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generativeinai · 24 days ago

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Generative AI in Customer Service Explained: The Technology, Tools, and Trends Powering the Future of Customer Support?

Customer service is undergoing a radical transformation, fueled by the rise of Generative AI. Gone are the days when customer queries relied solely on static FAQs or long wait times for human agents. With the emergence of large language models and AI-driven automation, businesses are now delivering faster, smarter, and more personalized support experiences.

But how exactly does generative AI work in customer service? What tools are leading the change? And what trends should you watch for?

Let’s explore the technology, tools, and trends that are powering the future of customer support through generative AI.

1. What Is Generative AI in Customer Service?

Generative AI refers to AI systems that can generate human-like responses, ideas, or content based on trained data. In customer service, it means AI tools that can:

Understand and respond to customer queries in real time

Provide contextual, conversational assistance

Summarize long interactions

Personalize responses based on customer history

Unlike traditional rule-based chatbots, generative AI adapts dynamically, making interactions feel more human and engaging.

2. Core Technologies Powering Generative AI in Support

A. Large Language Models (LLMs)

LLMs like GPT-4, Claude, and Gemini are the foundation of generative AI. Trained on massive datasets, they understand language context, tone, and nuances, enabling natural interactions with customers.

B. Natural Language Processing (NLP)

NLP allows machines to comprehend and interpret human language. It's what enables AI tools to read tickets, interpret intent, extract sentiment, and generate suitable responses.

C. Machine Learning (ML) Algorithms

ML helps customer service AI to learn from past interactions, identify trends in support tickets, and improve performance over time.

D. Knowledge Graphs and RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation)

These enhance the factual accuracy of AI outputs by allowing them to pull relevant data from enterprise databases, manuals, or FAQs before generating responses.

3. Popular Generative AI Tools in Customer Service

Here are some of the leading tools helping companies implement generative AI in their support workflows:

1. Zendesk AI

Integrates generative AI to assist agents with reply suggestions, automatic ticket summarization, and knowledge article recommendations.

2. Freshdesk Copilot

Freshworks’ AI copilot helps agents resolve issues by summarizing customer conversations and recommending next steps in real-time.

3. Salesforce Einstein GPT

Einstein GPT offers generative AI-powered replies across CRM workflows, including customer support, with real-time data from Salesforce’s ecosystem.

4. Intercom Fin AI Agent

Designed to fully automate common customer queries using generative AI, Fin delivers highly accurate answers and passes complex tickets to agents when necessary.

5. Ada

An automation platform that uses generative AI to build customer flows without coding, Ada enables instant support that feels personal.

4. Top Use Cases of Generative AI in Customer Support

✅ 24/7 Automated Support

Generative AI enables round-the-clock support without human intervention, reducing reliance on night shift teams.

✅ Ticket Summarization

AI can summarize lengthy email or chat threads, saving agents time and enabling faster resolution.

✅ Response Drafting

AI can instantly draft professional replies that agents can review and send, speeding up response times.

✅ Knowledge Article Creation

Generative models can help generate and update help articles based on customer queries and ticket data.

✅ Intent Detection and Routing

AI detects the user's intent and routes the query to the right department or agent, reducing miscommunication and wait times.

5. Business Benefits of Generative AI in Customer Service

Increased Efficiency: AI reduces the time spent on repetitive queries and ticket categorization.

Cost Savings: Fewer agents are required to manage high ticket volumes.

Improved CX: Customers get faster, more accurate answers—often without needing to escalate.

Scalability: AI handles volume spikes without service dips.

Continuous Learning: AI models improve over time with every new interaction.

6. Emerging Trends Shaping the Future

1. AI-Human Hybrid Support

Companies are combining generative AI with human oversight. AI handles simple queries while humans address emotional or complex issues.

2. Multilingual Support

LLMs are becoming fluent in multiple languages, enabling instant global customer support without translation delays.

3. Emotionally Intelligent AI

AI is beginning to detect customer tone and sentiment, allowing it to adjust responses accordingly—being empathetic when needed.

4. Voice-Powered AI Agents

Voice bots powered by generative AI are emerging as a new frontier, delivering seamless spoken interactions.

5. Privacy-Compliant AI

With regulations like GDPR, companies are deploying AI models with built-in privacy filters and localized deployments (e.g., Private LLMs).

7. Challenges and Considerations

Despite the advantages, generative AI in customer service comes with some challenges:

Hallucinations (Inaccurate Responses): LLMs can sometimes fabricate answers if not grounded in verified knowledge sources.

Data Security Risks: Sharing sensitive customer data with third-party models can raise compliance issues.

Need for Continuous Training: AI systems must be regularly updated to stay relevant and accurate.

Enterprises must monitor, fine-tune, and regulate AI systems carefully to maintain brand trust and service quality.

8. The Road Ahead: What to Expect

The future of customer service is AI-augmented, not AI-replaced. As generative AI tools mature, they’ll shift from assisting to proactively resolving customer needs—automating complex workflows like returns, disputes, and onboarding. Businesses that embrace this evolution today will lead in both cost-efficiency and customer satisfaction tomorrow.

Conclusion

Generative AI in customer service is redefining what excellent customer service looks like—making it faster, more personalized, and increasingly autonomous. Whether you're a startup or a global brand, adopting these tools early can offer a serious competitive edge.

#ai #artificial intelligence

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craigbrownphd · 11 months ago

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Combine Text Embeddings and Knowledge (Graph) Embeddings in RAG systems

#Technology #DataAnalytics #DataDriven https://towardsdatascience.com/combine-text-embeddings-and-knowledge-graph-embeddings-in-rag-systems-5e6d7e493925?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=tumblr

#MachineLearning #ArtificialIntelligence #DataScience

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goprosuite-2021 · 4 years ago

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argyrocratie · 5 years ago

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The Tyranny of Words by Stuart Chase (1932)

CHAPTER XIV: TO THE RIGHT WITH THE ECONOMISTS

(...)

I employ a skilled mechanic to mow my meadow and cultivate my garden. He used to be employed in a Connecticut mill, but a new machine was installed and he and some others lost their work. So he is keeping himself and his family alive as best he can at a fraction of his former income. He was a victim of what is termed 'technological unemployment.’ A machine took his work from him, and for a considerable period he could find no other work to do. He might have left town, but he had bought a house, his children were in school, his wife liked the neighbourhood and to take to the road was a risky venture with machinists out of work on every hand. Now what do the classical economists do with my friend Roy Thompson?

They prove by irrefutable logic that technological unemployment is impossible. I know what I am saying, for I have debated the matter in public with classical economists and can tick off the arguments with my eyes shut. The logic proceeds like this: A new machine is put into a pin factory to take the place of men. The cost of making pins is lowered. Presently competition lowers the price of pins as the machine is generally adopted. Therefore housewives spend less money for pins and have more money to spend for silk stockings. Therefore the factories making stockings employ more help and no unemployment results. On the other hand, if the first factory has a monopoly of the new machine and does not choose to lower the price of pins, the owner of the factory takes in more money. This money he either spends, let us say for a private aeroplane, or invests in a new pin factory. Workers have to build the aeroplane or the factory, giving more employment. On purely logical grounds, you cannot get round it. Employment shifts, but does not decline and the same amount of money continues in circulation. Q.E.D.

How do you get round it? You look steadily at Roy Thompson, at scores of still less fortunate Roy Thompsons. You adopt the operational approach, disregard the logic in your head and observe what is happening outside. You are careful not to generalize from one or two cases. In the world of fact, you find that men and women frequently lose their jobs to machines, to stop-watch efficiency methods, photo-electric cells, to improvements in agricultural methods. You can count them if you have the heart, leaving their benches and their tools and going out upon the street.

You can examine the curves of output per man-hour for this commodity and that and note how they have been rising for fifty years. You can halt any working man and ask him to tell you how he or his friends have lost their work from time to time because of new inventions. It is not hard to check and recheck the facts of technological unemployment. Referents for the term are very plentiful. Very good – or rather, very bad. Millions of Roys have suffered for a greater or lesser period. Do they find other work? Many of them do. Often like Roy, they learn new trades at inferior pay. But the increasing obstinacy of unemployment in the modern world indicates that many do not. Whether they do or do not, certain relevant human factors must be brought into the concept. Can Roy1, after twenty years of working at a lathe shift his skill to qualify as a linesman if men are wanted in that field? Can Roy2, after living forty years in Middletown with his roots driven deep pick up his family and move to Seattle if men are wanted on the docks? Can Roy3 now unemployed hibernate like a woodchuck and live without eating because a year hence there is to be a demand for machinists in the television industry? Can Roy4 change from man’s work in a machine shop to women’s work in a rayon factory? What kind of employment awaits him? Where does it await him? When does it await him?

It is two very different things to talk about 'technological unemployment’ as a net statistical effect and to observe Roy in his perplexity and discouragement. If new inventions speeds up, it is obvious that more men and women per thousand are in transit from a job lost to a job hopefully to be found. And what happens if the owner of the factory does not care to buy a private aeroplane or to invest in a new pin plant? Suppose he just puts his money in the bank, and the bank just lets it stay there? For the last eight years new investments in private industry have been pitifully small compared with earlier periods. What if we have as many pin factories as prospects for profitable investment warrant?

These considerations by no means exhaust the question. But perhaps I have given enough to show that knowledge about technological unemployment, or indeed any kind of employment, is not advanced by the syllogisms of classical economists. The classicists treat the term as thing-in-itself without finding the referents which give it meaning. Most characteristics are left out. Observe the brutality of the result. If one can prove by logic that there can be no such thing as technological unemployment, then any apparent idleness must he due to human cussedness – Roy must have been a slack worker, improvident and wrong-headed – and one can lean comfortably back in one’s chair with no need to do anything about it. More, one can violently object to anybody’s doing anything about it, for this would interfere with the functioning of 'economic law.’

'Unemployment’ is not a thing. You cannot prove its existence or nonexistence except as a word. The validity of the concept rests on the shoulders of millions of your fellow citizens. Are they suffering because they have no work? Are their families suffering? Are the children without shoes with which to go to school? In March, 1937, I visited WPA kitchens in Savannah, Georgia, where 4,500 schoolchildren certified as underweight from malnutrition, were being fed. Savannah is neither a large city nor a city of slums. If you cannot see through the word 'unemployrnent’ to ragged children standing patiently in line with bowl and spoon, you have no business hanging out your shingle as an economist.

Let us inspect another favorite abstraction of the economic faculty: 'The function of business is to supply the consumer with what he wants.’ Translating this to lower levels: The function of the radio business is to supply Adam1 with a serviceable radio at a price consistent with the cost of producing it. In the fall of 1936, a leading radio trade journal made the following editorial comment:

The ear of the average consumer is notoriously cauliflower when it comes to distinguishing between good radio reception and bad. Since original boorn-boom dynamic speakers superseded early high-pitched magnetics, few improvements impinging upon the auditory organs have been sufficiently obvious to nudge obsolete receivers into oblivion without the aid of vocal mesmerisms by some retail salesman. The public eye, on the other hand, appears to be readily impressed, and we predict the best year since 1929. Design for selling.

In short, do not build radios for the ear, because there have been no recent improvements to warrant new models; build them to sell an elegant Circassian walnut cabinet. Here are some assorted vocal mesmerisms:

Band-Stand Baffles Tone-Tested Resonators Violin-Shaped Cabinets Vibracoustic Floating Sound Boards Automatic Flash Tuner Overtone Amplifiers Acoustical Labyrinths Magic Voice Mystic Hand Dial-a-matic

What the radio industry does in the economic textbooks is one thing; what it actually does is another. The observation holds for most industries which can make more goods in a year than people buy in a year, or in more learned language, where capacity exceeds demand.

What a remarkable term is 'business’, especially in America! How is business? – not your business, but business-in-general. Statisticians toil over composite graphs and charts to answer this mythological question. If there is no such entity as 'business’ – and by now we know there is not – it seems a little superfluous to be constantly taking its temperature. Business says. Business speaks. Business recovers its voice. Business views with alarm. Business is jubilant when the Supreme Court votes down the NRA. Business is sick. Business is terrible. Business runs through a cycle – charming image. Business has recovered: Look at the chart – there it is, as plain as the nose on your face. Back to 1929. The curve says we are all right, therefore we must be all right. What, eight million unemployed; farmers in the Dust Bowl down and out; share-croppers reach new depths of misery? Forget it. Keep your eye on the chart.

This is pure hocus-pocus. Not only are there no dependable referents to which we can hitch the chart, but those to which it has been hitched – 'carloadings’, 'bank loans’, 'lumber production’, 'cotton-mill consumption’ – cannot he combined into any composite curve which does not violate mathematical sanity. A great mathematician, Ivar Fredholm, calls such omnibus index numbers 'hermaphrodite arithmetic monsters devoid of all sense’. At this point we note a curious perversion of the scientific attitude. Opinions as to the health of 'business’ are based on figures, rather than on hearsay and hunches. We are looking, we believe, at cold facts. We are scientific as hell. But the 'facts and figures’ we look at have been mutilated beyond meaning. Some day we must give up prostrations before a phantom 'business’, though the charts reach from Wall Street to the moon. The term 'business’ and its faithful follower 'service’, often prevent us from observing what useful or useless things businessmen are actually doing.

Many economists and statisticians believe it legitimate to argue that industrial prosperity after a slump will inevitably return, because their charts show ups and downs in the past. They point to the scientific nature of the 'proof’. But the graphs a real scientist draws describe the conditions of an experiment arranged by him. They can be used safely for drawing conclusions only if similar conditions can he arranged. The humps and hollows on the economists’ charts refer to changing conditions. There is no similar arrangement and few valid conclusions are possible. The context has changed and the result must be guesswork. 'Introducing graphs of supply and demand,’ says Hogben, 'in a fictitious free-exchange economy does not make economics an exact science.’

A business executive with whom I am associated asked me the other day, 'What will be the reaction of the public to the new laws for retail price maintenance?’ This was an important question, for as manufacturer, wholesaler and retailer of a commodity he had to decide a policy covering costs, prices, possible injunctions, court orders, notification to retailers and so on. Yet my colleague was trying to settle this critical matter with the aid of a ghost.

There is no 'public’ which is a useful concept in the premises. Calling it 'John Q. Public’ does not help. Between us, we had to break down 'public’ into a series of interested groups – New York retailers, retailers in the West, jobbing houses, customers of various kinds – before we could know what we were talking about and arrive at a valid decision. Observe that in this case no theory was involved. As businessmen, we had to determine, by the following Saturday morning, a specific course of action involving the stability and the jobs of a considerable business enterprise.

Formal economics wanders in a veritable jungle of abstract terms. Here is a sample of the flora:

land labour capital; capitalism rent wages; the iron law of wages purchasing power production; distribution interest; the long-term interest rate profit the profit system money: the gold standard credit; debt; savings; securities inflation; deflation; reflation value; wealth the law of diminishing returns the entrepreneur the economic man free competition; the free market the law of supply and demand cost; income price levels marginal utility monopoly; the trusts property individualism; business socialism; public ownership the consumer; the producer the standard of living planning

Some of these terms are useful short cuts provided one does not objectify them. But if one employs them without being conscious of abstracting, they acquire a fictitious existence. Some have no discoverable referents. 'Value’, for instance, is as elusive as 'the Omnipotent’. Some have referents very difficult to1ocate: 'capitalism’, 'individualism’, 'inflation’, 'credit’, 'money’, 'business’. Some have referents easier to locate, provided one makes the rare effort to find them.

Following Bridgman, we might prepare a list of meaningless questions in economics:

1. Does capital produce wealth? 2. Is the consumer more important than the producer? 3. What is a reasonable profit? 4. Is man by nature co-operative or competitive? 5. Is fascism a kind of capitalism? 6. What is a classless society? 7. What is the American standard of living? 8. Are capital and labour partners? 9. Are we headed for inflation? 10. Is decentralization better than centralization?

These questions are either completely meaningless, or meaningless as they stand. Given a position in time and space with further description of the terms employed, qualified answers might be found for some. For instance, Margaret Mead studied a tribe in New Guinea where habits of co-operation were very strong. A hundred miles over the mountains she studied another tribe where competition was so ferocious that it threatened survival. On the basis of these observations we might venture a qualified answer to question 4. For question 8, one can say that capital and labour are partners in the same sense that Castor and Pollux are brothers – mythological matters both.

Korzybski observes that any study to become a science must begin with the lowest abstractions available, which means descriptions of happenings on the level of sense impressions. Economic literature usually reverses this procedure, starting with high-order terms and working down. Thus you will find in Chapter I of Dr. Blank’s Principles of Economics elaborate definitions of 'land’, 'labour’, 'capital’, 'wealth’, 'profit’, 'money’, 'credit’, 'property’, 'marginal utility’. As any two economists have great difficulty in agreeing upon the precise meaning of these terms, the treatise begins with shaky assumptions. Worse follows when the shaky assumptions are woven into elaborate systems by deductive logic. The best fun which a professor of economics apparently gets out of his academic life is to demolish the theories of his confrères. The single time to my knowledge that American economists were in general agreement was when they objected to the Smoot-Hawley tariff bill in 1930, by a joint memorandum of more than a thousand signers. That was a red-letter day in the history of economic thought.

To extend agreement and make the study of economics conform to the scientific method, it is necessary to lay aside abstract definitions and apply the operational approach, What is Rufus1 doing on his farm? What is Roy1 doing at his factory bench? What is Junius1 doing in his bank? (A bank studied on the basis of what is going on inside without recourse to abstractions like 'credit’, 'liquidity’, 'soundness’, is a pretty whimsical thing.) What is Sylvia1 doing at her desk? Observe and record what a great number of men and women are actually doing in furnishing themselves and the community with food, clothing, and shelter. Then proceed to inferences. Then proceed to general rules governing economic behaviour – if any can be found. Then check the rules with more first-hand observation. Never forget Adam1 acting, the date at which he acts, the place where he acts. Fortunately some economists and sociologists are beginning to follow this programme. We find it in the studies of Middletown by the Lynds, in Ogburn’s Social Change, in Economic Behaviour and Recent Social Trends, in the studies of the National Resources Committee.

Inferences drawn by Adam Smith about the England of 1770, or by Karl Marx about the England, France and Germany of the 1850’s, are obviously worthless for the America of today. Some deductions may still he sound, but all are suspect pending operational check in modern America. To criticize American economic behaviour today, or to prescribe for its improvement because Adam Smith said thus and Marx said so, is as foolish as believing that a fly has eight legs because Aristotle said so. Both Smith and Marx used their eyes and ears more than their fellow theorists. Ricardo, for instance, might have been born blind, so pure a theorist was he.

Economic laws became in the hands of the classical school just laws in themselves. Often they were merely logical exercises. So it was that classical theory stood triumphantly symmetrical, an absolute! And so it is still too much taught. By a series of assumptions and with the use of certain chosen illustrations it can be worked up to climactically. And when the thing is complete – there you are! But the student goes away from the demonstration unsatisfied, frustrated, angry, feeling as though a logical trick had been played upon him. And why? Well, because for one thing, in the twentieth century the truth must be useful and this is not.

So says R. G. Tugwell. Meanwhile Dr. Wesley C. Mitchell observes that it is impossible to prove or disprove the classical laws.

The laws and principles were developed with the industrial revolution. The Wealth of Nations was published in the same year that Watt made a steam engine which would really work – the same year, incidentally, that the American Declaration of Independence was drafted and signed. The classicists were much influenced by notions about science, but they did not adopt the scientific method. They tried to erect economic laws like Newton’s laws of gravitation, but they did not copy Newton’s operational technique. It was like a little boy making himself a choo-choo after seeing a locomotive.

Editorial writers today are still infatuated with these 'laws’ of a make-believe science. They pull them out of their heads with pontifical finality whenever reformers or Congressmen propose a measure which editors do not like. 'Economic law cannot so cavalierly be set aside,’ they say. 'We cannot circumvent the law of supply and demand any more than we can circumvent the law of gravitation.’ 'Only crackpots would seek to outwit the immutable principles of economics.’

Classical economics not only was largely innocent of the scientific method; it also became a kind of theology selling indulgences to businessmen. As factories expanded after Watt’s steam engine, a philosophy was needed to give respectability and prestige to the rising class of manufacturers. The philosophy was first identified with the 'natural laws’ of Newton. Then it twined itself like a boa constrictor (yes, I am conscious of abstracting) around Darwin’s hypothesis of the 'survival of the fittest’. What a handout! The greatest good for the greatest number, so ran the dogma, arises from the unimpeded competitive activities of enlightened self-interest. The faster the stragglers are bankrupted and undone, the stronger the economic frame. What appears as competitive anarchy is not really anarchy at all, but a beneficent system of control by natural forces. The big fish eats the little fish, the strong businessman eats the weak. It is all very gratifying and lovely, and as remote from reality as the labours of Hercules.

In 1798, Malthus published his famous essay on population, one of the grandest examples of extrapolation on record. The essay was in part designed to answer William Godwin’s argument to the effect that mankind could achieve happiness through the use of reason. Malthus wanted to scotch the dangerous idea that happiness was in prospect for the mass of the people. (The principle of 'original sin’ again). So by study of the exceedingly unreliable statistics of the time, he laid down two postulates: first, that population tends to grow at a geometrical rate; second that the food supply tends to grow at an arithmetical rate. The population of England was then 7,000,000; in a hundred years if the curve was followed it would be, he said, 112,000,000. If food was sufficient for the 7,000,000 in 1800, by 1900 the supply would expand to feed only 35,000,000 – 'which would leave a population of 77,000,000 totally unprovided for.’

This fantastic hypothesis was then solemnly applied to the problem of poverty. As population was destined to leap ahead of food supply, restrained only by pestilence, war, and famine, it followed that measures to improve the living-standards of the mass of the people were futile. 'It is, undoubtedly, a most disheartening reflection, that the great obstacle in the way of any extraordinary improvement in society, is of a nature that we can never hope to overcome.’ That stopped the fellow Godwin in his tracks. The essay was also used for decades as conclusive proof that reform laws were pernicious. In the second edition of his essay, in 1803, Malthus relented to the point where a new element was introduced into his equations. It the poor would employ 'moral restraint’ in their procreational activities, they might possibly gain a notch or two on the food supply. It was very cheering news to the well-to-do. The poor had themselves to blame for their poverty and even if moral restraint was widely practised, poverty was largely inevitable anyhow.

Malthus’s iron law of population was paralleled by Ricardo’s iron law of wages. This great principle put poor people in another vice. Since labour is a commodity, said Ricardo, its price goes up and down with demand. When demand for labour is slack, wages will remain at the bare-subsistence level. If demand becomes brisk, wages will rise, workers will have more money. They will then produce more children and presently the addition to the population will bring the price of labour back to bare-subsistence level again. So what is the use of trying to improve the condition of the workers?

Nassau Senior 'proved’ that hours of labour could not be reduced, because the employer’s profit came out of the last hour of operation. A 68-hour week was common at the time. Eliminate that last hour, he said, and industrial profits would be eliminated and the business of the nation ruined. Thus if children in factories worked 67 hours rather than 68, panic would replace prosperity. Senior’s analysis was derived from theoretical examples where the arithmetic was correct but the assumptions untenable.

Senior’s contribution to economic theory proved that hours could not be reduced. John Stuart Mill and other classicists proved that wages could not be raised, by the famous 'wage-fund doctrine’. Workers joined unions and struck for a raise. Pure madness, said the economists. Why? Because there was a certain fund set aside out of capital for the payment of wages. There was a certain number of wage-earners. Divide the first by the second. It was all arranged by Heaven and arithmetic and trade unions could do nothing about it. The wage-fund theory was the stock answer of the manufacturer and editor to the claims of organized workmen. It had been blessed by economists and must be true.

Observe how these 'laws’ were put to tangible use, holding back improvements in working-conditions for scores of years. The philosophers produced nonsense which was at least disinterested. Many of these classical economists had an axe to grind and cruelly sharp they ground it. Not until 1876 was the wage-fund theory exploded by an American economist, Francis Walker. He argued that wages were paid not out of a fund of stored capital, but out of current earnings – a theory which came closer to the facts. It is a pleasure to note that John Stuart Mill who first popularized the wage-fund hypothesis in his Principles of Political Economy in 1848, published the following statement years later: 'The doctrine hitherto taught by most economists (including myself) which denied it to be possible that trade combinations can raise wages… is deprived of its scientific foundation, and must be thrown aside.’ A brave, fine statement. But working people in England and elsewhere for fifty years had paid a bitter price for a 'law’ that had no scientific foundation.

Orthodox economists have had a particularly bad time of it since 1929. Governments all over the world have been indulging in financial operations of a shockingly unorthodox character. As Chester T. Crowell points out in the New Republic, the learned faculty stands on the sidelines shouting: 'No! You can’t do that!’ And while they shout, it is done. The economically impossible is performed again and again. For instance:

1. Mussolini simply could not carry on his vast operations in Ethiopia with a gold reserve of only $3,000,000,000. It was unthinkable. The reserve was a mere drop in the bucket; it would be gone in a month. But Mussolini did it. Ethiopia was brought to heel, and Italy is still afloat financially.

2. If a nation has a gold coverage of less than 2 per cent, obviously it has no currency worthy of the name. Panic and chaos are inevitable. It cannot hope to carry on foreign trade; its citizens will fly from their native money standard. In terms of respectable economic theory, the German financial system today is a corpse. But the corpse does not fall down. It goes right on acting as if it were alive.

3. We were all brought up on the fundamental idea that if the British Treasury ever repudiated a government debt, it would be the end of the pound sterling and of world trade. The financial backbone of the planet would be broken. Well, the British Treasury owes the American Treasury some billions of dollars, and the latter can whistle for its money. The pound remains firm, and ships still sail the seas. Because of the repudiation, Congress passed the Johnson Act, forbidding loans to warring nations, and so giving the American people one of the sturdiest defences against being dragged into war that it was ever our good fortune to secure. England’s perfidy has been our blessing.

4. A nation, we were taught, could not go off the gold standard in fact, no matter how many proclamations its statesmen made. If it devalued, prices would shoot up, and gold would still be master. The United States went off the gold standard by proclamation and most domestic prices hardly fluttered. France, which clung nobly to gold, suffered a much more severe depression than the reprobates who abandoned it.

Yes, the orthodox economists are having difficulties on the sidelines. Is the trouble with the wicked world which pays little attention to their 'laws’, or is the trouble with the laws themselves? How valid are 'natural laws’ which can be violated right and left?

#stuart chase #economy

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y02mustang-the-bard · 8 years ago

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Supercorp Week 2k17 - Day Six

Prompt: protective Lena or protective Kara (@supercorp-week2k17)

I wanted to take a look at Kara being protective outside of using her super strength.

Read on AO3.

Lena stares at her reflection in the mirror, adjusting her skirt and the collar of her blouse until she’s mostly satisfied. Her hair is pulled back in a high bun and she's already finished her makeup, but she leans closer to be sure nothing has smudged. She ultimately decided on simple post diamond earrings but she's not certain they’re the best choice.

“Ready?”

She turns to find Kara standing in the doorway of her bedroom. “Yes.”

Kara smiles, hearing the slight tremor to her words, and moves closer to rub her hands over Lena’s arms. “You’re gonna do fine, babe. This is a great project and everyone is going to be excited to learn more about it. And I’ll be right there up front, okay?”

Lena sighs. “We should get going.”

Lena drives to L-Corp, where the press conference is being held in just over an hour. Jess meets them there and immediately hands Lena a paper with stats and graphs, giving Lena the latest update. She nods and scans the information. Nothing much has changed since yesterday, no adjustments needed to her speech, so that's a relief.

Kara captures her wrist and squeezes gently. “I'm going to go find a good seat in the press room, okay?” She winks at Lena. “You've got this.”

Kara takes a seat in the third row, in the center, where Lena will be able to see her immediately. The room fills quickly with reporters and cameramen, the sound technician checks the various microphones attached to the podium, and then the volume of the idle chatter rises as everyone waits for Lena to begin the press conference.

Promptly at two-thirty, Lena enters the room and steps behind the podium. She glances at the reporters gathered and Kara gives her a small smile.

“Good afternoon, and thank you all for being here today. L-Corp has been working diligently over the past six months and I'm pleased to announce that we are initiating the Piezo project, which will begin immediately. We have made strides in energy harvesting through piezoelectric materials...”

She goes on to explain the prototypes that are being launched at an expo the following week, including several new batteries, and gives the rate of improvement they’ve seen in their testing. All the numbers put the L-Corp project well ahead of its next competitor and when everything is market-ready, it is predicted to have a huge impact across multiple industries.

“I’ll respond to any questions you have about this initiative.”

The first hand up is Kara’s and Lena nods in her direction.

“Ms. Luthor, Kara Danvers with Catco magazine. Can you give us an example of some of the industries you see this project improving?”

“At this point, we believe the biggest applications will be for wearable technologies and autonomous devices, but we’re working closely with the mobile industry, as well.”

A man in the sixth row gets to his feet. “Lawrence Wright from National City Enquirer. Your charitable donation to the local alien refugee group was in the news just yesterday; are you shifting L-Corp away from its anti-alien stance?”

“L-Corp has never had an anti-alien stance.” The single prototype they’d designed which might have been considered anti-alien had been scrapped well before production, thanks in large part to the blonde in the third row who was currently shooting daggers at the reporter from the Enquirer.

“I’m sorry, I meant LuthorCorp.”

Lena lifts her chin slightly but that’s the only indication she gives of her anger. “This is an L-Corp press conference about the Piezo project, Mr. Wright. I’ll answer any questions you may have on that subject.”

As a few other reporters try to vie for Lena’s attention, Lawrence shouts, “Are these donations meant to be reparations for your crazy brother? Or are they just to make you feel better about the guilt you bear and the blood behind the Luthor name?”

The hushed murmur that spreads throughout the room quickly turns into anger and other reporters begin to stand and drown out the man’s voice. Lena refuses to react to anything more from him and takes questions for several minutes, then thanks the press for attending and exits the room.

The journalists finish up their notes and the cameramen begin to take down their tripods and the microphones. Kara maneuvers through the crowd and filters out of the room, trailing after her target.

The man pushes through the glass doors and leans against the exterior wall of the building, lighting a cigarette and pulling out his smartphone.

Kara takes the cigarette from his mouth, tosses it on the concrete, and puts it out with her shoe.

“What the hell?” He starts for her, angry.

“No smoking within fifty feet.”

“Fuck off,” he snarls, stepping into her space.

She stands her ground. He's perhaps an inch shorter than she is and she uses that to her advantage, looking him in the eye. “What the hell were you doing in there?”

“Asking questions. It's what I do.”

“You have no reason to attack Lena for her brother’s crimes.”

He sneers. “I have plenty of reasons, starting with the fact that her last name is Luthor.”

“She is more than just her last name. She has more integrity in her little finger than you’ll develop your entire life. She held this press conference to show the innovation that L-Corp is driving to change the world for the better, and all you did was try to distract from that message.” She steps toward him, pleased when he leans back. “But you failed. L-Corp’s work will continue, with Lena at the helm. All you've done is disgrace your paper, which, seeing as it's a trashy tabloid, is really saying something.”

“Who the fuck are you anyway? You're from Catco, right? Why do you care?”

“I care because journalists are supposed to report the truth, promote the important stories and inform the public of what's happening in the world around them.” Kara crosses her arms. “You’re not a journalist. You're just a bitter columnist for a gossip rag, and while you might think that means you can do whatever you want, if you ever come after Lena Luthor like that again, I swear that I will destroy whatever career you think you have.”

He tries to take a swing at her, a wild right hook, but she steps back so he can't connect and he stumbles.

“I’m not going to fight you,” she sighs.

He rushes her and she sidesteps out of the way.

The two security guards who have been watching the display intervene now and take the man by the arms, escorting him off the premises and encouraging him to cool down.

Kara turns to enter the building and check on Lena, only to find the woman peering at her from the other side of the door.

“Hey,” she steps inside and walks with Lena away from the flow of traffic, “are you okay?”

“What was all that about?” Lena asks with a raised eyebrow.

“Just having a chat.”

“About destroying his career?”

Kara bites her lip. “You heard that?”

Lena gestures at the journalists milling around the lobby. “Everyone heard that.”

“Oh.” She scrunches her nose as she thinks about that. “Well. They all seemed pretty upset when he was being a jerk in there, so I bet any one of them would have said the same thing.” She settles her glasses to a more comfortable position on her nose. “It’s fine.”

“I appreciate the effort, Kara, but that wasn’t necessary.”

“Of course it was. You don’t deserve that. You are doing amazing things with L-Corp and everyone knows it’s on a much different path than it was before, which is all thanks to you.” She snorts. “He was just trying to create some sensationalist news story because he doesn’t know how to research and prepare a real article.”

“Well… thank you. I don’t think he’ll be making another appearance at any more of my press conferences.”

“Good.” Kara shoves her hands in the pockets of her jeans and tries to rid herself of the residual righteous anger. “Do you still have things to finish up here? Do you want to grab a late lunch?”

“We had lunch at noon, darling,” Lena reminds her, chuckling.

“Yeah, but… this is late lunch.”

Lena smiles. “Sure. Why don’t I take you out for potstickers, my valiant defender?”

Kara preens and accepts the title with a grin. “Seems fair.”

#my fic #supercorp #supercorp week #protective!kara

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legendarygroup4-blog · 7 years ago

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Ch. 11 & 12

Ch. 11

During the Depression of the 1930′s, graphic designers were hired by the government to create posters for the public that advertised programs for citizens to follow if they wanted to get through the Depression as financially, physically, and emotionally stable as possible. And when the Second World War began immediately afterwards for the first half of the 1940′s, those same posters were now being used as propaganda to win the populace’s support for continuing to fight the war for as long as it took until the United States and its Allies won against the Axis Powers. These propaganda posters made use of catchy slogans and striking visual images to catch the viewer’s eye and sympathize with the message it was intending to come across.

Photojournalism and documentary

Documentary photography became a powerful tool for political and social commentary in the 1930s. Documentary photos established direct engagement with the viewer, as it was an imagery of fact. Perception of realism that a photograph conveys gave birth to the profession of photojournalism. Public attitudes toward photos were conditioned by the captions and framing of the images. Cameras also became more portable and print technology for photographic reproduction (via offset printing) improved and became more affordable. As a result, better records of things were kept, and mainstream presses (magazines) took off.

Commercial and Technical use of Information Design

in the 1940s and 1950s computers changed the medium in which we viewed information and eventually how we displayed it. The computers processed large amounts of data, but charts, graphs, and maps helped to actually comprehend that data.

We see the merge of Bauhuas aesthetics and the Swiss international style

Imagery of science and technology, lab equipment ect… began to become standardized

Design Process

Information analysis influenced graphic design and it all went hand in hand. Imagery of paths, movements, and transitions came from the electronic industry. Statistics and data began to gain authority because it was necessary to daily life especially with the introduction of computers.

Aesthetics were highly rational

Simplification

Systematic

Technical

Ch. 12

Image and Identity Systems

In the 1950s graphic design really entered this new realm of branding. Companies were becoming corporations and they wanted to be easily identified by simple symbols. Horizontal integration made it necessary for corporations to be easily identified. The identity was an integral part of the brand. Using a single image allowed for the complexity of the brand to be simplified.

The International Typographic style was a modern approach to graphic design that took inspiration from previous art movements such as Constructivism, De Stijl, and other European experimental movements. Developed in Switzerland in the 1950′s, it emphasized cleanliness, readability, asymmetrical grid layouts, sans-serif typefaces, and a combination of flash and ragged text on the left and right sides respectively.

Technology

At this point, graphic design was no longer confined to a static image. Television in America boomed in the 50s and 60s. New markets for graphic design opened in the film industry and in commercials involving animation. Motion designers took on sequence, engaging movement and timing as compositional features of design. Phototypesetting, using film strips and strobe lamps, offered lower costs and more flexibility than metal type. This was a newfound freedom because now they could be manipulated photographically or cut, pasted, and rephotographed. Metal type was starting to phase out.

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satanic-girll · 7 years ago

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Finish For Wood Restaurant Tables

Finishing for wood restaurant tables

A restaurant is one of the most punishing environments a tabletop can be put into. A wood table in this setting is subjected to frequent wipe downs, various chemical cleaners and constant abrasion from plates and silverware. Some of the finishes we will be discussing in this article may be just fine for a small café, but not a high volume restaurant that sees constant table turns. Below we’ve listed the best, most durable finishes first, working down the list to the least durable.

Conversion Varnish: In the restaurant world, conversion varnish is the gold standard for durable table finishes. There are many manufacturers of this type of finish, each claiming to be the most durable; most of them are indecipherable from each other once cured and there are many good choices. Conversion varnish is chemically cured, meaning that a second chemical called a catalyzer or hardener is added to the mixture to help cure the finish. The catalyzer sets off a slow chemical reaction that starts to cross-link or cure the solid materials in the finish to make it more durable. Conversion Varnish is typically 60% solids, while the remaining 40% is a solvent that is used to thin the solution enough for spraying. There are several ways to apply this type of finish, but it is typically applied with a spray gun in a spray booth. Spraying the finish gives a very even appearance and lets you control the build levels of the finish, allowing you to apply just the right amount. It is possible to use a brush to apply this type of finish, but it is not recommended because it can leave brush marks. There is no doubt that Conversion Varnish is the most durable finish for restaurant tables. The type of conversion varnish that Viridian Reclaimed Wood uses has been tested for compatibility with Ecolab’s most common cleaning agents that are used in restaurants. We’ve tested this finish against common bleach rags, alcohol, citrus, wine, vinegar, ammonia, mustard, and ketchup. We have also submitted samples of our tabletops for abrasion testing, all of which easily passed.

UV Finish: Ultra Violet (UV) finish is a relatively new finish to the market in the last 50 years. The technology behind UV finishes is fascinating, it is cured instantly with light! The finish is rolled or sprayed onto the surface of the wood tabletop and is passed under a series of very bright lights that produce various wavelengths of UV light. When the finish is exposed to these intense lights, it immediately transforms from a liquid into a hard solid. You may have seen this technology before in nail salons, some types of Gel nail polishes are cured with UV lights. UV finish is a special solution containing proprietary ingredients, but here are the basics. Instead of having solvents in a mixture like in a conversion varnish, UV contains 100% solids. This means that there is nothing to evaporate. This mixture of solid materials is combined with a photo initiator that reacts with the lights to cure the finish. One of the advantages to this type of finish is that it has no VOC’s, so it is very environmentally friendly. It is also a very hard finish that is resistant to many chemicals and abrasion. The down-side to a UV finish is that it requires expensive specialized machinery to apply.

Epoxy finishes: We have all sat at a restaurant table that has a thick epoxy coat with coins or other fun items buried under the finish. An epoxy is similar to a Conversion Varnish, except it’s less resistant to the cleaning agents commonly used in restaurants. Epoxy is a two-part mixture that when mixed, sets off a chemical reaction that starts to cure the two parts together. The benefit of an epoxy finish is that it can seep into the smallest of cracks and voids, filling them up with the finish. When finishing reclaimed wood tables for restaurants, it is typical to make up a thin batch of epoxy and brush it on a rustic table top to help seal the small cracks commonly found in materials like barn wood. The last thing a restaurateur wants is a table that has not been sealed that can collect food and debris, creating an unsanitary condition. Once this thin epoxy layer is cured, a traditional conversion varnish can be sprayed on top to help create a chemical resistant finish that will be more durable. Epoxy creates a thick, durable top coat for tables with a rustic surface. The down-sides of such a thick finish are that it is costly, increases lead times for production and it can’t be repaired easily on-site. Another drawback to epoxy is that it can yellow over time.

Polyurethane: Have you ever sat at a restaurant table that was sticky even though it was dry? That is what happens when you put a polyurethane finish on a high-traffic restaurant tabletop. The reason the polyurethane finish fails so quickly is that the cleaning agents typically used are very harsh and break down this type of finish. Polyurethane was developed for flooring, not tabletops. Bleach and common Ecolab sanitizers will eat through this type of finish in a relatively short time, leaving your tabletops tacky to the touch; not a good first impression to your customers. Unfortunately, there is little to be done once the finish gets tacky. The best option is sand off the old finish and try to recoat the tops with something more durable.

Wax finishes: Back in the old days before we had a grasp of modern chemistry, wax was the preferred finish for wood. It was readily available across the world and did a good job at keeping moisture away from the surface of the wood. Obviously, since this finish is so low on the list, we would never recommend it for a high volume commercial table top coat. Wax finishes need to be reapplied frequently to keep their luster and the level of protection. One benefit of a wax finish is that it can easily be repaired, just by buffing in more wax onto the surface. One of the biggest drawbacks, other than the durability, is that once you use a wax finish, you can never use another type of finish on top. Wax is a release agent, so no other finishes will stick.

Oil finishes: The main finishes we consider when talking about oil are Tung oil, Linseed Oil, Teak Oil and Danish Oil. All of these oils are rubbed into the wood’s surface and allowed to dry for a day or so before re-coating. Oils are very easy to apply. They really bring out the grain of the wood and look beautiful. The downside is that they offer little to no protection from moisture or chemicals for the wood. We wouldn’t recommend an oil finish for an indoor restaurant application unless you are committed to re-oiling the tops regularly (possibly as frequently as weekly). We do, however recommend high quality oil finishes for outdoor restaurant tables. Hard film finishes like Conversion Varnish are not suitable for exterior tables that are exposed to the elements. They must be coated with a “repairable” finish like oil so that every year the tables can be refreshed with a new coat. Our favorite exterior oil finish for wood tables is Cabots brand. It is easily refreshed annually and offers excellent protection from the elements. It is also widely available across the US.

Nitrocellulose lacquer: Not recommended as a restaurant table finish because of its lack of durability; something as basic as water glasses will leave rings on the table easily. This type of finish is also easily harmed by ordinary cleaners.

Shellac: Most people don’t know that shellac is a resin secreted by the Lac bug found in Thailand and India. The resin is refined into different grades and mixed with alcohol to dissolve the resin, which is then applied to wood as a finish. Shellac is a great sealer for several other types of top coats but is not a good option for a restaurant table. The main reason for this is that alcohol dissolves the shellac very easily. The other reason is that shellac is a brittle finish and not suitable for the heavy abrasion found in restaurants. It can be sprayed or brushed on easily and is a great finish option for low-traffic applications such as a dining room table at home.

Information on some of the finishes called out in this article can also be found on this Wikipedia page in a nice graph format that compares each of the properties of the different finishes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_finishing

The post Finish For Wood Restaurant Tables appeared first on Viridian Reclaimed Wood.

Source: https://viridianwood.com/finish-for-wood-restaurant-tables/

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dragxnflyinamber · 7 years ago

Text

Finish For Wood Restaurant Tables

Finishing for wood restaurant tables

Epoxy finishes: We have all sat at a restaurant table that has a thick epoxy coat with coins or other fun items buried under the finish. An epoxy is similar to a conversion varnish, except it’s less resistant to the cleaning agents commonly used in restaurants. Epoxy is a two-part mixture that when mixed, sets off a chemical reaction that starts to cure the two parts together. The benefit of an epoxy finish is that it can seep into the smallest of cracks and voids, filling them up with the finish. When finishing reclaimed wood tables for restaurants, it is typical to make up a thin batch of epoxy and brush it on a rustic table top to help seal the small cracks commonly found in materials like barn wood. The last thing a restaurateur wants is a table that has not been sealed that can collect food and debris, creating an unsanitary condition. Once this thin epoxy layer is cured, a traditional conversion varnish can be sprayed on top to help create a chemical resistant finish that will be more durable. Epoxy creates a thick, durable top coat for tables with a rustic surface. The down-sides of such a thick finish are that it is costly, increases lead times for production and it can’t be repaired easily on-site. Another drawback to epoxy is that it can yellow over time.

The post Finish For Wood Restaurant Tables appeared first on Viridian Reclaimed Wood.

Source: https://viridianwood.com/finish-for-wood-restaurant-tables/

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hasitanai26 · 7 years ago

Text

Finish For Wood Restaurant Tables

Finishing for wood restaurant tables

The post Finish For Wood Restaurant Tables appeared first on Viridian Reclaimed Wood.

Source: https://viridianwood.com/finish-for-wood-restaurant-tables/

0 notes

glindamauldin8-blog · 7 years ago

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The Academic Impostor Behind The Pit Upward Hysteria.

X-mas Time (does not this actually seem a number of years ago?) poured with storm so I was basically forced to keep indoors eating chocolate and lessen pies as well as seeing feel-good movies. 5) Place a palm on each cheek and rub carefully in circles upwards to the holy places, after that draw the palms softly down either edge of your nostrils and over your face, as well as push back up the sides of the holy places and also cheeks, down over the jowls once more etc 18 times. Despite the fact that debt at your business is quite low right now, which implies that the chance from bankruptcy is slim (practically limited to a case where energy markets container hard for a substantial period of time or even a case where fraudulence is happening), there is actually the benefit of the company's versatility when it relates to spending. And I perhaps that makes clear the on the cost side, our experts're expecting market growth I assume in accordance with opinion, I assume there is actually an overall viewpoint that markets are going to continue to take up this year, there is a series of business analyst out there. Certainly, individual staples like Unilever counterbalance the sub-par revenues yield and also annual report security with predictable profits as well as much less stock price dryness during the course of market declines. Right go!! now have the emerging markets, the emerging markets spent lavishly the dollar generally rate of interest were actually dropping so they obtained a whole lot over they need to possess. NexGen possesses a considerable amount of loan to enjoy with, as this held $130 million since December 1. If the uranium rates comply as well, NexGen Energy's shares might quite easily experience an also far better year in 2018 in comparison to that did in 2017. Andy Sellars, a fellow at Harvard College's Berkman Facility for Net and also Culture, created a graph in 2012 showing which conditions possess laws that really forbid taking pictures of elections or even polling locations. I particularly enjoy to concentrate on alcohol consumption 16 ounces of water along with each dish. A feature distinct to my vision boards is actually that I likewise put two tags on the bottom from panel that checked out: Day produced: today's time" as well as Date Shown up: blank" This allows me recognize the length of time my sight has been conceptualizing because its development and also every time I consider my sight panel, certainly not simply am I mentally accuseded of accounts, but I also experience a mind-boggling feeling to see that revealed to conclusion. The growth in consolidated headcount was rather soft through an interior reallocation from people coming from Thread to Google. Our team'll likewise cover such subjects as stock command as well as running a loved ones service as well as offer ideas for starting several kinds of businesses. We continue to view growth in our company, physical body, and also components business which was up 3% despite standard manufacturer's warranty sales and also one fewer service time compared with in 2015, which lessened income by approximately 2%. As Health discussed, this latest start-up businesses is actually expected to provide uneven quarterly purchases physiques as our company remain to validate our proprietary chemical modern technology offerings and also compete for market allotment against a powerful as well as ragged setting.

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thesffcorner · 7 years ago

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Dishonored Retrospective Part 1: World Building and Characters

If you know me at all (or if you came here from my main blog), you know that I’m a huge fan of the Dishonored franchise. For all intents and purposes, the original Dishonored is what got me into mainstream gaming; I played it for a Video Game Writing and Narrative class in my senior year of college, and I’ve loved and played each game since.

It’s an excellent series, and while there is some debate around this, in my opinion, every single expansion of the game has been an improvement on the original. So I wanted to do an overview and talk about how the series changed and improved, and the overall story that it tells. I will touch upon every aspect of these games, including story, characters, world-building, mechanics, and gameplay.

So, what better way to start than with a quick overview?

Story and Overview:

Dishonored is a 2012 first person stealth/action-adventure game developed by Arkane and published by Bethesda Softworks. It was followed by 2 pieces of DLC released the following year, the Knife of Dunwall and the Brigmore Witches, and then a sequel game, Dishonored 2 in 2016. The final piece of the franchise was Dishonored: Death of the Outsider that came out summer 2017 and for now concludes all the plot-lines and character arcs from the characters we have been following since the first game.

Dishonored is set in the fictional Empire of the Isles, a fantasy world loosely based on the UK. The setting is a mix of late 18 century politics and aesthetics, combined with early 20 century costuming and technology. The Isles are ruled by the Kaldwin family from the capital of Dunwall.

In the first game you play as Royal Protector Corvo Attano, Empress Jessamine Kaldwin’s closest ally and lover. When Jessamine is murdered by the Whalers, assassins lead by Daud and her daughter Princess Emily is kidnapped, Corvo is framed for the murder and set for execution.

The game proper starts 6 months after the assassination. Corvo is broken out of prison with the help of the Loyalists and the rest of the game follows his quest to save Emily, clear his name and thwart the plan of the people who orchestrated the whole thing from taking over Dunwall.

The story of the original Dishonored is, in my opinion both the weakest and the most ‘video game-y’ in the entire franchise. It’s not bad, but it’s a rather simplistic, straightforward revenge plot, the kind that you would find in the standard Liam Neeson/Jason Statham action films. Corvo gets framed for the murder of his family and spends the rest of the game trying to save his daughter and either kill or dispose of everyone who was involved in framing him. There are a few twists here and there, but the plot is otherwise indistinguishable from dime-a-dozen other action stories. Where the first game really shines is the world-building, gameplay and character writing.

World-building:

Like I said the world is very loosely based on the UK, and this much is apparent in the design of Dunwall. It’s an industrial port city, build on a traffic heavy river, with lots of grey, metal buildings that tower over the narrow, crime infected streets. It’s a city of factories, poverty, gangs, assassins, and disease. It’s a harsh world made even harsher by the backdrop of the Wheeper plague; the rich throw lavish parties while the poor are terrorized by supposed law enforcement as well as the gangs; corruption is rampant and we see this immediately with the scene where Corvo is tortured in the prison by his captors who, only a few minutes ago in game-time were his closest allies.

I absolutely love the setting. Dunwall is a gorgeous place that feels like a real city; it’s clear the developers spent a lot of time making sure the levels correspond to different parts of a city and fit together in a cohesive way. This is why most of my favourite levels are the ones that take place on the Dunwall streets.

Despite the abundance of grey and black industrial buildings, sewers, prisons and factories, the setting is still beautiful, and there are enough locations in the game that are bright and colourful to break up the monotony. You can enter random houses and apartments, and find letters and remnants of the people who inhabited or still inhabit Dunwall and even interact with random non-aggressive NPCs on the streets.

The Wheeper plague is another incredibly effective way of linking you to the world. The first time I actually saw a Wheeper was terrifying; they mindlessly charge at you, scream and puke bile and flies at you and look like the first stage of a zombie transformation. Even the noise they make when they are close by and not aggressive is eerie, this quiet sobbing and retching. They are the final product of the rat plague that has swept Dunwall and are a pitiful and yet still horrifying enemy.

Many sections of the city are blocked off or seized by the government because of the plague and you even explore the district where the plague started, the Flooded District. Like its inspiration, the bubonic plague, this one too is carried by rats which are also aggressive enemies that will attack you in swarms. The sectioned off areas form natural boundaries to the levels and I found this a clever solution to keeping the player confined to where the developers wanted you to be.

Additionally, there are tons of notes, posters, books, journals and letters to discover that give even more character to the world. My favorite are the various posters, general notices and advertisements plastered all over the city. I especially love the smaller details like the cancelled signs over concert announcements or the plague warnings. Likewise, you get to hear the thoughts of both important characters and random NPCs by either listening to their audio-graphs or pointing the heart and listening to their secrets.

Speaking of the heart, the other thing that makes this world fascinating is the presence of magic in conjunction with the technology. Dunwall, and by extension the Isles are powered by the use of whale oil; in fact we spend an entire level in the Knife of Dunwall in a whale oil refinery. The oil is used as fuel for electricity, which in turn powers trams, tallboys, streetlamps, machinery and various weapons like arc pylons, guns, electric bolts and mines.

However, people also use whale bones to craft and collect bonecharms, which are supposedly blessed by a chaotic neutral demigod called the Outsider who marks people and gives them superpowers and lives in a place outside of time and reality called the Void. And the best part? It’s all true.

One of the very first things you do after escaping Coldridge Prison is meeting the Outsider who marks you, giving you a variety of superpowers. This also facilitates the collection of runes and bonecharms that upgrade these abilities and award you more of the same.

Fascinatingly, not only does the official religion, the Abbey of the Everyman know about the Outsider, both the Sisters of the Abbey and the Overseers also consider him a heretic and a tempestuous trickster. They aren’t entirely wrong; the Outsider marks very few people and those he marks are crucial to history in some way, but that way can be highly destructive. We see time and time again throughout the game that the poor and downtrodden turn to the Outsider often as they build shrines to him, but it’s hard to tell (at least in Dishonored) how much he responds, if at all.

Speaking of the Outsider, let’s quickly go over the characters, which also happen to be one of the point for which I have the most complicated feelings.

Characters:

Our silent protagonist is Corvo Attano, and he’s an excellent character. Depending on how you play him, he’s either a vengeful violent man who is willing to avenge himself in very violent ways or a clever if somewhat petty man who takes the violence the world dishes at him and doesn’t let it destroy him. Even though I love the fact that he gets a voice in the sequel, I think a lot is delivered about his character from how he reacts to certain things, or rather how you, as a player think he should react.

Like any silent protagonist, Corvo is what you want him to be which is a good thing in terms of the first game, because then the experience of playing as him feels better. But in terms of the franchise overall, it gets complicated, especially when we get into the games’ ‘canon’.

One thing I don’t quite understand is his relationship with Emily. In the first game, it’s pretty clear that Emily doesn’t know Corvo is her father; yet in the sequel it’s common knowledge that he is?

Likewise if Jessamine is unmarried and the Empress, and there is no law that forbids her from marrying commoners, why aren’t they married? And if it’s a secret that Corvo is her lover/Emily’s father, than how come no one thought it was super weird that the Empress suddenly has a child without a husband? I feel like I missed something.

Other important characters (some of which we’ll touch on later) are: Princess Emily Kaldwin; the Royal Spymaster/Lord Regent Hiram Burrows; High Overseer Campbell; the Pendleton siblings Custis, Morgan and Treavor; the assassin Daud; Admiral Havelock; Overseer Teague Martin; Granny Rags; the Bottlestreet Gang Leader Slackjaw; the Boyle sisters; and inventors Anton Sokolov and Piero Joplin.

Let’s start with my number 1 complaint; the female characters. There are 8 named female characters with speaking roles. Those are: Jessamine Kaldwin, Emily Kaldwin, Calista Curnow, Granny Rags, Lady Boyle, Lydia, Cecilia and Madame Prudence.

Prudence and Lady Boyle are killable NPCs who have about 2-3 lines. Lady Boyle is especially egregious as she is an assassination target without having done anything wrong; the alternative to killing her is actually EVEN WORSE than just killing her (Dishonored does that a lot).

Cecilia and Lydia are likewise characters that have about 10 lines total and though Cecilia does serve a purpose, neither is very necessary or interesting.

Calista is a lot more relevant, but she doesn’t exactly have a lot of personality. There is also a scene in which you can spy on her taking a bath (?) which like…. Isn’t a thing that Corvo would do? At all? Especially not to his daughter’s governess?

Jessamine Kaldwin is killed immediately, and spends the rest of the game as a LITERAL spirit guide to Corvo, her soul trapped in the heart by the Outsider. We never really get to see what she was like as Empress, only that she was ‘good’. She’s a pretty bad trope of a character.

Emily is the precocious child character who honestly could be quite annoying. The fact that she constantly needs to be saved and protected doesn’t help, and some of her lines are outright terrible (and Chloe Grace Moritz’s voice acting is… not good. She’s not good at playing a precocious child).

The only female character that I legitimately loved is Granny Rags. She is an old witch who in her youth was so powerful and impressive that lords and royalty fought for her hand, but she rejected everyone because of the Outsider. In the DLC we find out that her name is Vera Morley and she is one of the marked ones.

She is voiced by Susan Sarandon and has pretty entertaining dialogue. Her side-quests are quite good and fucked up (poisoning the entire Bottlestreet Gang?) and the fact that she turns out to be a pretty dangerous antagonist if you reject her was a nice twist.

So to recap, out of the 8 characters, one is actually good, isn’t in need of rescuing, isn’t sexualized, and isn’t killed immediately. Nice one, Arkane!

To be fair, a lot of the male characters are killable or even supposed to be killed, some in rather gruesome ways. However, the fact that literary every single person who is a villain is a man, and the one female target is on the list purely out of coincidence is really frustrating in a game series that’s otherwise pretty progressive. There are also no female hostiles, but both are moot points now, since even the DLC improves on this. I still feel like it’s worth mentioning.

Part 2 will be a breakdown of the gameplay and level design, as well as a closer look at the first three levels.

> part 2

#dishonored #dishonored retrospective #moni talks

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nowthecherry-blog · 8 years ago

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The Lineage of Thomas De Quincey by Antonio Mu��oz Molina Portrait of Thomas De Quincey, 1851 (artist unknown). Whether you know it or not, if you write creatively for a newspaper and let yourself drift through the city in a tide of strangers; if you shudder at the mysteries of reality and the fiendish twists of the imagination; if you feel tempted to yield to the drunkenness of life’s sensations or of artificial paradises (more or less toxic and addictive as they may be), then you are a disciple of Thomas De Quincey. You need not even care for literature that much: listen to Lou Reed’s voice and lyrics in an album like New York, and some of the spirit of Thomas De Quincey will be seeping into you. Lou Reed can invoke the gloom of night over St. Mark’s Place in the seventies, old SoHo streets sunk in darkness like black canyons. But the perilous thrill of excitement in living by night; the aimless wandering of those who search for what’s forbidden or impossible, of those who walk and walk because they have nowhere to lay their head, or to rest their soul: all of this goes back to London streets roamed by De Quincey at the start of the nineteenth century. Greek Street. Oxford Street (his “stony-hearted step-mother”). Streets that in the dark glare of the lamplight saw De Quincey as a teenage runaway. Youthful rebellion itself may have been his invention: he was the first, at any rate, to turn it into literature. Two centuries before drugs swept into the cities, before the young left behind the protection and captivity of home, or the discipline of school, De Quincey chose at seventeen the life of a fugitive, deserting the status of his class to shiver with cold on the steps of London churches, muffled in rags like the homeless kids, boys and girls, you see today on the sidewalks of New York. Reading a recent memoir by Patti Smith or Bob Dylan, you find in them echoes of De Quincey: the talented, penniless boy who moves to the big city, to be seduced and sometimes devoured and destroyed by it; who many years later recalls those days and is amazed to have survived, thinking of so many others like him who were left behind. Our genealogical tree goes back, without doubts, gaps or missing links, to De Quincey. He was the first to envisage the big city as a closed world unto itself, akin to some great mythological monster. Reading his Confessions of an English Opium Eater, we feel it was written just now. We are so much in its influence that our way of looking at cities and telling their story has hardly changed. Now we have cars instead of carriages, electric lights instead of oil and gas lamps, digital screens where there used to be hand-painted signs. But our exaltation and despair, our fear and vertigo at being lost, our dizziness amidst a sea of unknown faces that break against us like waves: It can all be found in De Quincey—as can our search for a single face perhaps in a thousand more, our fascination with strangers we will never see again, whom we would like to follow, to find out where they live, perhaps to unveil their mystery. Poe was inspired by De Quincey to write the first fictional tale whose protagonist is an anonymous city walker: the man of the crowd. Dickens read De Quincey and Poe, imitating both in passages of his London novels that seem like descents into the abyss. When Poe’s detective Dupin investigates a crime, Paris resembles nothing so much as De Quincey’s London, where he wrote his ghastly newspaper chronicles, mixing a morbid and precise record of reality with the etched-black tones of the mystery fiction he himself was creating. In Paris, Baudelaire will read and translate De Quincey and Poe, developing with their help a sensibility that showed him how to see what so many writers and artists are seldom able truly to grasp: the world that stands before their eyes, with all its crudeness unfiltered by literature, and then the new and radical form of poetry that will arise from it and perpetuate it. Like De Quincey and Poe, and also like Coleridge, Baudelaire experiments with drugs, alcohol, opium, hashish, creating a romanticism of derangement that lasts to this day. Like them, Baudelaire has his photograph taken and writes for the newspapers. The new world must be perceived through the medium of those equally novel technologies that are born with it and make it possible. Today we read these writers in collections of literary classics, forgetting that they wrote for commercial mass media; that they took advantage of the latest technical advances, including newspapers and magazines that were financed by advertising and attracted readers with big headlines and lithographic illustrations. De Quincey and Poe wrote chronicles of actual crimes and felt no scruple at other times in passing off their fictions as the truth. The tutelary masters of modernity are the first we know through photographs. They stare at us from within the frame with a fixity, a devastating presence and immediacy that could only exist after the invention of the camera. Last fall, in New York bookstores, the works of De Quincey appeared on the new arrivals shelf. Guilty Thing,[1] a biography written by Frances Wilson, invites me to delve once more into a forefather I never stopped reading. The best thing about Wilson is not the fact that she is an admirable biographer, but that from the very first page we can tell she belongs to the fevered lineage of Thomas De Quincey. Antonio Muñoz Molina [Translated from the Spanish by Guillermo Bleichmar] [1] GUILTY THING: A Life of Thomas De Quincey, by Frances Wilson. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. $30.00.

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jcmarchi · 9 months ago

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Derek Collison, Founder & CEO of Synadia – Interview Series

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/derek-collison-founder-ceo-of-synadia-interview-series/

Derek Collison, Founder & CEO of Synadia – Interview Series

Derek Collison is the Founder & CEO of Synadia. Synadia invented the open source connective technology, NATS.io. With NATS you can easily connect all your applications and data at a global scale, no matter what language they are written in or where they are running.

Derek Collison is a 30 year industry veteran, entrepreneur, and pioneer in secure and large-scale distributed systems and cloud computing. He helped change the way financial, transportation, and logistics systems fundamentally worked while spending over a decade at TIBCO, designing systems that still power much of those industries today. At Google, Derek co-founded the AJAX APIs group and created the largest CDN for popular javascript libraries, identifying the need for easy and secure access to Google’s services without the need for additional servers.

How can AI and edge computing work together to achieve low-latency, complex data processing?

Edge computing has two primary roles to play in the AI economy. The primary role today is in the collection and distribution of edge based data / telemetry for use in supporting the centralized training of models.

The emerging and much larger opportunity is for AI inferencing use cases. AI and edge computing are a critical and powerful combination that enables real-time processing, reduced latency, improved accuracy, and enhanced privacy & security.

We are now seeing clear signs that inference at the edge is not simply getting large quantized models to run at the edge. It’s evolving to a multi-stage pipeline, one where prompt augmentation and retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) operations transform the initial prompt from a user or system using real time and location independent access to data at the edge. The second is a graph traversal of multiple models vs. a single model whether they are local or remote.

What are some real-world applications where the combination of AI and edge computing has made a significant impact?

AI is impacting every industry at an increasing velocity. We are seeing the open-source NATS community and ecosystem building applications and services in industrial manufacturing and IoT (predictive maintenance, process optimization & digital twins), autonomous vehicles (optimized routes & safety), green energy (energy optimization), retail (personalized shopping experiences and real-time inventory management), FinTech (regulatory compliance and algorithmic trading) and government (DoD/IC communities e.g. drone CUAS).

One of our customers is a manufacturer of medical devices that are used as a training platform at facilities all over the globe. Each local event needs to be captured and stored as part of a certification process. Having to trombone all traffic back to the central cloud was both cost prohibitive and difficult for the more remote sessions. Our native edge capabilities allowed them to simplify their platform delivery capabilities.

As the creators of NATS.io, how do you see open-source technology shaping the future of edge computing?

Edge computing has proven itself to be a different landscape than cloud computing. The approaches and solutions used in the current so-called “cloud native” architectures are not translating to the edge.

The “what” component of the solution remains familiar, but the “how” is very different. Synadia/NATS.io changes the “how,” not the “what,” to solve challenges with micro-services and data access and flow at the edge across any cloud or geography.

What are the key benefits of using NATS.io for global connectivity of applications and data?

The main advantages of NATS.io come from its unique approach to connectivity and integrated data layer. NATS’ intelligent connectivity enables applications and services to be built with location transparency or what we like to call “nomadic applications.” NATS removes the requirements of extra cloud infrastructure such as load balancers, service mesh, or API gateways to allow users to write an application once and deploy it anywhere.

Building upon that is our data layer, with streams and key-value and object stores. It’s the combination of our data layer with the connectivity layer that gives powerful access and flow patterns that are suited very well to the edge for latency sensitive and real time applications.

What are the next big innovations in edge and connectivity that you foresee in the coming years?

Real-time fleet management, telemetry data collection, analysis at the edge and of course AI inference at the edge in real time with specific temporal envelopes will all be priority innovations. Examples of this include:

Increased AI capabilities at the edge: As processing power improves, more advanced AI and machine learning capabilities will move from the cloud to edge devices.

5G and edge computing convergence: The continued rollout of 5G networks will transform edge computing capabilities by providing ultra-low latency and high bandwidth.

Edge-to-cloud continuum: We’ll likely see a more seamless integration between edge and cloud computing, creating a continuum where data and workloads are dynamically deployed based on requirements. We like the term “truly nomadic applications.”

Hyperlocal data centers: There will be a proliferation of small, hyperlocal data centers to support edge computing needs. Companies like Akamai are already repurposing infrastructure to create a global network of edge data centers.

Industry-specific edge solutions: We’ll see more tailored edge computing solutions for specific industries like healthcare, manufacturing, retail and agriculture addressing unique challenges and opportunities in each sector.

How is Synadia positioning itself to lead in these future trends?

Our approach is first to tackle network connectivity, then data and we recently introduced the ability to handle workloads natively with the NATS Execution Engine (NEX). This differing approach from others caused us to be very misunderstood early on. However, this approach has allowed us to bring some innovative and very powerful solutions to market challenges around system design and edge.

As applications transition to microservices and move to the edge, we need to ensure the various components can communicate. We flip the normal time-consuming approach of adding API gateways and service meshes, and instead leverage Synadia Platform and NATS.io to simplify the tech stack and its communications.

What are the main challenges in designing and building modern distributed systems, and how does Synadia address these challenges?

Most folks design their systems with a focus on workloads first, then data, then finally the network needed to put those together. Security is usually layered last.

Synadia’s tech stack, anchored by NATS.io, allows consistent and rapid design of modern distributed systems. These can adapt to single cloud deployments, but more importantly remain future-proof and secure when multiple cloud providers, regions and edge locations enter into the picture.

Can you provide examples of how Synadia’s solutions have helped companies overcome issues with traditional connectivity models?

Synadia’s platform allows system designers to achieve rapid success into edge-based deployments and to future proof those systems regardless of deployment targets.

They also allow a consistent security model and the elimination of a bunch of other moving parts not needed with the Synadia platform, like load balancers, api gateways, GSLBs, firewalls, VPNs, service meshes, etc.

We work with a global auto OEM that wanted to modernize its digital infrastructure. The goal was to avoid siloed application projects and deploy a “global data fabric” that all of its future digital services could plug into. These are the types of projects that excite us.

How do Synadia’s commercial offerings, such as Synadia Cloud and Synadia Platform, enhance the capabilities of NATS.io?

While we will continue to open source features targeted for a NATS developer, Synadia provides value added IP primarily around the enterprise monitoring and administration of NATS.

Synadia Cloud & Platform are “certified” versions of the software that are supported for mission critical and enterprise deployments. These are packaged offerings that provide a spectrum of offerings from lower cost, multi-regional and multi-cloud SaaS from Synadia Cloud, to on-premise and edge location deployments for Synadia Platform. These two often work together as well.

How important is community engagement for Synadia, and what initiatives are you taking to foster a strong developer community?

Our technology roadmap is completely driven by our OSS ecosystem and the developers using the software. We are constantly engaging with the ecosystem, interacting and getting feedback.

We have made a significant investment in resources to help with the developer experience. This includes documentation, video tutorials and sample code resources.

Thank you for the great interview, readers who wish to learn more should visit Synadia or NATS.io.

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satanic-girll · 7 years ago

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Finishes For Wood Restaurant Tables

Finishing for wood restaurant tables

Conversion Varnish: In the restaurant world, conversion varnish is the gold standard for durable table finishes. There are many manufacturers of this type of finish, each claiming to be the most durable; most of them are indecipherable from each other once cured and there are many good choices. Conversion varnish is chemically cured, meaning that a second chemical called a catalyzer or hardener is added to the mixture to help cure the finish.The catalyzer sets off a slow chemical reaction that starts to cross-link or cure the solid materials in the finish to make it more durable. Conversion Varnish is typically 60% solids, while the remaining 40% is a solvent that is used to thin the solution enough for spraying. There are several ways to apply this type of finish, but it is typically spray applied with a spray gun in a spray booth. Spraying the finish gives a very even appearance and lets you control the build levels of the finish, allowing you to apply just the right amount. It is possible to use a brush to apply this type of finish, but it is not recommended because it can leave brush marks. There is no doubt that Conversion Varnish is the most durable finish for restaurant tables. The type of conversion varnish that Viridian Reclaimed Wood uses has been tested for compatibility with Ecolab’s most common cleaning agents that are used in restaurants. We’ve tested this finish against common bleach rags, alcohol, citrus, wine, vinegar, ammonia, mustard, and ketchup. We have also submitted samples of our tabletops for abrasion testing, all of which easily passed.

UV Finish: Ultra Violet (UV) finish is a relatively new finish to the market in the last 50 years. The technology behind UV finishes is fascinating, it is cured instantly with light! The finish is rolled or sprayed onto the surface of the wood tabletop and is passed under a series of very bright lights that produce various wavelengths of UV light. When the finish is exposed to these intense lights, it immediately transforms from a liquid into a hard solid. You may have seen this technology before in nail salons, some types of Gel nail polishes are cured with UV lights. UV finish is a very special solution containing proprietary ingredients, but here are the basics. Instead of having solvents in a mixture like in a conversion varnish, UV contains 100% solids. This means that there is nothing to evaporate. This mixture of solid materials is combined with a photo initiator that reacts with the lights to cure the finish. Several advantages to this type of finish is that it has no VOC’s, so it is very environmentally friendly. It is also a very hard finish that is resistant to many chemicals and abrasion. The down-side to this finish is that it requires expensive specialized machinery to apply.

Epoxy finishes: We have all sat at a restaurant table that has a thick epoxy coat with coins or other fun items buried under the finish. An epoxy is similar to a conversion varnish, except it’s less resistant to the cleaning agents commonly used in restaurants. Epoxy is a two-part mixture that when mixed, sets off a chemical reaction that starts to cure the two parts together. The benefit of an epoxy finish is that it can seep into the smallest of cracks and voids, filling them up with the finish. When finishing reclaimed wood tables for restaurants, it is typical to make up a thin batch of epoxy and brush it on a rustic table top to help seal the small cracks commonly found in materials like barn wood. The last thing a restaurateur wants is a table that has not been sealed that can collect food and debris, creating an unsanitary condition. Once this thin epoxy layer is cured, a traditional conversion varnish can be sprayed on top to help create a chemical resistant finish that will be more durable.The advantage of an epoxy finish is that it can really create a thick, durable top coat for more rustic types of tables. The down-side of such a thick finish is that it is costly and can add to lead times for production and can’t be repaired easily on-site. Another drawback to epoxy is that it can yellow over time.

Polyurethane: Have you ever sat at a restaurant table that was sticky even though it was dry? That is what happens when you put a polyurethane finish on a high-traffic restaurant tabletop. The reason the polyurethane finish fails so quickly is that the cleaning agents typically used are very harsh and break down this type of finish. Polyurethane was developed for flooring, not tabletops. Bleach and common Ecolab sanitizers will eat through this type of finish over time, leaving your tabletops tacky to the touch; not a good first impression to your customers. Unfortunately, there is little to be done once the finish gets tacky. The best option is sand off the old finish and try to recoat the tops with something more durable.

Shellac: Most people don’t know that shellac is a resin secreted by the Lac bug found in Thailand and India. The resin is refined into different grades and mixed with alcohol to dissolve the resin, which is then applied to wood as a finish. Shellac is a great sealer for several other types of top coats but is not a good option for a restaurant table. The main reason for this is that alcohol dissolves the shellac very easily. The other reason is that shellac is a brittle finish and not suitable for the heavy abrasion found in restaurants. It can be sprayed and brushed on easily and is a great finish option for low-traffic applications such as a dining room table at home.

Oil finishes: The main finishes we consider when talking about oil are Tung oil, Linseed Oil, Teak Oil and Danish Oil. All of these oils are rubbed into the wood’s surface and allowed to dry for a day or so before re-coating. Oils have are very easy to apply. They really bring out the grain of the wood and look great. The downside is that they offer little to no protection from moisture or chemicals for the wood. We wouldn’t recommend an oil finish for an indoor restaurant application unless you are committed to re-oiling the tops regularly (possibly as frequently as weekly). We do, however recommend high quality oil finishes for outdoor restaurant tables. Hard film finishes like Conversion Varnish are not suitable for exterior tables that are exposed to the elements. They must use a “repairable” finish like oil so that every year the tables can be refreshed with a new coat. Our favorite exterior oil finish for wood tables is Cabots brand. It is easily refreshed annually and offers excellent protection from the elements. It is also widely available across the US.

Information on some of the finishes called out in this article can also be found on this Wikipedia page in a nice graph format that compares each of the finishes properties. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_finishing

The post Finishes For Wood Restaurant Tables appeared first on Viridian Reclaimed Wood.

Source: https://viridianwood.com/finishes-for-wood-restaurant-tables/

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