#Advantages of cluster sampling

[marketxcel]

Cluster Sampling: Types, Advantages, Limitations, and Examples

Explore the various types, advantages, limitations, and real-world examples of cluster sampling in our informative blog. Learn how this sampling method can help researchers gather data efficiently and effectively for insightful analysis.

[rosecoloredmac]

take my hand

Summary: In that moment, despite how much Agatha would much rather spend the evening literally anywhere else, she decided that if Rio wanted to stay until the very end of the reception she wouldn’t put up a fight. Not as long as that contented smile remained on her beautiful face. Or, Agatha and Rio attend a friend's wedding and find a private moment together. A/N: Hello, I offer 2k+ words of pure fluff. I just wanted to write Agatha being an absolute simp for her wife and this is what I came up with. Please enjoy :)

Also on AO3

X

Agatha brought her glass of wine to her lips as her eyes scanned the clusters of people talking and laughing in search of her wife. She finally spotted her on the other side of the tent at the bar. She was chatting with an older woman Agatha recognized, Lilia if she remembered correctly, with a soft smile on her lips while she waited for their drinks. As if she could feel Agatha watching her, Rio’s eyes met hers across the crowd of reception goers. She winked almost imperceptibly before turning her attention back to her conversation with Lilia. 

God, how Agatha wanted nothing more than to stomp over there and drag Rio away from the stuffy tent. She hadn’t wanted to attend Jen’s wedding in the first place. When the invitation arrived in the mail, she saw it for what it was; a courtesy due to their families’ social connections. While she and Jen had grown up together, they’d never been particularly close and she’d resolved herself to send an expensive gift, but skip the event all together. It had been Rio who thought it could be fun and Agatha reluctantly agreed after a few days of going back and forth about it. In all their years together, she’d never been able to deny Rio much of anything. 

The ceremony itself had been nice, Agatha could admit that much. The estate where it was being held boasted a large pond that served as a back drop as Jen and her new wife said their vows. Agatha had tried to convince Rio to leave early as they’d sipped their overly sweet drinks during the cocktail hour, but Rio stubbornly shook her head and reminded her that it would be rude to leave before dinner was served. Agatha had scoffed at that, as if she’d ever cared about appearing rude, but dutifully followed after her wife as she made it her mission to sample every last hors d'oeuvre the wandering staff had to offer. 

Tipping her head back, she drained the last of her wine and set her glass back on the table. The table they’d been assigned was empty save for her, the others leaving their seats the moment their dinner dishes had been cleared and the band transitioned from soft instrumentals to more upbeat popular music. Agatha let her gaze wander over the majority of the other guests crammed onto the dancefloor with Jen and her wife at the center. Clearly, more than a few of them were taking full advantage of the open bar.   

She chuckled softly to herself, her eyes flicking back to where she’d last seen Rio, but she was nowhere to be found. Straightening in her chair, Agatha’s eyes darted around the unfamiliar faces, her chest tightening ever so slightly when she couldn’t find her. 

A hand landed on her shoulder and Agatha whipped her head around, ready to eviscerate whoever dared lay their hands on her, but was met with Rio’s beaming smile. 

“Just me, sweetheart,” she said, setting a new glass down next to the one Agatha just emptied on the table. 

Agatha relaxed back into her chair as Rio’s hand slid from her shoulder to rest on the back of her neck, a finger idly twisting around the short hairs there. She couldn’t help but smile at the familiar, comforting gesture, unconsciously tilting her head back into her wife’s touch.

“Thank you,”  

Rio hummed in response, her fingers moving further into her hair to scratch lightly at her scalp. 

“Having fun?” she asked, looking down Agatha with a small knowing smile on her lips. 

Agatha scoffed and snatched the glass of wine from where Rio set it on the table. “I can barely contain myself,” she deadpanned before draining half of it on one go. 

Rio just chuckled in that affectionate way that always made Agatha’s insides turn to mush. 

“I thought so,” she said, bringing her own glass to her lips for a sip of whiskey. 

Agatha eyed her wife as her gaze drifted toward the dancefloor, that small smile still gracing her lips. Her hips swayed to the song playing as her fingers absently twisted through Agatha’s hair. 

“You’re having fun,” Agatha said, tilting her head as Rio’s eyes met hers again. 

Rio nodded. “I am.” 

In that moment, despite how much Agatha would much rather spend the evening literally anywhere else, she decided that if Rio wanted to stay until the very end of the reception she wouldn’t put up a fight. Not as long as that contented smile remained on her beautiful face. 

“You wanna?” Rio asked, nodding her head toward the dancefloor. 

“Not a chance,” Agatha shot back, narrowing her eyes, immediately regretting her silent promise. 

“Come on, you love this song,” Rio goaded, her hand slipping from Agatha’s hair to reach for the hand that wasn’t clutching her wine glass. 

“Only because you’ve forced your terrible taste in music on me,” she countered, snatching her hand out Rio’s grasp and flipping her hair over her shoulder. 

Rio tipped her head back, letting out a full bodied laugh that almost softened Agatha enough to agree to whatever she wanted. Almost. While she was willing to suffer through the rest of the reception for Rio’s sake, Agatha drew the line at wading into the mass of sweaty, drunk bodies. 

She watched as Rio’s eyes returned to the dancefloor, her hips still swaying to the beat of the music. She reached out and took the hand that Rio had dropped to her side, giving her fingers a gentle squeeze and threading their fingers together. Rio squeezed back before she lifted their joined hands to her lips to press a tender kiss to Agatha’s knuckles. 

Rio let their joined hands fall to her side, her thumb moving to spin Agatha’s wedding band around her finger. Her gaze never strayed from the spectacle on the dancefloor and Agatha found herself completely mesmerized by the woman at her side. Rio looked beautiful in the soft glow from the candles flickering on every table. Even in her head, Agatha thought that felt like an understatement. Rio was absolutely stunning. She let her gaze drift down to admire the dress Rio had chosen for today. The dress in question was simple but form fitting, falling just below her knees with a slit up one side that stopped at her thigh. When she’d emerged from their bathroom, Agatha’s mouth had gone dry and it had taken every ounce of her self control not to jump her right then and there. 

She felt Rio give her fingers another slight squeeze and looked back up to find Rio looking down at her, her dark eyes twinkling under the glittering lights strung up along the tent’s ceiling. 

“What?” Rio asked, her head tilted slightly, one eyebrow quirked. 

Agatha felt her cheeks warm under her wife’s gaze. She’d blame it on all the wine she consumed, but the smirk that Rio was sporting was a little too knowing. 

“Admiring the view?” she teased when she had no answer, all too smug for Agatha’s taste. 

“Always,” Agatha answered without missing a beat, quickly finding her voice once again. 

She winked as she brought her wine glass to her lips to hide her own smug smile. With one word, she’d gained the upper hand in their little back and forth. She watched as Rio’s eyes flicked down to where Agatha was purposefully taking a slow sip of her wine. Rio’s tongue darted out to wet her lips and her eyes had darkened ever so slightly when they met Agatha’s once more. It was a look Agatha knew well. 

“Admiring the view?” Agatha questioned, raising an eyebrow. 

The heat in Rio’s gaze as she stared down at Agatha was absolutely molten and sent a shiver of anticipation down her spine. Agatha tugged on their joined hands until Rio bent over her, ready to devour her wife, present location be damned. But the band’s singer chose that moment to address the crowd on the dance floor to announce that they were going to slow things down for a bit as the rest of the band played the intro to the first of what was sure to be many corny love songs. Agatha belatedly realized she hadn’t even noticed the music stop in the first place. 

Much to her disappointment, Rio straightened back up, shooting Agatha a wink that promised they’d continue this later. She watched Rio’s eyes drift back to the dancefloor and followed her gaze. The crowd had thinned out slightly, but most most people lingered around the edgeS of the dancefloor. The couples that remained swayed around each other to the slow crooning from the singer, all the while making googly eyes at their partner. 

A light tug on the hand Rio still held captive drew Agatha’s attention back to her wife. Rio had an unmistakable glint in her eyes that had never failed to spell trouble in the two decades since they’d met. The smirk she was doing a shitty job at trying to hide wasn’t helping either. Agatha tried to pull her hand away, but Rio held form and tugged again, more insistent this time. 

“Rio,” she hissed, her tone dead serious. “No.” 

“Come on,” Rio said, setting her drink down on the table next to Agatha’s empty wine glass and reached for her other hand. 

Agatha shook her head. “I love you more than anything on this earth, but I’m not dancing to a Taylor Swift cover with you.” 

Rio stopped trying to pull her from her chair long enough to snort and look down at her with a raised eyebrow.  

“I thought you said you didn’t like her music?”

Agatha huffed out a breath and flicked her hair over her shoulder, pointedly avoiding meeting her wife’s amused gaze. 

“Whatever,” she answered dismissively. “That’s not the point.” 

Rio shook her head and redoubled her efforts to wrestle Agatha to her feet. She succeeded in grabbing her other hand, but Agatha planted her heels and refused to be dragged out of her chair. 

“Oh would you get over yourself and just trust me,” Rio asked with a sigh. 

“Famous last words,” Agatha shot back with a glare. 

Rio narrowed her eyes, but her expression immediately dissolved into a pout, her bottom lip poked out in the way they both knew Agatha was powerless against. God dammit. 

“Not fair,” she muttered, averting her eyes. But it was too late. Her resolve was already decimated with just one glance. 

She willingly stood when Rio gently pulled on her hands again, letting out a long suffering sigh as she did so. She straightened her posture, mentally preparing herself to join the other couples. Rio dropped one of her hands, but instead of heading toward the dancefloor, she lead them toward the closest exit. 

“Where are we going?” Agatha asked as they stepped out of the tent and started for the stone path that lead around the the main house. 

“I told you to trust me, didn’t I?” Rio called over her shoulder as they veered around the side of the house. 

Agatha’s eyes widened when they stepped into a small courtyard with a fountain situated in the center, lit up with soft lights in the bottom. She could still hear the sound of the band playing faintly over the sound of the water pouring through the fountain, but there was no one else around, offering them the illusion of privacy. Rio dropped her hand as they stopped in front of the fountain and turned to her with a smug grin. 

“Well?” she asked. 

“You could have told me this was your plan,” Agatha couldn’t help but argue, unwilling to let Rio win so easily. 

Rio just chuckled. “Where’s the fun in that, baby?” 

Agatha rolled her eyes playfully and shook her head. God, she was so in love with this woman. 

“So,” Rio started, stretching out the word as she took a step closer. “Can I have this dance, milady?” 

Agatha brought her hand up to tap a finger against her chin, pretending to think it over for a moment before letting her hand drop with a shug. 

“I don’t see why not.” 

The expression on Rio’s face was filled with so much fondness in that moment it stole the breath from Agatha’s lungs. She took Rio’s hand and allowed herself to be pulled in. Rio lifted their joined hands over her head, leading Agatha through a slow spin before pulling her close once they were face to face again. Rio slid both her arms around her waist while Agatha’s settled naturally around her shoulders. 

In the distance, the song changed, one that Agatha recognized and knew well. Rio’s smile when she realized could have rivaled the sun with its brilliance, revealing the slight gap between her front teeth. It was cheesy and cliche, but it was a song that held meant a great deal to both of them. 

“T’was meant to be,” Rio whispered, leaning in to rest her forehead against Agatha’s. 

Agatha hummed her agreement, letting her eyes flutter closed as they moved together, swaying to the beat of the music. Rio’s arms tightened around her waist, pulling them flush together and she let out a contented sigh. 

“Reminds me of our wedding,” Rio said softly after a moment. 

Agatha leaned back to look her in the eye, taking in the small smile on her lips. 

“They’re practically identical,” she said with a snort. “Do you think Jen used the same planner?” 

She and Rio had gotten married at the county courthouse by a justice with one foot in the grave who’d barely made it through their short nuptials with his eyes open. They’d been together nearly ten years at the time and went as soon as they could. At the time neither of them cared to have some grand event and the marriage itself had been more of a formality than anything else. Rio was it for Agatha, had been since the day they met and she knew the feeling was mutual, ring or not. Rio’s friend Alice and Agatha’s friend Wanda and her husband had been their witnesses and they’d gone home to a small party Alice and Wanda threw together as a surprise. 

Rio rolled her eyes, but her smile remained soft. “That’s not what I meant.” 

“I know,” Agatha said, pressing a soft kiss to Rio’s lips. 

When everyone had finally gone home for the evening after their impromptu wedding reception, Rio had dragged Agatha back out into the yard and asked her for one last dance under the stars. To the very song that the band was just finished playing. 

“Does it ever bother you,” Agatha asked, her fingers playing idly with the ends of Rio’s hair. “That we never did something like this?” She nodded her head vaguely in the direction of the tent. 

Rio shook her head without hesitation. 

“No?” 

“No,” she confirmed. “As long as I’ve got you, nothing else matters.” 

Agatha would swear her heart skipped a beat as Rio’s words washed over her. She felt her cheeks warm as she pulled her impossibly closer. She nuzzled her nose against Rio’s. 

“Sweet talker,” she whispered, her lips just barely brushing her wife’s. 

“You love it,” Rio countered, stealing a chaste kiss. 

“Always,” Agatha promised.

Rio leaned back to meet her eyes. “I love you.” 

Agatha grinned, those three words never failing to make her feel like a giddy teenager even after so many years together. 

“I love you,” she said, moving her hands to cup Rio’s jaw and pull her into a searing kiss. 

Rio hummed into the kiss, her hands sliding up Agatha’s back as she parted her lips to deepen the kiss. Agatha lost herself in the feeling of Rio’s lips and tongue against hers until the need for air became unavoidable. She reluctantly broke the kiss with one last peck. 

“Let’s get out of here,” Rio suggested, a little breathless. 

Agatha blew out a dramatic breath and smirked. “I thought you’d never ask.” 

Rio let her arms fall away from her waist, but offered one to Agatha. She easily looped her arm through Rio’s and laid her head on her shoulder, letting her steer them toward the house where they could collect their coats. 

“Should we go congratulate Jen before we go?” Rio asked as they climbed the stairs. 

“She won’t even notice we’re gone,” Agatha assured her. She had no desire to go back to the reception. She just wanted to take her wife home. 

“If you’re sure.” 

Agatha tightened her grip on Rio’s arm to keep her from turning back. “I’m certain.” 

“You just want to get me home to have your way with me,” Rio teased and Agatha could hear the smirk in her voice without having to look at her. 

“And what’s wrong with that?” she questioned, lifting her head from Rio’s shoulder to look at her with a raised eyebrow. 

Rio chuckled and patted Agatha’s hand that still clutched her arm. 

“Nothing, my love. Nothing at all."

[ravelsquadespresso]

WIP ask game: biomancy (twice)!

So ALL, biomancy has won against everything else with overwhelming advantage 😊, and generally took over my cogitator-fabricator.

@nusaran “Tell me more about "Biomancy_lmao_twice" please :D”

@avalost "Biomancy lmao twice" for the WIP ask game!"

@nadas-dirthalen "well you know i've GOTTA ask about 'biomancy lmao twice' — it's me after all! ;)"

Choir: we want biomancy! In schools!

That’s good, because I have a feeling that by the time I actually get to the chapter this was meant for, Trump will already be living in Rostov.

Anyway, our man Heinrix arrives on Rykad Minoris for a super-secret assignment—and quickly finds himself entangled in local politics. A certain connection from his past invites him for a coffee (ahaha).

Ardor // Mori (Heinrix x baroness)

Lake Serenity is on fire.

Rykad’s ultraviolet blaze meets the indigo shimmer of submerged lohr crystal formations. Rivulets of molten primula streak across the water’s surface like cracks in a burning mirror, searing the eyesight away. The mining operation on the opposite shore is lost to glare, but he knows it’s there—the lifeblood of Minoris, and the economic heart of the entire Rykad Cluster.

It is also what makes Baroness Cerihan al-Medineh the lynchpin of the cluster’s political cauldron—and the persistent thorn in Governor Faisal’s side. She believes she would make a better governor.

Perhaps she’s right.

Perhaps it's better to deal with a calculating snake than an inept puppet of the next resourceful grifter of an advisor. Governor Faisal had a string of them over the years—five named in Scallander’s report. One had been an unsanctioned witch, Cerihan’s envoy reported with glee—a witch who exploded in front of Winterscale himself during the Winter Ball. And now there was a new pet—a blind priest preaching inner sight and mortification of the flesh. Rumors had named him a death cultist, too—possibly explaining the eyeless bodies littering the lower reaches of Hive Minoris’ spire. Or not.

The Terrace of the Words is perched high above the lake, an invisible rebreather wall filtering out the pollution the lohr fumes. Cerihan paces the length of the terrace like an extinct tyger, all but a dark silhouette against the fury of the sunset.

“The most powerful man in the sector,” she rasps, deliberately slow—rolling the words around, sampling them like rare wine.

The pause lingers, adding to the injury that follows.

“The most powerful man in the sector—and all without the power,” she finishes. As with every word she speaks, Heinrix can’t tell if it’s twisted praise or refined mockery.

“That,” he offers a dry smirk, “would be the Lord Inquisitor you’re taunting.”

“But the Lord Inquisitor,” she laughs, picking up a tart cinnaritella from the tray “is stuck on the other side of the Maw, or so I heard. What was it you used to say to the frightened Sevillan clerks? Ah, yes—‘In the absence of the Lord Inquisitor, I carry the will of the Holy Ordos.’”

“I could requisition the local Battlefleet Koronus, scarce as it is, if I had enough proof of cult involvement—which I currently don’t. Besides, being gullible and collecting odd charlatans in one’s retinue is practically a requirement for any noble in office.” He shrugs, feigning disinterest.

“Darling,” she lilts. “You hurt my self-esteem. How would you like to be kidnapped by me as atonement for this great sin?”

“Would you keep that quirky humor if your exalted—albeit slightly heretical—cousin Faisal stormed this fortress and put a chainsword to your neck? For that might happen if he caught wind of you cozying up to the Inquisition, my fair lady.” Notdeat Primus-19 flies into the conversation—quite literally—hovering above Cerihan’s head.

She casts the skull a brief, appraising look, half-pouting, half-amused.

“Can’t we turn off and store this all-too-chatty servo-bucket?” she scoffs.

“Notdeat Primus is not a servo-bucket,” the skull replies with a dry chuckle. “I am just… different.”

A life ago Notdeat Primus used to be acolyte Heinen Yu, just like Cerihan used to be Cerihan Sevilla, an heir presumptive to Erixis V of Calixian meridian. And he was a freshly minted interrogator on his first independent assignment. His name has not changed since, but neither was it his own.

They weren’t these people anymore. Some weren’t even people, technically speaking. Acolyte Yu was lucky enough to survive dismemberment and keep his faculties to remain sentient. Cerihan got exiled to the Expanse, and he, well, he acquired more dead bodies to his name.

“I suppose you could be used as a spy, if you were able to shut up for a moment and loiter around like a proper servo-skull,” Cerihan says, shooing Notdeat Primus off with a flick of her hand.

Then, humor off, she continues:

“I have retainers lined up in the Finnan. They just need a word.”

“You’re confessing to planning a rebellion against Imperial authority? To the Inquisition? That’s bold.” Heinrix laughs.

“It’s not a rebellion if it’s to stop a Chaos cult, is it?”

“Where’s your rosette? I want to see the design. It’s got to be Art Deco, if I know you.”

“Darn you legalistic types. Well, failing that, you could try that neat mind trick of yours on dearest Faisal or his new witch or whoever that creature is. Although their brains must be disgusting on the inside. Probably no class, muddy and watery, and …”

“No.”

Too fast. Too curt. She’ll know it unsettles him. Still unsettles him after twenty four years.

--------

Biomantic power is a double-edged blade: what mori cuts down, libra can reknit and restore. Or so his mentor in Scholastia had him believe. But then a third facet, a blade point, a nexus in the tapestry, a secret nook in the ancient wall made itself known to him.

As befits a self-respecting world-turning reveal this one fell upon his head unannounced and unwanted. A man had come to his attention, a man they said was a rogue sorcerer. A man who murdered thrice and dozen for his ritual. A man who sent out sickly thralls to wreak havoc in the streets. A man who was a fixture in a cult.

Eager to prove himself he chased the man down the Great Sevillan Waterway, cornered him in an abandoned industrial hole. Cerihan’s requisitioned soldiers blocking the escape routes, he went in to take the man down. Cerihan on his heels, eager for the thrill of slaughter, eager to be the one who culled the sorcerous rebellion in the hive. Disobeying his orders to stay away, and what was he to do? Manhandle the planetary heiress and throw her in the cell? That would stir the pot, certainly.

The man looked nothing like the menace he was said to be. An average hive dweller, gray-faced and sickly, toiling away his life in a menial hard labor job. But then the man spoke the words of power.

“Little lost knightling,” he hissed, words laced with barbed wire, “little knightling who despises the truth wishes to know where the truth is, ah.”

“Surrender,” Heinrix tried, willing the man’s muscles and vessels and neurons to tire and accept his offer. Cerihan’s plasma pistols whirred up to a ready behind him.

Knightling. Did he truly know? And if so, how?

“Little knightling watches the world through the borrowed eyes,” the sorcerer pressed the advantage. “The body that was taken from him, he built anew. And still, he denies the truth.”

Heinrix’s terror clashed with the man’s psychotic laughter; then the laughter turned to cough and the man was choking on his blood.

Heinrix caught himself just in the nick of time – he could not lose this abomination, his only lead, the linchpin of three months work. So he turned the blade, the blunt edge of healing against the fried nerves and torn vessels.

The sorcerer’s untempered curse rose to meet his own.

It spread like perfume through the air: warm, heady, indistinct. Libra and mori meeting each other at the blade tip, intertwining into subtle suggestion. Sublime. Undeniable. A premonition of lust, of tenderness, a promise.

The sorcerer blinked. His bloodied lips parted.

Heinrix stepped closer. “Give yourself to me,” he whispered—an invitation. “Tell me of yourself. You want to.”

“I... want to,” the sorcerer breathed, confused, reverent. His weapon dropped with a hollow clatter. The hexes appeared on his skin, inflamed omens. He reached forward like a lover might, fingertips trembling just before they met Heinrix’s hand.

Infatuation.

--------

The sorcerer became the most cooperative heretic in his career. By the end of the week, the whole cultist network had been apprehended, and commendations were handed out like candies on Sanguinala.

Cerihan claimed him for herself eventually, even though he tried to hide behind official duties and the endless excuse of paperwork.

“I know what you did to him,” she said, silk on rust. “It took us all. Every enforcer in that room. You made him want you.”

He flinched.

“You made me want you,” she continued. “Just for a moment. Not in a way I’m used to.”

She lifted her hand, stopping just short of touching him.

“So,” she whispered, “will you deny me, knightling?”

The odious word lanced through him.

Using the words of the Archenemy, wearing his symbols, taking his gifts.

He should have said no, stepped back, cited protocol, chastised her. But something inside him responded instead—instinctive and alien. The ardor returned, terrifying and exhilarating at once. Not an explosion of desire, but the unbearable intimacy of recognition. The space between them grew thick with it. Cerihan inhaled sharply.

“Yes,” she said, not as a question. “Yes, that’s it.”

She leaned in—and Heinrix didn’t pull away. The psychic field bloomed. Cerihan’s breath caught, her pupils dilated, her posture slackened for just a second too long.

She swayed toward him like a supplicant at a shrine.

“Throne,” she muttered, blinking as if coming up from deep water. “You don’t even know what you’re doing, do you?”

“No,” he admitted.

Try honesty.

“Good,” she laughed through tears. “That makes it more fun.”

The next morning, he requisitioned a ship to return to Scintilla. He ran away, carrying with him his praises, his newfound curse, his secret, and his shame. Forgetting might equal atonement—eventually—or so he chose to delude himself.

Now that the past has caught up with him, there will be another cult leader. Another sorcerer. Another corrupt governor. And Cerihan—her sharp wit, irreverent mockery, and unholy curiosity—will dog his steps, stand in his way. Hinder him and drag him down.

“No,” he repeats and hopes that the words convey confidence and finality.  

[leebird-simmer]

Statistics: Display and Shape

1 Categorical Variable: Class Make-up

Comparative Bar Charts

allows us to look at multiple groups of one categorical variable

can be a stacked bar graph or a clustered bar graph

One Quantitative Variable

A. Examining Quantitative Data

distribution = tells all possible values of a variable and how frequently they occur

Summarize distribution of a quantitative variable by telling shape, center, and spread.

Shape = tells which values tend to be more or less common.

Center = measure of what is typical in the distribution of quantitative variable.

Spread = measure of how much the distribution's values vary

B. Displays

Stemplot - advantage: most detail - disadvantage: impractical for large datasets

Histogram - advantage: works well for any size dataset - disadvantage: some detail lost

Dotplot - advantage: can show outliers - disadvantage: much detail lost

Stem Plot

quantitative data

combines the characteristics of a table and a graph

general steps: (1) Separate each observation into a stem (first part of number) and a leaf (remaining part of number) (2) Write the stems in a vertical column; draw a vertical line to the right of the stems. (3) Write each leaf in the row to the right of its stem; order leaves if desired.

Stem: 10's digit

Lead: 1's digit

5 I 3 = 53

Constructing Stem Plots

Comparative Stem Charts

used for comparison of two groups of 1 quantitative variable - ex. Compare exam scores from two classes.

Dot Plots

used for 1 quantitative variable

similar to a stem + leaf plot; each dot represents one value

Ex. An instructor has obtained the set of N=25 exam scores: 82, 75, 88, 93, 53, 84, 87, 58, 72, 94, 69, 84, 61, 91, 64, 87, 84, 70, 76, 89, 75, 80, 73, 78, 60

Histograms

Show possible values of a quantitative variable along the horizontal axis, with vertical bars showing the count, percentage, or proportion of values in certain interval ranges.

shows quantitative data ONLY

display of a grouped frequency distribution

adjacent bars touch each other

Divide the possible values into class intervals (equal width). - How many intervals? One rule is to calculate the square root of the sample size and round up. - Size of intervals? Divide range of data (max-min) by number of intervals desired and round up. - Pick intervals so each observation can only fall in exactly one interval (no overlap). maximum-minimum/number of intervals

Count how many observations fall in each interval (may change to proportion or percentages).

Draw representation distribution.

Ex. An instructor has obtained the set of N=25 exam scores:

82, 75, 88, 93, 53, 84, 87, 58, 72, 94, 69, 84, 61, 91, 64, 87, 84, 70, 76, 89, 75, 80, 73, 78, 60

Grouped frequency distribution histogram vs. stem plot.

The stem plot is placed on its side to demonstrate that the display gives the same information provided in the histogram.

Scatterplots

Used for displaying the relationship between two quantitative variables.

Ex. Compare students' exam 1 vs exam 2 scores.

Interpreting Histograms

When describing the distribution of a quantitative (interval or ratio) variable, we look for the overall pattern and for striking deviations from that pattern. We can describe the overall pattern of a histogram by its shape, center (central tendency) and spread (variability).

Shape of Distribution

A symmetric distribution has a balanced shape, showing that it is just as likely for the variable to take lower values as higher values.

A skewed distribution is lopsided:

skewed left: few values that are relatively low compared to the bulk of the data

skewed right: few values that are relatively high compared to the bulk of the data values

Outliers

Extreme values that fall outside the overall pattern.

may occur naturally

may occur due to error in recording

may occur due to measurement error

observational unit may be fundamentally different

After identifying potential outliers, investigate why they obtain unusual values.

More Specific Shapes

unimodal distribution: has one peak

bimodal distribution: has two peaks

uniform distribution: has no peaks, showing that all possible values are equally common

normal distribution: symmetric, unimodal, "bell-shaped" or "mound-shaped" pattern

[cleverhottubmiracle]

With the cost of hotel stays generally trending upward — 2024 saw the highest recorded average daily rates in the U.S., for starters — the luxury hospitality world may not seem the most fertile bargain-hunting ground. But you can still find deals, and they go well beyond those you can obtain by converting your credit card and loyalty points into discounts. Here are six ways to get the best prices at some top hotels.Look for “debut” discountsWhen a hotel first opens or signs up with a new booking site, room rates are sometimes heavily discounted. A good starting point is the boutique and luxury hotel membership program Dis-loyalty, run by the Ennismore Lifestyle Collective. For a membership fee of $18 per month, you’ll get deals and perks at 10 hotel brands (Mondrian, SLS and the Hoxton, among others) that include 50 percent off any of the site’s new hotels within the first three months of opening day. One current example: At the Hoxton, Florence, in Italy, which opened in March, members can book a late May stay for a starting nightly rate of $235, compared with the standard $470. Another membership-based hotel collection, Design Hotels, offers free membership and various discounts — among them, 50 percent “debut” savings on certain properties that are new to the collection, including Xela Tulum, a 12-room hotel on Mexico’s Caribbean coast that opened in late 2023. At press time, a sample starting rate in May on the Design Hotels site was $266 per night — half the standard $532.Try front desk diplomacyRoberto Cowan, a co-founder of the Desert Vintage boutiques, which has outposts in Tucson, Ariz.; New York; and, later this year, Paris, suggests calling the hotel directly for the best rates. You never know where a politely asked “Is that the best you can do?” will lead, he says. Among his biggest successes was a New Year’s trip to Harmony Nosara, an upscale surfing and yoga retreat in Costa Rica. After the website showed there wasn’t any availability on the days he was hoping to visit, he phoned the front desk and was told that the hotel could accommodate him if he were willing to change rooms during his stay. “I was in the most beautiful place, I didn’t mind having to move [rooms], and they were willing to work with me because of the inconvenience,” he says. In the end, he saved about 40 percent on rooms that typically run about $1,000 per night at that time of year. Wendy Perrin, the founder of a travel advice website, thinks front desk diplomacy may also work to your advantage in other scenarios: say, when you’re already at a hotel and trying to extend your stay, or you’re showing up last-minute, late at night, without a reservation. “The closer you get to the time when the value of the room is going to perish,” she notes, the likelier you are to get a discount.Sign up for newslettersMany hospitality brands, marketing consortiums and booking sites have newsletters you can sign up for with a complimentary membership. Though these dispatches are meant primarily as travel inspiration, they also tend to direct subscribers to a wide range of discounts. Small Luxury Hotels, for example, recently offered up to 20 percent off suites at about 168 properties, such as Torralbenc, a farm turned luxury retreat on the Spanish island of Minorca, and the Gaia Riverlodge, a cluster of thatch-roofed cabanas in Belize. And Mr. & Mrs. Smith promoted up to 35 percent off last-minute hotel stays over Easter weekend in destinations including Denver and Buenos Aires. Membership can confer other money-saving perks, too, says Perrin: upgrades, late checkouts, free meals and even the occasional free night.Call your agentTravel advisers and consultants who have longstanding relationships with hotel brands — relationships that generate a high volume of sales — can often pass along “agent-exclusive specials” to clients. Even luxury properties that don’t want to be seen as discounting publicly will sometimes give negotiated rates to preferred travel agents, notes Perrin, who recommends destination-specific travel advisers on her website.Be flexible with your datesShifting your check-in and checkout dates by even a day might yield appreciably lower room rates. “Maybe there’s a group in the hotel that’s taking 40 or 50 percent of the rooms, and the event ends on Wednesday night,” says the hospitality industry consultant Bjorn Hanson. “Everyone’s checking out Thursday morning and the hotel’s going to have really low occupancy.” The same sort of thing can happen when a block of rooms is about to come online after renovations: From one day to the next, the hotel might go from low inventory to high. Take New York’s Walker Hotel Tribeca, a ribbon and button factory converted into a boutique hotel with a rooftop bar. At press time, starting nightly rates during the week of May 12 ranged from $411 to $585. The rates for the 18th were as low as $237.Protect against price dropsThe booking site HotelSlash charges $50 annually to send subscribers properties with discounted rates at their intended destinations. A recent search for a long spring weekend in Paris turned up a fully refundable room at Les Bains Paris — the famous nightclub turned cultish hotel in the Marais — for $1,590 for three nights, while the hotel’s own site showed a total of $1,720 for the same stay. If you book, HotelSlash will watch for further price reductions so you can cancel and rebook at the same hotel, as long as you chose a refundable option. Even if you book a refundable room on a different site or through a hotel reservation line, you can forward the confirmation email to HotelSlash for rate monitoring. Magellan Luxury Hotels, another membership-based reservation service that offers competitive rates at upscale brands (including Aman and Rosewood Hotels & Resorts), has a RateCheck program that will automatically rebook you if a lower rate becomes available. And Tablet Hotels plans to introduce a similar program in May, when customers will start hearing about any price drops on bookings before cancellation penalties kick in. To be eligible, you’ll need to sign up for a $99 annual Tablet Plus membership that also gets you access to upgrades and daily breakfasts, among other extras at certain hotels. Source link

[norajworld]

With the cost of hotel stays generally trending upward — 2024 saw the highest recorded average daily rates in the U.S., for starters — the luxury hospitality world may not seem the most fertile bargain-hunting ground. But you can still find deals, and they go well beyond those you can obtain by converting your credit card and loyalty points into discounts. Here are six ways to get the best prices at some top hotels.Look for “debut” discountsWhen a hotel first opens or signs up with a new booking site, room rates are sometimes heavily discounted. A good starting point is the boutique and luxury hotel membership program Dis-loyalty, run by the Ennismore Lifestyle Collective. For a membership fee of $18 per month, you’ll get deals and perks at 10 hotel brands (Mondrian, SLS and the Hoxton, among others) that include 50 percent off any of the site’s new hotels within the first three months of opening day. One current example: At the Hoxton, Florence, in Italy, which opened in March, members can book a late May stay for a starting nightly rate of $235, compared with the standard $470. Another membership-based hotel collection, Design Hotels, offers free membership and various discounts — among them, 50 percent “debut” savings on certain properties that are new to the collection, including Xela Tulum, a 12-room hotel on Mexico’s Caribbean coast that opened in late 2023. At press time, a sample starting rate in May on the Design Hotels site was $266 per night — half the standard $532.Try front desk diplomacyRoberto Cowan, a co-founder of the Desert Vintage boutiques, which has outposts in Tucson, Ariz.; New York; and, later this year, Paris, suggests calling the hotel directly for the best rates. You never know where a politely asked “Is that the best you can do?” will lead, he says. Among his biggest successes was a New Year’s trip to Harmony Nosara, an upscale surfing and yoga retreat in Costa Rica. After the website showed there wasn’t any availability on the days he was hoping to visit, he phoned the front desk and was told that the hotel could accommodate him if he were willing to change rooms during his stay. “I was in the most beautiful place, I didn’t mind having to move [rooms], and they were willing to work with me because of the inconvenience,” he says. In the end, he saved about 40 percent on rooms that typically run about $1,000 per night at that time of year. Wendy Perrin, the founder of a travel advice website, thinks front desk diplomacy may also work to your advantage in other scenarios: say, when you’re already at a hotel and trying to extend your stay, or you’re showing up last-minute, late at night, without a reservation. “The closer you get to the time when the value of the room is going to perish,” she notes, the likelier you are to get a discount.Sign up for newslettersMany hospitality brands, marketing consortiums and booking sites have newsletters you can sign up for with a complimentary membership. Though these dispatches are meant primarily as travel inspiration, they also tend to direct subscribers to a wide range of discounts. Small Luxury Hotels, for example, recently offered up to 20 percent off suites at about 168 properties, such as Torralbenc, a farm turned luxury retreat on the Spanish island of Minorca, and the Gaia Riverlodge, a cluster of thatch-roofed cabanas in Belize. And Mr. & Mrs. Smith promoted up to 35 percent off last-minute hotel stays over Easter weekend in destinations including Denver and Buenos Aires. Membership can confer other money-saving perks, too, says Perrin: upgrades, late checkouts, free meals and even the occasional free night.Call your agentTravel advisers and consultants who have longstanding relationships with hotel brands — relationships that generate a high volume of sales — can often pass along “agent-exclusive specials” to clients. Even luxury properties that don’t want to be seen as discounting publicly will sometimes give negotiated rates to preferred travel agents, notes Perrin, who recommends destination-specific travel advisers on her website.Be flexible with your datesShifting your check-in and checkout dates by even a day might yield appreciably lower room rates. “Maybe there’s a group in the hotel that’s taking 40 or 50 percent of the rooms, and the event ends on Wednesday night,” says the hospitality industry consultant Bjorn Hanson. “Everyone’s checking out Thursday morning and the hotel’s going to have really low occupancy.” The same sort of thing can happen when a block of rooms is about to come online after renovations: From one day to the next, the hotel might go from low inventory to high. Take New York’s Walker Hotel Tribeca, a ribbon and button factory converted into a boutique hotel with a rooftop bar. At press time, starting nightly rates during the week of May 12 ranged from $411 to $585. The rates for the 18th were as low as $237.Protect against price dropsThe booking site HotelSlash charges $50 annually to send subscribers properties with discounted rates at their intended destinations. A recent search for a long spring weekend in Paris turned up a fully refundable room at Les Bains Paris — the famous nightclub turned cultish hotel in the Marais — for $1,590 for three nights, while the hotel’s own site showed a total of $1,720 for the same stay. If you book, HotelSlash will watch for further price reductions so you can cancel and rebook at the same hotel, as long as you chose a refundable option. Even if you book a refundable room on a different site or through a hotel reservation line, you can forward the confirmation email to HotelSlash for rate monitoring. Magellan Luxury Hotels, another membership-based reservation service that offers competitive rates at upscale brands (including Aman and Rosewood Hotels & Resorts), has a RateCheck program that will automatically rebook you if a lower rate becomes available. And Tablet Hotels plans to introduce a similar program in May, when customers will start hearing about any price drops on bookings before cancellation penalties kick in. To be eligible, you’ll need to sign up for a $99 annual Tablet Plus membership that also gets you access to upgrades and daily breakfasts, among other extras at certain hotels. Source link

[chilimili212]

With the cost of hotel stays generally trending upward — 2024 saw the highest recorded average daily rates in the U.S., for starters — the luxury hospitality world may not seem the most fertile bargain-hunting ground. But you can still find deals, and they go well beyond those you can obtain by converting your credit card and loyalty points into discounts. Here are six ways to get the best prices at some top hotels.Look for “debut” discountsWhen a hotel first opens or signs up with a new booking site, room rates are sometimes heavily discounted. A good starting point is the boutique and luxury hotel membership program Dis-loyalty, run by the Ennismore Lifestyle Collective. For a membership fee of $18 per month, you’ll get deals and perks at 10 hotel brands (Mondrian, SLS and the Hoxton, among others) that include 50 percent off any of the site’s new hotels within the first three months of opening day. One current example: At the Hoxton, Florence, in Italy, which opened in March, members can book a late May stay for a starting nightly rate of $235, compared with the standard $470. Another membership-based hotel collection, Design Hotels, offers free membership and various discounts — among them, 50 percent “debut” savings on certain properties that are new to the collection, including Xela Tulum, a 12-room hotel on Mexico’s Caribbean coast that opened in late 2023. At press time, a sample starting rate in May on the Design Hotels site was $266 per night — half the standard $532.Try front desk diplomacyRoberto Cowan, a co-founder of the Desert Vintage boutiques, which has outposts in Tucson, Ariz.; New York; and, later this year, Paris, suggests calling the hotel directly for the best rates. You never know where a politely asked “Is that the best you can do?” will lead, he says. Among his biggest successes was a New Year’s trip to Harmony Nosara, an upscale surfing and yoga retreat in Costa Rica. After the website showed there wasn’t any availability on the days he was hoping to visit, he phoned the front desk and was told that the hotel could accommodate him if he were willing to change rooms during his stay. “I was in the most beautiful place, I didn’t mind having to move [rooms], and they were willing to work with me because of the inconvenience,” he says. In the end, he saved about 40 percent on rooms that typically run about $1,000 per night at that time of year. Wendy Perrin, the founder of a travel advice website, thinks front desk diplomacy may also work to your advantage in other scenarios: say, when you’re already at a hotel and trying to extend your stay, or you’re showing up last-minute, late at night, without a reservation. “The closer you get to the time when the value of the room is going to perish,” she notes, the likelier you are to get a discount.Sign up for newslettersMany hospitality brands, marketing consortiums and booking sites have newsletters you can sign up for with a complimentary membership. Though these dispatches are meant primarily as travel inspiration, they also tend to direct subscribers to a wide range of discounts. Small Luxury Hotels, for example, recently offered up to 20 percent off suites at about 168 properties, such as Torralbenc, a farm turned luxury retreat on the Spanish island of Minorca, and the Gaia Riverlodge, a cluster of thatch-roofed cabanas in Belize. And Mr. & Mrs. Smith promoted up to 35 percent off last-minute hotel stays over Easter weekend in destinations including Denver and Buenos Aires. Membership can confer other money-saving perks, too, says Perrin: upgrades, late checkouts, free meals and even the occasional free night.Call your agentTravel advisers and consultants who have longstanding relationships with hotel brands — relationships that generate a high volume of sales — can often pass along “agent-exclusive specials” to clients. Even luxury properties that don’t want to be seen as discounting publicly will sometimes give negotiated rates to preferred travel agents, notes Perrin, who recommends destination-specific travel advisers on her website.Be flexible with your datesShifting your check-in and checkout dates by even a day might yield appreciably lower room rates. “Maybe there’s a group in the hotel that’s taking 40 or 50 percent of the rooms, and the event ends on Wednesday night,” says the hospitality industry consultant Bjorn Hanson. “Everyone’s checking out Thursday morning and the hotel’s going to have really low occupancy.” The same sort of thing can happen when a block of rooms is about to come online after renovations: From one day to the next, the hotel might go from low inventory to high. Take New York’s Walker Hotel Tribeca, a ribbon and button factory converted into a boutique hotel with a rooftop bar. At press time, starting nightly rates during the week of May 12 ranged from $411 to $585. The rates for the 18th were as low as $237.Protect against price dropsThe booking site HotelSlash charges $50 annually to send subscribers properties with discounted rates at their intended destinations. A recent search for a long spring weekend in Paris turned up a fully refundable room at Les Bains Paris — the famous nightclub turned cultish hotel in the Marais — for $1,590 for three nights, while the hotel’s own site showed a total of $1,720 for the same stay. If you book, HotelSlash will watch for further price reductions so you can cancel and rebook at the same hotel, as long as you chose a refundable option. Even if you book a refundable room on a different site or through a hotel reservation line, you can forward the confirmation email to HotelSlash for rate monitoring. Magellan Luxury Hotels, another membership-based reservation service that offers competitive rates at upscale brands (including Aman and Rosewood Hotels & Resorts), has a RateCheck program that will automatically rebook you if a lower rate becomes available. And Tablet Hotels plans to introduce a similar program in May, when customers will start hearing about any price drops on bookings before cancellation penalties kick in. To be eligible, you’ll need to sign up for a $99 annual Tablet Plus membership that also gets you access to upgrades and daily breakfasts, among other extras at certain hotels. Source link

[chloedecker0]

Top AI Governance Platforms for 2024: Ethical and Responsible AI for Your Business

AI governance tools are software or platforms that help organizations manage and regulate the development, deployment, and use of artificial intelligence (AI) systems. By supporting disciplined AI governance, these tools provide features and functionalities that help organizations implement ethical and responsible AI practices – and create competitive advantage.

We analyzed the best AI governance platform for different teams and organizations, which help you determine the best platform for your business.

Download the sample report of Market Share: https://qksgroup.com/download-sample-form/market-share-ai-governance-platforms-2023-worldwide-6040 

What is AI governance?

The legal framework required for artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies to be researched and developed in a way that supports organizations’ global adoption of such systems morally and responsibly is known as artificial intelligence governance. Therefore, bridging the ethical and accountability gaps in AI development and use is the aim of the AI governance framework.

Growing concern over the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has led to increased adoption of AI governance frameworks.

Top AI Governance Platforms

Ataccama One

As its name suggests, Ataccama One unifies data governance, quality, MDM, and other services into a single platform, aiming to be a one-stop shop for all an organization’s data management and governance needs. The AI-driven software is intended for usage by data professionals, such as data governance teams, data stewards, data scientists, other data analysts, and data engineers. It operates in on-premises, cloud, and hybrid settings.

Using a data catalog, data integration tools, reference data management, data observability, and a data narrative module, Ataccama One helps enterprises integrate their efforts in data quality and MDM. With features like role-based security and complete audit history, the solution was designed for use in highly regulated sectors and deployment across whole enterprises.

Apache Atlas

For companies with platforms that handle a lot of data, Apache Atlas is an open-source application that offers a basic set of metadata management and data governance features. Although its primary application is in Hadoop clusters, it can also communicate metadata with other tools and processes to facilitate integration for analytics applications with other systems.

Hortonworks, a big data platform company that was bought by rival Cloudera in 2019, first created Atlas with cooperation from numerous user groups; the software was turned over to the Apache Software Foundation for continued development in 2015. Organizations may use Atlas to organize, categorize, and manage their data assets. They can also provide data scientists and other analysts, as well as their data governance team, access to collaborative tools.

Axon Data Governance

Informatica promotes Axon Data Governance as a solution that can assist businesses in providing end users and data stewards with reliable data at an enterprise level. The platform leverages AI-driven automation to help stewards with data discovery, data quality evaluation, and communication. Informatica acquired it in 2017 when it bought the original creator Diaku. It also enables governance teams to create curated data marketplaces to help business and analytics users find, access, and understand data.

Data governance teams can also use the Axon tool to develop a common data dictionary, define connections between data elements, identify gaps in data sets, and link governance policies to the data they affect. Furthermore, it is possible to generate end-to-end business processes that offer graphical representations of data lineage.

Erwin Data Intelligence

Admirers of the renowned literary investigator Sherlock Holmes are aware of his extraordinary perceptual and awareness abilities. Quest Software promises similar capabilities with Erwin Data Intelligence, its enterprise data governance tool. The technology “provides data awareness, capability and knowledge to drive data governance and business enablement” in enterprises, according to the company’s statement.

Formally known as Erwin Data Intelligence by Quest, the software combines separate Erwin data catalogs, data literacy, and data quality products in an integrated suite. With governance controls to guarantee that users adhere to internal data rules and best practices, it’s intended to assist IT and data governance teams in making accessible data assets more apparent to end users and provide guidance on their usage. It is possible to create role-based views that provide relevant context for pertinent data for various user groups.

SAS Information Governance

Software vendor SAS Institute hopes to help business and analytics users spend more time analyzing data and less time searching for and assessing data with its SAS Information Governance tool. It also empowers data managers and governance teams to ensure the use and security of data assets. The AI governance platform is offered for sale both independently and as an optional add-on or standard component of several SAS analytics solutions.

The program can automatically crawl data sources, categorize data, and locate sensitive information. It also comes with a data catalog. End users may locate pertinent data, reports, and other analytics assets by searching the metadata in the catalog. The search results include details on use metrics, data quality, and other topics to assist users in determining if the data they have found is appropriate for their analytics requirements.

Download the sample report of Market Forecast: https://qksgroup.com/download-sample-form/market-forecast-ai-governance-platforms-2024-2028-worldwide-6030 

How to Choose the Best AI Governance Platform for Your Business?

The ideal AI governance software for your organization depends on several criteria. While some systems are excellent for enforcing privacy laws about data and AI, others work well for establishing compliance benchmarks, moral standards, or risk assessments.

Look for software with features like data governance, model management, compliance automation, and monitoring capabilities while searching for the best AI governance solution. Depending on the nature of your business, you may need industry-specific AI governance software tailored to meet your sector’s unique requirements.

According to the AI Governance Platforms Market Share, 2023, Worldwide report, or rapidly growing organizations, the major challenge with AI Governance Platforms is their ability to manage and cater to the growing skilled talent need of the organization.

The Market Forecast: AI Governance Platforms, 2024-2028, Worldwide report projects continued expansion of the market. These insights, combined with the detailed evaluations provided by the Quadrant Knowledge Solutions report, equip businesses with the knowledge to make informed decisions, ensuring they select a platform that not only meets their current needs but also supports their growth and adaptation in a rapidly evolving market landscape. 

Talk To Analyst: https://qksgroup.com/become-client 

Conclusion

Artificial intelligence (AI) governance is essential to ensuring the ethical and responsible usage of AI as more and more companies in many industries integrate AI solutions into their workflows.

AI may easily lead to biased judgments, privacy violations, and other unforeseen repercussions if allowed to run helter-skelter. As a result, your company’s AI plan should include AI governance tools as a core component, not an afterthought.

[optimisticunknowndream]

INSIGHT ON K MEAN CLUSTERING

📌 What is K-Means Clustering?

K-Means is an unsupervised machine learning algorithm used for clustering data points into K distinct groups based on their similarities. It works by:

Choosing K cluster centers (centroids) randomly.

Assigning each data point to the nearest centroid.

Updating centroids based on the mean of assigned points.

Repeating the process until centroids no longer change significantly.

✅ Advantages of K-Means Clustering

✔ Fast & Scalable – Efficient for large datasets, especially with optimized algorithms. ✔ Easy to Implement – Simple to understand and apply. ✔ Works Well on Well-Separated Clusters – Effective when data has distinct groups. ✔ Interpretable Results – Cluster centers provide insights into data patterns.

❌ Limitations of K-Means Clustering

🚫 Requires Choosing K in Advance – No built-in method to determine the optimal number of clusters. 🚫 Sensitive to Initial Centroid Placement – Different initializations can lead to different results. 🚫 Struggles with Complex Shapes – Works best with spherical clusters; fails with non-linearly separable data. 🚫 Outlier Sensitivity – Outliers can distort cluster assignments.

🔬 Applications of K-Means in Chemistry

K-Means is widely used in chemistry and material sciences for pattern recognition, classification, and analysis. Some key applications include:

1️⃣ Molecular Clustering & Drug Discovery

Groups molecules based on chemical properties (e.g., solubility, molecular weight).

Helps in virtual screening to identify potential drug candidates.

2️⃣ Spectroscopy Data Analysis

Clusters spectral data (e.g., Raman, IR, NMR spectra) to identify patterns in chemical compositions.

Useful in classifying unknown substances in forensic and environmental chemistry.

3️⃣ Materials Science & Nanotechnology

Groups materials based on crystallographic, thermal, or mechanical properties.

Assists in predicting new material behavior for industrial applications.

4️⃣ Environmental Chemistry & Pollution Monitoring

Clusters pollutants based on their chemical signatures in air, water, or soil samples.

Helps in identifying sources of contamination and tracking pollution levels.

5️⃣ Food Chemistry & Quality Control

Clusters food samples based on chemical composition, taste profiles, and contamination levels.

Useful in detecting food adulteration and ensuring product consistency.

[uberstrainer]

Mini Strainer vs. Traditional Filtration: Which One Suits Your Lab Needs?

Choosing the right filtration method is essential for laboratory work, especially when handling small sample volumes. While traditional filtration techniques have been widely used, newer tools like the Mini Strainer offer a more efficient and precise alternative. For researchers looking for the best lab cell strainers, understanding the differences between these two methods can help in making the right decision.

Understanding Mini Strainer and Traditional Filtration

Mini Strainer: A Modern Filtration Tool

The Mini Strainer is a compact cell strainer designed for small sample volumes. It fits a variety of tubes and well plates, making it a versatile choice for laboratories. Available in multiple mesh sizes ranging from 5 µm to 200 µm, it ensures fine filtration without excessive sample loss.

Key features include:

Optimized for Small Samples: Ideal for working with limited material.

Wide Compatibility: Fits tubes from 1.5 ml to 15 ml and well plates.

Single-Use and Sterile: Reduces contamination risk.

Precise Filtration: Helps in cell separation technology and flow cytometry.

Traditional Filtration Methods

Conventional filtration systems rely on paper filters, membrane filters, or centrifugation techniques. These methods have been used for years but come with limitations, particularly for delicate biological samples.

Common types of traditional filtration include:

Membrane Filtration: Often used for microbiological and chemical filtration.

Centrifugation: Separates particles based on density but may require additional steps.

Paper Filtration: A simple technique for larger particles but lacks precision for lab cell strainer applications.

Comparing Mini Strainer and Traditional Filtration

1. Efficiency in Sample Handling

The Mini Strainer is designed for small sample volumes, minimizing waste and reducing handling errors. Traditional filtration methods, such as membrane or paper filters, often require more material and additional processing steps.

2. Precision in Filtration

For applications like cell separation technology, the Mini Strainer offers a more targeted approach with specific mesh sizes. Traditional filters may not provide the same level of control, leading to inconsistent results.

3. Contamination Risk

Using pre-sterilized Mini Strainers lowers the risk of sample contamination. In contrast, traditional filtration often involves reusable components, which require thorough cleaning and sterilization.

4. Compatibility with Strainer Cascade Systems

One major advantage of the Mini Strainer is its ability to integrate with a strainer cascade setup. This allows researchers to filter samples through multiple mesh sizes in sequence, improving sample purity. Traditional methods may require multiple filtration steps, increasing processing time.

5. Versatility in Applications

The Mini Strainer is widely used in:

Flow cytometry sample preparation

Removal of cell clusters and debris

Blood sample processing

Magnetic and fluorescent cell labeling

Traditional methods are useful for broader filtration needs but may not be as effective for lab cell strainer applications that require high precision.

Which One is Right for Your Lab?

For researchers working with small volumes, delicate cell cultures, or requiring precise separation, the Mini Strainer is the better choice. It offers improved efficiency, reduced contamination risk, and compatibility with advanced filtration techniques like strainer cascade systems. Traditional filtration remains relevant for general applications but may not provide the same level of precision.

Conclusion

Selecting the right filtration method depends on the specific needs of your lab. If accuracy, efficiency, and sample purity are priorities, the best lab cell strainers, like the Mini Strainer, provide a modern solution that outperforms traditional filtration methods.

[govindhtech]

What Is AWS Secrets Manager? And Its Benefits, Features

Manage the secrets lifecycle centrally using AWS Secrets Manager.

What is AWS Secrets Manager?

OAuth tokens, API keys, database credentials, application credentials, and other secrets may all be managed, retrieved, and rotated with the aid of AWS Secrets Manager. Many AWS services store and use secrets using Secrets Manager.

Secrets Manager improves your security posture by removing the requirement for hard-coded credentials in application source code. If you save your credentials in Secrets Manager, anyone who can look at your program or its components could potentially compromise it. A runtime call to the Secrets Manager service lets you dynamically retrieve credentials when needed, replacing hard-coded credentials.

Secrets Manager allows you to create an automatic secret rotation schedule. This greatly lowers the chance of compromise by allowing you to swap out long-term secrets for short-term ones. Rotating credentials no longer necessitates upgrading your apps and sending modifications to application clients because the credentials are no longer kept with the application.

Advantages

Centrally audit and securely encrypt secrets.

Control who has access to secrets.

Rotate secrets on their own.

To help with catastrophe recovery plans, replicate secrets.

Use cases

Keep secrets safe

Manage and keep credentials, API keys, and other secrets in one place.

Use fine-grained policies to control access

To control who may access your secrets, use AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) permissions policies.

Rotate secrets automatically

Without redeploying or interfering with running applications, rotate secrets on demand or according to a schedule.

Audit and track the use of secrets

Connect secrets to AWS’s notification, logging, and monitoring services.

Features of AWS Secrets Manager

Safekeeping of secrets

Using encryption keys that you hold and keep in AWS Key Management Service (AWS KMS), AWS Secrets Manager encrypts secrets while they are at rest.

Secrets Manager decrypts the secret when you retrieve it and sends it safely over TLS to your local environment.

Using resource-based and fine-grained IAM policies, Secrets Manager connects with AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) to manage access to the secret.

Rotating secrets automatically without interfering with applications

Using the Secrets Manager console, AWS SDK, or AWS CLI, you may use AWS Secrets Manager to rotate secrets on a schedule or as needed.

Rotating credentials for databases housed on Amazon RDS and Amazon DocumentDB as well as clusters hosted on Amazon Redshift are natively supported by Secrets Manager.

By altering sample Lambda functions, you can expand Secrets Manager to rotate secrets used with other AWS or 3P services.

Secrets are automatically replicated to several AWS regions

To satisfy your specific disaster recovery and cross-regional redundancy needs, you can use AWS Secrets Manager to automatically replicate your secrets to many AWS Regions. There is no need to maintain a complicated solution for this capability; simply specify which AWS regions a secret needs to be replicated to, and Secrets Manager will safely generate regional read replicas. You can trust Secrets Manager to maintain the replicas in sync with the primary secret while granting your multi-Region apps access to replicated secrets in the necessary Regions.

Secret retrieval via programming

When developing your applications, keep hidden security in mind.

Code samples for calling Secrets Manager APIs from popular programming languages are provided by Secrets Manager. Two categories of APIs are available for retrieving secrets:

By name or ARN, retrieve a single secret.

Provide a list of names or ARNs, or filter criteria like tags, to retrieve a collection of secrets.

Set up Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) endpoints so that communications between Secrets Manager and your VPC remain inside the AWS network.

Additionally, Secrets Manager client-side caching libraries can be used to decrease latency and increase availability while retrieving secrets.

Audit and track the use of secrets

By integrating with AWS logging, monitoring, and notification services, AWS Secrets Manager lets you audit and keep an eye on secrets. For instance, you can inspect AWS CloudTrail logs to audit when a secret is produced or rotated once AWS CloudTrail has been enabled for an AWS Region. Likewise, you can set up Amazon CloudWatch Events to get push alerts when Secrets Manager rotates your secrets, or you can set up Amazon CloudWatch to get email notifications using Amazon Simple Notification Service when secrets aren’t utilized for a while.

Compliance

AWS Secrets Manager can be used to satisfy compliance standards.

Use AWS Config Rules to guarantee your secrets meet enterprise security and compliance standards.

The Department of Defense Cloud Computing Security Requirements Guide (DoD CC SRG IL2, IL4, and IL5), FedRAMP, HIPAA, ISO/IEC 27001, ISO/IEC 27017, ISO/IEC 27018, ISO 9001, and the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard

Integration of Secrets Manager

Secrets Manager integrates with AWS services to safely handle your login credentials. You can safely swap login credentials with different AWS services thanks to these integrations. Either customer-managed or AWS-managed KMS keys are used to encrypt the credentials kept in Secrets Manager. To maintain a high level of security, Secrets Manager rotates secrets on a regular basis. You will be able to supply an AWS service with the ARN of a secret rather than a plain text credential once your secrets are stored with Secrets Manager.

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[helicalinsight]

Post-Migration Strategies: Ensuring Success After MySQL to Redshift Migration

MySQL to Redshift Migration can significantly enhance your data analytics capabilities, but the work doesn’t stop once the data is transferred. Implementing effective post-migration strategies is crucial for ensuring the success and performance of your new environment. Here are key strategies to consider after your migration is complete.

1. Validate Data Integrity

The first step after migration is to ensure that all data has been transferred accurately. Perform thorough data validation checks to compare source and target data. This can include:

Row Counts: Ensure the number of rows in MySQL matches those in Redshift.

Checksum Verification: Calculate checksums for tables in both databases to verify data consistency.

Sample Data Validation: Manually check a subset of records to ensure that data values match between the two systems.

By confirming data integrity, you can catch any issues early and ensure that your analytics are based on accurate data.

2. Optimize Query Performance

Once data integrity is validated, focus on optimizing query performance in Redshift. This includes:

Distribution Styles: Choose the appropriate distribution style (KEY, ALL, EVEN) for your tables based on how they are queried. This will reduce data movement and improve performance.

Sort Keys: Define sort keys to optimize query performance, especially for commonly used filters and joins.

Vacuuming: Regularly vacuum your tables to reclaim space and maintain performance. This is crucial after heavy data loads.

Monitoring query performance through Redshift's performance dashboard can help identify bottlenecks and areas for improvement.

3. Implement Security Best Practices

Data security is paramount, especially when handling sensitive information. After migration, ensure that you implement robust security practices, such as:

User Access Control: Review and configure user roles and permissions to restrict access to sensitive data. Use IAM roles to manage permissions effectively.

Data Encryption: Enable encryption for data at rest and in transit to protect against unauthorized access.

Audit Logging: Implement logging to track user activity and changes to the data, helping to detect potential security breaches.

4. Train Your Team

Successful migration is not just about technology; it also involves people. Ensure that your team is well-trained to leverage Redshift's features. This includes:

Familiarizing Staff with SQL: While Redshift uses PostgreSQL syntax, there are nuances that users should understand.

Utilizing Redshift Tools: Train your team on how to use Redshift’s management tools, such as the AWS Management Console and AWS CLI, for efficient database management.

Encouraging a culture of continuous learning can significantly enhance your team’s effectiveness in using the new system.

5. Monitor and Adjust

Post-migration is an ongoing process. Regularly monitor performance metrics to identify trends and potential issues. Key areas to focus on include:

CPU Utilization: Keep an eye on CPU usage to prevent overloading your cluster.

Query Execution Times: Analyze long-running queries and optimize them as necessary.

Disk Space: Monitor disk space usage to avoid running out of space, which can cause slowdowns or errors.

By adjusting your strategies based on these metrics, you can ensure that your Redshift environment continues to perform optimally.

6. Leverage Advanced Features

Finally, take advantage of Redshift’s advanced features to maximize your analytics capabilities. Consider using:

Redshift Spectrum: This allows you to query data directly in S3, making it easier to integrate unstructured data into your analytics.

Concurrency Scaling: Utilize this feature to handle spikes in query loads without performance degradation.

Conclusion

Successfully migrating from MySQL to Amazon Redshift using Ask On Data opens up numerous opportunities for enhanced data analysis and performance. However, to truly realize these benefits, implementing effective post-migration strategies is essential. By focusing on data validation, query optimization, security, team training, continuous monitoring, and leveraging advanced features, organizations can ensure long-term success in their new data environment.

[derbykitchen]

Unleash Your Inner Chef: Wholesale Kitchenware Offers in Dubai

Absolutely! Here's the revised opening paragraph incorporating the keyword "kitchenware wholesale Dubai":

Dubai, a bustling metropolis known for its extravagant lifestyle and diverse culinary scene, presents a lucrative market for kitchenware. If you're a culinary enthusiast, budding restaurateur, or a savvy retailer looking to stock your shelves, exploring the realm of kitchenware wholesale Dubai offers can be a thrilling endeavor. Let's dive into the exciting world of kitchenware wholesalers in this vibrant city and discover the treasure trove of opportunities they present.

The Abundance of Kitchenware Wholesalers in Dubai

Dubai is a hub for wholesale suppliers, catering to businesses and consumers alike. This abundance provides ample options for sourcing top-quality kitchenware at competitive prices. Here's where you can discover the best wholesale deals:

Dragon Mart: This sprawling marketplace is a treasure trove of wholesale suppliers, including many specializing in kitchenware. From everyday essentials to specialty gadgets, you'll find an extensive range at bargain prices.

Dedicated Wholesale Districts: Areas like Deira and Al Quoz boast clusters of wholesale businesses, offering a concentrated experience for sourcing various kitchenware items in bulk.

Online Marketplaces: Websites like TradeKey, Alibaba, and IndiaMart connect you with a vast network of Dubai-based and international kitchenware wholesalers, allowing you to compare prices and products from the comfort of your own location.

What to Expect: Product Variety

Dubai's wholesale kitchenware market caters to diverse tastes and needs. Expect to find everything to equip your kitchen, including:

Cookware: Pots, pans, skillets, baking dishes, and specialty cookware in various materials like stainless steel, cast iron, nonstick, and ceramic.

Cutlery: A wide array of knife sets, steak knives, kitchen shears, and cutting boards.

Utensils & Gadgets: Whisks, spatulas, ladles, can openers, graters, measuring tools, and unique gadgets to streamline your cooking tasks.

Tableware: Elegant dinnerware sets, glassware, serving dishes, and table linens to elevate your dining experience.

Appliances: Blenders, mixers, food processors, coffee makers, and other small appliances can often be found at wholesale prices.

Navigating the Wholesale Landscape

Quality Inspection: Before committing to large orders, request samples or thoroughly inspect items in person to ensure they meet your quality standards.

Negotiation: In Dubai's wholesale market, negotiation is customary. Don't hesitate to bargain for better prices, especially for bulk purchases.

Minimum Order Quantities (MOQs): Be aware of MOQs set by suppliers and ensure they align with your inventory needs.

Shipping & Logistics: Factor in shipping costs, lead times, and customs regulations if applicable, particularly for international imports.

Building Relationships: Fostering strong relationships with reliable wholesalers can lead to long-term benefits and smoother transactions.

Tips for Sourcing Success

Know Your Needs: Create a detailed inventory list outlining the specific types and quantities of kitchenware items you seek.

Research Thoroughly: Compare prices, product offerings, and supplier reputations before making commitments.

Attend Trade Shows: Industry events offer opportunities to network with wholesalers, see products firsthand, and potentially land exclusive deals.

Consider Local Suppliers: Supporting local businesses can sometimes offer advantages in terms of communication and lead times.

Unleash Your Culinary Potential

Whether you're a passionate home cook, an aspiring chef, or a business owner, Dubai's wholesale kitchenware market empowers you to stock your kitchen with all the tools you need to create culinary magic. With careful research and smart navigation, you'll unlock a world of quality kitchenware at exceptional prices, setting the stage for endless culinary adventures.

[rohitpalan]

Storage as a Service (STaaS) Market: Unprecedented Growth at 16.4% CAGR Sparks Industry Evolution

According to Future industry Insights, the storage-as-a-service industry is expected to grow at a remarkable rate of seventeen percent between 2020 and 2030. The increasing ease of data syncing, sharing, collaboration, and accessibility across smartphones and other devices serves as the foundation for this prediction.

In addition, Storage as a Service (STaaS) has grown rapidly in the last several years due to its ability to increase operational flexibility at lower operating costs. This increase is especially noticeable in every industry segment where cloud services have had an impact. Automation has notably increased productivity fourfold while lowering costs and improving service quality at the same time.

One of the key advantages of STaaS is its capacity to accommodate massive volumes of data in the cloud, obviating the need for on-premises storage. As a result, businesses can enjoy liberated storage space, eliminate the necessity for extensive backup procedures, and achieve substantial savings on disaster recovery plans.

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Key Takeaways of Storage as a Service Market Study

SMEs are expected to hold 74% of market share in 2020, as the adoption of STaaS becomes essential to cutting back on infrastructural costs and focusing on business continuity.

The BFSI segment held a market share of 22% in 2019 and is expected to continue on a similar trend because banking is getting digitized even in rural clusters.

Moreover, South Asia & Pacific is projected to register a CAGR of 23% from 2020-2030 in the global STaaS market, due to countries undergoing rapid digitalization across sectors.

Additionally, cloud computing and the remote work ethic are set to remain strong undercurrents of the booming STaaS market.

COVID-19 Impact Analysis on Storage as a Service Market

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated remote work adoption, leading businesses to upgrade their tech infrastructure for continuity. Future trends show continued tech investments. SaaS is now recognized for profit margin expansion, driven by cost reduction focus. Pre-pandemic, only 2.9% worked remotely; post-pandemic, remote work surges due to operational strategy reevaluation.

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In 2018 and 2019, the market for storage as a service expanded by around 15% year over year. With the COVID-19 epidemic, the market is anticipated to rise by about 18%–20% between 2021 and 2023.

In the medium term, it may be difficult for the storage as a service market to maintain its growth pace due to concerns about budgets. Furthermore, deteriorating profitability is a key issue, and sales growth has also been a significant factor, all of which have led to significant losses for companies of all sizes.

Partnerships and Innovations to Drive Growth

The global Storage as a Service industry is experiencing a storm due to the rapidly evolving technical landscape, shifting consumer expectations, and fierce competition. This is forcing solution providers to consistently search for novel and affordable solutions. Additionally, partnerships and collaborations with digital solution providers might aid suppliers of storage as a service in growing their clientele and market share.

For instance, Pure Storage and SAP formed a cooperation in March 2020 to provide customers with shared competency centres, technical support, and technological integrations in STaaS, intelligent enterprise, cloud computing, storage, and virtualization.

Don’t Miss Out on Expertise: Grab Your Copy of the Report Now!  https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/checkout/7336

Storage as a Service Market: Segmentation

Service Type

Cloud NAS

 SAN

Cloud Backup

Archiving

Enterprise Size

Small & Medium Enterprises

Large Enterprises

Industry

Media & Entertainment

Government

Healthcare

IT & Telecom

Manufacturing

Education

Others

Region

North America

Latin America

Europe

East Asia

South Asia Pacific

Middle East & Africa

[hellothetutorshelp-blog]

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