#Project requirements for .NET developer

[batboyblog]

Things the Biden-Harris Administration Did This Week #38

Oct 11-18 2024

President Biden announced that this Administration had forgiven the student loan debt of 1 million public sector workers. The cancellation of the student loan debts of 60,000 teachers, firefighters, EMTs, nurses and other public sector workers brings the total number of people who's debts have been erased by the Biden-Harris Administration using the Public Service Loan Forgiveness to 1 million. the PSLF was passed in 2007 but before President Biden took office only 7,000 people had ever had their debts forgiven through it. The Biden-Harris team have through different programs managed to bring debt relief to 5 million Americans and counting despite on going legal fights against Republican state Attorneys General.

The Federal Trade Commission finalizes its "one-click to cancel" rule. The new rule requires businesses to make it as easy to cancel a subscription as it was to sign up for it. It also requires more up front information to be shared before offering billing information.

The Department of Transportation announced that since the start of the Biden-Harris Administration there are 1.7 million more construction and manufacturing jobs and 700,000 more jobs in the transportation sector. There are now 400,000 more union workers than in 2021. 60,000 Infrastructure projects across the nation have been funded by the Biden-Harris Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Under this Administration 16 million jobs have been added, including 1.7 construction and manufacturing jobs, construction employment is the highest ever recorded since records started in 1939. 172,000 manufacturing jobs were lost during the Trump administration.

The Department of Energy announced $2 billion to protect the U.S. power grid against growing threats of extreme weather. This money will go to 38 projects across 42 states and Washington DC. It'll upgrade nearly 1,000 miles worth of transmission lines. The upgrades will allow 7.5 gigawatts of new grid capacity while also generating new union jobs across the country.

The EPA announced $125 million to help upgrade older diesel engines to low or zero-emission solutions. The EPA has selected 70 projects to use the funds on. They range from replacing school buses, to port equipment, to construction equipment. More than half of the selected projects will be replacing equipment with zero-emissions, such as all electric school buses.

The Department of The Interior and State of California broke ground on the Salton Sea Species Conservation Habitat Project. The Salton Sea is California's largest lake at over 300 miles of Surface area. An earlier project worked to conserve and restore shallow water habitats in over 4,000 acres on the southern end of the lake, this week over 700 acres were added bring the total to 5,000 acres of protected land. The Biden-Harris Administration is investing $250 million in the project along side California's $500 million. Part of the Administration's effort to restore wild life habitat and protect water resources.

The Department of Energy announced $900 Million in investment in next generation nuclear power. The money will help the development of Generation III+ Light-Water Small Modular Reactors, smaller lighter reactors which in theory should be easier to deploy. DoE estimates the U.S. will need approximately 700-900 GW of additional clean, firm power generation capacity to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. Currently half of America's clean energy comes from nuclear power, so lengthening the life space of current nuclear reactors and exploring the next generation is key to fighting climate change.

The federal government took two big steps to increase the rights of Alaska natives. The Departments of The Interior and Agricultural finalized an agreement to strengthen Alaska Tribal representation on the Federal Subsistence Board. The FSB oversees fish and wildlife resources for subsistence purposes on federal lands and waters in Alaska. The changes add 3 new members to the board appointed by the Alaska Native Tribes, as well as requiring the board's chair to have experience with Alaska rural subsistence. The Department of The Interior also signed 3 landmark co-stewardship agreements with Alaska Native Tribes.

The Department of Energy announced $860 million to help support solar energy in Puerto Rico. The project will remove 2.7 million tons of CO2 per year, or about the same as taking 533,000 cars off the road. It serves as an important step on the path to getting Puerto Rico to 100% renewable by 2050.

The Department of the Interior announced a major step forward in geothermal energy on public lands. The DoI announced it had approved the Fervo Cape Geothermal Power Project in Beaver County, Utah. When finished it'll generate 2 gigawatts of power, enough for 2 million homes. The BLM has now green lit 32 gigawatts of clean energy projects on public lands. A major step toward the Biden-Harris Administration's goal of a carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035.

Bonus: President Biden meets with a Kindergarten Teacher who's student loans were forgiven this week

[afeelgoodblog]

The Best News of Last Week - 29 April 2024

1. Net neutrality rules restored by US agency

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission voted 3-2 on Thursday to reinstate landmark net neutrality rules and reassume regulatory oversight of broadband internet rescinded under former President Donald Trump.

2. Airlines required to refund passengers for canceled, delayed flights

DOT will also require airlines to give cash refunds if your bags are lost and not delivered within 12 hours.

The refunds must be issued within seven days, according to the new DOT rules, and must be in cash unless the passenger chooses another form of compensation. Airlines can no longer issue refunds in forms of vouchers or credits when consumers are entitled to receive cash.

3. How new mosquito nets averted 13 million malaria cases

Compared to standard nets, the introduction of 56 million state-of-the-art mosquito nets in 17 countries across sub-Saharan Africa averted an estimated 13 million malaria cases and 24,600 deaths. The New Nets Project, an initiative funded by Unitaid and the Global Fund and led by the Innovative Vector Control Consortium (IVCC), piloted the use of dual-insecticide nets in malaria-endemic countries between 2019 and 2022 to address the growing threat of insecticide resistance.

4. Germany has installed over 400,000 ‘solar balconies’

This new wave of solar producers aren’t just getting cheap electricity, they’re also participating in the energy transition.

More than 400,000 plug-in solar systems have been installed in Germany, most of them taking up a seamless spot on people’s balconies.

5. Voyager-1 sends readable data again from deep space

The US space agency says its Voyager-1 probe is once again sending usable information back to Earth after months of spouting gibberish.

The 46-year-old Nasa spacecraft is humanity's most distant object.

6. Missing cat found after 5 years makes 2,000-km journey home

Five years after it ran out the door, a lost cat was returned to a couple in Nevada after it was found thousands of kilometres away. The couple are praising the cat’s microchip for helping reunite them.

7. Restoring sight is possible now with optogenetics

Max Hodak's startup, Science, is developing gene therapy solutions to restore vision for individuals with macular degeneration and similar conditions. The Science Eye utilizes optogenetics, injecting opsins into the eye to enhance light sensitivity in retinal cells.

Clinical trials and advancements in optogenetics are showing promising results, with the potential to significantly improve vision for those affected by retinal diseases.

---

That's it for this week :)

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[wings-of-ink]

IF "research" poll.

I wanted to run something by the Tumblr IF audience before I strike out into the next project. Just a disclaimer that I am not actively planning a new IF at this moment. I'm kicking some thoughts around about it in my head before I start laying the groundwork. God-Cursed remains my focus and main priority.

I am curious if readers would enjoy a personality system that you'd set from the start of the game - in character creation.

One thought I had was to provide at least 4 personality types or "roles" to choose from the onset. The benefit here is that coding and writing for each personality would hopefully net a more immersive feel. The influence of the personality may stand out more and be more impactful to what happens and what your MC does.

A potential downside is that these may also feel "gimmicky." And, of course, once set, that is that - and they're a bit restrictive. Your MC's core won't necessarily develop. Now, certain other aspects could change - perhaps they become more optimistic or pessimistic, or their mental state improves or unravels. The benefit to these is that, even if they feel a bit gimmicky, I can write them more authentically as their own "character." I can better predict what you as the reader would want your character to say or do or how they should react (in my working theory).

As a rough sample of the types I could do:

The Stoic: A quiet and serious MC. They don't mince words and are not traditionally emotive.

The Jokester: Sometimes goofy or sarcastic, they don't seem to take anything too seriously.

The Feeler: Sensitive and shy, the weight of the world seems to be always on their heart.

The Star: Outgoing and loud, they're the life of the party and require the spotlight to survive.

I would add a lot more to these, like more specifics with strengths and weaknesses. I'm open to more suggestions on types and such too, just pop them in the comments or send an ask (just let me know if you don't want your ask shared and such).

Alternatively, I have wondered about letting readers simply select the specific traits from the character creation. So rather than having an over-arching "role" like above, or setting stats via choices only as you progress through the story, you can define your MC right away and take more advantage of having those set early. The "flavor" for this type of character creation might feel less "unique" than selecting a role, but it could also be the best of both worlds. You still get to select more specifics (so, say your MC is a joker but also quite shy) without as many restrictions. The coding for it could be more simple than coding the scoring for the "pick as you go" method as well.

So...

[ehrenbergese]

Musk's team to investigate employees with 'questionable' wealth as Trump orders hiring restrictions at federal agencies

During a meeting with Trump in the Oval Office of the White House on February 11, EST, Musk told the press that his team at the Department of Government Efficiency would investigate federal employees whose relatively low pay has skyrocketed their net worth.

The theme of the press conference that day was federal agency reform. Trump revealed that he had signed an executive order requiring federal agencies to work with the Department of Governmental Efficiency to continue to implement large-scale layoff programs, as well as severely restrict hiring. Components of agencies (or the agencies themselves) may be eliminated or consolidated because they are performing illegal functions. Additionally, there will be one new hire for every four departing employees, except in the areas of immigration, law enforcement and public safety.

Trump also urged Musk's team to investigate “the woman who rolled up about $30 million�� during the conversation. Some analysts noted that he appeared to be alluding to Bauer, the administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, whom he has suspended. Bauer's annual salary was close to $250,000, but his net worth soared to $30 million during his tenure.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is one of the most important tools of U.S. foreign “soft power,” exporting its influence and American values, especially to Third World countries, including support for a variety of foreign NGOs, media organizations, academic programs, and scientific research projects. In the last fiscal year, the agency received more than $70 billion in available funds, of which perhaps only 10 percent was actually used for aid programs.

Musk then responded that there are actually a number of people in federal agencies who are paid only a few hundred thousand dollars but have amassed tens of millions of dollars in net worth during their tenure in their positions. That seems mysterious. I think they got rich on the taxpayers' dime.

Since the day he entered the White House, Trump has empowered Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency to make sweeping cuts to federal agencies and employees that have particularly impressed his supporters. As Musk's team continues to begin obtaining information from agencies such as the Department of the Treasury, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, its claims will soon unravel the corruption that lies hidden in the mists of the multilayered organization. Next up for Musk's upcoming audits are the Departments of Defense and Education.

But his actions have meanwhile created a huge wave of opposition among his political opponents. Former Treasury Secretary Summers has argued that Musk and the Department of Governmental Efficiency exceeded their authority and violated professional ethics by accessing the Treasury's payment system. Musk has not publicly explained how his team obtained data on the net worth of officials. Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts, accused Musk of a power grab, and that these “cost-cutting and efficiency measures” had a serious impact on the normal operation of the government.

[wauzmons]

We have been Betrayed, Backstabbed, Bamboozled: The Future of Elysian Eclipse

So, if you are active on our Discord, you know that EE is made in the Unity Engine and the CEO just decided to massively fuck over all the devs who are using it...

Callum Upton made a great video explaining the situation:

But it gets even worse!

Unity since defended themselves, saying that these fees are only affecting 10% of their customers, because of the $200k and $1m thresholds, so Indie devs don't have to worry about that.

…which isn't true:

Unity Plus

They aren't only introducing these fees but also changed the regular pricing plans! They just removed "Unity Plus" which is the lowest tier and costs about $50/month per dev with taxes. This is what most indies use. The next higher tier costs QUADROUPLE that amount and is also required to remove the universally loathed "made with Unity" splash screen. Oh! And if you have the personal tier, you won't be able to use Unity offline anymore! It now needs to do a license check every 3 days to function!

Unity's Ad Service

The fees will hit devs that do free-to-play mobile stuff especially hard, since they still have to pay the fees even when the players don't buy anything, meaning they could end up owing Unity more than they make in income. But what's this? If you use Unity's advertising service for your game, you will get a discount on the fees! The majority of mobile games run on Unity, meaning they are trying to monopolize the mobile ad market with this!

Publishers

Elysian Eclipse has caught the interest of a really big studio and publisher, who is considering to handle the marketing and publishing for the game. They are obviously planning to make the game come out big with sales, going beyond Unity's thresholds. But since the game is made in Unity, they probably now have to reconsider that carefully, since that would cause a massive amount of fees with Unity's new pricing model. So any game using Unity is now an instant turn-off for publishers, also massively hurting indie devs who don't reach that income threshold yet.

What will happen now?

So, Unity can't be trusted anymore and should be seen as a major threat to us and the gaming industry. Even if they walk back on some of these decisions, what has been said, has been said. They showed that they don't care about destroying thousands of games, as long as it nets them profit, so who knows what they are going to do next?

I will pause the development of Elysian Eclipse and release the Patreon demo, including all the prototypes like Aquatic Stage for free today. I canceled my subscription and it will run out next year, so Unity isn't getting a single cent from my games anymore.

Unreal Eclipse?

In the meantime I'll focus on improving my C++ skills, so I can work more effectively in Unreal Engine 5. Unreal is the current industry leader, offering much better solutions for graphics and performance for 3D games. It is also partially open source and completely free until you reach $1 million in revenue.

It is unlikely that I will be able to just translate the game from C# to C++ and port it over, since it is using a lot of engine-specific features. This basically means, we will start from scratch... I can't tell yet how much work this will be or in what ways the game will change.

But one thing, you can always be certain of: I will NEVER BETRAY MY DREAM. I will finish this project, no matter who or what stands in my way. I hope you will continue to support me on this journey.

That being said,

FUCK JOHN RICCITIELLO!!

Fucking cunt.

[beauty-and-passion]

The anon who got mad about Thomas’ patrons being called his “investors” is wack when it’s been proven he makes AT LEAST 40k a month SOLELY from Patreon, which is nearly half a million every year simply off of Patreon. Not to mention everything else that makes him money. This man has a net worth of 3 million. Google it!

He is an indie creator, but that doesn’t mean people giving him money through the avenue he requests it aren’t INVESTING into his creations. His patrons probably invest more into him than brand deals! The difference is, brand deals get a video in return quickly. The fans? Nothing they’ve been repeatedly hype baited about for years. Shows you where his priorities are and it’s not on those defending this behavior.

His Patreon is basically a Kickstarter for his projects and so far, he’s gotten full funding with next to no results for four years!

Anyone defending this is wild! It’s awesome to support your favorite creators but it seems like that support is going to fund his own pocket instead of actual work. If he was actually using the money supporters gave him for his team and project, he should never have to lay off his ONLY writer and artist with that kind of support and yet, he did.

I couldn't have said it better, anon. Not only it disproves the "free work" idea, but it also highlights how little Thomas actually does for the people who are paying him more than any other. Gosh, his patreons are not his investors, they're basically his employers! And yet, what they ask for never comes.

Sigh.

And in the most recent post, he repeated the same message of "Let your creation come from joy and not negative pressure" which:

makes no sense, because the "negative pressure" he's experiencing is simply people asking him to do what he promised

makes him look like a whiny child, playing victim for nothing and fishing for attention

makes me question if he even is a creator, because every artist knows that you can't just "let yourself work through joy" to get things done. Making something doesn't require just joy, but also commitment and diligence. And yes, also working when you don't feel like doing it. That's how creation works, he should know that (even if the last developments are making me question it).

[orcinus-veterinarius]

Hiya! Would you be willing to explain why keeping captive right whales is completely nonviable, as you mentioned? I’m fascinated, but the adhd simply will not let me parse scientific papers.

That's a fantastic question! While it would be wonderful if captive breeding were a viable option for this critically endangered species, it just isn't possible under any realistic conditions.

For starters, their size. Orcas are the largest mammals successfully held in captivity, and we all know how difficult (and controversial) that is, with only a very small handful of facilities ever pulling it off with any semblance of success. Tilikum, the largest captive orca (although I believe that record has since been overtaken by a male in China), was 22.5 feet (6.9 meters) long and weighed 12,500 pounds (5,700 kg). Most other orcas in human care, particularly the females, are considerably smaller. Compare that to a northern right whale. Even the smallest adults are over 40 feet long—double Tilikum's length—and weigh 88,000 pounds (40,000 kg)—seven times his weight—while the biggest specimens on record reached up to 61 feet (18.5 m) and an incredible 234,000 pounds (106,000 kg).

A tank for an animal that size would be far beyond anything we have the ability to engineer and maintain. Think of how deep it would have to be for the whale to even turn around! The water pressure would be astronomical, wreaking havoc on the building materials even if it were possible to build the structure. And remember—someone has to dive to clean it! Our theoretical right whale habitat would have to be a sea pen, but even the 100-acre facilities proposed with orcas in mind are nowhere near deep enough. While right whales are considered to inhabit "coastal" waters, they do not live right up by the shoreline, like certain orca ecotypes and other small delphinids. They are a pelagic species, designed to live out in the open water column, as are all baleen whales. So, the pen would have to be a floating habitat miles out into the open water (think of an offshore oil rig), with netting sturdy enough to not be destroyed by a 50 ton whale and long enough to extend hundreds of feet to the ocean floor. We're talking probably thousands of square miles of netting, that would have to be routinely inspected for safety and upkeep. So, you would probably need a submersible, since no human can dive that deep. On top of that, it would be difficult to find such a larger stretch of ocean in their habitat without shipping lanes, underwater noise, or pollution. And let's just forget about the logistics of staffing that place—or worse, funding.

Additionally, we wouldn't be able to feed them by tossing fish into their mouth like with dolphins. Northern right whales feed on tiny crustaceans and zooplankton, cruising along and filtering the creatures from the water with their baleen. Assuming our right whale keepers were somehow able to acquire the insane amount of food the whale requires (potentially over 5000 pounds of zooplankton a day), it would need to be scattered throughout the massive habitat to facilitate feeding. I imagine this would probably look something like the way Georgia Aquarium feeds their whale sharks from a little boat, although on a much larger scale. And since the food obviously can't be kept alive, we would need to develop someway of delivering the daily vitamins that are lost in the freezing process—and to keep hundreds of tons of krill frozen on a floating kitchen in the middle of the ocean.

Of course, the ultimate goal of this project would be to breed northern right whales... that means we need to take everything we just talked about and double it, at a bare minimum. For the breeding program to be successful, it would need a whole lot more than just two whales. And unfortunately, even if we lived in world with magical floating thousand-acre sea pens, unlimited krill, and endless money... we still don't know if it would even work. Right whale breeding habits are poorly understood, with the whales mating in cold northern waters before migrating 1,000 miles south to calve. Despite our best theoretical efforts, these migratory patterns could very well be necessary for successful reproduction.

Thank you again for the ask! This was actually a lot of fun to think about! If you want to read about JJ, the only baleen whale ever successfully housed in (temporary) human care, you can find an article and pictures here.

[web-witch]

Cybermancy Class Channeled

I just channeled this entire class from the spirits.

Email Enchantments are a form of magic that the first Cybermancers discovered when the Net was still being fleshed out. It allowed for the use of sending information from one person to another as the mortals of Earth use it for. However, the magical applications of email are as follows.

Email Enchantments can be used for sending spells to people as attachments, astral projection, teleporting from one place to another, and even scrying. Today we will be working in a practical sense. You will each be assigned to practice the following list of applications of email enchantments and develop three new applications minimum of email enchantments.

Homework: 

Create 3 new applications of email enchantment

Practice email enchantments for 

Astral projection

Divination

Spell Casting

Astral teleportation

Next we will focus on the concept of Cybermancy potion making. Now, I know that many of you are inventive enough to have your own methods of cybermantic potion making, but today we will be focusing on a form of potion making that is a bit more structured than the artistic forms that you are used to. On the desk before you is the textbook we will be using regarding Cybermancy magic and digitizing traditional magic. This book is going to change depending on what we cover in class so do not lose your link to it. 

Cauldron of Cybermancy: Digitizing the Traditional Arts of Sorcery

Chapter 1

Cybermancy is a new form of magic that relies on computers and the creative activities of the mind to perform alchemical acts that make the impossible possible. Essentially, it is using computers and technological devices to create magic through electricity and coding. The act of digitizing magical traditions such as witchcraft arts to allow for easier access and alternative applications when traditional methods are out of reach is the main focus of cybermancy. To that end, it is the duty of every cyber witch or cyber wizard to further the art of cybermancy and find new ways to apply it. This is where the fun begins. There is no set structure to cybermancy. The only thing that is required to practice is a computer and a connection to the internet and in some cases not even the latter. 

Cybermancy applications

Cybersorcery comes in many forms and styles. While some focus on true coding and use languages that can be utilized for actual mundane programming, others focus on the meta-programming and hack reality through pseudocode. In Cybermancy, potions are playlists or programs and spells are scripted incantations and rituals. Divination can be done by way of a virtual tarot deck or even just a simple spell. The possibilities are endless. Above all, Cybermancy is chaos personified. 

Cybermancy Potion-making

There are three steps to a well formulated Cybermancy potion.

Step 1: Choose your format (Folder based, Code based, Playlist based, Image based, Writing based). The format you choose will be determine your method of adding ingredients and the container you use. 

Step 2: Collect and add your ingredients 

Step 3: Seal the potion with a spell.

For the purpose of this lesson we are going to work with a simple pseudocode based potion.

To start out, we must first define the cauldron as a container. The command for this is as follows.

Open Cauldron.tool

Next we turn on the heat.

Cmd_TurnOnHeat.tool

Now we must add the ingredients. 

ins(Water.ingredient)

ins(Cinnamon.ingredient)

ins(Mint.ingredient)

ins(Rosemary.ingredient)

ins(Salt.ingredient)

Now we stir with the following command.

Cmd_StirCauldron/Clockwise

Cmd_StirCauldron/Counterclockwise

Cmd_StirCauldron/Clockwise

Cmd_StirCauldron/Counterclockwise

Cmd_StirCauldron/Stop

Now we turn off the heat

Cmd_TurnOffHeat.tool

Next we seal it with a spell

InvokeSpellVerse: “Inspire knowledge and seeking true, Bring forth memory enhancement to this brew.”

Lastly, we seal the whole potion with the command

BottleBrew.hex

Homework: 

Create 6 new potion recipes using ingredients that only exist on your respective worlds. Using the pseudocode method, you are to prepare these brews and connect them to a physical item through email enchantment.

Class dismissed

[askagamedev]

in light of the microsoft closings, a lot of people saying that getting acquired by a bigger company should be considered a death sentence for small studios. one thing I never understood is why are studios sold? I understand the owners want to cash a check and get out of the anxiety crisis it is running an indie studio but is it that unreasonable to refuse it? does it cause other consequences most people arent aware of?

Honestly, the decision to sell to a publisher is primarily a question of stability.

Independent studios live and die on their ability to secure contracts regularly, year in and year out. This process is a constant grind, requiring the studio leadership to maintain good relationships with publishers. Financial situations are never super stable, they are often feast or famine when there are tons of opportunities that your studio can't possibly field and then there are lean times when finding work can be difficult. It's especially difficult because there's almost no way that an independent studio can bank the kind of money they'd need to keep everyone paid for any extended period of time without securing a new contract to keep the lights on. There's also the disaster of having so many opportunities that the studio staffs up in order to handle more, only to get caught in a lean period where there isn't enough work to keep everyone employed. In lean times, the independent studio is left to fend for themselves while the publisher-owned studio gets higher priority when the publisher is considering project assignments. And there's always the issue of IP ownership - often the publisher is the one who retains the rights and the studio is work for hire. There's very little room for error when running an independent studio.

If the studio is owned by the publisher, there isn't a need for securing contracts anymore. An internal studio almost always has priority over an external studio for being assigned a new project. The internal studio can focus on developing games and technology. They don't need to worry about securing IP rights anymore, since they're all owned by the same company. It's a huge reliever of stress from studio leadership to know that there's more of a safety net, even if that safety net is not perfect. When lean economic times hit, everyone suffers - including the internal studios, as we have seen. Large companies will often shed staff during bad times but have a higher overall survival chance than small ones.

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Got a burning question you want answered?

Short questions: Ask a Game Dev on Twitter

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Frequent Questions: The FAQ

[ramshacklefey]

Do any actual historians or sociologists still think that women magically become housebound and oppressed when a society picks up grain-based agriculture, or is that just one of those things they teach us in school?

Because first of all, in a small subsistence farming community, everyone works the fields during planting and harvest seasons. There's not really any other option.

And secondly, in a non-industrial society, there is so much fucking work to do to keep everyone alive, even if we only look at food. Grain farming is a solid way to get a staple food, but you need a lot more than that. Once grains are harvested they need to be threshed and stored. You need vegetable gardens, and then you need to preserve the vegetables so you'll still have food outside the growing season. That means pickling, drying, packing in oil, making jams and preserves, etc. There may also be orchards or bushes to tend. Herbs (because everyone has always wanted their food to have fucking flavor). There are animals to care for: feeding, milking, and collecting eggs. Butchering and then preserving meat. Someone in a household has to also be aware of and tracking how much of everything you have. Between planting and harvest, crops need to be tended: weeded, watered, protected from animals or thieves.

And if we look beyond just food production? Clothes and tools need to be made, which is a full-time occupation by itself: sheep or goats have to be sheared, fibers processed and spun, cloth woven, and clothes stitched. Raw materials need to be gathered and prepared for use. If something breaks, someone has to repair or patch or make a new one. Pottery and baskets need to be made, as do string, rope, and fishing nets.

Wood or dung for cooking has to be gathered, and if you live somewhere with cold winters, a LOT of wood needs to be set by. Water needs to be fetched from wherever your community gets it. Children need to be looked after and educated. The elderly and infirm need care.

All of these tasks require specialized knowledge and skills. People are by and large not idiots, but there's a limit to how many skills a single person can acquire well enough to perform them on the level needed for survival.

And this isn't even getting into community leadership, arbitrating conflicts, organizing group labor, and the host of related social wrangling that has to happen to keep a group of people functional.

Throughout history and around the world, different cultures and communities have organized who takes on which of these tasks differently. Yeah, there are some trends and patterns about gender roles that are interesting. But it would be foolishness to assume just because work in a particular group is segregated by gender roles, that women were also oppressed and devalued. That speaks more to our own views of the value of certain kinds of labor more than anything else.

I guess my point here is that we don't know how or why so many societies developed some form of gender-related stratification. And projecting our own particular form of patriarchal society backwards in time or onto different societies is an unhelpful form of revisionism.

[kenney-mencher]

Appius Claudius Caecus

Most government officials in Rome were a kind of first citizen whose roles in the government were seen as a responsibility and a bit of an honor.  One of the important principals that influenced the Roman patricians was dignitas.  We don’t really have an equivalent in English for dignitas, but it was a kind of earned celebrity that was based in ethical, civic, and social behaviors that could distinguish a Roman.  It was also something that could easily be lost and it was impermanent.  One way to earn it and keep it, was to do great things for Rome.  Appius Claudius Caecus was a Roman censor who is a good example of dignitas.

The census involved assessing the wealth, property, and social status of Roman citizens to determine their tax obligations and military service eligibility. In addition to this, censors had the authority to revise the list of senators and equestrians, ensuring members met moral and legal standards. This gave them a significant role in shaping the political and social elite.  As censor in 312 B.C., Appius Claudius undertook ambitious projects like the Aqua Appia, Rome’s first aqueduct, the Via Appia, its first major road, and early improvements to the sewer system. These innovations were more than mere practical solutions to a growing city’s needs—they were statements of Rome’s ambition, resilience, and capacity for enduring greatness. Appius Claudius’ motivations, however, present a complex picture, intertwining civic-mindedness with calculated self-interest, a dynamic that finds a compelling parallel in Perikles of Athens.

Appius Claudius lived in a Rome on the cusp of expansion, where the demands of governance required vision and decisive action. His projects addressed critical needs: a stable water supply, better transportation for military and economic purposes, and improved sanitation. Yet these works were not solely pragmatic. They also served as tools to bolster his dignitas, the Roman concept of personal prestige tied to public service. By providing tangible benefits to the Republic, Appius Claudius not only met immediate needs but also left an indelible mark on Rome’s infrastructure and identity. This blend of civic service and self-promotion mirrors the achievements of Perikles, whose leadership in Athens a century earlier similarly fused public good with personal legacy.

The Romans developed cement by mixing lime, volcanic ash (pozzolana), and rubble, creating a material they called opus caementicium. This cement was highly durable, even hardening underwater, and became the foundation for much of their advanced construction. It enabled the creation of large and complex structures like arches, domes, and vaults.

Early forms of Roman concrete work included opus incertum, where irregular stones or rubble were set into cement, primarily for walls and foundations. As techniques advanced, they developed opus reticulatum, a more decorative style using square or diamond-shaped stones arranged in a net-like pattern. Later, they combined techniques for greater strength, such as opus latericium, which used bricks as facing, and opus mixtum, which mixed patterns like reticulatum with brick bands.

The Roman arch works by distributing weight evenly across its curved shape. Its key component is the keystone, the central wedge-shaped stone at the top of the arch. When the keystone is in place, it locks the other stones, called voussoirs, into position. The stones transfer the weight of the structure outward and downward, channeling it into the supports, or piers, on either side. This design allows arches to support heavy loads and span wide openings without collapsing.

The Roman arch was developed from earlier designs used by the Etruscans, who built true arches with voussoirs. The Romans refined the technique, using precisely cut stones and concrete to create durable structures. They applied this method to bridges, aqueducts, and monumental buildings, demonstrating the practical advantages of the arch. The efficiency of the Roman arch became the basis for larger engineering projects, including the construction of domes and vaults.

Study with me here.

[inspofromancientworld]

Baskets and Basket Weaving

By No machine-readable author provided. Aineias assumed (based on copyright claims). - No machine-readable source provided. Own work assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=868046

Prior to the advent of weaving or spinning cordage to make nets, people used tree bark to carry thing. These containers were not particularly durable due to lacking flexibility and were limited in size that they could be made. Baskets can be made without spinning, but do require knowledge of weaving. Baskets are flexible and can be made waterproof by being woven very tightly and out of the right materials. These properties likely lead to them to be widely used prior to settled agriculture and the development of pottery.

By This image was provided to Wikimedia Commons by Biblioteca Museu Víctor Balaguer as part of an ongoing cooperative GLAMWIKI project with Amical Wikimedia. The artifact represented in the image is part of the permanent collection of Biblioteca Museu Víctor Balaguer. - Biblioteca Museu Víctor Balaguer, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37904574

Basket weaving can be done out of many types of material such a reeds, vines, grasses, and long narrow leaves. They can be woven in any shape that is needed and by using a variety of materials or dying the materials that are used, various designs can be woven in to the basket. The basket can be worked in a spiral or from a base around staves or ribs. This flexibility allows baskets to serve many purposes, come in many sizes, and reflect a culture and a weaver's skill.

Source: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-uncover-9500-year-old-woven-baskets-and-europes-oldest-sandals-180983001/

The oldest basket that we have found dates between 10,000-12,000 years ago, which predates pottery by almost 4000 years. Basket weaving probably dates back nearly as far as weaving in general, which dates as far back as 25,000 years BCE and is widespread among indigenous populations around the world, but because it is done with organic materials, very few have survived. The oldest that have survived were found in Faiyum in Egypt. In places like Tell Saby Abyad, indirect evidence of basketry, such as impressions in mud or bitumen that have been preserved.

Source https://www.antiquities.org.il/t/item_en.aspx?q=nahal&CurrentPageKey=82_1

Nahal Hemar Cave, near the Dead Sea, held a lot of well preserved organic items, probably because of the items were covered in a type of glue and plaster that dated to about 8310-8110 years ago. Among these were some evidences of basketry as well as netting made of plant materials that would have other wise decomposed.

[ehrenbergese]

Musk's team to investigate employees with 'questionable' wealth as Trump orders hiring restrictions at federal agencies

During a meeting with Trump in the Oval Office of the White House on February 11, EST, Musk told the press that his team at the Department of Government Efficiency would investigate federal employees whose relatively low pay has skyrocketed their net worth.

The theme of the press conference that day was federal agency reform. Trump revealed that he had signed an executive order requiring federal agencies to work with the Department of Governmental Efficiency to continue to implement large-scale layoff programs, as well as severely restrict hiring. Components of agencies (or the agencies themselves) may be eliminated or consolidated because they are performing illegal functions. Additionally, there will be one new hire for every four departing employees, except in the areas of immigration, law enforcement and public safety.

Trump also urged Musk's team to investigate “the woman who rolled up about $30 million” during the conversation. Some analysts noted that he appeared to be alluding to Bauer, the administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, whom he has suspended. Bauer's annual salary was close to $250,000, but his net worth soared to $30 million during his tenure.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is one of the most important tools of U.S. foreign “soft power,” exporting its influence and American values, especially to Third World countries, including support for a variety of foreign NGOs, media organizations, academic programs, and scientific research projects. In the last fiscal year, the agency received more than $70 billion in available funds, of which perhaps only 10 percent was actually used for aid programs.

Musk then responded that there are actually a number of people in federal agencies who are paid only a few hundred thousand dollars but have amassed tens of millions of dollars in net worth during their tenure in their positions. That seems mysterious. I think they got rich on the taxpayers' dime.

Since the day he entered the White House, Trump has empowered Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency to make sweeping cuts to federal agencies and employees that have particularly impressed his supporters. As Musk's team continues to begin obtaining information from agencies such as the Department of the Treasury, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, its claims will soon unravel the corruption that lies hidden in the mists of the multilayered organization. Next up for Musk's upcoming audits are the Departments of Defense and Education.

But his actions have meanwhile created a huge wave of opposition among his political opponents. Former Treasury Secretary Summers has argued that Musk and the Department of Governmental Efficiency exceeded their authority and violated professional ethics by accessing the Treasury's payment system. Musk has not publicly explained how his team obtained data on the net worth of officials. Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts, accused Musk of a power grab, and that these “cost-cutting and efficiency measures” had a serious impact on the normal operation of the government.

[udonlawyers]

Thailand Permanent Residency

Thailand's permanent residency (PR) framework originates from the 1927 Alien Registration Act, with major reforms occurring in:

1950 Immigration Act (established modern categories)

1979 Immigration Act (current statutory basis)

2008 Nationality Act amendments (tightened naturalization pathways)

1.2 Jurisdictional Authorities

Primary Oversight: Ministry of Interior (Section 37 Immigration Act)

Implementation: Immigration Bureau (Division 1, Section 3)

Adjudication: Special Committee chaired by Permanent Secretary for Interior

1.3 Relevant International Obligations

While Thailand maintains strict immigration controls, certain bilateral agreements influence PR considerations:

ASEAN agreements on skilled labor mobility

US-Thai Treaty of Amity (limited PR implications)

Japan-Thai Economic Partnership (special professional categories)

2. Eligibility Matrix

2.2 Qualitative Assessments

Character Evaluation:

Police clearance from all countries of residence

Neighborhood certification (conduct verification)

Employer/associate testimonials

Integration Metrics:

Thai language proficiency (CEFR A1 minimum)

Cultural knowledge exam (80% pass mark)

Community participation evidence

3. Procedural Architecture

3.1 Document Preparation Protocol

Core Documentation:

Visa History: Certified copies of all visas + entry stamps

Financial Evidence:

Bank statements (6 months, certified)

Tax records (RD.90 forms)

Investment certificates (BOI/SEC approved)

Supporting Materials:

Property Documents: Chanote + household registration

Employment Verification:

Work permits (all versions)

Social fund records

Company financials (for business owners)

4. Financial and Tax Considerations

4.1 Cost Structure Analysis

Official Fees:

Application fee: THB 7,600

Approval fee: THB 191,400

Alien book: THB 800 (annual)

Re-entry permit: THB 3,800 (single), THB 9,800 (multiple)

Unofficial Costs:

Document procurement: THB 15,000-50,000

Legal representation: THB 100,000-500,000

Expediting services: Market rate THB 200,000+

4.2 Tax Implications

Pre-PR: Only Thai-sourced income taxable

Post-PR: Worldwide income potentially taxable (if remitted)

Wealth Tax: None currently, but property transfer taxes apply

5. Rights and Privileges

5.2 Occupational Restrictions

Registered Profession Requirement: Must work in field specified at application

Business Ownership: Permitted but requires MOI notification

Government Employment: Prohibited without special approval

6. Judicial and Administrative Review

6.1 Appeal Process

Rejection Appeals: 30 days to file with Immigration Commission

Judicial Review: Available at Administrative Court

Success Rates: <15% for appeals, <5% for judicial review

6.2 PR Revocation

Grounds include:

Criminal conviction (1+ year sentence)

Tax evasion findings

Extended overseas absence (5+ years)

National security concerns

7. Strategic Application Approaches

7.1 Category Optimization

Employment Track: Ideal for corporate executives (minimum THB 150k salary preferred)

Investment Route: Best for property developers (BOI projects favored)

Family Path: Most reliable for long-term married couples (10+ years marriage ideal)

7.2 Document Enhancement Strategies

Tax Augmentation: Voluntary additional tax payments to demonstrate commitment

Community Engagement: Documented volunteer work with registered charities

Language Certification: Official CU-TFL test scores preferred over immigration exam

8. Comparative Regional Analysis

8.2 Global Benchmarks

Processing Time: Thailand (3-5 yrs) vs Canada (1.5 yrs)

Cost: Thailand (~6K)vsUK( 6K)vsUK( 3K)

Success Rate: Thailand (8%) vs Australia (25%)

9. Emerging Trends and Reforms

9.1 Digital Transformation

E-Application Pilot: Limited testing in Bangkok

Blockchain Verification: For document authentication

Automated Background Checks: Integration with INTERPOL databases

9.2 Policy Shifts

Talent-Centric Quotas: Increasing STEM professional allocations

Retirement PR Pathway: Under consideration for high-net-worth retirees

Dual Citizenship Tolerance: Parliamentary study underway

10. Practical Challenges and Solutions

10.1 Common Obstacles

Document Procurement: Especially for older visa records

Bureaucratic Delays: Particularly at verification stage

Exam Preparation: Lack of standardized study materials

10.2 Mitigation Strategies

Early Retention: Engage immigration lawyer at least 2 years pre-application

Parallel Processing: Initiate document requests simultaneously

Mock Examinations: Utilize private language schools for test prep

11. Longitudinal Case Studies

11.1 Successful Applications

Tech Executive: Approved in 3.5 years via employment track

THB 250k monthly salary

Certified Thai language proficiency

BOI-company sponsorship

Investor: Approved in 4 years via property route

THB 25M Bangkok condo portfolio

Additional THB 5M government bonds

Documented charity contributions

11.2 Rejection Analysis

Common Factors:

Inconsistent tax payments (78% of failed cases)

Language test failures (62%)

Suspicious financial patterns (45%)

12. Future Outlook

12.1 Projected Reforms

Points-Based System: Under consideration (2026 target)

Premium Processing: THB 500k+ for expedited review

Regional PR Options: Special economic zone programs

12.2 Demographic Impacts

Current PR holder demographics:

Chinese: 32%

Japanese: 18%

Western: 22%

Other Asian: 28%

13. Conclusion: Strategic Imperatives

Thailand's PR system remains: ✔ Highly exclusive (0.03% approval rate) ✔ Process-intensive (1000+ document pages typical) ✔ Discretionary in nature (despite codified rules)

Critical success factors:

Early preparation (3-5 year horizon)

Comprehensive documentation

Professional guidance

Financial commitment

The program continues evolving toward:

Greater transparency in decision-making

Enhanced digital infrastructure

Strategic alignment with economic development goals

Prospective applicants should monitor:

Annual quota announcements (December)

Ministerial regulation changes

Judicial rulings on PR-related cases

[darkmaga-returns]

As part of his Earth Fund grants, Amazon’s founder, Jeff Bezos, has awarded a £7.3 million grant to a UK-based project aimed at reducing cattle emissions through a potential new vaccine to reduce methane-producing microbes in cows’ stomachs.

Rather than developing a vaccine, the project, led by the Pirbright Institute and the Royal Veterinary College, utilises biotechnology to understand how a vaccine could reduce methane emissions from livestock by over 30%.

The research focuses on identifying and characterising specific antibodies needed to target methane-producing microbes in the gut of calves. By understanding the precise antibody responses required, the project aims to provide a clear path forward for vaccine development, reducing the trial-and-error aspect and focusing on targeted, high-resolution immunology.

“We’re not developing a methane vaccine per se, but rather defining what a successful vaccine needs to achieve,” said Prof John Hammond, immunogenetics group leader at Pirbright Institute.  “By understanding the precise antibody responses required, we can provide a clear path forward for vaccine development.”

The grant of £7.3 million to the Pirbright Institute to investigate how the immune system can be hijacked to attack beneficial microbes in the gut is a drop in the ocean for Bezos.  In July 2024, Benzinga reported that Bezos, with a net worth of US$216.5 billion in 2024, is the second richest person on Earth.  In 2023, based on the increase in his net worth,  Bezos earned around $191.78 million per day or an obscene $7.99 (£6.3 million) per hour.

The Pirbright project, which is a little more than what Bezos earned in an hour during 2023, is one of several initiatives funded by the Bezos Earth Fund. In March 2024, Bezos Earth Fund vice chair Lauren Sánchez announced the Fund’s commitment to establish Bezos Centres for Sustainable Protein as part of the Bezos Earth Fund’s $1 billion commitment to food transformation.  “Sustainable protein” is “plant-based lab-grown meats” or, in short, fake food.

And we can expect a lot more climate nonsense to come from Bezos. In 2020, he established the Bezos Earth Fund following a £7.7 billion ($10 billion) pledge to combat climate change.  With this money, Bezos intends to fund scientists, activists, non-profits and other groups “fighting the devastating impact of climate change.”