#40 inventive principles

[yourtoradorasextendedwarranty]

No. It's not Cancel Culture.

I've seen a lot of people recently saying that the right is embracing cancel alter. Which is actually kind of funny to me because that's never what cancel culture meant.

Long story short cancel culture as a topic or rather, as a phrase was basically invented for one very specific purpose. Cancel culture was invented to a culture of taking stuff from people's past, digging it up by going through various different social media websites blogs or other things, and then posting it online in a very public forum and then demanding others share that to that person's workplace.

"Are you in your 40s - 70s now? Well did you ever do blackface once upon a time when it was not seen as an absolutely atrocious thing to do? Well guess what we are going to do everything in our power to get you fired from your job. Ruin your life. Make sure that you can never make income ever again. And we're also going to try to get your family removed from their livelihoods as well."

"Are you a race car driver? Did your dad say the n-word once before? Did he do it before you were ever born? Well we're going to remove your sponsors and make sure that it is harder for you to have a life because the sins of the father are the sins of the son".

"Do you have an opinion on LGBT things that we don't like? Are you one of those gay people from the past who think that it should have been called a gay partnership rather than gay marriage? Well we are going to make sure that your life going forward as an absolute living hell and that you are not considered part of the LGBT community despite the fact that you were probably there fighting for the rights to be considered normal before any of us were ever born."

Those things generally speaking are what we refer to as cancel culture. Digging things up from 3 to 5 years ago or longer and then bringing them to people you know are absolutely willing (and often incited) to call businesses and jobs and other things and get that person removed from polite society as an entirety.

However, cancel culture is not posting something publicly to a social media site as a way to inform (yes there's a difference. The moderates don't incite. You all do) With no calls to action. Just saying "hey these people exist", and yes there people taking it on themselves to tell businesses that their employees advocate for violence. Because fun fact about speech. I am for freedom of speech under the laws of the Constitution. However calls to action are not free speech. Truth is, a lot of the people who have been fired should have actually been arrested. Because it's not a joke when you tell someone to try it again or to do it again or saying "next time" knowing the implication.

Because if that same exact thing had happened with Joe Biden and you had a bunch of Fringe lunatics on the right saying "next time don't miss", they would be in solitary confinement for the rest of their lives because the justice system leans heavily in favor of democrat power. So, the right is finally learning their lesson. Which is that if a person doesn't support your rights to speak you don't defend theirs. And I know that there are going to be people who don't agree with that. They are going to say that that's not moral or not principled. But you know why I don't care? Because I'm not on the right. And because I actually support free speech. But here's the problem.

If you willingly defend the rights of people who would take your rights away at a heartbeat that's not being called principled that's called being a moron. Because if you were to save someone knowing they would willingly kill you in the same given situation you're not winning any victories. You're not doing yourself any favors. Have some semblance of self-preservation.

Because I can promise you, there is no point in having morals or principles at all if they are only going to be utilized as a weapon against you. Am I saying that you should forsake your morals or forsake your principles? No. I'm saying that if there are other people who value living in polite society the same as you and they would defend you if you were in need then you can defend them when they are in need. You can still have morals and principles. I'm not saying don't.

But stop letting it be a weapon against you. Because when you let it be a weapon against you, all you do is tie yourself down to be beaten. Your morals and principles will mean nothing if you're in a gulag or you're dead. So, forgive me if I am not apologetic towards the people who asked for an act of extreme violence to happen again. Because what was it that the leftist used to call it? Not "cancel culture" but "consequence culture". If a business does not want to keep you employed with them because you publicly express violent rhetoric, that's their right.

Because what was it that Destiny said whenever people got banned when they said learn to code? "It's a private company they can do what they want". Well guess what Destiny. Kick banned you and they can do what they want. Twitter demonetized you and they can do what they want. If you can't stand up for other people's rights whenever you have power you do not deserve to have people who actually value those rights stand up for you when you're not in power anymore.

[moonshynecybin]

okay but fucked how the neon yellow issue shouldn’t be an issue to this day and age yet there it remains. all neon yellow. even if pecco inherited the friends and family business of giving everyone and uccio reason to hate on marc by being the best (and only, mind) vr46 rider to amount to anything as of yet (sorry 😭), it still shouldn’t be going that far, should it? it’s been… literal years? soon to be decades? what would the reason for the continued haterism from uccio specifically (that bet lmaoooooo) be if like, nothing changed and we are all very much aware that neon yellow will take “marquez fucked me over” to his grave… like the amount of aggression just doesn’t click in place compared to the severity of marcs alleged crimes against humanity even if uccio really fucking hates marc (for reasons unknown?) it’s just astonishing, honestly… what the fuck did marc do to warrant such petty and cruel and pathetic loser behaviour to this dayyyyyyyyy from a guy in his 40s!!!!! vale stop talking about marc every day so uccio can finally move on!!!!!!!!

girl he won against vale. its that simple

like theres a LOT at play in the uccio/vale dynamic that drags its ass over to the rosquez of it all but. essentially. uccio's life and career is all tied up in vale. in wanting to see vale win. in specifically doing whatever vale needs to be successful. and it clearly comes with a lot of love (childhood best friends !!!!) and a sort of. guard dog like intensity and protectiveness over vale's ability to compete and his LEGACY ! so marc comes in and is charming and talented and. vale keeps saying hey maybe hes the next me :) "it is not an exaggeration to say marquez is the next valentino rossi" and "marc certainly has the potential to be the greatest of all time") and uccio is like. what the hell is that supposed to mean. you are SINGULAR ?? GET UP ?? like vale's just come off two down years and this twink comes in, charms the pants off of him, wins the TITLE AS A ROOKIE, and vales just like OHHH WELLLLLLL and invites him to the RANCH. and on a personal level for vale this makes sense because hey he isnt competitive yet anyways so who cares. he'll be nice. he likes marc !!! but UCCIO is VERY protective of vale's legacy..... and i think hates marc on fucking principle because of that....

and then 2015. have you ever had a friend flop. have you ever had a friend in crisis. have you ever sat down with said friend and invented excuses/reasons for their floppage to comfort them because thats what you do when you love someone. like. marc is already a broader "threat" to vale's GOAT status, he's been specifically and persistently fucking annoying ALL goddamn season, and uccio just doesnt fucking like him anyways. perfect excuse. here. unburden your floppage, blame this SABOTEUR. and then theres sepang-> confirms him as reason for floppage/losing the title-> the next few years marc just doesnt stop winning-> MORE of a threat to GOAT status -> argentina happens now he's DANGEROUS to boot -> still fighting against his and vale's joint babies-> GODDDDD he fucking hates that guy to this day

[trainsinanime]

Numbers of German locomotives

I did a post about this once, but it turns out that was back in 2010, on a whole other site (DeviantArt), so I figured it was time to revisit the topic because a lot of rail fans seem confused by it.

So, what do you call a German locomotive?

(whatever you want, it can't hear you)

Let's start simply and work our way up, with lots of tangents.

Since 1924, with numerous but insignificant exceptions, all German locomotives have a designator that consists of two numbers and sometimes a few letters.

The first number is the class of the locomotive, and it's traditionally two or three digits. The second number is the individual running number of a given unit, usually three, sometimes four digits. Both have leading zeroes, and they're separated by a space.

So: 01 001 is the first locomotive of class 01. 50 123 is the 123rd locomotive of class 50. 50 1234 is the 1234th locomotive of class 50. Numbering starts at one, there is no e.g. 482 000, that's a Swiss locomotive.

As Marx would say, "class" is a crucial aspect here, and its assignment is odd at times. In 1923, the railways of Germany, which used to be owned by the states, got merged into a federal government-owned railway which wanted to replace all the old locomotives with new designs, and invented its numbering system to emphasise these new locomotives. Old locomotives got assigned into classes based on their general principles.

Take, for example, Pacific-type steam locomotives. These are locomotives with three driven axles with big wheels, two axles in front, and one underneath the cab, and without getting into too much detail, they were the standard for express passenger trains throughout most of the world. The new standard types got four classes to themselves: 01 for the heavy type, 03 for the light type, and 02 and 04 as experimental four-cylinder versions that weren't bought in large numbers (let's ignore the three-cylinder versions for now).

(The picture is old, the locomotive is still there but it's been beautifully restored since.)

But as for the older Pacific types, they all got assigned the same class, class 18, and there they got sorted into different sub-classes.

That meant e.g. 18 101 was not the first class 18 locomotive, but the first of sub-class 18.1, aka type "C" of the Württemberg railways. This sub-class is sometimes also written 18¹ by typography nerds. German Wikipedia switches between the two at random, but the dot notation is far more common. Note that you can't really reverse-engineer the subclass from the locomotive number: 18 501 is not the first locomotive of class 18.5, but the 101st of class 18.4-5, the Bavarian type S 3/6. Oh, and if you see an 18 201 today, that's actually not the same 18.2 as back in the day, that's a whole other story…

(These days, for newer types the sub-classes don't even necessarily match the numbers: 185 001 and 185 101 are both members of class 185.1, and 185 500 is… who the hell knows.)

The classes were sorted into bands of twenty classes each:

01-19 were express locomotives, 20-39 regular passenger locomotives, 40-59 were freight locomotives, 60-79 passenger tender locomotives and 80-98 were switchers and freight tender locomotives, with 99 reserved for all narrow-gauge locomotives, which hence got classes like 99.23-24. The divisions within these groups were kind of arbitrary, except that the higher numbers were used by old locomotives, while the newer ones got the lower class numbers.

The basics of that system are actually still around, if you squint. But that was steam locomotives only. The system also had provisions for the other types of locomotives that were appearing at the time.

Electric locomotives got an E and then a class number that seems to be chosen to roughly fall within the appropriate steam equivalent band, but never really quite perfectly. Class E 18 is a high-speed electric locomotive, class E 93 is a mountain freight workhorse. Weirdly no class E 01. But note that the letter is important, E 18 001 and 18 001 are two different locomotives.

Diesel locomotives got a V (Verbrennung, combustion) followed by the power output in tens of horsepower. They only really took off after the war, but V 60 has 600 horsepower, V 100 has 1000 horsepower, V 200 has 2000, you get the drill.

EMUs and DMUs got an additional T, for "Triebwagen" (powered rail car, which is the general term for EMUs, DMUs, rail buses and so on), giving us ET and VT. High-speed DMUs got an additional S, for "Schnell" (fast), producing SVT. There was also ETA, for EMU with a battery (Akku) - yes, that's a technology that's been used successfully since 1903, don't let anyone tell you this is a recent innovation. The dedicated trailer cars got B (Beiwagen, additional car) for EB and VB, or S (Steuerwagen, control car) if they had controls to produce ES and VS. The class numbers there… honestly I have no idea. Every single DMU got assigned class 137, some VT 137, some SVT 137, it was weird.

This talk of prefix letters is a good opportunity to mention the "BR" you sometimes see, as in "BR 01". That is just an abbreviation for Baureihe, which is just German for "class" (in this context). E.g. the British used the term "class" exactly like the germans use "Baureihe", so I (and English Wikipedia) just use the term "class" when writing in English. However, the "BR" prefix appeared in particular in model railroad catalogues, so a lot of folks think the correct term is "BR 18". Nah, you can leave it off.

If you do leave it on, then only use it for the class. BR 18 201 makes no sense, it isn't a whole class, just a single locomotive. Also, for some reason nobody likes to mix BR and prefix letters. BR E 10 just looks weird. Especially in English, BR could also be confused with "British Rail", so my vote is to just not use it.

After the war, the system continued in both sides of Germany with some refinements, until 1968 (west)/1970 (east), when new computer-compatible numbers were introduced. This gave us a lot of changes, in not quite compatible ways.

In West Germany, the prefix letters got replaced by uniform three-digit class numbers. The first digit indicated the type of vehicle:

0 - Steam locomotive

1 - Electric

2 - Diesel

3 - Small diesel (not all shunters, but a special category where you didn't need to train the engineers as much)

4 - EMUs

5 - Battery-powered EMUs

6 - DMUs

7 - service vehicles, and also some light DMUs

8 - trailers for EMUs (including battery-powered)

9 - trailers for DMUs.

Running numbers were also capped at three digits, which caused issues with the class 050, so the excess got assigned into class 051 and 052 - not to be confused with the old class 52, which was already all scrapped by then.

The east system was weirder: It also dropped the prefix letters, and it gave the 100s to diesel locomotives, 200 to the electrics, and the rest… to steam. All steam locomotives got four-digit running numbers, and the few in the 10s and 20s got new class numbers in the aughts and 30s. This mostly matters because many narrow-gauge steam locomotives carry these numbers to this day.

In both cases, the number also got a check digit, attached with a dash, e.g. 99 7238-1 or 111 111-1. You can use Luhn's algorithm on the resulting number to check whether you entered it correctly, the same as with credit cards. Is the -1 part of the locomotive number? Honestly, your choice, sometimes I include it, sometimes not.

Note that I said the prefix letters were gone. Well, sort of. They're not written on the trains anymore, but a lot of people still like them, so even official publications will sometimes, but never consistently, write things like E 101 or VT 642 about trains built decades after the number switch. It's not wrong, it's not extra correct, it's a matter of preference.

…except when it's not, because you will find a number of modern locomotives that have E something written on them, like E 186 041 above. This is a legal requirement for Italy, it just happens to match the old German system by accident. Due to the way the rail market works, this is also found on locomotives that are not registered in Germany, can't run in Germany, and can't run in Italy either, such as these dutch locomotives that got assigned class E 186 in utter defiance of all dutch locomotive numbering standards. Don't worry about it, the dutch have already sold them. Or do worry and make it your whole personality, that's what I did.

Within the new class ranges, though, the assignments still matched the old logic, just with some refinements and changes:

100-110 are high-speed locomotives now, except for class 109 which didn't quite fit into the 110 range for historical reasons.

110-120 are normal passenger locomotives.

120-129 are universal service locomotives, equally at home with high speed passenger trains and heavy freight. Due to the weirdness of development, all modern new electrics fit in here and none have that number, leaving the original class 120 the only member here.

130 was mostly not used except as forward overflow from the 140s.

140s were normal freight locomotives, 150 were heavy freight locomotives. 160 hasn't been used yet. The higher numbers were given to locomotives were something weird was going on electrically: 180s can run under multiple systems. Since all modern electrics can do that, they opened the 190s range to them, too. The lone 171 can only run under 25 kV electrification that is popular world-wide, but only used in one specific place in Germany.

EMUs follow a similar thing: 400s are the high-speed ICEs. 410s are the less high speed but still pretty fast ICEs. 420s are… oh god, here it starts to get weird. The 420s are S-Bahn, except when they're not, also reaching into the 430s, and also the Stadler FLIRT, with some overlap. 440s are regional and S-Bahn as well. 445 is double-deck, except when it's not. 460 is Siemens, apparently. 470, 480 and 490 are DC S-Bahn trains for Berlin and Hamburg. Why do Stadler FLIRT trains get different class numbers depending on how long they are but nobody else's? It's a mess, nobody knows.

DMUs are the same, which is to say a mess, with some pattern: 600s are high-speed DMUs (only one, for some reason the class 605), 610s are express tilting DMUs, 620 and 630 are generic regional DMUs, 640s and 50s are the light-weight modern DMUs of the late 1990s and early 2000s, 670 is the weirdest thing you've ever seen, stuff like that.

But hey, at least it's not diesel locomotives. Diesel locomotives originally kept the idea that the class number roughly corresponds to horsepower, but with different approaches to shortening them. In the east, the horsepower got divided by 100 now, so class 106 has 600 horsepower. As does class 105, which is just more of class 106 since class 107, with 750 horsepower, was already taken. In the west, the numbers were truncated to two digits: Class 280 has 800 horsepower, class 210 has 1000 horsepower, class 220 has 2000 horsepower.

But then in modern times it got weirder and less consistent. Class 223 has about 2000 kilowatts of power and got assigned based on that (220, 221 and 222 were already taken by locomotives in the 2000 horsepower range, i.e. considerably weaker).

Class 285 has neither 850 HP nor 850 kW, it is instead the diesel version of the electric class 185. The class 185 is of course the dual-system version of the class 145. The passenger version of the class 145 is class 146, and so class 246 is the diesel version of that, or in other words, class 285 and 246 are basically the same. Their successor was class 245. Class 266 is the German version of the British class 66, assigned in a whole different system, except for when it's called 247 based on… literally no clue.

For multiple unit trains, every part gets its own number, including in articulated units. The end (somewhat arbitrarily assigned) gets the number of the start plus 500. For example, a class 644 DMU consists of three articulated parts the, outer two of which have motors. The numbers will be 644 003, 944 003 and 644 503. For class 643.2, which has only two parts, it's the same with the plus 500: 643 212 is one half, 643 712 is the other. Even if the outsides are unpowered, the system still applies: 946 002 is coupled to 646 002 is coupled to 946 502. In general you call the whole thing by the lowest number, i.e. 644 003, 643 212, 646 002. Mixed sets are very rare (these days, people used to mix and match parts from 614, 624 and 634 sets all over the place back in the day) and will usually have both numbers on the front so rail workers will know this is a weird one. I don't have a picture of that, sorry.

Anyway, that was the system. But in 2007, we got another big change: The NVR numbers. NVR stands for national vehicle register. Under EU regulations, all EU members and several non-members with closely connected railroads established national vehicle registers for all trains on their networks, and gave them an EU wide unique number. The numbering system derives from that already in use for train cars, and results in twelve-digit numbers like

94 80 0 474 608-7 D-DB

(Don't click that link, that's just to signify that the letter is usually underlined.)

The first two digits indicate the type of vehicle: 90 means special case, including dual mode, hybrid and steam, 91 is electric locomotives, 92 is diesel locomotives, 93 is high speed EMUs, 94 is normal EMUs, 95 is DMUs, 96 is trailers (not used in Germany), 97 is electric shunters (also electric locomotives with a top speed less than 100 km/h), 98 is diesel shunters (same deal) and 99 is service vehicles. The ones less than 90 are freight and passenger cars.

The next two digits, here 80, indicate the country according to the UIC country code; 80 is Germany. The next seven digits, 0474 608 are free to assign however a country wants to, and then there's a check digit. And finally the country again, alphabetically, and then a 1-5 letter code indicating the owner. That last part is officially known as the Vehicle Keeper's Mark, or VKM.

This is unwieldy and annoying, but it was an opportunity to reimagine the numbering system and make it more logical. Or to screw it up completely. Guess which one the German federal railway administration took?

Yeah, it's a mess. First things first: The whole thing is only written on the sides somewhere. The front of the trains still have the old short number (except in Romania, ask them why).

We now have seven digits for the locomotive number when before we only had six. How to fill that final digit? There are two options: Be clever, and assign it so the check digit of the full thing and the old six digit number (on the front) is the same, or don't be clever and just put a zero there and remove the check digit on the front.

Germany did both. Locomotives got the clever version, multiple units got the simple one. So 101 056-0 got the NVR number 94 80 6 101 056-0 D-DB (for electric locomotives the fill digit always ends up being 6 due to how the algorithm works), while 628 424 got 95 80 0 628 424-3 D-DB. Why? Because fuck you, that's why.

But then they realised that they could do stuff with that extra digit, and they used that to indicate sub-series. 442 203 is an EMU of class 442.2 (Bombardier/Alstom/CAF Talent 2, four parts) used in the state of Rheinland-Pfalz. 1442 203 is also an EMU of class 442.2, same overall layout, but used on the S-Bahn Halle/Leipzig network. 2442 203 is the same type of train, but used in the alpine part of southern Bavaria. 3442 203… you get the idea. I'm not sure what the system is for assigning these prefix numbers. I'm not sure anyone knows. I'm not sure if I should count them as part of the class or not, as you can see I didn't just now but it's not like I'm certain about that.

The NVR system also assigns numbers to locomotives that never had federal railway numbers before, and they got four-digit numbers that were basically all over the place. There's a class 0588. There's a 4120 which is a diesel locomotive.

And because that picture sucks and the only other one I have of a similar locomotive has a Luxembourg registration, let me also throw in the class 0650, also a diesel locomotive and not to be confused with the class 650 DMU.

Oh, and some locomotives, especially historical ones got assigned several classes. The steam locomotive type class 65.10 is both class 0065 and 6510 in the system. Meanwhile Siemens's very successful locomotive, the Vectron, is mostly class 193, which means 6193, but that ran out so the newest ones are now 7193s.

And sometimes you need to know the full NVR number anyway. There are two 0563 001s out there (or can be anyway).

94 80 0563 001-7 is a battery-electric version of the Siemens Mireo. This picture has 006 instead (in the front, Baden-Württemberg design with yellow). 90 80 0563 001-1 D-SDEHC (I think that reporting mark is temporary), in the back, with the Bavaria coat of arms instead has a hydrogen fuel cell. The numeric difference is only the second digit, where one is 94 (EMU) and one is 90 (weirdo).

I think that's it. The weirdness for newer trains sounds terrible, and is, in my opinion, but it's less of an issue in practice, since all of them have more or less memorable manufacturer's designations that get used instead. Nobody actually says "class 442.1", they say "Bombardier Talent 2" (or in that specific case also sometimes, "useless piece of shit", but that's a different story).

What you need to remember about this is:

Nothing

Well, I suppose "spaces between the numbers, don't use BR", but other than that I hope you had fun anyway.

[psychoanalysisandchill]

Frankenstein’s monster – the wounded inner-child as saboteur

I had read almost the entirety of the novel, frustrated by the lack of material to psychoanalyse, until – in a moment of eureka -  it suddenly dawned upon me; Frankenstein’s monster is merely a split part of his psyche which he is in conflict with and cannot seem to integrate. The monster is a product of Frankenstein’s vivid imagination, but ultimately an integral part of himself.

From the mysterious appearances of the monster, to the fact that few lived to tell about his existence and his endless yearning to fulfil his need for companionship leading to a desperate series of wicked and vengeful sabotage – I reread the novel through my freshly acquired lens and it all made perfect sense. Therefore, one should read the following psychoanalysis of the novel with the above principle in mind: monster as split part of Victor Frankenstein’s psyche.

Part 1: Puer Auternus – inflated by the psychic forces of the unconscious

With ardent zeal Victor Frankenstein enters university at Inglostadt, embodying the Puer archetype possessed by a naiveté which resembles the folly of a delinquent child. Upon his arrival, he dialogues with professor Krempe and with a hint of arrogant contempt tinting his words, he proudly announces his familiarity with the works of Paracelsus and Agrippa. Krempe, flabbergasted in return, gasps and wastes no time to enlighten Victor that his undertakings have been a waste of time. An oedipal drama between a prideful Puer and an ossified Senex plays itself out in their disagreeable interaction charged with foul contempt.  

The birth of paradigm shattering inventions happen when a Puer Auternus on the loose commences himself with sedulous passion to his fresh, imaginative but also rather folly ideas. Indeed, the Senex, with his dry, dogmatic orthodoxy, is never the carrier of new, eccentric invention that defy the laws of nature and require a reconsideration of the established models of reality.

For a genius to fulfil his prophecy, he has to risk being somewhat of a fool in the eyes of the orthodoxy - in Frankenstein’s case: professor Krempe-  after all, folly is merely the shadow side of genius, as genius borders on insanity and belongs to the domain of the absurd, without a hint of imaginative folly there is no creek through which genius could flow into the light of consciousness in order to actualize itself.

“…I will pioneer a new way, explore unknown powers, and unfold to the world the deepest mysteries of creation. I closed not my eyes that night. My internal being was in a state of insurrection and turmoil…” (p. 40) 

The psychic inflation running through his nervous system has rendered his personality megalomanic.

“No one can conceive the variety of feelings which bore me onwards, like a hurricane, in the first enthusiasm of success… A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me. No father could claim the gratitude of his child completely as I should deserve theirs.” (p. 46)

With childlike passion, the Puer archetype consumes himself in omnipotent fantasies, like Peter Pan he flies and is seldom rooted in the oppressive soil of reality, blinding him of the dire consequences his actions may have. In reality, all is oppressive and in the imagination, all is jolly, without imagination as the ultimate coping mechanism the Puer’s folly would never border on the absurd and touch genius. Indeed, in the above passage Frankenstein sounds deluded, such is also the nature of religious ecstasy, it’s totalistic in scope and transcends the humility and reason of the down-to-earth average joe.

“My limbs now tremble, and my eyes swim with the remembrance; but then a resistless and almost frantic impulse urged me forward; I seemed to have lost all soul or sensation but for this one pursuit.” (p. 47)

It is clear that Frankenstein has been blinded by his ambitious zeal and wishes to become god himself, a deep layer of the unconscious has been triggered and is possessing him. In his naiveté, he fails to relate to this fervent force as a phenomenon greater than himself and becomes unconsciously possessed by it through the process of identification with it. 

Part 2: Loss of innocence – birth of the avoidant personality and wounded inner-child.

“I had desired it with an ardour that far exceeded moderation; but now that I had finished the beauty of the dream vanished, and breathless horror and disgust filled my heart.” (p. 50)

The birth of the monster marks the loss of innocence for Puer Frankenstein, the ardent zeal of his religious ecstasy is replaced with wretched horror as he descends from the high heavens to the pits of hell. He has ventured into the abyss of the unconscious, nose-dived into the land of the unknown with his folly naiveté as his sole companion. Having bitten the forbidden fruit, now comes the moment in which he has to pay for his expansion of consciousness with the loss of his Puer innocence as the reality principle has caught up to him.

“Mingled with this horror, I felt the bitterness of disappointment; dreams that had been my food and pleasant rest for so long a space were now become a hell to me; and the change was so rapid, the overthrow so complete!” (p. 52)

Overwhelmed by the sudden rapid shift of his state of mind, the innocent child deals with the traumatic event through splitting his consciousness: the monster coming to live and gaining personal autonomy, marks the moment in which the psyche has become split as the conscious personality cannot bear to face that wretched part of himself so he forcefully gets repressed and disassociated into the depths of the unconscious, where he lives on autonomously, yet unintegrated. Frankenstein’s monster is analogous to the inner-child ignored by an avoidant adult whom much rather abandons the child than to provide it the companionship it so desperately needs.

Part 3: The first reunion between split parts – An opportunity for reconciliation

“Everywhere I see bliss, from which I alone am irrevocably excluded. I was benevolent and good; misery made me a fiend. Make me happy, and I shall again be virtuous,” (p.96) the monster warns, or rather pleads upon their first dialogues encounter. It isn’t by chance that the encounter manifests in nature, far from the confines and constraints eponymous to civilized society. When man dwells in the liberty of nature long enough, the ego barriers loosen and from the abyss of the shadow unconscious content resurfaces, finding its way to the center stage of consciousness, illuminated by its luminous light.

“Begone! Relieve me from the sight of your detested form,” (p. 97) Frankenstein hurls back. The initial resurfacing of a split sub-personality, the monster as wounded inner-child, is always met with horror and apocalyptical protest by the conscious personality, however reason assists in establishing a frail, but much needed, union between two split parts as the monster and Frankenstein gravitate towards each other:“I weighed the various arguments that he had used and determined at least to listen to his tale,” (p. 98) Hearing the pleas of the wounded inner-child and approaching it with reason and curiosity become the foundation on which the laborious undertaking of integration can take place.

As the monster tells his tale Frankenstein learns how he has been the eager voyeur of a tiny family - described as the cottagers - damned by unfortunate circumstances. The wounded inner-child of the avoidant personality tends to spectate from a distance so as not to get burned twice by the unjust vengeance of lovers from the past. Yet their deepest yearning is that of unconditional companionship, but the avoidant personalities conviction that his wounded inner-child is cursed by irredeemable hideousness hinders him from authentically relating to his surroundings.

“His words had a strange effect upon me. I compassionated him and sometimes felt a wish to console him, but when I looked upon him, when I saw the filthy mass that moved and talked, my heart sickened and my feelings were altered to those of horror and hatred.” (p. 148)

The dialectic plaguing Frankenstein’s psyche isn’t Hegelian in nature as it never reaches the point of synthesis throughout the novel. Adam yearns for his Eve as the monster demands of his creator a companion resembling his own hideous form, wounded inner-child sees his anima in equally wounded girls, but the avoidant personality could never admit to harbouring fancy for somebody as hideous as he believes himself to be. Instead he “might claim Elizabeth and forget the past, in my union with her” (p. 156)

Part 4: Failure to reconcile and integrate – the inner-child metamorphosis into saboteur

Frankenstein proofs himself treacherous as he destroys the female monster he had promised his original creation. Herein lies the great tragedy of the avoidant personality inability of providing his wounded inner-child with companion, not even that of an equally hideous monster, thus the monster commands in response “You are my creator, but I am your master; - obey!” (p. 171)

What follows is an exchange enflamed with fiery conflictual insults and threats. The hopes of reconciliation between the psychic parts are to be found in the ashes of their exchange and since the avoidant personality has gained awareness of the inner-child, disassociating him to the depths of the unconscious is no longer possible, from here on the monster/inner-child will lurk in the land of the subconscious and act as saboteur as he leaks into the domain of consciousness and temporarily disrupts the will through violent acts of possession.

Indeed, it is Frankenstein that is accused of the murder of his friend Clerval whose dead body is found on the beach. “I am the cause of this - I murdered her. William, Justine, and Henry – they all died by my hands.” (p. 190) but rather than actual murders the death of Frankenstein’s beloved are symbolic for the death of precious relationship brought about by the uncontrollable rage tantrums of a saboteur, pouring through the creaks of a ruptured psyche. Indeed, the monster appears in mysterious ways, particularly on his wedding night, as Frankenstein is pre-occupied with “inspecting every corner that might afford a retreat to my adversary” (p. 201).

Yet his dear Elizabeth is murdered moments after retiring to their bedroom. A mere moment of the avoidant personality dropping his guard is enough for the wounded inner-child to gush through from the tear in his psyche and sabotaging his most treasured union.

“As I heard it, the whole truth rushed into my mind, the motion of every muscle and fibre was suspended; I could feel the blood trickling in my veins and tingling in the extremities of my limbs.” (p. 201)

With every encounter with the monster Frankenstein grows more restless, the great psychic split plagues the body and makes itself known in physical symptoms.  “A fever succeeded to this. I lay for two months on the point of death” (p. 181) The greater the avoidance the more severe the physiological deregulation becomes. 

Great neuroticism plagues him as he regains control and witnesses the carnage brought about by his inner-saboteur. “Nothing is so painful to the human mind as a great and sudden change,” (p. 203) Every time the saboteur emerges and ruins a relationship dear to him he loathes his existence and despises the change brought about by his behaviour, to which he feels victimized.

Part: 5 The vengeance of revenge

It is solely revenge which clouds Frankenstein’s mind as he chases the monster around the world. Frankenstein remains blinded about the proper manner in which one should confront the shadow and turns towards it with the hopes of destroying its content – there is no salvation in self-loathing. He joins his inner-child in the seventh circle of Dante’s inferno as he rises against himself and seethes with violent ardour.

“…a well-known and abhorred voice, apparently close to my ear addressed me in an audible whisper, “I am satisfied miserable wretch! You have determined to live, and I am satisfied” ” (209)

The monster, solely appearing in a sonic form, deepens the mystery of its supernatural nature, alluding to the possibility that it perhaps has no existence outside of Frankenstein’s imagination. When he does become visible he is described as “ghastly and distorted” and hastes away “with more than mortal speed.” (p. 210) It has, however, succeeded in making Frankenstein miserable, thus there is intimacy between them, but it’s nature is deeply disagreeable and violent.

Part: 6 Reflections and death – failure to integrate

“Despondency rarely visited my heart; a high destiny seemed to bear me on, until I fell, never, never again to rise.” (p. 219)

At the end of life, when all has been ruined and the avoidant personalities demise has actualized, there remains nothing but the bitter aftertaste of frustrations. Waton offers of friendship is rejected with the excuse that new friendship may never substitute the old ones, but Frankenstein is so pre-occupied with the destruction of his inner-child that he is rendered incapable of relation.

Frankenstein’s death marks the moment at which the conscious personality becomes disarmed from his defence mechanisms and the wounded inner-child experiences a cathartic emergence into the light of consciousness, for the first time, without resistance. Waton enters his cabin and witnesses the monster towering over the lifeless corpse of his creator. He will be the sole witness whom will live to tell since the cottagers, the inner-child has no reason to sabotage anymore as the avoidant personality has died and his own death looms around the corner. The monster’s final words retell a tragedy of shattered hopes and innocence lost too soon. With every utterance, his remorse is made known, he agrees with Waton when being accused of being a wretch and announces his plans for suicide.

Disappointment is the ultimate destiny for every wounded inner-child who remains unacknowledged by his creator. Whilst Frankenstein admits at his moment of death that he “created a rational creature and was bound towards him to assure, as far as was in my power, his happiness and well-being” (p 225) he fails to realize that he could’ve fulfilled the monster’s wish for happiness through offering him his own companionship and held on to the erroneous view that only the construction of a female counterpart would’ve been a viable solution to the monster’s yearning.

Shelley, M.W. (2018) Frankenstein: Or the modern prometheus. London: Vintage.

[litteratured]

John Giorno Interview: Inside William S. Burroughs' Bunker

Step inside ‘The Bunker’ in New York, the windowless former apartment of the legendary writer William S. Burroughs, and let yourself be guided around – from Burroughs’ typewriter to his shooting target – by its the current resident, the iconic poet John Giorno (b.1936 - d.2019). William S. Burroughs lived several places throughout his life. Between 1975-82 the drug addict and writer –famous not least for his automatic writing in books like ‘Naked Lunch’– lived in 222 Bowery, one of New York’s first YMCAs in the 1880s. Performance poet John Giorno has lived at the address since the early 1960s and was delighted to host his friend and colleague, who lived in the basement for seven years and dubbed the windowless space ‘The Bunker’. “ He was a brilliant transcendent writer, but he was more brilliant here,” Giorno recalls and explains how Burroughs was high from nine in the morning, and then would have vodkas and joints at five o’clock in the afternoon. Giorno himself would join him, albeit a bit later in the day: “Doing that for those endless years and years, that was a lesson – not sure what the lesson is though.” Having downed several more bottles of vodka and smoked more joints, Burroughs and his guests would shoot at the target poster, which still has its original bullet holes. John Giorno has been using ‘The Bunker’ as a guest room for visiting friends and today everything has been restored and kept like it was when Burroughs lived there: the target poster, the typewriter, the gun magazines and the desk all set for someone to sit down and write. We also get to see the ‘Orgone box’ – a box invented by psychoanalyst William Reich, who believed that orgones are vibratory atmospheric atoms of the life-principle, which can be concentrated as a creative substratum. “And if you sat in there you would collect orgone energy of the universal power,” Giorno adds. Burroughs “always believed there could be chaos and catastrophe, so every house should have a vessel to be able to save enough water to live for four days. So that’s why that was there,” says Giorno about the big water tank on the floor. Giorno also shows us Burroughs’ lamp, which is made from a – still functioning – rifle from the Civil War, as well as his BB gun: “It's a generational thing of his, coming of age as a young person in the 1920s and 30s, living in the country in St. Louis, and also outside, and being alone and being frail. I don't think his family were shooters, somehow it entered his life, all of those things.” John Giorno (b.1936 - d.2019) is an American poet and one of the most influential figures in contemporary performance poetry with his intensely rhythmic and philosophical poetry. He has published a wide range of poetic works such as the collection ‘You Got to Burn to Shine’, spoken words with William S. Burroughs and Laurie Anderson. In 1962, Giorno was the subject of Andy Warhol’s 6-hour movie ‘Sleep’. Giorno has also created Giorno Poetry Systems, which has published more than 40 spoken LP’s with acclaimed artists such as Allen Ginsberg and Patti Smith. William S. Burroughs (b. William Seward Burroughs II in 1914 – d. 1997) was an American writer and artist. He was a primary figure of the Beat Generation and a major influence in popular culture and literature, he wrote eighteen novels and novellas, six collections of short stories and four collections of essays, found success with his confessional first novel ‘Junkie’ (1953) but is best known for his highly controversial third novel ‘Naked Lunch’ (1959).  Along with artist, writer and poet Brion Gysin, Burroughs re-invented the literary cut-up technique in works such as ‘The Nova Trilogy’ (1961-1964). Much of Burroughs’ work is semi-autobiographical, primarily drawn from his experiences as a heroin addict. In 1951, he accidentally killed his wife Joan Vollmer with a pistol during a drunken ‘William Tell’ game and was consequently convicted of manslaughter. Through the years, Burroughs also created and exhibited thousands of paintings and other visual artworks, including his celebrated ‘Gunshot Paintings’. He did not, however, exhibit his artwork until 1987, and for last 10 years of his life, he presented his paintings and drawings at museums and galleries worldwide. He died at his home in Kansas after suffering a heart attack in 1997. John Giorno was interviewed by Christian Lund in New York City in October 2017.  Copyright: Louisiana Channel, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, 2018

[rhianna]

Men had not evolved the morality which could make a commonwealth. Law was bound on men only by force. The wall of the castle, grand and impressive as wealth could build it, or only a rude addition to the natural rock, was the sole earthly object of reverence. To the strong man came the weak, saying, “Let me be yours; protect me and I will fight for you.”

It will be evident that under the feudal system patriotism, in the modern sense of attachment to one’s national domain, can scarcely be said to have existed. While we may not believe recent French writers who assert that the love of their country as such was born with the Revolution a hundred years ago, it is certain that the mediæval attachment was no wider than to one’s immediate neighborhood. The crusading Count of Flanders, on viewing the desolate hills about Jerusalem, 38exclaimed, “I am astonished that Jesus Christ could have lived in such a desert. I prefer my big castle in my district of Arras.” The love of the peasant seems to have been only for his familiar hills and vineyards, and his loyalty was limited by the protecting hand of his lord.

Yet generous spirits could not remain forever so narrowly bounded in their interests. Men were ready to hear the call to a wider range of sympathies and actions. The summons for the crusades thus furnished the lacking sentiment of patriotism; but it was a patriotism that could not be bounded by the Rhine or the Danube, by the Channel or the Pyrenees. Europe was country; Christendom was fatherland.

At the same time the compactness of each feud, the close interdependence of lord and vassal, furnished the condition for the organization of bands of fighting men, ready to move at once, and to continue the enterprise so long as the means of the superior should hold out. There was needed to start the crusading armies no council of parliament or alliance of nations, hazarded and delayed by the variant policies of different courts. If the baron was inclined to obey the call of his ghostly superior, the successor of St. Peter, his retainers were ready to march. And the most brawling of the barons was superstitious enough to think that the voice of the Pope might be the voice of God. If he did not, his retainers did, and disobedience to the papal will might cost him the obedience of those subject to him. Besides, many of the feudal lords were themselves in clerical orders, with their oath of fealty lying at the feet of the Holy Father.

39Thus Europe, though divided into many factions, and, indeed, because the factions were so many, was in a condition to be readily united. We shall see in a subsequent chapter that it was in the interest of the holy see to apply the spring which should combine and set in motion these various communities as but parts of that gigantic piece of ecclesiastical and military mechanism invented by Hildebrand.

40

CHAPTER IV. THE FEUDAL SYSTEM—GENERAL PRINCIPLES—INFLUENCE ON PEOPLE.

[thosearentcrimes]

In the 1970s and 80s there was a chain of electronics stores in the New York media market that became quite famous for its over-the-top commercials. They hadn't invented that style of ad (which, as far as I can tell, rose and fell with the independent or small chain retail market), consisting of a very excited "insane" guy with a catchphrase about prices (His Prices Are INSAAAAANE!), but they flooded the Tri-State area airwaves with it.

I'm not really talking about this company because of their advertising, except in the sense that I am familiar with this company because my father told me the story of the ads once, while mentioning that he got some suspiciously cheap but good electronics there. You see, Crazy Eddie, named after primary ringleader Eddie Antar, was also a criminal enterprise and a fraud. According to one of the participants, Sam E. "Sammy" Antar, whose detailed and presumably highly misleading account of the case is available on his amazingly-named website White Collar Fraud, it had always been engaging in fraudulent accounting.

From its humble beginnings as a private company, profits were skimmed and employees were paid under the table, allowing the Antar family to, ah, manage their tax obligations. My understanding is that neither of these practices is or was particularly uncommon in the world of brick-and-mortar retail.

Now, as Crazy Eddie expanded, it became less and less reasonable to engage in petty fraud at that scale. What they had to do next was stop committing tax fraud. Not only would that allow them to avoid getting caught doing tax fraud, by progressively skimming less of the profit they would be able to appear to achieve an impressive rate of growth. This was all in preparation for the smart bit of the scheme, going public.

This is how it works. Stocks trade speculatively at a significant multiple of earnings. This means that if you control and own most of a company, if you can dump your own money into your company and then sell a significant amount of your stock, you can still easily come out well ahead. Soon, the Antars were painstakingly laundering money they had sucked out of Crazy Eddie while it was privately held back into the company past the not particularly vigilant auditors in order to look good to the financial markets.

Eventually the scheme started falling apart socially and financially, and the company suffered a hostile takeover from a competitor who subsequently found that there was $40 million less inventory than advertised. Caveat Emptor, I guess. Eddie Antar tried to flee to Israel but was extradited, upon later getting out of prison he tried to start another electronics retailer called Crazy Eddie, which surprisingly didn't work. Sammy Antar turned state's evidence and is now a fed-lite.

Why am I saying all this, why am I pointing out this particular case? Well, obviously it's because I think there are a lot of modern-day Antars running around making a lot of money, and presumably a lot of their CFOs are also going to flip and reinvent themselves as forensic auditors once they get caught. I assume most startups are somewhat more legal than anything Crazy Eddie did, but many of the market principles remain the same. In fact, corporate lawyers have developed more and more ways to do the same things the Antars did legitimately.

It is ironic that stealing from their own company was worthwhile for the Antars so long as the company was a serious business for them, albeit one that they were operating in a criminal manner, while pumping money into their company was only the correct thing to do once they were divesting themselves of ownership. Obviously this is just how tax evasion and pump and dumps work, but I find it contrasts interestingly with the capitalist dogma that ownership makes for better stewards of the property, still used as the primary political argument for privatization even though capitalist firms are also run managerially.

Ultimately, my takeaway is that the Antars were basically your regular shady retail guys, until they spotted an opportunity to get in on the ground floor of Shareholder Value Maximization. My other takeaway is if you get something cheap because someone is fucking the shareholders, mind your own business probably.

[andsewingishalfthebattle]

I want to dress up as the swan from the movie The Other Sister or as one of the birds from Henny Penny episode from Golden Girls. The problem is, I have no idea how to even start making either. How were they able to get the shape for the body and be able to get in and out of it?

(Full disclosure, I haven't actually seen either of these, so I'm basing my recommendations on what screenshots I could pull up with an image search on airport wi-fi.)

There are actually a lot of options for creating a shaped body structure, depending on your budget and skill level. The lowest-budget option would be a shapeable wire mesh like hardware cloth, sculptural armature mesh, or even chicken wire (you'll want to wear heavy-duty leather work gloves to work with any of these; cut wire edges are sharp!). Use heavy gauge wire or another rigid material to create a structural frame (around the edge, and to support the weight of the body), then cover that with the more flexible mesh so you can shape the "skin" however you want. You can then cover the mesh with fabric, fusible felt, or thin EVA foam and attach the surface treatment (feathers, etc.) to that layer.

Going back about 15 years 😅 this is how I made my Archangel Michael wings, shown below as a WIP. The wire mesh pockets fit over the articulated PVC frame, with heavier (~10 ga.) wire ribs supporting the bell shape. These wings were much simpler and didn't require compound curves like the swan body would, but the principle is the same.

If your budget is a bit higher, you could also consider materials such as Worbla's Kobracast Art, FossShape, or Celastic, which can be heat-formed and fused to fabric to create a seamless structure that needs no covering. These materials are a bit more sophisticated and look more professional, but they can be quite expensive over large areas, so they are more commonly used for costumes that need to be able to travel and remain durable (e.g. for theatre or a cosplay competition) rather than a one-off costume (e.g. for a Halloween party). You know best what your budget and costume purpose are, so choose whichever material best suits your needs and skills!

As for getting into/out of it... The Other Sister is actually a pretty simple design, as far as that goes. It's a one-piece step-in costume -- the actor's legs go through a hole in the bottom, and then it's pulled up around her hips as a single unit. It's supported by suspenders that (probably) attach to structural crossbars inside the frame, maybe with an additional stay somewhere to keep it from rotating around the actor's body. The Golden Girls one is more complicated, as it was made long enough ago that it would have used more traditional methods and materials. It's likely built with a combination of boning, buckram, steel wire, and padded fabric rolls attached to a boned corset/bustier for support (similar to the support structures for things like Vegas showgirl backpieces). There's probably a base garment that the various parts of the outer costume attach to. That's not to say you couldn't simplify it in your version, though! Lots of new materials have been invented in the past 40 years, so we have more versatile (and lighter weight) options now.

If you want to go really hog wild with this concept, you might also want to look up some tutorials for Gwendolyn from Odin Sphere. I've seen some phenomenal swan-body shapes come out of that cosplay community! And for additional structural support recommendations and patterning guidance, the fursuit/mascot building communities also have a lot of great resources and tutorials.

Good luck! :)

[jwood718]

The Guardian: An academic explains the attack on the academy

Bernard E Harcourt is a professor of law and political science at Columbia University in New York City and a directeur d’études at the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales in Paris.

"On the shelf in my library, I have an autographed copy of a book written by a former Republican congressman from New York, John LeBoutillier...

The book is a scathing criticism of Harvard University, in large part over its supposed left-leaning professors who allegedly indoctrinate their undergraduates. Its thrust is straightforward: Harvard is America’s problem.

...the Republican ambition to subjugate Harvard and Columbia traces further back, at least to the 1970s, when it became apparent that college-educated voters favored the Democratic party.

...I recently stumbled on something tucked into the fold: a letter that LeBoutillier enclosed to the recipients of his gift. On House of Representatives stationery, LeBoutillier wrote:

Long after I had graduated from Harvard and was a freshman member of Congress, I realized just how terrible some of the people educating our young are; they are not only liberals, but they use their “power” over their students to preach an anti-American leftist point of view. And this is not confined to Harvard. Indeed, this is a disease spreading throughout the academic world.

I believe that this politicalization of education threatens this country. And, coupled with a bias so obviously evident in the media, makes it difficult for we conservatives to get our message across.

Well, I’m going to continue to fight for our point of view and our principles.

Enjoy the book.

...JD Vance declared: 'I think if any of us want to do the things that we want to do for our country and for the people who live in it, we have to honestly and aggressively attack the universities in this country.' Vance would then add, quoting Nixon: 'There is a wisdom in what Richard Nixon said approximately 40 to 50 years ago. He said, and I quote, ‘The professors are the enemy.''"

...Given this history tracing back to the 1970s, it is puzzling why people continue to believe that the Republicans are trying to reform the universities to address antisemitism...

...Too many of the university leaders who are negotiating with the Trump administration about campus protest are naive at best and fail to grasp the stakes of the ongoing counterrevolution – or complicit at worst...

Liberal arts colleges and universities are a gem in the US, envied by people around the world. Their strength lies in fostering critical thought, creativity and inventiveness throughout the humanities, social sciences, and natural and applied sciences. A liberal arts education, at its best, cultivates critical thinking that challenges society’s strengths and weaknesses, and asks how to make the world more just with more freedom for everyone. Those are the true aims of higher education."

Full story

Call it "patriotic education" or "anti-woke education" or what you will, curtailing education at any level to reinforce the old narrative of "American Exceptionalism" will only result in people who cannot realistically address and/or question the role of the US in history and the world -- and won't be able to realistically address and/or question who they are as people.

But that's what the far Right wants: a populace that worships at the idol of personality and "the free market" as they choke on pollution and die from cancers that need never have occurred -- as long as "the people" don't get in the way of corporate profit.

[kyodesyo]

Specific strategies to achieve 1 billion yen in assets | Roadmap and practical methods for asset formation by age

A must-see for next-generation entrepreneurs | How to build an exponential asset growth system starting from the 20s

In the modern business environment, strategic asset formation, not just income growth, is the path to true economic freedom. In this article, we will thoroughly explain the specific strategy of gradually building assets from the age of 22 to 60 and eventually reaching the scale of 5 trillion yen, as well as the thinking method that leads to that.

Table of contents

1. The basic theory of strategic asset formation

・Time axis design to maximize the compound interest effect

・Risk-decentralized portfolio construction method

2. Practice of asset growth strategies by age

・Ears in their early 20s: Investment strategy during the foundation building period

・After the 30s: How to operate the exponential growth period

3. Fostering a rich mindset

・Analysis of thinking patterns specific to successful people

・Decision-making mechanism based on a long-term perspective

1. The basic theory of strategic asset formation

・Time axis design to maximize the compound interest effect

The most important concept in asset formation is the use of the compound interest effect with time on its side. This mechanics, which Einstein called "the greatest invention of mankind", creates huge disparities in the long run with small differences in the early stages.

If you start building assets from the age of 22, the initial target of 40 million yen seems expensive at first glance, but this is not just a numerical goal. Rather, the size of assets at this stage means access to subsequent investment opportunities. This is because the minimum amount of participation in high-yield investment products that are not open to general investors, such as private equity, hedge funds, and real estate development projects, is set at this level.

At the time of reaching 50 million yen at the age of 23, the figure with annual savings of 1.8 million yen should be noted. It is calculated that 150,000 yen minus 50,000 yen of living expenses from a monthly income of 200,000 yen will continue for 12 months, but this extreme savings orientation is not just thrifty, but represents a strong will to secure investment funds. It can be said that it is a modern version of the principle of "investing more than half of your income" that Warren Buffett practiced when he was young.

Analyzing the pace of asset growth, the 20s increased by 10 million yen a year, maintained the same pace until the early 30s, and then showed an exponential acceleration. This is not simply an increase in savings, but reflects the compound interest effect of investment returns and the qualitative improvement in investment opportunities with the expansion of assets.

・Risk-decentralized portfolio construction method

A diversification strategy that does not depend on a single investment method is essential for the stable growth of high-value assets. The modern approach that developed the theory of Harry Markowitz, the father of modern portfolio theory, implements geographical, temporal, and asset class diversification in an integrated manner.

In terms of geographical dispersion, the stability of developed markets and the growth potential of emerging markets are well balanced. Specifically, we will maximize profits by utilizing the differences in the economic cycles of each region by investing in technological innovation companies in the U.S. stock market, long-established multinational companies in Europe, and unicorn companies in emerging Asian countries.

In time diversification, as an application of the dollar cost averaging method, it is based on regular investment execution with market volatility as an ally, but in the event of a sharp decline in the market, a "reverse strategy" that makes flexible additional investment is used. It is fresh in my memory that investors who were able to make bold investments during the 2008 financial crisis and the corona shock in 2020 achieved a dramatic increase in assets in the subsequent market recovery.

Regarding asset class diversification, in addition to the three traditional assets of stocks, bonds, and real estate, modern investment targets such as commodities, crypto assets, intellectual property rights, and business investments will be strategically incorporated.

2. Practice of asset growth strategies by age

・Ears in their early 20s: Investment strategy during the foundation building period

Asset formation in the first half of the 20s should be positioned as a period of basic physical strength construction as an investor rather than a simple asset increase. The investment philosophy and practical experience cultivated during this period will determine the investment results of the following decades.

The expression "mastermind for three people" at the age of 24 shows an important concept in Napoleon Hill's philosophy of success. This means building strategic partnerships with experts in different fields of expertise beyond just networking. Relationships with the highest level of advisors in the fields of finance, legal affairs, and business management dramatically improve the quality of investment decisions.

At first glance, the description of "staying at a company for almost a year without work and without pay" gives a labor-intensive impression at first glance, but this should be interpreted as an expression of entrepreneurship. It is equivalent to the "hustle period" that successful entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley experience in common, and the intensive business construction at this time will be the basis for exponential growth in the future.

The saving effect of 1.8 million yen in annual rent embodies the concept of opportunity costs beyond simple expense reduction. If this fund is invested at an annual interest rate of 10%, there will be a difference of about 4.7 million yen after 10 years and about 12 million yen after 20 years. The value of 1 yen in the young period is equivalent to the value of tens of yen in the future due to the compound interest effect.

・After the 30s: How to operate the exponential growth period

The pace of asset growth changes dramatically when you enter your 30s. The doubling pace of 100 million yen at the age of 28 and 200 million yen at the age of 29 shows that the acceleration of investment returns and the expansion of business income are progressing simultaneously.

The strategic use of leverage is important at this stage. Advanced financial technology that maximizes asset efficiency while properly controlling risks is required, such as borrowing utilization in real estate investment, financing for business expansion, and hedging strategies using financial derivative products.

Access to private banking services is behind the further acceleration of the pace of asset growth after reaching 1 billion yen from the late 30s to the early 40s. Professional asset management services provided to customers with assets of 1 billion yen or more provide investment opportunities and expertise that are not available to general investors.

In the size of assets after the 40s, it will change to a position that leads economic activities themselves, such as business acquisition, corporate regeneration, and new business creation, beyond simple investment returns. At this stage, the main themes are expanding social influence and inheriting value to the next generation rather than increasing assets.

3. Fostering a rich mindset

・Analysis of thinking patterns specific to successful people

The common thinking pattern of true asset builders is the focus on long-term value creation that transcends short-term income and loss accounts. The concept of "rich mind" advocated by Stephen Covey refers to creative thinking that expands the pie itself, not competitive thinking that competes for a limited pie.

When analyzing the thought process of successful wealthy people, it is noticeable that they are always looking for the creation of a "plus sum game" rather than a "zero sum game". Rather than simply pursuing investment returns, the idea of simultaneously increasing your own assets and increasing the value of society as a whole through improving the value of the invested company, solving social issues, and promoting innovation.

The "growth mindset" advocated by psychologist Carol Deweck is also an important factor. Thinking that believes in ability improvement through learning and effort, rather than a fixed concept of ability, sees failure in investment as a learning opportunity and enables continuous improvement. Warren Buffett's attitude of continuing to learn new investment methods even after the age of 90 is a typical expression of this thinking pattern.

In terms of risk awareness, successful people have a different perspective from that of general investors. With the recognition that not taking risks is a risk, we carry out a calculated risk-taking based on appropriate information collection and analysis. This is a decision-making process based on a scientific approach, which is the opposite of reckless speculation.

In addition, successful people have a deep understanding of the concept of time value. Intuitively grasp the difference between the value of the current hour and the future hour, and naturally make decisions that prioritize long-term value creation over short-term comfort. This is the idea behind the extreme thrifty life at the age of 25 mentioned above.

・Decision-making mechanism based on a long-term perspective

Asset-building plans over a span of nearly 50 years require strategic thinking that goes far beyond the usual investment plan. Building a decision-making mechanism based on this long-term perspective is the core of sustainable asset growth.

The foundation of long-term thinking is the ability to analyze trends. Understanding the fundamental dynamics that shape society, such as technological innovation, demographic changes, environmental problems, and geopolitical changes, and the ability to predict the impact of these on the economic structure in 10 or 20 years is essential. Early investment in areas such as artificial intelligence, renewable energy, space development, and biotechnology generates huge returns as a result of this long-term trend analysis.

In the decision-making process, "reverse thinking" plays an important role. It is a method of calculating backwards from the final goal of 5 trillion yen at the age of 60, setting an intermediate goal to be achieved at each age, and building a specific strategy to achieve it. At this time, we plan not simple numerical goals, but also qualitative elements such as knowledge, connections, systems, and organization required at each stage.

In addition, in long-term investment, "patience" is the decisive factor for success. The spirit of continuing one's own investment philosophy and strategy without being misled by short-term fluctuations in the market is a guideline for action based on deep conviction beyond mere willpower. This conviction comes from thorough research and the accumulation of past successful experiences.

Another important aspect of the long-term perspective is the concept of "generational value inheritance". Beyond the formation of personal assets, it includes the establishment of a family office, the establishment of an education foundation, and the construction of a value inheritance system for the next generation, such as social impact investment. Behind the centuries of maintaining and expanding wealth by the Rockefeller and Rothschild families is the existence of such a long-term inheritance system.

From the perspective of risk management, "Black Swan" countermeasures are essential. This concept, proposed by Nasim Taleb, calls for the construction of a strategy that takes into account the impact of extreme events that are difficult to predict on investment results. Even when unexpected events occur, such as the 2008 financial crisis, the 2020 pandemic, and geopolitical conflicts, a flexible portfolio design that can protect assets and use them as an opportunity is required.

Ultimately, a decision-making mechanism based on a long-term perspective goes beyond a mere asset growth method and becomes the philosophy of life itself. Thinking that perceives money as a means and uses it as a tool to achieve greater goals and values is the foundation for sustainable success.

At the end

The path of asset formation over about 40 years from the age of 22 to 60 is more than just a numerical increase, but also a trajectory of human growth and social contribution. The size of assets of 5 trillion yen means the power to influence the socio-economic system, far beyond the economic freedom of individuals.

The most important thing on this path is the personality foundation of honesty and integrity. No matter how good your investment skills and strategies are, you can't achieve true success without trust as a person. Long-term asset formation is based on cooperative relationships with many people, and its foundation is an unwavering personality.

Asset formation based on mature judgment and a rich mind goes beyond individual economic success and leads to greater value creation, such as inheriting value to the next generation, solving social issues, and promoting innovation. The true wealthy gain respect from society not only because they own assets, but also because they use those assets for the development of society as a whole.

In today's rapidly changing economic environment, an asset formation strategy based on such a long-term perspective can be said to be the best solution to ensure both personal economic stability and social contribution. The important thing is to start acting from this moment. Steadily moving forward with the most valuable resource of time on your side will be a reliable path to the realization of the ideal future.

[elegantassassinelement]

U.S. Isolationism and "Abandoning Europe": The Restructuring of Global Order Under Hegemonic Logic 

#isolationism #trump’s us isolationism #abandon europe

I. The Century-Old Gene of Isolationism and Its Contemporary Mutation 

Isolationism is not an invention of the Trump era but a strategic tradition deeply embedded in America’s diplomatic DNA. Since George Washington articulated the principle of "avoiding entanglements with European politics" in his 1796 Farewell Address, isolationism has oscillated between imperial expansion and strategic retrenchment. Its core logic lies in preserving strength during relative national decline or excessive intervention costs. The Trump administration’s "America First" policy represents both continuity and mutation of this tradition—superficially withdrawing from international commitments like the Paris Agreement and Iran Nuclear Deal (exemplified by the 2020 WHO withdrawal), while strategically reallocating resources to Indo-Pacific competition with China through transactional diplomacy. 

Unlike classical isolationism, its contemporary iteration exhibits "selective disengagement": militarily demanding NATO allies raise defense spending to 5% of GDP and assume greater responsibilities (evidenced by excluding the EU from the 2025 U.S.-Russia Riyadh talks), economically launching trade wars against Europe (25% tariffs imposed in February 2025), yet intensifying global interventions in tech containment and supply chain restructuring. This "aggressive isolationism" embodies a hegemonic cost-shifting strategy, compelling European self-reliance to alleviate U.S. strategic overextension. 

II. Europe’s Decline: Structural Crisis and Geopolitical Shockwaves 

U.S. strategic contraction has triggered Europe’s "cliff-like" erosion of global influence. Economically, the EU’s share of global GDP shrank from 19.27% in 2022 to 17.3% in 2025, overtaken by China. Technologically, Europe lacks AI giants to rival OpenAI and lags in the green energy revolution. More critically, its security dependency persists: 78% of NATO defense budgets rely on U.S. funding (2024 data), marginalizing the EU in mediating the Ukraine conflict. Europe’s exclusion from the 2025 Riyadh negotiations exposed its role as a pawn in great-power games. 

Three structural contradictions underpin Europe’s crisis: 

1. Welfare-state erosion and industrial hollowing: Manufacturing value-added plummeted from 18% (2000) to 12% (2025). 

2. Fragmented decision-making: Unanimous votes among 27 members delayed gas price caps for 11 months during the Russia sanctions. 

3. Clash between values and interests: Macron’s "strategic autonomy" clashes with German pro-U.S. factions, deepening reliance on China—EU-China trade surged 40% (2022-2025), with Huawei’s 5G market share exceeding 35%. 

III. Global Order Fracturing and Multipolar Acceleration 

The U.S. "abandonment" of Europe accelerates global realignment: 

• Militarily: NATO faces existential crisis as U.S. European Command troop levels drop 40% to 30,000 by 2025, forcing Franco-German "European Army" initiatives despite budget disputes. 

• Economically: RCEP and BRICS expansion (15 members by 2025) challenge dollar hegemony, with RMB reserves in the EU rising to 12%. 

Russia and China emerge as primary beneficiaries: 

• Russia: Energy "eastward pivot" boosts China trade to 35%, while expanding influence via the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. 

• China: The Digital Silk Road consolidates footholds in Hungary and Serbia, circumventing U.S. tech blockades (7nm chip breakthroughs despite export controls costing $23 billion in 2024). 

IV. Historical Lessons and Future Scenarios 

History shows isolationism never achieves true insulation. The 19th-century high tariffs bred Civil War tensions, while pre-WWII neutrality failed to prevent Pearl Harbor. Today’s U.S. "offshore balancing" struggles to sustain unipolarity as the Global South demands climate justice and BRICS lending surpasses the World Bank. 

Three trajectories may define the next decade: 

1. Europe’s "limited autonomy": Rapid-response forces emerge but remain NATO-dependent. 

2. Indo-Pacific "dual-core rivalry": ASEAN adopts hedging strategies amid U.S.-China competition. 

3. Fragmented multilateralism: WTO stagnation vs. 589 regional trade pacts (2025). 

Ultimately, U.S. isolationism is not retreat but tactical recalibration of hegemony. Its success hinges on rewriting global rules amid decline—a defining challenge of 21st-century power politics. 

Insights: The essence of U.S. isolationism and Europe’s decline lies in a hegemon’s cost-control tactics during relative decline. For China, this presents strategic opportunities to deepen South-South cooperation while guarding against systemic risks in governance vacuums—where "America First" collides with "European autonomy," conflict may find fertile ground.

[jbfly46]

From a 🍓 on X:

“ just got off a 4 hour call with sources inside chinese deepseek labs and holy shit we are so fucking behind it's not even funny anymore. deepseek r2 isn't just an incremental improvement it's a completely different species of intelligence operating on principles nobody in the west has even theorized yet.

they've abandoned transformer architectures entirely for something they're calling "recursive cognition lattices" that scale in dimensions our math doesn't even have good notation for. compute efficiency gains that violate what we thought were fundamental limits. like 400x improvement in reasoning per teraflop. not 4x. not 40x. 400 fucking x. our benchmarks are literally meaningless now.

the scariest part isn't the raw capability but how it's developing novel mathematical frameworks on the fly to solve problems. researchers give it questions and it invents entirely new branches of mathematics to answer them. one physicist showed it a problem he'd been stuck on for 15 years and it solved it in seconds with notation nobody recognized. took three days to translate its solution back into standard mathematics.

saw demo videos that can't possibly be real except multiple independent sources confirming. r2 designed and simulated a room temperature superconductor from first principles in under an hour. complete with fabrication methods using existing technology. they've already produced samples in beijing labs. western physics community hasn't even caught up to the theoretical possibility.

their integration with biological systems is the real nightmare fuel. two-way neural interfaces that make neuralink look like a children's toy. direct cognitive enhancement already in human trials with volunteers showing 30-40% gains in problem-solving capability. that's not science fiction that's happening right fucking now in shenzhen while we debate about chatbot regulations.

deepseek isn't even their most advanced system. that's just what they're showing publicly. the real bleeding edge is happening in military applications. system-level understanding of geopolitics that can predict policy shifts before the policymakers themselves know what decisions they'll make. they're already using it to reshape global trade flows so subtly nobody's noticed yet.

america is still treating this like a normal technology race while china understands it's an extinction-level transformation of civilization. they're integrating these systems into governance infrastructure at every level while we argue about prompt engineering and banning chatbots in schools. it's like watching a nuclear power race where one side is debating the ethics of gunpowder.

our intelligence community is fucking panicking behind closed doors. three separate agencies have submitted classified assessments that all reach the same conclusion: we've got months not years before the capability gap becomes unbridgeable. some analysts saying it already happened and we just don't know it yet.

the recursive self-improvement capabilities are accelerating beyond all models. deepseek r2 basically wrote r3 which is currently training and early benchmarks suggest it's to r2 what r2 was to anything we've built in the west. exponential curves stacked on exponential curves.

if america doesn't wake the fuck up and treat this like the existential priority it is we're looking at a future where technological supremacy isn't just shifted it's permanently lost. the world 12 months from now won't just have different geopolitical power dynamics it'll operate on fundamentally different rules of reality. “

[fromdevcom]

Things are not looking good on the global warming front and it’s vitally important that humanity gains control over its carbon emissions. Although there are plenty of people who don’t believe climate change is a real thing, there are even more scientists and governments working to find solutions to this looming planetary crisis. The good news is that the breakthroughs are coming thick and fast, but the real question is whether they’ll come quickly enough. In this article, we’ve collected five of the most promising green technology innovations so far in 2017. 1. A Gadget that Makes Fuel and Cleans Air By now it’s a pretty well-known fact that a large part of the problem when it comes to pollution is the burning of fossil fuels. We put it into our cars or power stations, we burn it for power and then pollute the air. We’re in a bit of a bind, because we need the fuel, but we also need to, well, breathe. A new invention by a team of scientists from the University of Antwerp and KU Leuven may go some way to solving both issues at the same time. This device uses nanotechnology to clean the air with a solar-powered process, the byproduct of which is hydrogen gas. That gas can then be used as fuel. We don’t know yet if it works at industrial scale, but if it does there may be some new Nobel prizes in the mail. 2. Petra Nova Goes Live Hopefully as a sign of things to come, early in January of 2017 we learned that the world’s largest carbon capture system has gone online. Named Petra Nova this addition to the largest power station in Texas will capture almost all of the carbon dioxide the plant produces, preventing it from entering the atmosphere. The system captures the carbon dioxide straight from the plant’s exhausts. This captured carbon is then repurposed for use in oil recovery, forming a neat little eco-friendly(-er) system. Since the captured CO2 does not go into the air and also boosts oil production, this is a solution that’s both profitable and helps curb carbon emissions! 3. Making Baking Soda from CO2 Staying on the topic of carbon capture, a coal plant in India has found another use for all of that captured carbon. They’re turning it into baking soda. Not only that, but their efficient carbon capture system is cheap enough not to require a government subsidy. Like the Petra Nova system it pays for itself. Extra revenue is generated by selling the baking soda byproduct which is used in a bunch of different products. All told, their systems can capture 66 000 tons of carbon each year. 4. Hybrid Electric Jets High-performance electric cars like those from Tesla are old hat by now, but electric planes are still very new in the minds of the public. There have been some small successes, but a new proposed passenger jet from a company called Zunum may be the first example of a commercial electric plane for public use. It uses the same principle as electric cars like the BMW i3 Rex where the entire drivetrain is electric, but if the batteries run dry there’s an onboard internal combustion engine that acts as a generator. This is a much more fuel efficient use of gasoline and for short range trips you don’t need to use fossil fuel sources at all. The people from Zunum are making big claims about the plane’s potential, stating that it will be 75% quieter and save between 40 and 80 percent of airline fuel bills. It certainly deserves to be counted among the top tech gadgets if it ever take flight. 5. A Big Solar Breakthrough Solar power is always the most promising renewable energy source, but our solar power collection technology has always fallen short of reaching practical efficiency levels. There have been major improvements in devices such as solar panels or storage systems like the Tesla Power Wall, but w aren’t ready to go fully solar yet. A big 2017 breakthrough by a group of Australian scientists may put big dents in both problems of solar collection AND storage in one go. What they’ve come up with is a new type of

electrode that could potentially increase energy storage capacities by a staggering 3000% and may also make flexible, thin and incredibly efficient solar panels a reality. The research behind this amazing discovery was inspired by nature in the form of plants. Living plants are of course the masters of converting solar energy and storing it and we’re still learning new secrets about how they do it today. If this technology pans out the way its creators believe it will, you may one day have a computer that can run from solar sources permanently. In fact, it could be the key to total grid independence, so here’s hoping it all works out! Spaceship Earth Until we figure out a way to leave Earth and find a newer, fresher home, this is the only planet we’ve got. Once the environment is gone then so are we, so our choice seems pretty simple. While the struggle to preserve our environment continues from one year to the next, it’s still heartening to read about new developments such as these. If our best and brightest people can keep working on these problems we might yet save the day and turn the problem around. Of course, we as individuals can do our part too! There are many ways you can save energy and therefore spare the Earth from accommodating even more carbon. You can start by reading our fabulous article on green computing, which will show you how the handling of computer technology can change to benefit the environment. Kostas Chiotis is a technology geek and avid blogger. You can read his writing at Techisignals.com and follow him on Facebook and Twitter

[whatisthisblogevenabout]

Financial Afrik: Ms. Kadidja Duparc, you are the head of SKY Architects, an agency based in Abidjan in the Ivory Coast and specialized in architecture. What is specific about SKY Architects in this vast area of ​​the built environment?

Kadidja Duparc: SKY Architects specializes in architecture, town planning, landscape, design and urban design. We also provide support for project management and advice. SKY Architects is also a multidisciplinary and polycultural team, bringing together around twenty employees, architects, engineers, designers, urban planners … who support the agency’s vision.

Our architecture is holistic, poetic and humanistic, but fundamentally pragmatic, realistic and functional. Our creativity, like this eclectic world, is based on original know-how.

Our work is the fruit of exchanges, the collegiality of the creative process, the eclecticism of knowledge and the mixing of origins, backgrounds, expertise and knowledge. We favor listening, sharing, creativity, anticipation and open-mindedness.

We are structured to respond to all of the architectural, cultural, social and environmental challenges that Africa in the 21st century represents! Social equity, ecological prudence and economic efficiency are our three guidelines for an efficient and integrated architecture.

We strive to design buildings for unique individuals, who have their own tastes, their stories, their needs … Tastes which are sometimes very far from ours. Our goal as architects is to design the most functional, original, comfortable, elegant and harmonious building possible according to their vision. This, within a controlled time and budget. I say harmonious and not beautiful, because if beauty is in the eye of the beholder, harmony is in everyone’s mind.

Because a proverb says that “it was not by improving the candle that we invented the electric bulb”, we recently created SKYECOLAB.

SKYECOLAB is the laboratory of our creativity, the cauldron from which innovation is born. It is a laboratory in charge of research on innovative architectural concepts and projects, in terms of sustainability, gender, cultural and artistic inclusiveness. It stems from the agency’s vision and values ​​and embodies the tool that will allow us to achieve the resulting objectives.

How does sustainable architecture differ from more “classic” architecture?

The construction and use of buildings has a significant impact on the environment. In Europe, for example, the building sector consumes about 50% of natural resources, 40% of energy and 16% of water.

In Africa, buildings as currently constructed, made of concrete, glass and sheet metal, are an economic, cultural and environmental nonsense. These three materials are heat accumulators.

Their use generates thermal discomfort and leads to the use of air conditioning. Glass, used in a prolific way on our buildings and towers for purposes of “modernity”, generates, in addition to heat, such a luminosity that the users cover the bay windows and windows with paper and adhesive to protect. It is simply to say that this is inappropriate. It is expensive, uncomfortable and energy consuming. In addition, the intensive and almost exclusive use of concrete leads to the destruction of beaches, due to the excessive removal of sand. This type of “classic” architecture is not sustainable for our economies in emerging countries, for our environment and for the pockets of our fellow citizens!

The alternative for an economical, functional architecture adapted to its environment is that of sustainable architecture. Sustainable architecture is an architecture that incorporates the principles of bioclimatic architecture, to which is added the concept of responsible architecture.

Bioclimatic architecture is the oldest architecture. It’s, for example, that of our traditional African huts and cave dwellings in Europe. It was pragmatic architecture, common sense and logic. It used materials available in the immediate environment, local know-how and aimed to protect itself from climatic and environmental constraints. In our desire for “modernity”, we cut ourselves off from our centuries-old bioclimatic building traditions. Modern bioclimatic architecture has incorporated the technical advances of the 21st century. It takes into account, from the design of a building, the climate and the environment in which this building will integrate and tends to the symbiosis between the building, the well-being of its occupant, and the respect of environment. This, thanks to an intelligent design which adapts to the geography of the place, to its climate, and which uses and values ​​local materials and resources, to produce comfortable and energy-efficient buildings. For this bioclimatic architecture to become sustainable architecture, it is necessary to add some notions of sustainability and social responsibility, ...

read more

[makers-muse]

Want Global Citizens? STEM Labs Teach International Competitiveness! 

Preparing Students for a Global Future with STEM Education 

In a bustling STEM lab, a group of students gathers around a 3D printer, designing a water filtration system for communities without clean drinking water. Their challenge? To create an innovative, low-cost solution that could work anywhere in the world. As they collaborate, they are not just learning engineering principles; they are developing the critical thinking, problem-solving, and global awareness needed to thrive in an interconnected world. 

Today’s students are tomorrow’s leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs. To compete in a rapidly evolving global economy, they must master STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) skills that prepare them for jobs, technologies, and challenges that don’t yet exist. STEM labs are the key to making this happen. 

Why Global Competitiveness in STEM Matters 

The world is becoming increasingly technology-driven and interconnected. Countries that invest in STEM education lead in innovation, economic growth, and job creation. 

Without strong STEM education, students risk falling behind in an increasingly competitive global job market. 

How STEM Labs Prepare Students for Global Success 

1. Hands-on Problem-Solving for Real-World Issues 

STEM labs teach students how to tackle complex challenges that impact communities worldwide. From climate change to cybersecurity threats, STEM learning encourages students to think critically and develop solutions. 

Example: Students designing solar-powered water purifiers learn about sustainable energy, engineering principles, and global water crises. 

Fact: STEM students involved in real-world projects are 40% more likely to pursue careers in innovation-driven industries (National STEM Education Research, 2023). 

2. Exposure to Emerging Global Technologies 

From AI and robotics to biotechnology and space exploration, STEM labs introduce students to the latest advancements that shape industries worldwide. 

Example: A STEM lab equipped with AI tools and robotics kits prepares students for careers in automation, machine learning, and aerospace. 

Fact: 65% of today’s elementary school students will work in jobs that don’t yet exist, many requiring STEM expertise (World Economic Forum, 2023). 

3. Collaboration with Peers Across the World 

In today’s workforce, global collaboration is essential. STEM labs help students develop teamwork and communication skills across cultures and languages. 

Example: Virtual STEM competitions allow students from different countries to collaborate on projects, exchange ideas, and develop cross-cultural understanding. 

Fact: 85% of Fortune 500 companies emphasize global collaboration as a key skill for career success (Harvard Business Review, 2023). 

4. Developing a Competitive Edge for International Careers 

Students who engage in STEM research, coding, and engineering projects gain the technical and analytical skills that make them valuable in global job markets. 

Example: Learning multiple coding languages (Python, Java, C++) helps students qualify for high-paying international tech jobs. 

Fact: STEM professionals earn 26% more than non-STEM professionals and have more opportunities for global mobility (U.S. Department of Education, 2023). 

5. Encouraging Entrepreneurial Thinking & Innovation 

The next generation of global leaders must be entrepreneurs, problem-solvers, and innovators. STEM labs cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset by encouraging students to design, prototype, and test their own inventions. 

Example: A student developing a low-cost prosthetic limb using 3D printing could turn their project into an international startup. 

Fact: STEM education increases entrepreneurial skills by 45%, leading to more startups and innovation-driven careers (MIT Innovation Lab, 2023). 

Building a Globally Competitive STEM Lab 

A world-class STEM lab should include: 

By creating an environment that blends technology, problem-solving, and global awareness, students gain the skills to lead in international industries. 

Equip Students for Global Success with a STEM Lab! 

The future belongs to those who innovate, adapt, and think globally. STEM labs provide the perfect foundation for students to develop the skills, creativity, and leadership needed for international careers. 

Bring Global Competitiveness to Your School’s STEM Lab Today! 

Contact Makers’ Muse today! 

Website: https://makersmuse.in/ 

Email: info@makersmuse.in 

[philparadox]

Vanish Vanguard, [1/23/25, 9:11 AM]

The only way you can ever get money out of me is only if i know you personally on a face to face level, and never insinuate sex for trade because them ill just loan you the money and not have sex with you ever until pay me ,even when i give a girl money ill not fuck untill next day just on principle.

Vanish Vanguard, [1/23/25, 9:35 AM]

Until we meet face to face ( not for sex just to meet )i will never send money, i usually dont have it anyways and right now im saving up to get absess tooth removed and four teeth that broke in half fixed and im not working a real job so even i know then you would need to give me a good reason why i should suffer this pain so you can have funds . .. . .if there is ever a true reason for me to need funds for someone else like a real gf, or a child etc then i will do everything within my power to get all the money we need, which the more serious a situation the faster i will make it happen but im not gonna got break store house or even worry about getting a job because i am not worried or fearful of the future,i know that what ever it brings is taken care of before it happens so im able to relax and chill, stressed out and fearful people with limited intelligence are the most worried about the future so thats why stupid are the most consistent works that a business can have. Since i only have my self to worry about i accept the consequences of what the future holds because its only me who will suffer if stuff doesn't work out and im actually optimistic about it anyway and always will be. The only way ill go and break my body and call in all favors is if i ever have another life that is my responsibility like a mate,wife, or a child but until something like happens i don't have to worry or be obligated to anyone one if a real friend has a real emergency will i then do what i can to help and when i have the energy of a true need and emergency pushing me into action i will not stop nor will any stand in my way until the mission is accomplished and if its a life or death for a friend ill not hold back even if it costs me , i will not commit any felonies tho i used to easily get 6-7 Gs in a few hours and can still do it but the cost was 12 years of prison but if my friend is in a life or death and im only one can help them prison dont scare me ,,,

Vanish Vanguard, [1/23/25, 9:40 AM]

And me not having a lot right now works out perfectly for me for getting the right girlfriend, a real girlfriend will love me for me no matter what and she will show that by standing by me and then i will do what the both of us need for a healthy and decent quality life until death and everyone else who dont want to know me because not a lot of money are the ones you dont need in your life because they fake , fairweather friends, so i dont have to second guess or wonder if the girl who stands up beside me really loves me or not because i have set up that only the one who truly loves me can or will stand up beside me.

Vanish Vanguard, [1/23/25, 9:52 AM]

Plus im not a simp,or a client ,or a business associate,nor am i trying to talk you into sex right now nor am rushing you to do anything...its actually disrespectful to pay a woman for sex,its literally making sex worthless, i want sex and i will always get sex my way but i only want it if you really want me not because i bribed you with money ,,,,ask your self what is the true value of sex ? How much would it cost you to invent and create it and make actually be as good as it is ,the best thing on earth ? You might as well ask what is the value of the earth is or what is life worth or what is love Worth because they all are valued at the same price and that is priceless, life ,love, earth,the sun ,the moon are priceless and so is sex now what does it say about someone who takes that which is priceless and gives it for a few dollars , what if i offered you 80$ for 5 years of your life would that be disrespectful would that be a good deal? Its very disrespectful and a horrible deal ,it never fails at the end of life every one will give all they have billions or trillions for just one more moment of life ,five minutes to live past death is worth all the money in the world and even then couldn't buy it so neither are people able to purchase sex , i don't know what they getting,its like sex but since you really cant buy sex then it must be a counterfeit

Vanish Vanguard, [1/23/25, 9:57 AM]

[In reply to Hannah]

Yeah you see how its always gonna cost a price for you to move or even come see someone .. im 47 years old and never have a friend or a lover needed me to send then gas money just for them to visit me ,and even when I'm go to see a friend or a lover u fill my vehicle up with gas and i drive happy to go see them never even ask them for gas -- thats friendship, what you got going here is a business, if i have to pay some how to get a friend am i really getting a friend or an employee?

Vanish Vanguard, [1/23/25, 10:03 AM]

Im not lonely or desperate for anything, pussy or friends, i know how to get both easily by just walking down the street , everyone on the Internet now only cares about making money so its not a social place anymore but guess what ,if i walk into the local bar there will be 5 chicks all want to jump on this dick and this the modern era most women are able earn as much as men and then usually pay their own way now and even tho men women are equal ill still take you out and pay for dinner or buy drinks until run out of money, i never been in a bar, club, group get together and said hi to a girl and she instantly tell me she needs me to cash app her some gas money so we can be friends, nope,real life is still the best for everything