside help. Surely this inside help isnt McLeod as hes far back. So you would think Singleton should be in the middle... but it looks like hes taking the running back. So, maybe it is Barnett who should be covering the middle? But how is he going to do that from the defensive end? In which case, its bad defensive design. Or... maybe Maddox isnt supposed to take outside leverage! We dont know the call, we cant be sure. I just know there are too many plays like this that leave me feeling annoyed.

Last negative... I just threw this in as I love good football and this is such a lovely play design. Well done Chargers.

Onto the positives... can we talk TJ Edwards for a minute? I have always loved him playing in base and attacking the running back but I did not think he had the athleticism to be a full time linebacker. I think I was wrong. He will never be great in coverage and still isnt an elite athlete but he is playing outstanding against the run and his instincts are so good on plays such as wide receiver screens that he can compensate for his lack of athleticism. I am not going to describe all these in detail... just have a look at these plays from Sunday. Some are them are as good as Ive seen an Eagles linebacker make in a long time!

Marcus Epps is one of my favorite players to watch on tape this season. He flies around, can cover the slot, play in 2High and is competent against the run. I think he has a chance of being a decent safety moving forward, personally.

I thought Fletcher Cox had a good game on Sunday... moving on...

Thats all for this week... lets hope for a win next time. Go Birds.

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Eagles All-22 Film Review: Observations from the loss to the Chargers - Bleeding Green Nation

Authoritarianism and the Cybernetic Episteme, or the Progressive Disappearance of Everything on Earth – Journal #122 November 2021 – E-Flux

Life and society worldwide have been transformed by digital technology, including the fabrics of emotional relationships. Many believed the internet would be the largest ungoverned space in the world with unlimited emancipatory potential, and trusted Big Tech to make the world a better place. Yet power and capitalism filled that space with surveillance systems, the production of private capital, the monetization of data, and the control of human lives. Social media now shape daily life and many have lost faith in the possibility of a shared consensus reality. We are living in a scenario similar to one imagined by Black Mirror: our belief in digital communication and social media creates narcissistic personalities, selves dissociated and dislocated from their reflections online. Digital communication offers an opaque mirror that delivers egos without bodies, eliding alterity.

The collapse of reality, however, is not an unintended consequence of advancements in, for instance, artificial intelligence: it was the long-term objective of many technologists, who sought to create machines capable of transforming human consciousness (like drugs do). Communication has become a site for the extraction of surplus value, and images operate as both commodities and dispositives for this extraction. Moreover, data mediates our cognition, that is to say, the way in which we exist and perceive the world and others. The imageand the unlimited communication promised by constant imageryhave ceased to have emancipatory potential. Images place a veil over a world in which the isolated living dead, thirsty for stimulation and dopamine, give and collect likes on social media. Platform users exist according to the Silicon Valley utopian ideal of lifes complete virtualization.

The internet, moreover, has radically changed the political communications game and must be considered a complex propaganda apparatus. Although a single Tweet can destroy someones career, and fake news can start a real news cycle, meaning is subordinate to the circulation of vacuous content. The capitalist capture of data for profit does not rely on policing content; the production of capital only relies on the constant exchange and circulation of information. We dont yet know the full extent of the manipulation of companies such as Facebook, Google, and Amazon in the last two elections in the US or in other elections around the world. But it is undeniable that digital platforms are actively censoring content in the interests of particular political actors. For instance: in October 2020, Zoom canceled a meeting hosting Palestinian human rights activist Leila Khaled; a month before, Facebook and Twitter censored information detrimental to Joseph Bidens presidential campaign. The same two companies intervened and shut down pro-Trump accounts in 2020, even Donald Trumps own Facebook and Twitter accounts.

After the attempted coup at the US capitol on January 6, 2020, Facebooks recently instituted oversight board ruled that Trump had created an environment where a serious risk of violence was possible. In this light, it seems likely that he will continue to be banned from the platform. According to journalist Shoshana Zuboff, however, this is insufficient, given that the oversight boards decision (whose work is supported by a $130 million endowment from Facebook) follows years of inaction by CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who indulged and appeased Trump while entrenching what Zuboff calls surveillance capitalism. A liberal might think that shutting up Trump and helping Biden is not bad, as they are actions that seemingly advance the interests of the Democratic Party. What is at stake here, however, is not whether the platforms take a good or bad stance on a particular issue; the problem is that they have immense unchecked power and can act as they please. Platforms are allowed to secretly extract behavioral data from users, whether or not users are aware, transforming the information into targeted ads, destroying privacy, changing human experience into data, altering elections, and reshaping human civilization. This structure can be termed the cybernetic episteme, and the new form of control, which goes beyond the previous regime of biopower, can be termed neuropower.

According to its Greek etymology, an episteme is a system of understanding. In The Order of Things, Michel Foucault uses the term pistem to mean the nontemporal or a priori knowledge that grounds what is taken as truth in a given moment. Several epistemes coexist at a given time, as they constitute parts of various systems of power and knowledge. The cybernetic episteme, as defined by the collective Tiqqun some twenty years ago, describes our relationship to technology and machines (which are inseparable from the workings of capitalism). The cybernetic episteme is based on the modern tenet of progress and human-led transcendence achieved through science and technology.

Under neuropower, the sensible gives way to cognitive pathologies. These pathologies depend on the consumption of content rather than the sharing of meaning. As Thomas Metzinger explains, the internet has become an integral part of how we model ourselves, as we use it for external memory storage, as a cognitive prosthesis, and for emotional self-regulation. This has radically changed the structure of conscious experience, creating a new form of waking consciousness that resembles a mixture of dreaming, dementia, intoxication, and infantilization. Other effects of neuropower are humans growing invisibility to each other and a paroxysmal racism that infiltrates power, technology, culture, language, and work. For Franco Bifo Berardi, racism has become a virus that exacerbates fearabove all, the fear of extinction, which seems to have become one of the motors behind white supremacy in the world. Dissociated from our environment, alienated from each other, we are oblivious to the challenges that are being posed to humanity by the Capitalocene.

1.

Under lockdown, internet-based technology became embedded in everyday life more than ever before. Zoom and other platforms became the matrix of a production model that exacerbates the power of technology over society. A new lockdown economy has emerged in this disembodied communication space, where knowledge is subsumed under the rules of capital accumulation. The pandemic has led to extreme alienation, to the point that privilege is defined as depending on invisible laborers to sustain forms of life. This means that a new virtual working class has emerged that can take basics like food, water, and electricity for granted, knowing that they do not have to risk their bodies to have these comforts.

Until 2016, digital technology promised access to all human knowledge, unlimited exchange, self-expression, democratization, participation, opportunities to make money, the acceleration of bureaucratic processes, and the means for grassroots and popular power to challenge governments and corporations. The peak of this alluring cyber-utopia came around 201011, when social media played a crucial role in the Occupy and Arab Spring movements. But in 2016, when Cambridge Analytica was revealed to have intervened in the US elections that brought Donald Trump to power, the publics belief in such technologies to change power structures began to shift. We witnessed the worldwide rise of right-wing governments and populist movements supported by wealth. Maurizzio Ferraris has called this the era of post-truth, when the deconstruction of a stable truth became an important political tool. In online public space, discourse has been shattered, truth has become indiscernible, and relativism has become the norm. The public spherethe bastion of established and emerging democracies, bolstered by mass mediabegan to shatter.

Leaders such as Benjamin Netanyahu, Donald Trump, Andrs Manuel Lpez Obrador, Jair Bolsonaro, and Narendra Modi have used digital communications to construct charismatic identities and disseminate populist messages, causing deep social and political polarization. Politics has profoundly mutated: while minorities and people at the margins have found ways to validate their speech by expressing their perspectives, individualized propaganda has become the order of the day. Algorithms feed users the information they search for, resulting in personalized information bubbles designed to engage preexisting biases. Much of the news media now functions by monetizing user engagement through this type of targeting, which has led to new forms of intensified racism and other types of prejudice. Author Andrey Mir has termed this postjournalism. He explains that, since mass media outlets have lost publicity revenue, they need to monetize engagement on the internet and do so by generating anger and hatred, usually directed at some specific group of people. For many, the news is the way to access the world, and rage has become currency: platforms drive and monetize anger as a mode of engagement.

A complex form of authoritarianism is emerging, linked to digital platforms owned by the powerful CEOs who make up the notorious Silicon Six. Under the new authoritarianism, populations are no longer commanded: they are asked to participate, and in this simulation of involvement, the ideology of connection replaces the idea of social relations, neutralizing democratic demands from users to have control over their own lives, rights, and data. In this way, people are made passive. Cdric Durand explains the difference between the original conception of the World Wide Web and the subsequent development of closed platforms. The WWW began as a decentralized architecture in which a generic transaction protocol (http) and a uniform identification format (URI/URL) generated a space of flat content. In this space, human and nonhuman agents could have access to information without any third-party mediation. In contrast, closed platforms use application programming interfaces, or APIs, to mediate interaction, giving way to data loops in which interactions are more dense. The technical object that sustains this hierarchical architecture is the API, each of which is owned by a platform. On the one hand, big platforms, by way of APIs, offer apps that incorporate basic and indispensable data for users. On the other, platforms have access to the additional information generated by the API, such as user activity and buying habits. As the ecosystem grows in complexity, the platform is able to accumulate more and more data. We become more densely connected with each other and with the platforms every day, as our lives get more and more tied to the cloud. Our dependency on platforms provides the ground for technofeudalism. Historically, feudalism was characterized by a fundamental inequality that enabled the direct exploitation of peasants by lords. The lord was both the manager and master not only of the process of production, but of the entire process of social life. In todays technofeudalism, platform owners are the digital lords and users are the serfs. Rather than commodity production, these platforms are geared towards accumulation through rent, debt, and the privatization of the basic infrastructure that sustains our lives. What is at stake is no longer true or fake information but the cybernetic episteme upon which our lives and subjectivities have been built.

The cybernetic episteme is premised upon modernitys enclosure of experience. In modern epistemology, which is the precondition of the cybernetic episteme, the self is externalized and experienced at a remove from the body. Perception is centered on the brain and eyes instead of the whole body, separating sensation from reason. The selfs relationship with the world is mediated through mirrors, camera lenses, the canvas, the microscope, and mathematical models. The cybernetic episteme, moreover, is inextricable from colonialism, which entails dispossession, dislocation, dissociation, and appropriation. Ariella Azoulay has called the logic underpinning these processes the shutter; this logic is materialized in photographic technology that separates humans from objects, self from the world, and people from their lands. The shutter is the principle of imperialism by which campaigns of plunder have left people both worldless and objectless. For Azoulay, the logic of the shutter was invented centuries before photography gave it a technological apparatus, and it enabled the dispossession of non-Western peoples in tandem with the accumulation of visual and material wealth in archives and museums in the West.

The cybernetic episteme is likewise conceptually constituted by this shutter, since it relies on capturing, naming, moving, and archiving subjectsas does imperialism. In this regard, the cybernetic episteme naturalizes the mediation of the self; it creates not only the condition of detachment from the world, but allows the appropriation of the cultures of others, as well as the dissolution of collective being. The shutter is akin to Heideggers Gestell or representation, which goes hand in hand with Eurocentrism and Anthropocentrism. The Gestell and the shutter both imply that the world and experience have become representation, through an aesthetic order in which what is produced as artifice becomes the reality of experience.

In a 2017 Facebook promo video for a new virtual reality technology, Mark Zuckerberg and his colleague Rachel Frank tele-transported themselves to Puerto Rico after a devastating flood. They intended to showcase the potential of the new technology, but instead revealed its inherent violence. The ability to transport oneself to faraway places as if ones body were present gives the illusion that one we can make a difference in the world through technology. Another example, in a different register of colonial modernity is that way Western museums allow visitors to "transport" themselves by observing objects looted from elsewhere, like the Pergamon Museum in Berlin where museumgoers can roam around the Ishtar Gate, which has been on display in the museum since 1930. In a section of Ariella Azoulays video Undocumented: Unlearning Imperial Plunder (2020), she films actual visitors to the Pergamon while noting that dislocation is the essence of (imperial) modernity. The VR museum visitor is at the center of a world, but they are not really there (an effect similar to the dispositive of perspective in painting). For globalized Western culture, the ground for vision, enlightenment, culture, and even social change is the dislocation and disappearance of bodies.

Disembodiment and dislocation are also fundamental epistemological premises of transhumanist Silicon Valley ideology. In this ideology, the teleology of secular modern individualism culminates in the uploading of a persons mind to a new biological, artificial, or biological-artificial body. The utopian goal of expanding and preserving human consciousness is physically and spiritually achieved. Transhumanism is the dream of enhancing the human body through technology, and ultimately escaping human suffering by transcending the errors of death and aging.

Posthumanism takes things a step further: its goal is to immortalize consciousness by uploading it to a robotic or synthetic body. Posthumanism does away with the biological dimension of the self, fundamentally altering what it means to be human. In both trans- and posthumanism, technology promises to give us the divine attributes of omnipresence, omnipotence, and omniscience, making humans into pure consciousness, achieving a kind of individual and secular transcendence. In the first episode of the British TV series Years and Years (2019), Bethany, an adolescent whose face is hidden behind a 3D emoji mask, announces to her parents that she is transhuman. She declares: I dont want to be flesh. I want to escape this thing and become digital, I want to live forever as information. Eventually Bethany becomes a hero with transhuman superpowers: her mechanized eyes and brain, which are connected to all the data in the world, allow her to make visible the horrors that the British government have perpetrated in a refugee camp. This techno-utopian narrative implies a democratic ideology, insofar as one political goal of democracy is to make visible the ordeals of oppressed minoritiesin this case through virtual disembodiment.

In contrast to this techno-utopian narrative, science fictionespecially cyberpunk literature generally portrays transhumanism as a nightmarish apocalyptic scenario of social control and individual subjection. Several episodes of Black Mirror do this, for example. But what Black Mirror and Years and Years have in common is that technological advances and the increasing symbiosis between humans and machines are associated with political, economic, and social instability. In reality, mind uploading has attracted millions of dollars of investment from the billionaires of Silicon Valley and beyond. In a mixture of engineering and enlightenment, consciousness is now being hacked through biofeedback techniques, meditation practices, and microdosing drugs. Many critics have observed that the utopian ideology of transhumanism underpins the Valleys culture of move fast, break things, and make as much money as possible. Technologies aiming to expand human consciousness are rooted in purely extractivist, capitalist values. In this sense, cybernetics is a political project on a planetary scale. As described by Tiqqun, cybernetics is a gigantic abstract machine made up of binary machines deployed by empire, and a form of political sovereignty that has merged with the capitalist extractivist project.

2.

In the pre-cybernetic erathat is to say, before the 1940smachines were intended to emulate humans; their actions resembled human behavior, but ostensibly without intent or emotions. This is why Donna Haraway describes pre-cybernetic machines as haunted. They seemed animated by ghosts, reminiscent of Walter Benjamins automaton that was inhabited by a hunchbacked dwarf. Machines were not self-moving, self-designing, or autonomous. They could not achieve human dreams, only mock them. In turn, humans related to machines by using or acting upon them: switching them on or off, using them as tools to achieve an end. Today, the relationship between human and machine is based on internal, mutual communication in a feedback loop. Early machines were led; today, machines lead us. This does not mean that machines have simply become humanized through the proliferation of androids. Rather, humans have surrendered consciousness to AI, becoming obedient and predictable. In the twenty-first century, machines have blurred the distinction between the artificial and human mind, not only because machines can imitate human functions, but because humans have become increasingly passive, since we are now subject to neuropower.

Within the cybernetic episteme, it is no longer enough to talk about a control society; we must talk instead about a composite of interlinked forms of oppression (exploitation, alienation, and domination), in tandem with extreme securitarianism. Another way to see the cybernetic episteme is as the reconceptualization of social worlds into information-processing systems. Practices of computation are used to produce new organizational and infrastructural apparatuses, which in turn create value and profit by exploiting and disposing of human life. Social worlds are subsumed into technologies through techniques such as statistical forecasting and data modeling.

The cybernetic episteme stems from a world brought into being by Europeans; this world began with the discovery of the new world and the creation of empires and colonies (which coincided with the scientific revolution). In this sense, the cybernetic episteme is inseparable from the Western civilizing project for the whole world, which connected disparate places through technologies like the telegraph and steam shipping, often powered by the extraction of fossil fuels like coal. This project has culminated in globalization as the deregulation and financialization of world economies.

The Western civilization project, based on Enlightenment values including equality, peaceful public life, access to modern science, the rule of law, democracy, and technological progress, involved the creation of infrastructure to unify nations and the world. We can call this infrastructure the technosphere. The technosphere comprises not only digital technology but all machines, factories, computers, cars, buildings, railways, and mobility infrastructure, as well as systems of food production, resource extraction, and energy distribution. Today, the infrastructure of the worldthe technosphereis shaped by information, which means that the world we inhabit is designed by data.

The technosphere is a supplement humans have created to help overcome the limits of human nature insofar as humans cannot live independently from structures geared towards sustaining life. The technosphere has promised to enable us to increase production and reproduction with less human effort. Moreover, the technosphere is also regarded as the main tool humans have to fight decay, entropy, and death, since it comprises all the structures humans have built to keep themselves alive on the planet. The total mass of the technosphere amounts to fifty kilos for every square meter of earths surfacea total of thirty trillion tons, which coexists with the diminishing hydrosphere (water, the frozen polar regions) and the biosphere (all of earths living organisms). The ultimate price of the technosphere is global warming and environmental devastation. Like humans, the technosphere needs external energy input, which is not sustainable as long as it comes from fossil fuels that will eventually be depleted.

From this standpoint, the cybernetic episteme represents the gradual merging of human activity into the activity of what we have built and surrounded ourselves with. Much of this built environment is invisible. Infrastructure and data are partially occult because we are alienated from them, even as we are produced and managed by them. The invisible infrastructure that sustains our lives is what matters politically right now. And insofar as the technosphere is cybernetic, it is inextricable from capitalism and politics.

3.

Human communication is at the center of the cybernetic global order. The neural system of globalized networked society is digital communication. In a 1975 film called Comment a va?, Anne-Marie Miville and Jean-Luc Godard discuss the illness of information. They begin with an image of the Carnation Revolution in Portugal, published in the leftist newspaper Libration. At the time, photojournalistic images had begun to proliferate as a form of information, and Godard and Miville critique Libration (the most left-wing newspaper in Europe in those days) for failing to include the reader in the creation and dissemination of information. They ask: How is it that things enter and exit the machine? (Comment a va de lentre la sortie de la machine?). This question is about how ideas, words, discourses, human interaction, and images become information and then reach readers and viewers.

In Comment a va?, mass media represents an illness that has killed communication and language. Last year, Godard updated his critique of the media in an interview posted to Instagram. He stated: Platos cave has been fixed on paper/screen. For Godard, the consequence of the becoming-information of communication and language is the loss of ambiguity in communication. Digital technology has infiltrated every aspect of existence, and the margin of error between the transmission and the reception of a message has been eliminated by mediatization and digitization. For Godard, digital communication denies the force of the image or the word because it eliminates redundancy, misunderstanding, the possibility of reading between the lines, and the possibility of alterity.

In a more recent film of hisAdieu au language from 2014Godard suggests that digital media have destroyed face-to-face communication. He asks: What kind of self could emerge in a time when objects and bodies are disfigurable and refigurable through virtual manipulation? Godard posits that the origins of todays totalitarianism can be traced to the interruption of interior experience by the spectacle. In the film, Godard features a lengthy quote from Philippe Sollers explaining that the spectacle cuts off the subject from its interior lifea process that is, paradoxically, highly seductive. Furthermore, for Godard digital communication creates a new form of isolated solitude where people lack ties to others. In this light, technology has not become an extension of man, as Marshall McLuhan predicted, but has instead attained autonomy from man, since digital media can communicate amongst themselves without human mediation. For Godard, this means that the face-to-face encountera basic form of human relation that is the foundation of ethicsis no longer possible.

Sherry Turkle, a clinical psychologist and sociologist, comes to similar conclusions: daily conversations no longer involve eye contact, and face-to-face discussion has been replaced by words on a screen. According to Turkle, texts, tweets, Facebook posts, Instagram messages, and Snapchats split our attention and diminish our capacity for empathy. They have created new codes of etiquette; no longer do we feel restrained from reaching for our phones in the presence of other people. This new etiquette entrenches a culture of individualism and isolation from each other. This isolation cultivates the perfect ground for fascism.

The digitization of communication not only has political and communal consequences. It also affects the neuroplastic potential of the living brain. The cybernetic episteme reshapes our working memory by rearranging its contents. As Warren Neidich writes, the new focus of power is not only the false reproduction of the past (the manipulation of the archive), but the manipulation of our working memorythe type of memory that influences our decision-making. Authoritarian neuropower wants nothing less than to shape our future memory, argues Neidich.

If the nervous system of cybernetics is digital communication, at the center of digital communication is desire. Mark Fisher devoted his last lectures at Goldsmiths in 2017 to this subject. During one lecture, he played for his students a famous Apple TV commercial from 1984, directed by Ridley Scott and originally broadcast during the Superbowl. In an overt reference to George Orwells novel 1984, the commercial depicts a dreary, repressive control society. This society is seemingly liberated when a buxom blonde woman tosses a sledgehammer at a large screen broadcasting the image of an authoritarian figure, causing the screen to explode. The commercial ends with these lines crawling across the screen: On January 24, Apple Computer will introduce Macintosh. And youll see why 1984 wont be like 1984. Fisher observes that the video counterposes top-down bureaucratic control to upstart entrepreneurialism. The dreary control society depicted in the commercial is an allusion to not only the Soviet Union, but also IBM, the dominant computer maker at the time. Apple posits itself as the dynamic, colorful new company that will liberate society from dreary IBM, ushering in a new, more vibrant world order. This new world order will fulfill our (capitalist) desires in a way that the communist world cannot. As Fisher suggests, we now live in that world of libidinal capitalism.

Elsewhere Fisher writes that what drives the circulation of information is the users desire to make one more connection, to leave one more reply, to keep on clicking. Capitalism persists because cyberspace is already under our skin, writes Fisher; to retreat from it would be like trying to retreat into some nonexistent precapitalist imaginary. In his view, we believe we have as much a chance of escaping capitalism as we do of crawling back inside our mothers womb.

5.

By means of the cybernetic episteme, Silicon Valley has shaped the world we all live in. As we are poisoned equally by microplastics and fake news, losing our grasp of a shared reality, the Silicon Sixas Sacha Baron Cohen called the titans of Silicon Valley in a 2019 speechpropagate algorithm-fueled fear, propaganda, lies, and hate in the name of profit. As Baron Cohen pointed out, the major online platforms largely avoid the kind of regulation and accountability that other media companies are subject to. This is ideological imperialism, he said. Six unelected individuals in Silicon Valley impos[e] their vision on the rest of the world, unaccountable to any government, and acting as if they are above the law. He called digital platforms the greatest propaganda machine in history.

Democratic institutions have failed to reign in the information chaos and the destruction of the public sphere. As Shoshana Zuboff argues, we inhabit a communications sphere that is no longer a public sphere. She describes this situation as an epistemic coup that has taken place in four stages: First, by way of companies gathering personal data about us and then claiming it as their own private property. Second, through data inequality, which means that companies know more than we do. Third, through the epistemic chaos created by algorithms. And fourth, through the institutionalization of this new episteme and the erosion of democratic governance.

Baron Cohen observes that people can take a stand against platforms by recognizing our power to boycott them. (One example is the mass defection from WhatsApp to Telegram when the former announced that would share its user data with Facebook.) But we also need to defend the existence of facts and a shared reality, understanding the world not as something we see but as something we inhabittreating life not as something we have, but as something we live. Anti-platform strategies might be accused of Luddism, but they are not necessarily opposed to technologyonly to certain uses of technology.

It is also crucial that we regard the cybernetic episteme as inextricable from a broader malaise: humanitys relationship to life and the planet is a toxic one. The very technologies that supposedly enable us to read, think, flourish, and desire are destroying the world we inhabit.

People continue to yearn for commonality, mutuality, and something to share. But the culture we currently share is largely mediated by repressive, profit-driven digital platforms. This is why we need to flee from the invasion of images, to distinguish between image and reality, and to affirm the opacity of the world and the ambiguity of language. We need to resist platform monopoly through presence, embodiment, immediacy, and human memory. We need to find ways to create life as opposed to turning it into data, combine emotional and intellectual knowledge, and regard visceral gut feelings as a form of human consciousness. We need to learn to exist in symbiosis with others and with the environment, not dislocated, uprooted, and detached.

Originally posted here:

Authoritarianism and the Cybernetic Episteme, or the Progressive Disappearance of Everything on Earth - Journal #122 November 2021 - E-Flux

Here’s how to stop facial recognition systems in their tracks – RTE.ie

Analysis: researchers have developed adversarial image generators to fool facial recognition software and protect privacy rights

When you post an image of yourself on a social media platform, what audience do you have in mind? Friends? Family? Facial recognition software? Probably not the latter. But images which we post online are used routinely as reference examples for facial recognition systems. These may be developed by social media companies, security companies, intelligence agencies or any private individual with enough computer power to create a Deep Neural Network system.

Clearly lots of people dont care as we post images of ourselves with abandon. However, there is a privacy concern here that is coming back to bite us, especially our children who generally post the most and tend to have the least information about what the imagery is used for. Once you can be recognised by AI, your image can be-cross referenced with CCTV footage or pictures taken of you in public, giving the holder of the captured image, access to your online identity. Public anonymity is breached.

Such abuse of images is in violation of peoples privacy rights, but it is very difficult to counter. The laws do not yet exist to protect peoples imagery and minors currently have no right to be forgotten online.

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From RT Radio 1's Today show, CNN"s Donie O'Sullivan discusses Clearview AI's facial recognition technology

Researchers at the Insight SFI Research Centre for Data Analytics at DCU have been working on a technique that gives power back to the individual to hide their own face and the faces of their loved ones from any facial recognition software that is scraping images from social media platforms or anywhere else online. Its an ingenious technology that uses an aspect of the recognition software against itself.

'Adversarial example images are used by developers to disrupt facial recognition technology in order to test the process. Andrew Merrigan, working with ProfAlan Smeaton, is looking at ways to make adversarial image generators that can be applied by ordinary social media users to make their images unrecognisable to AI, while looking exactly the same to the human eye. The researchers envision a simple app through which users could run images before posting them online. To their friends and family, the image looks exactly the same. To AI, it does not provide a match to any other photo and is of no use as a data point in facial recognition models.

The use of facial recognition systems, coupled with the unauthorised use of images taken from social media sources, is a threat to individuals' privacy. The use of facial recognition systems is constantly increasing throughout the world. The development of open-source facial recognition models based on Deep Neural Networks makes it possible for anyone with access to moderate computing power to create this software. More troubling perhaps is the rise of companies using images from social media with or without users' consent.

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From RT Six One News in 2015, new facial recognition software system launched by Garda

Deep Neural Networks are known to have superior performance compared to more conventional approaches when applied to a variety of computer vision tasks including facial recognition. They are, however, susceptible to adversarial examples where images are crafted so that the machine's interpretation differs greatly from that of a person looking at the same image. The original image is altered by adding patterns of noise to the image of the face at the level of individual pixels, noise which is imperceptible to the human eye but cannot be ignored by face recognition algorithms.

This is another example of how images and videos contain information encoded at the pixel level, which can be hidden in plain sight. An example of this hidden information are the slight changes in skin colour caused by the pulses of our heartbeat. As blood rushes to our skin it changes colour and gets redder with every heartbeat. This can be identified in videos, but is not visible to the human eye. Last year, the team used this hidden pulse information as a way to detect deepfake videos.

A user uploading largely adversarial images of themselves would poison any pool of reference example images of their face

The motivation behind the work is to create a small effective model, which can be deployed on user devices, to enable them to convert facial images into adversarial examples, prior to sharing them online. The model needs to be efficient enough to run quickly on small user devices like mobile phones. It must be able to modify images in a minimal way so as to be largely unnoticeable by human observers.

Using a model such as this, a user uploading largely adversarial images of themselves would poison any pool of reference example images of their face. This would mean that images taken from a source not controlled by the user, such as a surveillance camera, would not have a strong match to the user because the examples used as reference would not match the users true identity. This could be an important step in helping individuals maintain privacy against those who would use their images for facial recognition without their consent.

The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RT

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Here's how to stop facial recognition systems in their tracks - RTE.ie