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Krai / Kray

2021-06-11T23:10:00.002-07:00

Krai or Kray

A Krai or Kray is one of the types of federal constituent entities (divisions) of Russia. For example, Altai Krai which borders Kazakhstan, Novosibirsk and Kemerovo Oblasts (Provinces) and the Altai Republic.

Monotheistic Ecumenist

2021-04-17T13:36:00.003-07:00

Monotheistic Ecumenist

A monotheistic ecumenist is one who believes in one omnipotent Creator (The God) and her/his exclusive faith, religious view and payers point to the Creator only; in this perspective, all the religions with faith in monotheism; e.g. Judaism, Christianity and Islam and their branches and denominations are considered the same. The monotheistic ecumenism is the concept and principle in which people who belong to different religions work together to develop closer relationships among their worship and promote a religious unity.

Gethsemane

2021-04-08T19:59:00.021-07:00

Gethsemane

Gethsemane has two meanings:

1) A place or occasion of great mental or spiritual suffering as shown in the following example:

"She looked at the half fainting, praying creature beside her and then at the approaching man. And a moment of Gethsemane came to her." THE TEST OF LOVE - Barbara Merriden Came Near Giving Up a Brave Man For a Coward. Chicago Tribune.

2) Gethsemane is a garden close to the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem where based on the four Gospels of the New Testament, Jesus underwent the agony in the garden and he was arrested the night before his crucifixion. It is a location of great resonance in Christianity. There are several small olive groves in church property, all adjacent to each other and identified with biblical Gethsemane. {Note: Here, resonance means a feeling, thought, inference that a piece of writing or music makes you have or the quality in a piece of writing, etc. that makes this happen as shown in the following example:

This book has many resonances for me.

}

Nacre (Mother of Pearl [Heart of Pearl])

2021-04-08T16:20:00.001-07:00

Nacre (Mother of Pearl, Heart of Pearl)

Nacre or Mother of Pearl, in past it was also called as Heart of Pearl, is a smooth shining iridescent substance forming the inner layer of the shell of some mollusks, especially oysters and abalones, used in ornamentation.

Cassava

2021-04-08T16:08:00.003-07:00

Cassava

Cassava is a woody shrub native to South America.

Note: Manioc another term for cassava.

Mantlerock (Regolith)

2021-04-08T16:04:00.005-07:00

Mantlerock (Regolith)

Mantlerock, called also regolith, is an unconsolidated residual or transported material that overlies or covers the solid rock in place.

Note: In geology, a mantle is a layer inside a planetary body bounded below by a core and above by a crust.

Spectrometer

2021-04-08T15:52:00.001-07:00

Spectrometer

A spectrometer is a scientific device to separate and measure spectral components of a physical phenomenon.

Fibble

2021-04-07T02:11:00.005-07:00

Question: What does fibble mean?

Answer: As a verb, it means to utter a trivial or childish lie. And as a noun it means: childish lie; a trivial lie.

Note: Fibble is an informal word which is mainly used in narrating stories for kids.

Shackle (Shackle vs Fetter vs Manacle vs Gyve)

2021-04-04T16:22:00.010-07:00

Shackle (Shackle vs Fetter vs Manacle vs Gyve)

shackle

1) as a verb: to restrain; to limit

Example: Eastern cartels seek to shackle the oil and gas companies by imposing new controls.

2) as a verb: to chain with shackles

Example: The prisoner was shackled to the heavy steel chair in a corner of the cell.

1) as a noun: a pair of fetters connected together by a chain, used to fasten a prisoner's wrists or ankles together

2) as a noun: a metal link, typically U-shaped, closed by a bolt, used to secure a chain or rope to

something

A shackle, also known as a gyve, is a U-shaped piece of metal secured with a clevis pin or bolt across the opening, or a hinged metal loop secured with a quick-release locking pin mechanism. The

term also applies to handcuffs and other similarly conceived restraint devices that function in a similar manner.

Shackles are the primary connecting link in all manner of rigging systems, from boats and ships to industrial crane rigging, as they allow different rigging subsets to be connected or disconnected quickly. A shackle is also the similarly shaped piece of metal used with

a locking mechanism in padlocks. A carabiner is a type of shackle used in mountaineering.

As nouns the difference between manacle and shackle is that manacle is a shackle, consisting of a pair of joined rings, to restrict the free movement of the hands or feet while shackle is a restraint

fit over a human or animal appendage, such as a wrist, ankle or finger usually used in plural, to indicate a pair joined by a chain; a hobble.

As verbs the difference between manacle and shackle is that manacle is to confine with manacles while shackle is to restrain using shackles; to place in shackles.

fetter

as a noun: a fetter is a chain or manacle used to restrain a prisoner, typically placed around the ankles

he lay bound with fetters of iron

as a verb: to restrain with chains or manacles, typically around the ankles

The young guard said that there were no chains immediately available to fetter the prisoners.

As nouns the difference between manacle and fetter is that manacle is a shackle, consisting of a

pair of joined rings, to restrict the free movement of the hands (handcuffs) or feet (legcuffs,

footcuffs [foot cuffs], fetters or leg irons) while fetter is a chain or similar object used to bind a

person or animal. The term "fetter" shares a root with the word "foot".

As verbs the difference between manacle and fetter is that manacle is to confine with manacles

while fetter is to shackle or bind up with fetters.

gyve

A gyve is a shackle or fetter, especially for the leg; example: a woman's ankles gyved with gyves.

manacle

as a noun: a metal band or chain for fastening someone's hands or ankles Example: The prisoners were kept in manacles. as a verb: to fetter a human or animal appendage with manacles

Example: Sarah's hands were manacled behind her back.

Refs:

Wikipedia

Wikidiff

Wiktionary

Middlemarch (one of the greatest novels of all time)

2021-04-02T15:49:00.001-07:00

Middlemarch, A Study of Provincial Life

Middlemarch, A Study of Provincial Life is a novel written by the English novelist, poet, journalist, translator and one of the leading writers of all time, Mary Anne Evans (wrote as George Eliot). It first appeared in eight volumes in 1871 and 1872.

Middlemarch was described by Virginia Woolf as "one of the few English novels written for grown-up people" and by Martin Amis and Julian Barnes as the greatest novel in the English language [Ref: George Eliot - Wikipedia].

The Three Executive Functions Involved in Self-Discipline

2021-03-25T01:29:00.000-07:00

The Three Executive Functions Involved in Self-Discipline

The three brain executive functions involved in Self-Discipline:

* Self-Control/Impulse Control

* Working Memory (for more info refer to this post: Working Memory)

* Adaptability

Cedars of God

2021-03-12T02:35:00.004-08:00

Cedars of God

The Cedars of God located in Lebanon, are one of the last vestiges of the extensive forests of the Lebanon cedar that anciently thrived across Mount Lebanon [more info: Cedars of God].

Photo Ref.

Quantum Computing

2020-12-31T18:55:00.001-08:00

Quantum Computing is the use of concepts and human's perceptions originally defined in quantum mechanics such as superposition and entanglement to execute some computational algorithms.

Brain's Processing Speed

2017-03-19T00:41:00.001-07:00

Brain's Processing Speed

A cognitive function that is defined as the speed at which the brain analyzes information and produces answers.

General Term for Conversion of Analog Data To Digital Data

2017-03-12T22:31:00.005-07:00

General Term for Conversion of Analog To Digital

A general term used to describe the conversion of analog (continuous) data to digital (discrete) data?

Answer:

A/D (Analog to Digital)

The data that computer keyboards send ...

2017-03-09T23:40:00.003-08:00

The data that computer keyboards send to a computer to report which keys have been pressed?

Answer:

Scancode (or Scan Code)

Word Finding Memory

2017-03-08T20:00:00.004-08:00

Word Finding Memory

Human capacity and ability for finding right words to describe items in the mind such as ideas, images, and events.

Episodic Memory

2017-03-08T19:57:00.001-08:00

Episodic Memory

The memory of autobiographical items and events; i.e., times, places, facts, names, faces, associated emotions, errand lists, and other contextual and individual knowledge.

A model of software deployment ...

2017-03-08T19:36:00.005-08:00

A model of software deployment ...

A model of software deployment whereby a provider licenses an application to customers for use as a service on demand?

Answer

↓

Answer:

SaaS (Software as a Service)

What Is Gamification?

2017-01-11T21:37:00.000-08:00

What Is Gamification?

Source: Gamification with Unity 5.x - By: Lauren S. Ferro - Publisher: Packt Publishing - Pub. Date: November 28, 2016 - Web ISBN-13: 978-1-78646-224-4 - Print ISBN-13: 978-1-78646-348-7

Gamification relates to the use of games to tackle issues related to real-world situations, and while the term has become popular, the concept is not entirely new. Think about loyalty cards, not just frequent flyer mile programs, but maybe even at your local butcher or café. Do you get a discount after a certain number of purchases; maybe the 10^th coffee is free. For a while, various reward schemes have already been in place; even giving children a reward for completing household chores or good behavior and awarding gold stars for academic excellence constitute gamification. If you consider social activities such as Scouts, they utilize gamification as part of their procedures. Scouts learn new skills, such as cooperativeness, and by doing so gain different status, and receive badges to demonstrate levels of competency. Gamification has become a favorable approach to engaging clients with new and exciting design schemes to maintain interest and promote a more enjoyable and ideally "fun" product. The product in question does not have to be digital. Therefore, gamification can exist both in a physical realm (as mentioned before with gold stars awards) as well as in a more prominent digital sense (such as badge and point reward systems) as an effective way to motivate and engage users. Some common examples of gamification include:

Loyalty programs: Each time you engage with the company in a particular way such as buying certain products, or amount of you are rewarded. These rewards can include additional products, points towards items, discounts, and even free items.
School House points: A pastime that some of us may remember, especially for fans of Harry Potter. Each time you do the right thing such as following the school rules you get some points. Alternatively, you do the wrong thing and you lose points.
Scouts: They reward levels of competency with badges as well as ranks. The more skilled you are the more badges you collect, wear, and ultimately the faster you work your way up the hierarchy.
Rewarding in general: This will often be associated with some rules and these rules determine whether or not a reward is obtained. Eat your vegetables, you get dessert; do you math homework you get to play. Both have winning conditions.
Tests: As horrifying as it might sound they can be considered as a game. For example, we're on a quest to learn about history. Each assignment you get is like a task, preparing you for the final battle...the exam. At the end of all these assessments, you get a score or a grade that indicates to you your progress as you pass from one concept to the next. Ultimately, your final exam will determine your rank among your peers and whether or not you make it to the next level or not (that being anywhere from your year level to a university). It may be also worth noting that just like in games, you also have those trying to work the system, searching for glitches in the system that they can exploit. However, just like games, they too eventually are kicked.

Motion Graphic Design

2016-10-01T06:15:00.000-07:00

Motion Graphic Design

Motion graphic design is a subset of graphic design which uses graphic design principles in filmmaking, video production, etc. through the use of animation or filmic techniques; for example, graphics used in film and television opening sequences, or the spinning, three-dimensional station identification logos of some television channels. Motion graphic design is for creating "motion graphic"; where "motion graphic" is pieces of digital footage or animation which create the illusion of motion or rotation, and are usually combined with audio for use in multimedia projects.

There are many software for motion graphic design in the market such as:

» Adobe After Effects
» Eyeon Fusion
» Nuke
» Autodesk Combustion
» Apple Motion/Shake
» Max/MSP
» Apple Quartz Composer
» Various VJ Programs
» Smith Micro Software Anime Studio
» Adobe Flash
» Natron

Also, there are many software for 3D motion graphic design in the market such as:

» Maxon Cinema 4D
» Softimage XSI
» Autodesk 3d studio max
» Autodesk Maya
» NewTek Lightwave
» e-on Vue Infinite
» The Blender Foundation Blender software
» EI Technology Group Electric Image Animation System

In the following you can watch Cinema 4D UK Motion Graphics Reels in 2015 and 2016.

What is the Hardest Substances on Earth?

2016-09-10T21:43:00.003-07:00

What is the Hardest Substance on Earth?

Lonsdaleite. It is 58 percent harder than diamond.

Lonsdaleite, also called Hexagonal Diamond, is an allotrope of carbon with a hexagonal lattice. In nature, it forms when meteorites containing graphite strike the Earth.

References:
1. New Scientist Live https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16610-diamond-no-longer-natures-hardest-material/
2. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lonsdaleite

BSOD

2016-08-20T19:11:00.003-07:00

BSOD

BSOD, or Blue Screen of Death, is a terminology for any critical system errors in the Windows operating system that causes a crash leading the system (computer) not to be able to recover and the user has to shut down and restart the system [source: here]. A sample BSOD is displayed below:

BSOD (a sample screen)

What is Lumosity Performance Index?

2016-07-12T01:01:00.004-07:00

What is Lumosity Performance Index?

There are 3 types of Lumosity Performance Indices:

1. Game Lumosity Performance Index
2. Area Lumosity Performance Index
3. Overall Lumosity Performance Index
Game Lumosity Performance Index (LPI) is determined by gathering and analyzing score distributions for each game across a wide range of users. A Game LPI is set to each game score. The Game LPI of a player is set each time she/he plays a game based on how her/his current score compares to her/his previous scores for that game.

Area LPI (Speed, Memory, Attention, Flexibility, and Problem Solving) is calculated using players Game LPIs for the games in that cognitive area.

Overall LPI is based on players Game LPIs from all cognitive areas. Since players might not play an equal number of games from each area, Overall LPI might not be the same as the average of the 5 Area LPIs.

Google DeepMind

2016-06-11T20:07:00.002-07:00

Google DeepMind

Google DeepMind is a British artificial intelligence company founded in September 2010 as DeepMind Technologies. It was renamed when it was acquired by Google in 2014. The company has created a neural network that learns how to play video games in a fashion similar to that of humans, as well as a Neural Turing Machine, or a neural network that may be able to access an external memory like a conventional Turing machine, resulting in a computer that mimics the short-term memory of the human brain. The company made headlines in 2016 after its AlphaGo program beat a human professional Go player for the first time [more info].