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data-bridge · 2 years

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Data Center Fabric Market to reach USD 151.52 billion by 2028 | Market analyzed by Size, Trends, Analysis, Future Scope, and Demand Forecast

Industry Analysis

Data Bridge Market Research analyses that the Data Center Fabric market will exhibit a CAGR of 22.17% for the forecast period of 2021-2028. Therefore, the data center fabric market value will rocket up to USD 151.52 billion by 2028.

Additionally, the credible Data Center Fabric Market report helps the manufacturer in finding out the effectiveness of the existing channels of distribution, advertising programs, or media, selling methods and the best way of distributing the goods to the eventual consumers. Taking up such market research report is all the time beneficial for any company whether it is a small scale or large scale, for marketing of products or services. It makes effortless for Semiconductors and Electronics industry to visualize what is already available in the market, what market anticipates, the competitive environment, and what should be done to surpass the competitor.

Get a Free Sample of The Report: https://www.databridgemarketresearch.com/request-a-sample/?dbmr=global-data-center-fabric-market

Market Insights and Scope

Data center fabric is an integrated system of multiple switches and servers. This integrated system allows and facilitates smooth communication between server and switch nodes. The major aim between the application of data center fabric is to improve the network performance and optimize communication.

Rising focus of the manufacturers on technological advancements will emerge as the major market growth driving factor. Growing infrastructural development especially in the emerging economies like India and China, surging utilization of high-speed data transfer technology and rising research and development proficiencies in regards to complex interactive applications will further aggravate the market value. Growing volume of organizational data and growth and expansion of semiconductors industry especially in the emerging economies will further carve the way for the growth of the market.

The Data Center Fabric Market report encompasses various segments linked to Semiconductors and Electronics industry and market with comprehensive research and analysis. These comprise industry outlook with respect to critical success factors (CSFs), industry dynamics that mainly covers drivers and restraints, market segmentation & value chain analysis, key opportunities, application and technology outlook, regional or geographical insight, country-level analysis, key company profiles, competitive landscape, and company market share analysis. All the data, figures and information are backed up by well recognized analysis tools which include SWOT analysis and Porter’s Five Forces analysis. So, take business to the peak level of growth with the all-inclusive Data Bridge Market research report.

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Industry Segmentation and Size

Data center fabric market is segmented on the basis of solutions, process technology, user environment and vertical. The growth amongst the different segments helps you in attaining the knowledge related to the different growth factors expected to be prevalent throughout the market and formulate different strategies to help identify core application areas and the difference in your target market.

The data center fabric market on the basis of solutions has been segmented into switching, routers, controllers, storage area network (SAN), network security equipment and management software.

Based on process technology, the data center fabric market has been segmented into stereo-lithography apparatus (SLA) and digital light processing (DLP), fused Filament fabrication (FFF) processes, jet printing, powder bed fusion (PBF) processes and others.

On the basis of user environment, the data center fabric market has been segmented into enterprises, telecommunications and cloud providers.

On the basis of vertical, the data center fabric market is segmented into high-tech, banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI), government, healthcare, retail, education, media and entertainment and others.

Market Country Level Analysis

The countries covered in the data center fabric market report are

U.S., Canada and Mexico in North America, Germany, France, U.K., Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Russia, Italy, Spain, Turkey, Rest of Europe in Europe, China, Japan, India, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Rest of Asia-Pacific (APAC) in the Asia-Pacific (APAC), Saudi Arabia, U.A.E, Israel, Egypt, South Africa, Rest of Middle East and Africa (MEA) as a part of Middle East and Africa (MEA), Brazil, Argentina and Rest of South America as part of South America.

A reliable Data Center Fabric Market marketing report proves to be the finest and excellent market research report as it is formulated with the following critical factors. These consist of primary research, benchmarking studies, secondary research, company profiles, competitive intelligence & reporting, syndicated research, data collection, data processing and analysis, survey design, and survey programming. The report performs market study and analysis to provide market data by considering new product development from beginning to launch. The Semiconductors and Electronics business report also provides evaluations based on the market type, organization size, availability on-premises, end-users’ organization type, and the availability in areas such as North America, South America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Middle East & Africa.

Industry Share Analysis

The major players covered in the data center fabric market report are

Cisco Systems, Inc., Hewlett Packard Enterprise Development LP, Broadcom., Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., NVIDIA Corporation, Arista Networks, Inc., Juniper Networks, Inc., Intel Corporation, Dell., FUJITSU, Microsemi, Lenovo, Vcinity, Apeiron Data Systems, Argo Technology East, American Megatrends International, LLC., Fortinet, Inc., Allied Telesis Holdings K.K., D-Link Corporation and New H3C Technologies Co., Ltd., among other domestic and global players. Market share data is available for global, North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific (APAC), Middle East and Africa (MEA) and South America separately.

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About Us: Data Bridge Market Research set forth itself as an unconventional and neoteric Market research and consulting firm with an unparalleled level of resilience and integrated approaches. We are determined to unearth the best market opportunities and foster efficient information for your business to thrive in the market

Contact: Data Bridge Market Research Tel: +1-888-387-2818 Email: [email protected]

#Data Center Fabric Market Growing Popularity #Data Center Fabric Market Global Leading Brands #Data Center Fabric Market drivers-advantages #Data Center Fabric Market Segmentation-CAGR rate #Data Center Fabric Market Demands-Size-Share-Top Trends #Data Center Fabric Market Industry-Competitors #Data Center Fabric Market Growth-Competition #Data Center Fabric Market 2028 by Types-Application #Data Center Fabric Market Semiconductors and Electronics Industry

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zvaigzdelasas · 3 months

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You can’t buy the Seagull in the US. But I bet you wish you could.

A small hatchback around the size of a Mini Cooper, the Seagull is a fast-charging electric car and claims a range of up to 250 miles [...] BYD, its Chinese manufacturer, claims it can go from 30 percent to 80 percent charged in a half-hour using a DC plug. It’s hardly a luxury car but it’s well-equipped, with a power driver’s seat and cruise control. “If I were looking for an inexpensive commuter car … this would be perfect,” veteran car journalist John McElroy said after taking a drive.

The best part? Its base model costs about $10,700 in China.

That’s about a third of the cost of the cheapest EV you can buy in the US. In South America, it’s a little pricier, but still fairly affordable, at under $24,000 for a top-trim version. Even in Europe, you can get an entry-level BYD for under €30,000. These are absolutely screaming deals — exactly the kind of products that could turbocharge our transition away from gas and toward electric vehicles.[...]

The problem for Americans? The Biden administration is hell-bent on preventing you from buying BYD’s product, and if Donald Trump returns to office, he is likely to fight it as well.

That’s because the BYD cars are made in China, and both Biden and Trump are committed to an ultranationalist trade policy meant to keep BYD’s products out. [...] Shipments to Europe have increased astronomically; Chinese companies sold 0.5 percent of EVs in Europe in 2019 but they’re already over 9 percent as of last year. Companies like BYD make cheap, reasonably good-quality cars people are eager to buy.

In 2018, Trump imposed, and Biden has since continued, a special 25 percent tax on Chinese-made autos, on top of the ordinary 2.5 percent tax on foreign-made cars.

That has so far prevented BYD and its Chinese peers from trying to enter the US market. US customer tastes are different enough that Chinese manufacturers would probably prefer to make cars tailored to them — but US policy has been so hostile toward cheap Chinese EVs that so far, the companies haven’t wanted to bother.

So, the result is that we’re left out of the bounty of cheap EV options created by BYD and others. “If you’re a consumer right now, the best place to be right now is China, because you have the best choice of EVs,” Ilaria Mazzocco, senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and an expert on Chinese EVs, says.[...]

Still, China’s price advantage is big enough that even the extreme Trump-Biden import tax might not be enough to deter companies like BYD from entering the US market. Even with the tariffs, Chinese cars might be cheaper than their rivals. “Subsidies most likely won’t be enough; Mr. Biden will need to impose [more] trade restrictions,” climate journalist Robinson Meyer predicted recently. The Biden administration is already making noise about imposing even more draconian taxes or trade restrictions against these vehicles. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo has described Chinese-made cars as a national security threat, and recently announced an investigation into the vehicles’ data collection abilities and the possibility they could send movement data to Beijing.

On the one hand, Biden is offering Americans up to $7,500 per vehicle to buy EVs (provided they meet certain made-in-North America rules). On the other hand, he’s imposing massive taxes to keep Americans from buying EVs. It’s a bizarre policy that makes no sense from a climate perspective.[...]

[The Biden Administration] has proven shockingly willing to sabotage its own climate policy if it gets to stick it to the Chinese in the process.

“There’s almost an across-the-board apprehension about Chinese EVs, even though they would make an important contribution to [lower] CO2 emissions,” Gary Clyde Hufbauer, a veteran trade expert at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, says.[...]

Realistically, Helveston argues, BYD might not sell something like the Seagull in the US because it’s smaller than most cars Americans buy. They’d probably build plants in the US instead, or its free-trade zone partners Canada and Mexico, to build vehicles tailored for Americans. “If you’re going to really enter a market, you have to make it locally,” Helveston explains. “US automakers like GM sell and make millions of cars in China to sell in China.” BYD would do the same. Indeed, it’s already reportedly scouting sites for factories in Mexico.

If they ever were to set up shop in North America, BYD and other Chinese car companies would still have a major price advantage versus American EVs. They have years more experience and a much more successful track record of building batteries and EVs at low cost.

“Part of why they’re so successful is they’ve been thinking outside the box on cost reduction for a long time,” Mazzocco says. They took the “opposite of the Tesla approach”: starting not with luxury vehicles but ultra-cheap cars fit for taxi fleets and not much else, and constantly improving their early inexpensive prototypes. The result is that Chinese firms have gotten extremely good at making inexpensive EVs, at a time when Ford, by contrast, lost $28,000 for every EV it sold in 2023.[...]

“If you have more affordable EVs in the United States, no matter where you come from,” Gopal says, “that’s better for the climate.”

Still, the Biden administration reportedly wants to restrict Chinese car companies’ access to the US even if they do set up shop in North America. Bloomberg reported earlier this month that the Biden administration is formulating rules that would limit US sales of Chinese-made parts, even if they’re in vehicles ultimately assembled in the US or Mexico.[...]

But the Biden administration’s objections to Chinese EVs are also ideological. The Biden administration represents the victory of a protectionist, trade-skeptical wing of the Democratic party that was relegated to the sidelines during the Clinton and Obama years.[...]

[O]ver 90 percent of American households have a car, and surging car prices were a huge contributor to the 2021–2023 rise in inflation.

Barriers to importing cheap cars make inflation worse and reduce the real incomes of the middle class.

Not only are the administration and other left-leaning institutions opposed to Chinese EVs, but hardline conservatives at places like the Heritage Foundation are calling for outright bans on Chinese EVs as well. Their rationale is security, another theme the Biden administration evokes often. On Thursday, the Commerce Department announced it was beginning a process to “investigate the national security risks of … PRC-manufactured technology in [internet-connected] vehicles.”

6 Mar 24

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reasonsforhope · 2 months

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For all the concern in recent years that U.S. democracy is on the brink, in danger or under threat, a report out Tuesday offers a glimmer of good news for American voters worried that casting a ballot will be difficult in 2024.

Put simply, the new data shows that voting in America has gotten easier over the past two decades. More voters have the ability to cast a ballot before Election Day, with the majority of U.S. states now offering some form of early in-person voting and mail voting to all voters.

"Although we often talk in a partisan context about voter fraud and voter suppression and whether voters have access to the ballot, the reality is, over the past 25 years, we've greatly increased the convenience of voting for almost all Americans," said David Becker, the founder and executive director of the Center for Election Innovation & Research (CEIR), which authored the new report...

The data shows that, despite real efforts by some Republican-led legislatures to restrict access at the margins, the trend in the U.S. since 2000 has been toward making it easier to vote: Nearly 97% of voting-age American citizens now live in states that offer the option to vote before Election Day.

"The lies about early voting, the lies about voting machines and efforts in some state legislatures to roll back some of the election integrity and convenience measures that have evolved over the last several decades, those efforts almost all failed," Becker said. "In almost every single state, voters can choose to vote when they want to."

Forty-six states and Washington, D.C., offer some form of early in-person voting, the report tallied, and 37 of those jurisdictions also offer mail voting to all voters without requiring an excuse...

In 2000

In 2024

Infographic via NPR. If you go to the article, you can watch an animation of this map that shows voting availability in every election since 2000.

There are some political trends that show up in the data. Of the 14 states that don't offer mail voting to all voters, for instance, 12 have Republican-led legislatures.

-via NPR, March 19, 2024. Article continues below.

But maybe the more striking trends are geographic. Every single state in the western U.S. has offered some form of early and mail voting to all voters since 2004, according to the data. And those states span the political spectrum, from conservative Idaho to liberal California.

"It's really hard to talk about partisanship around this issue because historically there just hasn't been much," Mann said. "We've seen voting by mail and early in-person voting supported by Republican legislatures, Democratic legislatures, Republican governors, Democratic governors. We see voters in both parties use both methods." ...

In 2020, New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts all made changes to make voting more easily accessible, which have since partially or fully become permanent. Delaware is currently embroiled in a legal fight over whether it can implement early and mail voting changes this election cycle as well.

The South, with its history of slavery and Jim Crow laws, has long lagged behind when it comes to voting access. The CEIR data shows that, although some states have slowly started expanding options for voters, generally it is still the most difficult region for voters to cast a ballot.

As options nationwide have become more widely available, voters have also responded by taking advantage.

In the 2000 election, 86% of voters voted at a polling place on Election Day, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

In 2020, during the pandemic, that number dropped to less than 31% of voters. It went back up in 2022, to roughly half of the electorate, but was still in line with the two-decade trend toward more ballots being cast early.

...in reality, Becker says, more voting options actually make elections more secure and less susceptible to malicious activity or even human error.

"If there were a problem, if there were a cyber event, if there were a malfunction, if there were bad weather, if there were traffic, if there were was a power outage, you could think of all kinds of circumstances. ... The more you spread voting out over a series of days and over multiple modes, the less likely it's going to impact voters," he said...

-via NPR, March 19, 2024

#united states #voting #voting matters #early voting #mail in ballots #voting access #american politics #us elections #election 2024 #us politics #democrats #republicans #election day #election news #good news #hope

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kbvresearch · 2 years

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Top 6 Sharks in the Data Center Automation Sector

For past years, IT teams have argued data center automation because of the growing technologies and automation processes, and have inspired us because of their crazy results. Automation has become more critical in many firms because of the pressures that workers are under with public clouds and work load. However, even then, progress typically happens in privacy.…

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#best data center automation #data center automation #data center automation advantages #data center automation tools #data center operations

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in1-nutshell · 4 months

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Oh goodness! The Megatron’s daughter post has plagued my brain with so many sad ideas! Can you picture how she handles the situation when Megatron got injured after the space bridge explosion? The amount of complicated feelings swirling around seeing him hurt on the medical table like that? And you just know that Starscream is going to take advantage of it in some way: would he use it as a way to bypass Buddy’s authority on the grounds that she is “in no state of mind to lead”? Does he use her grief to manipulate her and influence her actions?

And none of this is even getting into what would happen if she ran into Optimus and the Autobots! Would she resent him based on what she had been told for millions of years? Would he feel guilty for how things have gone for her? So many thoughts and I love the angst

Okay lets do this!

I actually have another request that is similar to this one, so I am dividing the writing into two. This part is centered more around yours, but there are things that are left out for the sake of getting to the other one and completing the story.

If you really love the angst, this one is definitely for you.

Buddy needs a hug after all this is over.

There will be tears

Hope you enjoy!

Megatron's daughter with the opposite personality: Soundwave's Plan

SFW, ANGST, You have been warned!, Mention of wounds and violence, nothing too gory, familial (Soundwave is best uncle), Cybertronian reader

TFP

Soundwave had enough.

His niece’s life was in danger, and he knew well enough that her father wasn’t going to do anything about it.

Megatron’s mission main priority was Prime, not Buddy.

Soundwave could live with that; he swore his loyalty to Megatron after all.

But he also swore to be Buddy’s uncle and default caretaker after… that day…

Soundwave coming to Buddy’s quarters with an energon cube in his servo.

Buddy sleeping on the makeshift desk, face plate on a data pad.

Soundwave placed the cube down and carries Buddy to her berth.

He places the cube by her desk and leaves.

When Megatron did not come back to the Nemesis after the spacebridge and Starscream came back alone, they both knew something happened to the War Lord.

He was surprised to see Buddy try and stay together as she assumed her position as Leader of the Decepticon Army once again.

This face was for the sake of the troops.

Not hers.

It was never about her and her needs.

Soundwave had seen through the cameras, Buddy grieved in silence, she made it her mission to never let anyone of the troops see her in that state, something he hated to see.

It didn’t help much when Starscream started enforcing more of his ideas, taking advantage of Buddy’s state.

Starscream and Buddy in the throne room.

“Starscream are you suggesting that we simply abandon the mining operation just like that?”--Buddy

“Of course, My Lady. It no longer serves us purpose and the mine has been stripped dry. We need to move to the next deposit before the Autobots do.”--Starscream

“And I agree that we need to go to the next one, but you’re suggesting we destroy the mine now. We still have our own down there with our machinery. We cannot leave them. We will not leave them.”--Buddy

“They are expendable—”--Starscream

“Those soldiers are not expendable!”--Buddy

“…You poor thing.”--Starscream

“Excuse me?”—Buddy

Starscream walking slowly towards Buddy, circling her.

“Still thinking we can save everyone don’t we?”--Starscream

“Starscream—”--Buddy

“We can not save everyone Lady Buddy. You know that firsthand don’t you?”--Starscream

“…”—Buddy

Buddy hanging her helm a bit low, avoiding Starscream’s hot glare.

“You let your grief blind your decision making. The Decepticons cannot have such… an impaired leader.”--Starscream

“What are you hinting at Starscream?”--Buddy

“Well, we need a leader with a clear conscious, not one who is barely holding everything together.”—Starscream

Buddy looks up glaring at the Second in Command.

“That’s enough.”--Buddy

“We need a ruthless leader—”—Starscream

Buddy’s servos clench tightly.

“I said enough.”--Buddy

“We need a ruthless Decepticon who can make tough calls, not some useless weakling! What would Megatron—”--Starscream

“ENOUGH!”—Buddy

Silence fills the room.

Buddy servos firmly clenched staring angrily at the Second in Command, who has a smug look on his face.

Buddy vents deeply looking down.

“…We will go to the spot you suggested Starscream, as soon as everyone is back on the Nemesis. No casualties unless necessary.”--Buddy

“BAH! And you call yourself Megatron’s offspring. What a pitiful creature.”--Starscream

Starscream walks out of the throne room leaving Buddy there alone, looking at the floor with tears filling up her optics.

The comments about her not being mentally fit for the role of leader were passed around the Nemesis like energon rations.

Soundwave knew about it.

Everyone knew about it.

But barely anyone said anything about it, as most chose to stay loyal to Buddy.

Not out of fear for Megatron potentially returning, but because they liked Buddy.

She made sure everyone who went on the scouting missions were accounted for and that they were fed.

She cared for them.

Buddy in the med bay with Knockout and breakdown with some wounded Vechicons.

“What’s the report Knockout?”--Buddy

“Nothing too bad. It looks worse than what it is.”--Knockout

Buddy holding the servo of the Vechicon Knockout was working with.

“Really?”--Buddy

The Vechicon squeezed her servo a bit.

“True. I’ll be out of here soon enough!”--Steve

Buddy squeezes a bit before letting go.

“Don’t go back to the heavy work immediately, work with smaller lighter things before going back.”--Buddy

“I’m the doctor here Buddy.”--Knockout

“And I’m unofficially a nurse. Am I wrong doctor?”--Buddy

“…”--Knockout

“She’s got you there Knockout.”--Breakdown

“Shut it!”--Knockout

When Megatron came back to the Nemesis alive, it was the first time in a while that he had seen Buddy light up with joy.

Her father was alive.

Megatron walking into the main room with Starscream by his side.

The room is filled with most of the Decepticons welcoming their leader back.

Buddy starts running towards her father.

“Megatron! Megatron you’re back!”--Buddy

Buddy picking up her pace a bit with open arms ready to hug him.

“I mis—”--Buddy

SLAM!

Buddy’s limp body is now on the other side of the room.

A slash is across her chassis, not too deep, but a good amount of energon was drawn.

Megatron’s saber glinting with Buddy’s energon.

Everyone is frozen in place not quite understanding what just happened.

He spares one glance.

“Pitiful. Everyone! Back to work!”--Megatron

He leaves the room with Starscream hot on his heels.

As soon as they both leave Soundwave and Knockout are by Buddy’s side as Breakdown and Steve try to keep the other worried Vechicons at bay.

“We need to get her to the med bay. It looks bad. Breakdown--”—Knockout

“Got it.”--Breakdown

Breakdown gently picks up Buddy as some of the crowd goes to follow Buddy while the others linger before going back to their own business.

Soundwave stands still in the place where Buddy went limp.

Snap!

Megatron hit her without cause.

This was not training.

This was done with malicious intent.

He would honestly understand it more if Buddy was a Starscream, the punishment would have been seen as fair.

But Buddy was not Starscream.

She was by far one of the most loyal Decepticons there had ever been.

Yet he discarded her like trash.

Soundwave had enough.

Megatron was going to offline his own daughter if he didn’t do anything about it.

Thus, The Plan was created.

He knew this was extremely risky and relied heavily on luck, but he gambled with worse odds. This was something he was willing to work with

It killed Soundwave to see Buddy losing more and more of herself as the training sessions became longer and the wounds were becoming more and more severe.

Breakdown and Knockout walking by the storage sectors and training hall.

BANG!

“AGAIN!”—Megatron

Knockout and Breakdown hiding near a corner outside the training room.

“Please, I can’t—”--Buddy

SLAM!

“AGAIN!”--Megatron

“Megatron—”--Buddy

BAM!

Knockout flinches a bit.

Breakdown puts a servo on Knockout’s shoulder while the other one was clenched.

“AGAIN!”--Megatron

“MEGATRON, PLEASE!”--Buddy

BANG!

Knockout grabs one of Breakdown’s servo tightly hearing the loud sound.

Breakdown squeezes his optics shut as if he were in pain.

“AGAIN!”--Megatron

“FATHER, PLEASE!”--Buddy

SLAM!

“AGAIN ORION!”—Megatron

“I AM NOT ORION!—“Buddy

SLICE!

Silence.

“…oh Primus… you don’t think…”--Breakdown

SLAM!

Megatron exits the training room angry.

No Buddy to be seen.

Soundwave comes out of nowhere sprinting to the training room.

Knockout and Breakdown follow.

Soundwave on his knees holding an extremely injured Buddy.

“Help—Buddy!”--Soundwave

Buddy needed to leave the Nemesis.

And Optimus Prime was his last hope.

He was her last hope.

Now time to wait for the next part!

#transformers x reader #maccadam #bot buddy #tfp #tfp x reader #tfp soundwave #tfp soundwave x platonic reader #tfp megatron #tfp knockout #tfp breakdown #tfp steve

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mostlysignssomeportents · 8 months

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The surveillance advertising to financial fraud pipeline

Monday (October 2), I'll be in Boise to host an event with VE Schwab. On October 7–8, I'm in Milan to keynote Wired Nextfest.

Being watched sucks. Of all the parenting mistakes I've made, none haunt me more than the times my daughter caught me watching her while she was learning to do something, discovered she was being observed in a vulnerable moment, and abandoned her attempt:

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2014/may/09/cybersecurity-begins-with-integrity-not-surveillance

It's hard to be your authentic self while you're under surveillance. For that reason alone, the rise and rise of the surveillance industry – an unholy public-private partnership between cops, spooks, and ad-tech scum – is a plague on humanity and a scourge on the Earth:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/08/16/the-second-best-time-is-now/#the-point-of-a-system-is-what-it-does

But beyond the psychic damage surveillance metes out, there are immediate, concrete ways in which surveillance brings us to harm. Ad-tech follows us into abortion clinics and then sells the info to the cops back home in the forced birth states run by Handmaid's Tale LARPers:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/06/29/no-i-in-uter-us/#egged-on

And even if you have the good fortune to live in a state whose motto isn't "There's no 'I" in uter-US," ad-tech also lets anti-abortion propagandists trick you into visiting fake "clinics" who defraud you into giving birth by running out the clock on terminating your pregnancy:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/06/15/paid-medical-disinformation/#crisis-pregnancy-centers

The commercial surveillance industry fuels SWATting, where sociopaths who don't like your internet opinions or are steamed because you beat them at Call of Duty trick the cops into thinking that there's an "active shooter" at your house, provoking the kind of American policing autoimmune reaction that can get you killed:

https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/14/us/swatting-sentence-casey-viner/index.html

There's just a lot of ways that compiling deep, nonconsensual, population-scale surveillance dossiers can bring safety and financial harm to the unwilling subjects of our experiment in digital spying. The wave of "business email compromises" (the infosec term for impersonating your boss to you and tricking you into cleaning out the company bank accounts)? They start with spear phishing, a phishing attack that uses personal information – bought from commercial sources or ganked from leaks – to craft a virtual Big Store con:

https://www.fbi.gov/how-we-can-help-you/safety-resources/scams-and-safety/common-scams-and-crimes/business-email-compromise

It's not just spear-phishers. There are plenty of financial predators who run petty grifts – stock swindles, identity theft, and other petty cons. These scams depend on commercial surveillance, both to target victims (e.g. buying Facebook ads targeting people struggling with medical debt and worried about losing their homes) and to run the con itself (by getting the information needed to pull of a successful identity theft).

In "Consumer Surveillance and Financial Fraud," a new National Bureau of Academic Research paper, a trio of business-school profs – Bo Bian (UBC), Michaela Pagel (WUSTL) and Huan Tang (Wharton) quantify the commercial surveillance industry's relationship to finance crimes:

https://www.nber.org/papers/w31692

The authors take advantage of a time-series of ZIP-code-accurate fraud complaint data from the Consumer Finance Protection Board, supplemented by complaints from the FTC, along with Apple's rollout of App Tracking Transparency, a change to app-based tracking on Apple mobile devices that turned of third-party commercial surveillance unless users explicitly opted into being spied on. More than 96% of Apple users blocked spying:

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2021/05/96-of-us-users-opt-out-of-app-tracking-in-ios-14-5-analytics-find/

In other words, they were able to see, neighborhood by neighborhood, what happened to financial fraud when users were able to block commercial surveillance.

What happened is, fraud plunged. Deprived of the raw material for committing fraud, criminals were substantially hampered in their ability to steal from internet users.

While this is something that security professionals have understood for years, this study puts some empirical spine into the large corpus of qualitative accounts of the surveillance-to-fraud pipeline.

As the authors note in their conclusion, this analysis is timely. Google has just rolled out a new surveillance system, the deceptively named "Privacy Sandbox," that every Chrome user is being opted in to unless they find and untick three separate preference tickboxes. You should find and untick these boxes:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2023/09/how-turn-googles-privacy-sandbox-ad-tracking-and-why-you-should

Google has spun, lied and bullied Privacy Sandbox into existence; whenever this program draws enough fire, they rename it (it used to be called FLoC). But as the Apple example showed, no one wants to be spied on – that's why Google makes you find and untick three boxes to opt out of this new form of surveillance.

There is no consensual basis for mass commercial surveillance. The story that "people don't mind ads so long as they're relevant" is a lie. But even if it was true, it wouldn't be enough, because beyond the harms to being our authentic selves that come from the knowledge that we're being observed, surveillance data is a crucial ingredient for all kinds of crime, harassment, and deception.

We can't rely on companies to spy on us responsibly. Apple may have blocked third-party app spying, but they effect nonconsensual, continuous surveillance of every Apple mobile device user, and lie about it:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/11/14/luxury-surveillance/#liar-liar

That's why we should ban commercial surveillance. We should outlaw surveillance advertising. Period:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/03/ban-online-behavioral-advertising

Contrary to the claims of surveillance profiteers, this wouldn't reduce the income to ad-supported news and other media – it would increase their revenues, by letting them place ads without relying on the surveillance troves assembled by the Google/Meta ad-tech duopoly, who take the majority of ad-revenue:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2023/05/save-news-we-must-ban-surveillance-advertising

We're 30 years into the commercial surveillance pandemic and Congress still hasn't passed a federal privacy law with a private right of action. But other agencies aren't waiting for Congress. The FTC and DoJ Antitrust Divsision have proposed new merger guidelines that allow regulators to consider privacy harms when companies merge:

https://www.regulations.gov/comment/FTC-2023-0043-1569

Think here of how Google devoured Fitbit and claimed massive troves of extremely personal data, much of which was collected because employers required workers to wear biometric trackers to get the best deal on health care:

https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2020/04/google-fitbit-merger-would-cement-googles-data-empire

Companies can't be trusted to collect, retain or use our personal data wisely. The right "balance" here is to simply ban that collection, without an explicit opt-in. The way this should work is that companies can't collect private data unless users hunt down and untick three "don't spy on me" boxes. After all, that's the standard that Google has set.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/09/29/ban-surveillance-ads/#sucker-funnel

Image: Cryteria (modified) https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:HAL9000.svg

CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/deed.en

#pluralistic #commercial surveillance #surveillance #surveillance advertising #ad-tech #behavioral advertising #ads #privacy #fraud #targeting #ad targeting #scams #scholarship #nber #merger guidelines #ftc #doj

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probablyasocialecologist · 9 months

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Regardless of what companies and investors may say, artificial intelligence is not actually intelligent in the way most humans would understand it. To generate words and images, AI tools are trained on large databases of training data that is often scraped off the open web in unimaginably large quantities, no matter who owns it or what biases come along with it. When a user then prompts ChatGPT or DALL-E to spit out some text or visuals, the tools aren’t thinking about the best way to represent those prompts because they don’t have that ability. They’re comparing the terms they’re presented with the patterns they formed from all the data that was ingested to train their models, then trying to assemble elements from that data to reflect what the user is looking for. In short, you can think of it like a more advanced form of autocorrect on your phone’s keyboard, predicting what you might want to say next based on what you’ve already written and typed out in the past. If it’s not clear, that means these systems don’t create; they plagiarize. Unlike a human artist, they can’t develop a new artistic style or literary genre. They can only take what already exists and put elements of it together in a way that responds to the prompts they’re given. There’s good reason to be concerned about what that will mean for the art we consume, and the richness of the human experience.

[...]

AI tools will not eliminate human artists, regardless of what corporate executives might hope. But it will allow companies to churn out passable slop to serve up to audiences at a lower cost. In that way, it allows a further deskilling of art and devaluing of artists because instead of needing a human at the center of the creative process, companies can try to get computers to churn out something good enough, then bring in a human with no creative control and a lower fee to fix it up. As actor Keanu Reeves put it to Wired earlier this year, “there’s a corporatocracy behind [AI] that’s looking to control those things. … The people who are paying you for your art would rather not pay you. They’re actively seeking a way around you, because artists are tricky.” To some degree, this is already happening. Actors and writers in Hollywood are on strike together for the first time in decades. That’s happening not just because of AI, but how the movie studios and steaming companies took advantage of the shift to digital technologies to completely remake the business model so workers would be paid less and have less creative input. Companies have already been using AI tools to assess scripts, and that’s one example of how further consolidation paired with new technologies are leading companies to prioritize “content” over art. The actors and writers worry that if they don’t fight now, those trends will continue — and that won’t just be bad for them, but for the rest of us too.

#ai #artificial intelligence #chatgpt #ai art #silicon valley

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flnpushy · 9 months

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Helios 11: Experimental Birth Part 2, And Kara's Triumphant Birth.

The final story before we enter.... Helios: A New Era.

Warning: Mechanically assisted births in story.

An hour had passed since Angel and Kate birthed their oversized breech babies. Now it was time for Kara, Luna, and Molly to attempt birth. Unknowing to the scientists with Dr. Karens, the Mothers carrying breech were able to progress much faster, however had great difficulty in final delivery. For the other 3 girls delivering normal head-first babies, progress was almost non existent. Once the babies heads came through the cervix there was basically no farther movement. Here is their story.

Kara Continued to watch her live feed monitor. The probe inserted by the scientists kept a watchful eye on what was happening in her birth canal. Kara could see her babies head. It had been in the exact same spot now for 12 hours. The story was the same for the other girls. The babies were stuck firm within them. Kara could feel her baby moving inside. She could feel its feet kicking and trying to free itself. Kara rubbed her large belly in attempt to calm the baby inside.

Up in the tower the scientists were meeting with Dr. Karens to decide what needed to happen next.

“What if their cervixes begin to close?” One scientist asked the group.

“The babies body could be come trapped inside.” Another replied.

“ITS OK ITS OK!” Dr. Karens called out. “We all just need to calm down a bit here, all the mothers and babies are showing strong vitals, we have time.”

Dr. Karens cleaned her throat as she faced the other scientists.

“We can always administer the shot that will keep the cervix soft, Its a last resort if need be.” She exclaimed.

“Now quite clearly the large heads of the babies were an issue with the girls birthing breech. The girls birthing normally are going to struggle longer as the head must come first. This is only logical.”

“But doctor, we are over 24 hours now with no progress for these mothers!” A scientist said.

“What if the babies are already stuck, and they cant push them out?!?” Another asked.

“Oh they will… they will get the babies out. These girls are the creme of the crop here on helios. They have all been tested and proved they can do this.” Karens replied.

“I have the data here.” Karens said as she displayed data on a central screen

The group analyzed the chart. It was clear that the girls in the experiment clearly had a pushing advantage over the other girls among the Helios Center. But they were still charting new waters with this experience. These were still the biggest babies ever attempted to be birthed at the Helios facility.

Another 5 hours passed with no progress recorded. It was clear that there was an issue.

“Call Alpha Centauri.” Said Dr. Karens.

A scientist put forth a communication request to the other facility.

“Include Martian facilities too.” Karens also asked.

Connection established…… Connection established.

The scientists were now interconnected between the Alpha Birthing Center, and the Martian Birthing Center on Mars.

“Greetings!” Dr. Karens said. “I am the scientific and experimental birth lead here at the Helios birthing facility. I have forwarded you our experiment for you to review.”

The groups read over the readings of the experiment so far. They read about the genetics, the labor process and also the 2 breech births that had taken place so far. It also talked about the 3 girls current situation.

A Martian scientist spoke first.

“We have done similar tests here at Martian.”

Alpha base responded.

“We have done no such testing at our facilities and have no advice to offer.”

Alpha signed out.

“So we can offer our findings.” The Martian lead scientist said.

“Our recent tests found that for the humanoid woman, birthing a 28-30lb fetus is just about impossible without extreme intervention. If your girls can pull it off naturally they would be considered heroes to this mission.”

The Martian continued.

“We found it's a fine balance between contraction frequency and perennial stretching. You don’t want the girls to contract too much or damage could occur to baby and mother, But too slowly and progress could be agonizingly slow to the point of stress for the fetus. We suggest administering a light dose to speed contractions.”

The martians signed off.

Three scientists came down from the tower with a bag. The Scientists approached the girls and then administered a shot of a serum used to speed contractions slightly. The scientists finished and let the girls get back to work.

A Few more hours passed. Finally something happened. Molly felt her baby move. Her contractions were fast and the baby began progressing toward her opening.

Molly began feeling the urge to push getting strong. Soon she couldn’t stop pushing. Luna was next, Her contractions sped up and she began pushing constantly.

As for Kara she contracted a bit slower, but she was pushing nearly constantly with contractions.

It was now time to birth some babies. Molly was making the fastest progress, all eyes were on her as the first signs of baby were approaching. When pushing her vagina began to bulge outward meaning the head was now just inside her opening. Molly was working hard. Her little body shook with each contraction. Her belly button stuck out during each push from her large belly. This went on for 3 more hours till finally all eyes and cameras were on Molly’s vagina. Molly made a huge push, as she did her vagina parted open slightly, revealing a sliver of brown hair before almost immediately closing back up. It was progress however. Luna was also getting close to reveal, her little legs pulled back as far as she could, making the most of each contraction. Luna wanted this baby out! Kara was lagging behind. She was pregnant with the largest baby of the group. Kara didn’t care. She knew it would come out in time and she pushed slowly with each contraction to retain energy.

Luna soon had similar results to Molly. A tiny sliver of babies head was revealed before slipping back in. A couple more hours passed Molly continued to reveal a tiny sliver of babies head with each contraction pushing attempt. Luna was becoming tired and frustrated. Each attempt to push was becoming shorter and weaker. The pushing battle continued.

Another 4 hours passed. Kara Had now seen a sliver of hair in her opening and was strati g to make slow progress. Molly was beginning to hold her baby down, and the head was staying in the opening. As for luna…. She was in trouble.

Luna had become physically exhausted. Lunas first baby was a 15 pound baby that took her over a week to push out. This baby in her belly now was proving to be too much for her to handle. The scientists noticed that luna began to look faint and her blood pressure was dropping.

“Emergency!!” Dr. Karens called out. “Luna’s vitals are too close for comfort, we need to get that baby out now!”

The scientists rushed down stairs. Luna was moved from her bed to a stretcher bed equipped with a special device. Luna was given sugar and comforted. Meanwhile two scientists Were hooking her up to a machine to assist delivery. One scientists used forceps to open luna’s vagina up. The large head was now revealed. It was massive and so tightly locked within her. The other scientist attached a suction cup like device to the babies head. The cup was attached to a rope and the rope was on a small winch. This was to assist the delivery. Episiotomy and C-sections were not allowed at the helios facility. So stuck or not, either way the baby was coming vaginally. Luna was brought back to normal vitals. Her vagina lips now clasped the suction cup tightly that was attached to her babies head.

Meanwhile Molly had reached a similar conclusion. Her vitals were in trouble. She was brought to another stretcher and placed next to Luna. She was also hooked up to a suction cup pulling machine as she vitals were assisted. Once she was stable it was time to get the babies out.

Kara on the other hand was actually making progress. A tiny sliver of abets head became a tear drop shape. Kara reached over her huge belly and touched the head.

“Good baby.” She said. “Momma’s going to get you out soon.”

Back on the other side of the room it was time to assist the delivery of Luna and Molly. The girls were strapped into the table via arms and chest. Their legs were placed and strapped into stirrups.

“Ok begin.” requested Dr. Karens.

The mechanical devices slowly took up the slack in the ropes. A minute later they were tight. The ropes became tighter and tighter over the next 5 minutes until the girls could feel the traction being applied.

“Ok now as you contract we want you to push at an even and controlled rate.” Dr. Karens said.

“Let the machine do the hard work.” She said

The ropes became tighter and tighter. The electric motors began to strain under the load. Luna got a contraction and pushed hard.

“I WANT IT OUT!” She yelled. “AHHHHHHHHAHHHH!!!” She yelped.

“Calm down, Calm down.” Karens said. “Relax, let the machine work!”

Molly’s rope was tighter now and her vagina began to open revealing the head. She pushed steady Finally after 20 minutes, Molly’s baby crowned. It was Massive in her opening. the sting was almost unbearable as Molly suffered the pain.

“AHH, OHHH, AAAAMMMMM, AAAHHHH! It hurts so bad!!” She yelled. The skin around the head became white in color as it stretched to its absolute max. Luna watched next to her, her eyes became wide as she realized she was minutes away from experiencing this too! Molly’s skin finally relented and the head slipped free of the tight grasp. Now the rope was slack but began drawing back up to pull the shoulders out of molly’s belly. A few minutes later the rope was guitar string tight. Molly could feel her entire body being pulled toward the winch at the far end. The pain was unbearable, till finally the shoulders came free and the rest of the huge baby body slipped out. Two of the scientists immediately rushed Molly and the baby off to greater care in the incubation rooms.

Luna was now about to go through the same ordeal. The head was pulled to crown as Luna wailed painfully. It was time.

“Push girl PUSH!” Karens said.

“AHHHHH AAAAAA MMMMMM AAAA OOOOOOHHHH AAAAAA!!!!!” Luna yelled out as the head popped free of her vagina.

“Keep going!” Karens said as the rope took up slack.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!” Luna screamed as the shoulders came forth. Luna was now immediately transported with the baby to incubation.

Now left Kara.

Kara’s Triumphant story.

Kara this whole time was slowly meditating through contractions. She now had the babies head large in her opening. It had slipped in a few times, but Kara remained calm and kept going at a gentle pace. The head was becoming huge in her opening. The scientists including Karens gathered around Kara. She pushed slowly on and on for hours and hours. Slowly progressing the head towards crown. She had been laying in this bed pushing now for 3 days since the first contractions began.

Kara made eye contact with Karens.

“This baby will come naturally, give me time.” Kara said. Karens nodded.

“I will be here for you.” Karens replied.

A log was being kept in a digital archive of the progress

12:00 Head near crown.

12:10 Retract of the head

12:30 Head slips in all the way. Vagina closed up.

12:40 Pushing resumed

13:00 Head near crown.

13:15 Head Slips in, Vagina closes. Progress lost.

14:00 Head pushed back to crown.

14:20 Retract of head

14:30 Head slips in. Vagina closed. Progress lost

Each slip in had the scientists concerned if this was possible or not, But Kara kept working.

14:45 Pushing resumed

15:00 Head crowned.

15:20 Head Retracts

15:30 Head slips back

16:15 Crowning

17:00 Crowning

18:30 Crowning

20:00 Crowning

20:20 Retracting of head

20:34 Head slips back in fully. Vagina closes up.

Kara Had struggled through 4 hours at crown. The sting was unbearable, but the head just refused to progress farther. Baby slips back in after 4 hour pushing struggle. In 4 hours Kara had made over 75 attempts to push the crowning head out. It was all lost.

21:30 Mother begins pushing again.

23:00 Crowning

01:00 Crowning

03:00 Crowning

03:30 Baby retracts and slips back in. Vagina closes. Progress lost

03:45 Pushing resumed

08:00 Crowning

It was now 11:30 and Kara was still crowned……

Most the scientists had rotated shifts. Dr. Karens however stayed right at Kara’s side.

13:00 Crowning

15:00 Crowning

18:00 shift rotation, Crowning

19:30 Crowning

Kara reached down and touched the huge crowning head. “Come on little man, pop outta there.”

21:00 Crowning

23:00 Crowning

Dr. Karens leaned over to Kara’s ear. “Your a trooper Kara, You bring honor to this mission.”

“I will do this.” Kara replied .

01:00…….. 15 hours at crowning. Kara’s opening was stretched farther than anyone thought possible.

“AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH COME ON AAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!” Kara yelped. She wiggled, struggled, sweat poured from her brow. Her belly button protruded as she pushed as hard as she’d ever done.

“UGGGGGGHHH!” She grunted as the head popped free. The sheer adrenaline rush keep Kara going as she squeezed with all her might to get the shoulders out. No use. The head was posterior meaning the baby was facing Kara’s belly. Kara could feel the stuck baby wiggling itself to try and get free. The head was now out, but the shoulders were still trapped inside Kara.

02:00 Head out, baby stuck

03:00 Baby opens it eyes, still stuck.

05:00 Baby remains stuck. Eyes open baby still moving trying to free itself.

10:00 Baby remains stuck.

10:30….

“I need to stand.” Kara said.

“What?” Karens asked.

“I need to stand, give baby some room.” Kara said.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Karens replied.

“I NEED to stand, Ive been laying here 5 days.” Kara repeated.

“Ok,Ok!” I will help.

Dr. Karens moved Kara’s feet to the bedside. Kara’s legs needed to get blood flow back. She waited 10 minutes and stood up bedside. Her legs shook under the new load. Kara was fully naked. She stood, legs spread slightly. Her huge belly dangling from her frame, a 30 lb baby still partially inside her. Her babies head hanging from her vagina. The babies eyes were still open. As Kara took her first step the baby made a noise. She took another step, the baby made a small cry.

“Awww poor little man!” Kara said. “So stuck in mommas belly!”

Dr. Karens helped Kara slowly walk around the room. Each step Kara could feel the baby wiggling in her. It was almost ticklish and she shuddered with the tingling feeling. She knew the baby was moving. They waled for 15 minutes until Karens assisted Kara back to the bed. Kara drew up her legs are far as she could. The baby began crying.

“This little guys coming out now.” Kara said.

Kara wiggled her hips, pulled back her legs. And let out a massive push. The baby surged froward. The shoulders released. the baby slid out to its waist.

“One more hun.” Karens said. Kara delivered the final push. The 30 pound baby slid out. She had done it….. Naturally.

A few days passed. Kara recovered slowly from the birth.

A month later. Kara was sitting in her apartment. She got a knock on the door. She suspected this was now time to be breed with her 3rd and final baby required for the mission. Kara answered the door. It was Dr. Karens, A small group of scientists, and several men in Suits.

“Kara, please follow us.” Dr. Karens said.

Kara was scared…. Another experiment? She followed.

the group made their way to the main hall where a large group of people including other birthing mothers had gathered. A stage and podium stood at the front. Kara was brought up to the stage and sat next to the podium. Dr. Karens took the stage.

“Hello everyone, I am Dr. Karens, The president scientist of this facility. We are gathered here today to bring honor to one of our own. Kara please stand.”

Kara Stood as the crowd clapped for her.

“Kara has successfully and naturally birthed the largest baby ever to be born here at Helios Birthing Facility. She now holds the record at 31 lbs birthed naturally. This is an honorary achievement and will be treated as such. Her patience and dedication to this mission stands no bounds!”

The crowd cheered.

“For Kara we have presented an award. Kara you are relieved of your mission duties one baby early. You will not be re-impregnated. I would like to assign you Vice President Assistant Scientist position. You will now be a member of the caregiving staff, and will be my assistant.”

Kara was awestruck! NO ONE, and they mean NO ONE, gets early relief, and an assistance position was rarely rewarded. She was truly honored.

Kara was invited to the podium.

“I accept this position, I am honored to have this opportunity, and will serve the birthing mothers of out facility for the rest of my working career!”

The crowed cheered for her.

The facility director approached the podium. Kara took a step to the side. The director made all the maintenance, building, and expansion decisions for the facility.

“I would like to honor Kara.” He said

“From now on Garden 31, and Birthing Pool 10 will be known as Kara’s Gardens.”

Kara was amazed! She felt like she had really made a difference.

“I would also like to make an announcement.” The director said.

“We will be expanding the facility, We are entering a Joint venture with the Martians and expanding Helios Birthing center to greater froward out mission.”

The crowd cheered.

“As director, I grant that Dr. Karens and our new Honorary Vice President scientist Kara, will be a part of the mission to design and build a new state of the art facility able to serve 2500 birthing women.”

“Thank You.” The director stepped down.

Dr. Karens approached Kara.

“You ready for this journey trooper?” She asked.

“Most certainly.” Kara said.

“Good, we begin training tomorrow.” Karens said.

#birth #birth kink #giving birth #pregnant #crowning #pregnancy #birth denial #breech #birth story #scifi birth

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somethingusefulfromflorida · 1 year

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You know I actually messaged the creator of the mysterious flesh pit when I first saw stuff from the blog. It was like “This is some of the most intricately detailed, thoroughly thought out, and absolutely riveting things I’ve ever seen. I am on awe of your dedication and skill. Unfortunately it is also the most horrible thing I have ever seen. Fantastic job.” And they responded “Yes that was the intended effect. Thank you.” Also: there is a Chilis in the park because they were inspired by the mini chilis you see in airports and stuff. They were pretty cool. Btw have they released some new stuff I haven’t seen yet?

The creator accepts questions from fans, and every few months he answers a bunch at a time. I prefer the QNAs over the rest of the blog because they go into much more detail than the regular posts of old park signs and company memos and material salvaged from the 2007 incident.

I'm also a big fan of the maps

Gumption is a fictional county that encompasses parts of the real world counties of Sterling and Tom Green (no relation to the actor)

The very nature of the permian basin superorganism means that it has never been seen above the surface, but my absolute favorite addition to the entire canon is from the most recent QNA where the author finally reveals what the damn thing looks like

This image is described in universe as an artists impression of what it might look like if it woke up and breached, but I'm willing to bet this is more or less accurate. The superorganism is in its own fictional phylum, but you can see that it's clearly designed to resemble echinoderms and mollusks; it's a big ass starfish with a clamlike mantle on top, lots of tubed feet and radial eyespots, and there's evidence it may be extraterrestrial because the fossilized remains of a similar superorganism were discovered by a Venus probe.

I've submitted a couple questions to the creator in the hopes he'll pick mine for the next QNA

Did the protrusions that burst from the surface in 2007 ever sink back below, or do they remain exposed to this day?

If the superorganism spans hundreds of miles outside the borders of Gumption and the defunct national park, what would stop anyone in the surrounding counties from digging down disturbing it themselves? I guess digging through hundreds of meters of rock is difficult, but surely there would be more than one company in the region that would want to take advantage of the superorganism.

We know roughly what shape it is from seismological data (as seen from the earthquake warning in the second map), and we know roughly how deep it extends from boreholes

Assuming I've read this image correctly, the superorganism is about 30km at its thickest point near the center, and tapers out as you travel further down its arms, though the second and third boreholes from the right show that there are deepers layers of tissue below the main body. From the surface, it goes rock, organism, rock, organism, rock, so there are limbs below the main limbs, or maybe the main limb is actually just the mantle and the lower tissue is the limb itself. I don't know, and that's what I love about it; we still have so much to learn!

#permian basin superorganism #mystery flesh pit #mystery flesh pit national park #eldritch horror

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beardedmrbean · 9 months

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Anthony Fauci has sparked a backlash from politicians and commentators after saying that wearing face masks protects individuals from spreading coronavirus, but that there was inconclusive evidence to suggest it prevented a pandemic spiraling at a whole population level.

The former chief medical adviser to the president, who was regularly the face of the government's response to the pandemic, told CNN on Saturday that "an individual protecting themselves or protecting them from spreading it, there is no doubt that masks work," amid a spike in infections of the virus and speculation that fresh COVID restrictions could be on the horizon.

"Fauci admits that masks don't work for the public at large but still absurdly claims masks work on an individual basis," Rand Paul, a Republican senator for Kentucky who was suspended from YouTube in 2021 for questioning mask wearing, wrote on Sunday in one of many critical responses to the interview. "More subterfuge."

Some private institutions, hospital operators and colleges have reintroduced the requirements for staff or visitors to wear masks while at their sites to limit the spread of the new variants—EG.5 and BA.2.86—which have recently emerged. The moves sparked concerns that nationwide restrictions could be set to return.

In the week to August 19, there were more than 15,000 hospitalizations due to COVID-19 infections across the U.S., the most recent monitoring figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show—a rise of nearly 19 percent on the week prior.

Admissions have been steadily rising since July, but are far below the highest peaks of the pandemic and appear to be localized into hotspots. The highest number of hospitalizations due to COVID-19 in any week since the virus first emerged was over 150,000 in January 2022, and the highest weekly total this year was over 44,000 in the first week of January.

"We're starting to see a surge of cases...about an 18 percent or 19 percent increase in hospitalizations, certainly going in the wrong direction," Fauci told CNN host Michael Smerconish on Saturday.

While he noted that "we're not talking about mandates or forcing anybody," he said he hoped that if cases were to grow to a "reasonably high level" that the CDC recommended mask wearing again, that individuals "abide by the recommendation and take into account the risk to themselves and to their families."

A CDC spokesperson told Newsweek on Thursday it currently has no intention to call for a return of mandated mask-wearing, but didn't deny that this might change if cases of the new variants were to rise significantly. Fauci previously said he thought there was "not going to be the tsunami of cases that we've seen" before.

Despite his advocacy of mask wearing, Fauci was questioned about the diverging views on the effectiveness of face masks at limiting the spread of COVID-19.

There are differing opinions among the scientific community as to the efficacy of mask wearing, though many agree that when used in tandem with other measures—such as washing hands, social distancing and vaccination—they help stop the virus spreading.

"When you're talking about at the population level, ... the data are less strong than knowing that if you look on a situation as an individual protecting themselves or protecting them from spreading it, there is no doubt that masks work," the leading immunologist said.

"Different studies give different percentages of advantage of wearing it," he added. "But there's no doubt that the weight of the studies, and there have been many studies, indicate the benefit of wearing masks."

However, he was probed on one particular study, first published by the Cochrane Library in 2020 and updated this year, which found that wearing even medical-grade face masks "makes little or no difference" to infection rates. Smerconish cited an interview with The New York Times in which the study's lead author, Tom Jefferson, an epidemiologist at the University of Oxford, said: "There is just no evidence that they make any difference."

Fauci responded that "there's no doubt that there are many studies that show that there is an advantage" at the level of individual infections, but "when you're talking about the effect on the epidemic or the pandemic as a whole, the data are less strong."

He added: "But we're not talking about that, we're talking about an individual's effect on their own safety."

"Even the [mainstream media] (CNN) are rowing back on the effectiveness of mask wearing mandates," Andrew Bridgen, a British member of parliament who was suspended in January for spreading coronavirus misinformation, wrote on X, formerly Twitter. "Unscientific and harmful."

"We know he lied back in 2020," Chad Prather, a host on right-wing outlet Blaze TV, alleged. "Guess what. He's lying NOW. Anything to stay relevant." Meanwhile, doctors who had previously opposed mask mandates expressed vindication at Fauci's concession.

Fauci told Newsweek that he was "not interested" in responding to the critics, but noted: "Even Cochrane itself put out a statement that the study referred to by Smerconish on CNN that masks do not work was 'widely misinterpreted.'" _______________________

#nunyas news #masks are a placebo

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data-bridge · 2 years

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Europe Data Center Interconnect Market Pumps Market Industry Share, Size, Growth, Demands, Revenue, Top Leaders and Forecast to 2029

Industry Analysis

The data center interconnect market is expected to witness market growth at a rate of 12.50% in the forecast period of 2022 to 2029, and is estimated to the reach the value of USD 3,437.61 million by 2029. Data Bridge Market Research report on data center interconnect market provides analysis and insights regarding the various factors expected to be prevalent throughout the forecast period while providing their impacts on the market’s growth. The increase in the use of product in various industries globally is escalating the growth of data center interconnect market.

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Market Insights and Scope

Data center interconnect is referred as a technique that is widely used in order to connect and allow networking between two or more different data centers. The technique is done in an enterprise environment for acquiring IT and business objectives. This type of technology uses high speed packet-optical connectivity to connect data centers together over short, medium or long distances.

The Europe Data Center Interconnect Market report encompasses various segments linked to Semiconductors and Electronics industry and market with comprehensive research and analysis. These comprise industry outlook with respect to critical success factors (CSFs), industry dynamics that mainly covers drivers and restraints, market segmentation & value chain analysis, key opportunities, application and technology outlook, regional or geographical insight, country-level analysis, key company profiles, competitive landscape, and company market share analysis. All the data, figures and information are backed up by well recognized analysis tools which include SWOT analysis and Porter’s Five Forces analysis. So, take business to the peak level of growth with the all-inclusive Data Bridge Market research report.

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Industry Segmentation and Size

The data center interconnect market is segmented on the basis of product, technology and application. The growth among segments helps you analyze niche pockets of growth and strategies to approach the market and determine your core application areas and the difference in your target markets.

On the basis of product, the data center interconnect market is segmented into product, software and services.

On the basis of technology, the data center interconnect market is segmented into CSPs, CNPs/ICPs, government and enterprises.

On the basis of application, the data center interconnect market is segmented into real-time disaster recovery and business continuity, shared data and resources/server high-availability clusters (geoclustering) consumer and workload (VM) and data (storage) mobility.

Market Country Level Analysis

The countries covered in the Europe data center interconnect market report are Germany, U.K., France, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Russia, Switzerland, Turkey, Austria, Norway, Hungary, Lithuania, Ireland, Poland and Rest of Europe.

Germany dominates the Europe data center interconnect market due to the technological advancements within the region.

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Industry Share Analysis

Some of the major players operating in the data center interconnect market report are

Ciena Corporation, Juniper Network Inc., Coresite Realty Corporation, Digital Realty Trust, Ranovus Inc., Equinix, Inc., Brocade Communications Systems Inc., CISCO Systems, Inc., Extreme Networks, Infinera Corporation, XKL, LLC, Innovium Inc., and Cologix, among others.

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bratshaws · 6 months

Text

through the hourglass 303.brb x oc

a/n: i love action chapters but idk how to write them uwu (comments and reblogs are super welcome and encouraged!)

pairing: plus size!oc x rooster

warnings: none uwu

goodness gracious (pls read this one to know more what this fic is about!!)

chapter

/267/268/269/270/271/272/273/274/275/276/277/278/279/280/281/282/283/284/285/286/287/288/289/290/291/292/293/294/295/296/297/298/299/300/301

/302

(pls let me know if you want to be added to the taglist! )

taglist: @mirandastuckinthe80s @roosterschanelslut @wiipes @lcahwriter @novastories @gretagerwigsmuse @frenchtoastix @lizzie-rdj @fanboyluvr @atarmychick007 @comebacktoearthpls

@peachiicherries @mak-32 @lizziespidiepridie @roosterswifey @ollyoxenfrees @piceous21 @sqrlgrl22 @hofficoffi @lexhalstead3 @lorilane33 @legendarydreamersharkparty @luckyladycreator2

@emilybradshaw @louisahale @leobabbyyy @booklover2sblog @ktjmac @graciereads @bigpoppajes @taytaylala12

@caitsymichelle13 @becks-things @caatheeriinee07 @fanboyswhore9 @jesfreedark @katiemcrae @lilmonstrjedi @hobiismyhopeu @teacupsandtopgun @insominac23 @gh0stsgoodgirl @mygyn @chavivaelisheva @kmc1989 @enchantingharmonyalpaca @callsign-magnolia

He’s high alert when McAllister walks in, out of breath, holding a pile of papers but looking relieved, “We…we got a location sir!”

Rooster's heart quickened at McAllister's words. The weight of anticipation hung in the air as he gestured for McAllister to continue."Spill it, McAllister. Where are they?" Rooster demanded, standing in front of his desk.

McAllister, still catching his breath, spread out the papers on the table. The dim light of the command center cast shadows across the detailed maps and schematics. Rooster leaned in, studying the information laid out before him.

"We managed to trace the signal, sir," McAllister explained. "It's a remote facility located in a dense, uninhabited area. Our intel suggests it's a well-fortified compound."

Rooster's eyes narrowed as he absorbed the details. The mission had transitioned from uncertainty to a tangible target, and the gravity of the situation heightened. He glanced at McAllister. "How confident are we in this intel?"

McAllister straightened, a determined look in his eyes. "As confident as we can be given the circumstances, sir. The signal matches the patterns we've been tracking, and the data aligns with our previous findings."

Rooster nodded, his mind processing the newfound information, chewing his lower lip. "Get the team ready. We move in an hour. I want everyone briefed, and gear up for a tactical insertion. We can't afford any surprises."

McAllister saluted, "Understood, sir. We'll be ready."

As McAllister left to carry out the orders, Rooster's mind shifted into tactical mode. The gravity of the situation sank in; this was the moment they had been working towards. The stakes were high, and Rooster felt the weight of responsibility settling on his shoulders. “Fuck.” he rolled his shoulders and his neck then inhaled, “Finally.”

As he delved deeper into the operational details, Jake re-entered the room. The urgency in Rooster's movements caught Jake's attention.

"McAllister got a location. We're moving in an hour," Rooster informed Jake, eyes fixed on the screen.

Jake nodded, his expression focused. "Got it. I'll make sure the team is prepped and ready to go. Any specifics on the approach?"

“...yes.”

“And?” Jake arched his brow, “What will it be?”

"We'll approach from the southeast, utilizing the cover of the terrain to minimize our visibility. The facility is likely to be guarded, so we need to be strategic in our insertion."

Jake, following as Rooster pointed down on the map, absorbed the details. "Understood. I'll coordinate with the team to ensure a synchronized approach. We've got the advantage of the night; let's use it to our full extent."

Rooster nodded in agreement. "We need to be ghosts until we reach the target. We can't afford an extended engagement." he frowns “...is Mark out there?”

"Yeah,do you want me to call him in?"

Rooster's expression remained focused, his mind calculating the variables of the upcoming mission. “Yes, because I can see his feet outside the door."

As Jake stepped out to locate Mark, Rooster continued to scrutinize the maps and mission details. The gravity of the impending operation pressed against his chest, the stakes higher than ever.

Mark entered the room, his flight suit in hand and his eyes locking on the map at the desk.

"Rooster," Mark greeted with a nod. "What's the situation?"

Rooster gestured to the maps spread across the table. "McAllister just got a location. We're moving in an hour."

Mark's eyes flickered with intensity as he studied the maps. "Got it. I'll prep the jet. What's the insertion plan?"

"We'll be utilizing the F/A-18 Hornets," Rooster explained, his voice steady. "Our approach will be from the southeast. Keep communication tight, and stay alert for any hostiles in the air."

Mark raised an eyebrow, a subtle smirk playing on his lips. "It's not a walk in the park, you know."

Rooster maintained his composure, his jaw clenching for a moment before he responded, "I know what I'm doing, Mark. This mission is critical, and I need you focused. We can't afford any mistakes. Especially after the breach."

Mark’s eyes moved away from his and he squirmed a bit, “...I’m leading this squad,Mark and I’d love for everyone to be absolutely safe. You get it right?”

Mark's demeanor shifted at Rooster's stern reminder. He begrudgingly nodded, "I get it, Rooster. We all want to get back in one piece. No room for mistakes."

Rooster's gaze lingered on Mark for a moment, the unspoken tension between them simmering beneath the surface."Get your gear, and we’ll make sure the Hornets are prepped for takeoff," Rooster instructed, his tone leaving no room for argument.

Mark gave a curt nod, his pride wounded but compliance apparent. As he exited the room, Rooster let out a sigh. He grunted, then rubbed his eyes before standing up straight, “Time to deal with this, finally.”

The airfield was alive with activity as Rooster,made his way towards the F/A-18 Hornets. The sleek jets stood on the tarmac, their powerful engines humming with restrained energy. The moonlight cast an ethereal glow on the fighter planes, and McAllister was waiting for him, “Sir! She’s prepped and ready!”

“Thank you co-pilot.” he smiles and the young recruit appeared to beam up,Rooster approached the F/A-18 Hornets, feeling the cool night air against his flight suit. The energy around the airfield was palpable, and he inhaled before speaking “Make sure the rest of the team is on point. We can't afford any hiccups tonight."

"Understood, sir. We're ready for takeoff whenever you give the word."

Rooster nodded, his focus on the task at hand. The sleek silhouette of the F/A-18 Hornet loomed before him, so dark it only reflected the stars.

As he prepared to board the jet, Mark approached and he looked at Rooster with a raised eyebrow. "Lt.a word?”

Rooster met Mark's gaze, his expression unwavering. "What is it?”

Mark shifted uncomfortably, his pride still nursing the wounds of their earlier interaction. "Look, Rooster, I know we've had our differences, but I…." and he looked in pain admitting it “Will follow your lead. Always. Promise.”

Rooster raised an eyebrow, window tousling his hair and he almost looked around in hopes to see cameras. “Good. It’s what I hope for."

“Right.”

“Right.” Rooster acknowledged Mark's reluctant concession with a nod, "Anyway. We've got a mission to accomplish, and I’m about done with all the issues it gave us so." Mark nodded, then quickly walked away from Rooster with his head low.

The mustached pilot followed the other one with his eyes, narrowing his eyelids briefly before he boarded the F/A-18 Hornet. The hum of the jet's systems, the array of controls at his fingertips, and the unmistakable scent of aviation fuel hit his nose immediately. He settled into the pilot's seat, adjusting the straps of his flight suit with a focused determination.

McAllister climbed into the backseat, donning his own gear. Rooster gave him a reassuring nod. "Keep an eye on the instruments, and let me know the moment anything seems off."

McAllister responded with a crisp salute, "Aye, sir. We're locked and loaded, ready for takeoff."

Rooster initiated the pre-flight checks, his hands moving with precision. The communication with the control tower buzzed in his earpiece as the ground crew signaled their readiness.

"Control Tower, this is Talon One requesting clearance for takeoff," Rooster radioed.

"Viper One, you are cleared for takeoff. Godspeed."

As Talon One accelerated down the runway, Rooster felt the familiar surge of adrenaline that accompanied takeoff. The powerful engines roared, and the Hornet lifted off the ground with a graceful ascent. The ground fell away beneath them, replaced by the vast expanse of the night sky.

McAllister's voice came through, "Altitude steady, sir. We're on course."

Rooster nodded, his eyes scanning the array of instruments. The mission parameters echoed in his mind, and he inhaled again.

You never broke a promise,Roos. Just come back to me.

They gained altitude, Rooster's thoughts briefly flickered to Beatrice and the kids. The image of their faces, etched in his memory,made his heart clench.The mission demanded his complete attention, and Rooster knew she’d hate it if he got distracted.

The night sky enveloped them as they cruised towards their designated coordinates. The moonlight illuminated the sleek frame of the Hornet, casting a silvery glow on its surface. Rooster's gaze shifted to the stars above, a canvas that seemed to stretch infinitely. Clear sky, no clouds at all.

The radio crackled to life as they received updated information from the ground. Rooster's eyes narrowed as he processed the intel.

"Talon One, this is Control Tower. We've detected an anomaly in the designated area. Proceed with caution."

Rooster acknowledged the message, his mind swiftly adjusting to the evolving situation. The cockpit hummed with activity as he guided the Hornet towards the identified coordinates. “Got it. Jake,you hear that?”

“We all did.” Jake’s voice appears in his ear “What do you want us to do?”

Rooster glanced at the instrument panel, his eyes narrowing. The anomaly in the designated area added a layer of complexity. The Hornet responded to his commands as he adjusted their course, "Talon Squadron, this is Rooster. We've got an anomaly to check out. Stay sharp and maintain formation," Rooster instructed, his voice projecting authority and determination. “No one do anything stupid.”

The Hornet aircraft soared through the night,cutting through the air with precision, like hot knife to butter. The formation held, each pilot maintaining their designated position. The radio crackled again, this time with updated information.

"Control Tower to Talon Squadron, be advised, the anomaly appears to be a thermal signature on the ground. Proceed with extreme caution."

“People?”

“Most likely.”

Rooster acknowledged the information, with a grunt “Great. McAllister,talk to me.”

"Sir, we've got the coordinates on our HUD. I recommend a gradual descent to get a closer look without compromising our position."

"Agreed, McAllister. Let's gather as much intel as we can without giving away our presence.Everyone,we move in slow."

The squadron maintained a tight formation, slowly descending while keeping themselves hidden. The thermal signature on the ground became more apparent on the instruments, a mysterious anomaly against the backdrop of darkness. The thermal imaging system enhanced the details, revealing the presence of figures on the ground.

"Control Tower, this is Talon One. We've got visual confirmation of individuals on the ground. Permission to investigate," Rooster radioed.

"Copy, Talon One. Proceed with caution."

The Hornet descended further, skimming above the ground. The figures on the thermal imaging system resolved into a group of people huddled together. Rooster's instincts sharpened as he analyzed the scene, noting the absence of any immediate threat.

"McAllister, any idea who these people are?" Rooster inquired.

"Negative, sir. No insignias or identifiable markings. They seem unarmed," McAllister reported.

Rooster considered their options, aware that any misstep could have consequences. The mission's secrecy weighed heavily on him, amplifying the need for discretion. "Maintain our distance for now. I want a closer look but without alerting them to our presence."

The Hornet circled the area, its advanced surveillance equipment capturing high-resolution images of the scene below. Rooster studied the visuals, trying to glean information from the behavior of the individuals on the ground. Their presence in this remote location, marked by the absence of any visible structures, added to the mystery.

"Sir, there's something strange about this," McAllister commented. "No vehicles, no apparent camp. It's like they're dropped here."

Rooster's brow furrowed as he processed McAllister's observation. The lack of any discernible infrastructure raised more questions than answers. "Control Tower, this is Talon One. We've observed a group of individuals on the ground. No signs of a camp or transport. Requesting further instructions."

The response from Control Tower was swift, "Talon One, maintain observation and gather intel. Hold your position until further notice."

The Hornet continued its surveillance, hovering above as his eyes studied the scene. The absence of clear identification heightened the sense of urgency to determine the nature of this unexpected presence.

"McAllister, keep an eye on their movements. I want to know if they're aware of our presence," Rooster directed.

"Copy, sir. Maintaining visual."

As the minutes passed, the individuals on the ground remained seemingly unaware of the vigilant Hornet above. The thermal imaging revealed no signs of aggressive behavior or hostile intent. Rooster maintained a watchful gaze, his mind sifting through the possibilities.

"Rooster, we've got incoming aircraft. Unknown origin," Jake's voice interrupted through the radio.

Rooster's senses heightened. "Identify their type and numbers, Jake."

"Unknown at the moment. They're coming in fast."

The tension in the cockpit escalated as Rooster processed the unfolding situation “Fuck.”. The Hornet's instruments blipped with incoming data, revealing the approaching aircraft on their radar.

"Control Tower, this is Talon One. We've got incoming aircraft of unknown origin. Requesting instructions," Rooster radioed, his voice crisp and focused.

"Copy, Talon One. Hold your position. Do not engage unless provoked."

Rooster nodded to himself. The mission's parameters were clear – observe and gather intel. The Hornet maintained its position as the unidentified aircraft closed in. Rooster's eyes scanned the radar, calculating the trajectories and potential threat levels.

The tension in the cockpit was palpable as the unknown aircraft entered their airspace. The Hornet's systems automatically adjusted to the new variables, preparing for any eventuality. Rooster's gaze shifted between the mysterious figures on the ground, the approaching aircraft, and the instruments that guided their response.

"Sir, I've got a visual of the incoming aircraft. They appear to be military jets," McAllister reported.

Rooster's jaw clenched. "Control Tower, this is Talon One. We've identified the incoming aircraft as military jets. Still holding position. Requesting further instructions."

"Talon One, maintain your course. Do not engage unless engaged upon. Observe and report."

Rooster's eyes remained fixed on the approaching military jets. He hummed, “...McAllister,is it me,or those jets look used?”

“Sir?”

“...Older.I mean.” he frowns, “Repurposed jets, god damn it.”

The revelation that the incoming aircraft appeared to be older, repurposed military jets, made his skin crawl immediately. Rooster's intuition kicked in, dissecting the information at hand.

"McAllister, keep an eye on those jets. I want to know if they deviate from their course or show any signs of hostile intent."

"Copy, sir. Maintaining visual."

"Control Tower, this is Talon One. The incoming jets are maintaining their course. No signs of deviation or hostile intent at the moment. Continuing observation."

"Copy, Talon One. Maintain your position. We're coordinating with higher-ups for further instructions. Standby."

Rooster acknowledged the command, his gaze unwavering as he monitored the unfolding events. He waits a few seconds before contacting Nat "Nix,," Rooster's voice cut through the radio, "You are opposite of me, can you see anything we don’t?"

"Nix, this is Talon One. Can you see anything else we don't?" Rooster's voice cut through the radio, the urgency underscoring the situation.

"Negative. The view from my end matches yours. No deviations from their course. They're maintaining their heading."

"Copy, Nix. Keep a vigilant eye.”

Rooster's mind raced, considering the possibilities and potential ramifications of the encounter. His leg was vibrating, wanting to bounce out of nerves but he remained still.

“Um…sir?”

“What is it McAllister?” and the younger recruit taps the glass to where they see the repurposed jets landing on the same spot those people were. There’s some talking and then…all the heads down there look up. “...do they see us?”

“...I…I’m not sure sir, they appear to be looking around.”

Rooster's gaze intensified as he observed the unfolding scene through the cockpit canopy. The fact that the personnel on the ground were now looking in their direction added a layer of complexity to an already delicate situation.

"Control Tower, this is Talon One. The incoming jets have landed, and personnel on the ground seem to be aware of our presence. Requesting further instructions."

"Standby, Talon One."

The response from Control Tower was swift but offered little in terms of clarity and he held back a curse. The tension inside the cockpit was palpable.

"McAllister, keep an eye on their movements. I want to know if they make any aggressive gestures or indications."

"Copy, sir. Watching closely."

As Rooster maintained his vigilance, a message from Nix crackled over the radio.

"Nix to Talon One. They're getting out of the jets. Not Navy personnel…black flight suits, no identifiers.” she pauses “...they remind me of…those guys you and Mav dealt with years ago. Remember? That mission.”

Rooster glanced ahead, digesting the information slowly. The cockpit felt smaller, the air heavier and he had to blink so he could snap himself out of it.

“Sir?”

“Yes McAllister?”

“What…what do we do?”

He pauses, he knew that if those were the same guys from before, they aren’t going to be easy to take down. He didn’t know why they were using repurposed jets…unless “...fucking hell. They planned this all along.”

“Huh,sir?”

“...that’s how they’ve been hiding in plain sight,” he mutters, “...reusing what we lost before, making sure no one would notice…shit. Smart, but not that smart.”

"Control Tower, this is Talon One. We have unidentified personnel on the ground, resembling those encountered in a previous mission. Requesting authorization for a closer inspection and potential engagement if necessary."

"Negative, Talon One. Hold your position and maintain surveillance. We're assessing the situation."

The response from Control Tower was frustratingly ambiguous. Rooster gritted his teeth, the tension within the cockpit escalating. The past encounter with these enigmatic figures had been a harrowing experience, and the prospect of facing them again raised the stakes. “May I speak with Vice-Admiral Beau Simpson?” Cyclone was there when the whole shit went down and he voiced his displeasure on how everything was shared to them in this mission.

The communication line buzzed for a moment before Cyclone's voice cut through. "This is Vice-Admiral Beau Simpson. What's the status, Rooster?"

Rooster took a deep breath, his eyes never leaving the unfolding scene on the ground. "Sir, we have unidentified personnel on the ground, resembling those we encountered in a previous mission…the suicide mission.” he didn’t want to freak McAllister out since that mission was so secretive,but he had to let Cyclone know “ Requesting authorization for a closer inspection and potential engagement if necessary."

Cyclone's voice, came through the radio after a few seconds of silence. “Are you certain?”

"Yes, sir," Rooster replied, “...hard to forget something like that.”

#bradley rooster bradshaw #rooster bradshaw #bradley bradshaw x oc #top gun maverick #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley bradshaw x female reader #bradley bradshaw x named reader #tgm oc #tgm fic #tgm fanfiction

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mapsontheweb · 1 year

Photo

Human Activity in China and India Dominates the Greening of Earth, NASA Study Shows and presented with map.

Over the last two decades, the Earth has seen an increase in foliage around the planet, measured in average leaf area per year on plants and trees. Data from NASA satellites shows that China and India are leading the increase in greening on land. The effect stems mainly from ambitious tree planting programs in China and intensive agriculture in both countries.

The world is literally a greener place than it was 20 years ago, and data from NASA satellites has revealed a counterintuitive source for much of this new foliage: China and India. A new study shows that the two emerging countries with the world’s biggest populations are leading the increase in greening on land. The effect stems mainly from ambitious tree planting programs in China and intensive agriculture in both countries.

The greening phenomenon was first detected using satellite data in the mid-1990s by Ranga Myneni of Boston University and colleagues, but they did not know whether human activity was one of its chief, direct causes. This new insight was made possible by a nearly 20-year-long data record from a NASA instrument orbiting the Earth on two satellites. It’s called the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, or MODIS, and its high-resolution data provides very accurate information, helping researchers work out details of what’s happening with Earth’s vegetation, down to the level of 500 meters, or about 1,600 feet, on the ground.

Taken all together, the greening of the planet over the last two decades represents an increase in leaf area on plants and trees equivalent to the area covered by all the Amazon rainforests. There are now more than two million square miles of extra green leaf area per year, compared to the early 2000s – a 5% increase.

“China and India account for one-third of the greening, but contain only 9% of the planet’s land area covered in vegetation – a surprising finding, considering the general notion of land degradation in populous countries from overexploitation,” said Chi Chen of the Department of Earth and Environment at Boston University, in Massachusetts, and lead author of the study.

An advantage of the MODIS satellite sensor is the intensive coverage it provides, both in space and time: MODIS has captured as many as four shots of every place on Earth, every day for the last 20 years.

“This long-term data lets us dig deeper,” said Rama Nemani, a research scientist at NASA’s Ames Research Center, in California’s Silicon Valley, and a co-author of the new work. “When the greening of the Earth was first observed, we thought it was due to a warmer, wetter climate and fertilization from the added carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, leading to more leaf growth in northern forests, for instance. Now, with the MODIS data that lets us understand the phenomenon at really small scales, we see that humans are also contributing.”

China’s outsized contribution to the global greening trend comes in large part (42%) from programs to conserve and expand forests. These were developed in an effort to reduce the effects of soil erosion, air pollution and climate change. Another 32% there – and 82% of the greening seen in India – comes from intensive cultivation of food crops.

Land area used to grow crops is comparable in China and India – more than 770,000 square miles – and has not changed much since the early 2000s. Yet these regions have greatly increased both their annual total green leaf area and their food production. This was achieved through multiple cropping practices, where a field is replanted to produce another harvest several times a year. Production of grains, vegetables, fruits and more have increased by about 35-40% since 2000 to feed their large populations.

How the greening trend may change in the future depends on numerous factors, both on a global scale and the local human level. For example, increased food production in India is facilitated by groundwater irrigation. If the groundwater is depleted, this trend may change.

“But, now that we know direct human influence is a key driver of the greening Earth, we need to factor this into our climate models,” Nemani said. “This will help scientists make better predictions about the behavior of different Earth systems, which will help countries make better decisions about how and when to take action.”

The researchers point out that the gain in greenness seen around the world and dominated by India and China does not offset the damage from loss of natural vegetation in tropical regions, such as Brazil and Indonesia. The consequences for sustainability and biodiversity in those ecosystems remain.

Overall, Nemani sees a positive message in the new findings. “Once people realize there’s a problem, they tend to fix it,” he said. “In the 70s and 80s in India and China, the situation around vegetation loss wasn’t good; in the 90s, people realized it; and today things have improved. Humans are incredibly resilient. That’s what we see in the satellite data.”

This research was published online, Feb. 11, 2019, in the journal Nature Sustainability.

#maps #asia #vegetation

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spacetimewithstuartgary · 7 months

Text

NASA Telescopes Discover Record-Breaking Black Hole

Astronomers have discovered the most distant black hole yet seen in X-rays, using NASA telescopes. The black hole is at an early stage of growth that had never been witnessed before, where its mass is similar to that of its host galaxy.

This result may explain how some of the first supermassive black holes in the universe formed.

By combining data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope a team of researchers was able to find the telltale signature of a growing black hole just 470 million years after the Big Bang.

“We needed Webb to find this remarkably distant galaxy and Chandra to find its supermassive black hole,” said Akos Bogdan of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA) who leads a new paper in the journal Nature Astronomy describing these results. “We also took advantage of a cosmic magnifying glass that boosted the amount of light we detected.”

Bogdan and his team found the black hole in a galaxy named UHZ1 in the direction of the galaxy cluster Abell 2744, located 3.5 billion light-years from Earth. Webb data, however, has revealed the galaxy is much more distant than the cluster, at 13.2 billion light-years from Earth, when the universe was only 3% of its current age.

Then over two weeks of observations by Chandra showed the presence of intense superheated, X-ray emitting gas in this galaxy – a trademark for a growing supermassive black hole. The light from the galaxy and the X-rays from gas around its supermassive black hole are magnified by about a factor of four by intervening matter in Abell 2744 (due to a phenomenon called ‘gravitational lensing’), enhancing the infrared signal detected by Webb and allowing Chandra to detect the faint X-ray source.

This discovery is important for understanding how some supermassive black holes can reach colossal masses soon after the big bang. Do they form directly from the collapse of massive clouds of gas, creating black holes weighing between about ten thousand and a hundred thousand suns? Or do they come from explosions of the first stars that create black holes weighing only between about ten and a hundred suns?

“There are physical limits on how quickly black holes can grow once they’ve formed, but ones that are born more massive have a head start. It’s like planting a sapling, which takes less time to grow into a full-size tree than if you started with only a seed”, said Andy Goulding of Princeton University. Goulding is a co-author of the Nature Astronomy paper and lead author of a new paper in The Astrophysical Journal Letters that reports the galaxy’s distance and mass using a spectrum from Webb.

Bogdan’s team has found strong evidence that the newly discovered black hole was born massive. Its mass is estimated to fall between 10 and 100 million suns, based on the brightness and energy of the X-rays. This mass range is similar to that of all the stars in the galaxy where it lives, which is in stark contrast to black holes in the centers of galaxies in the nearby universe that usually contain only about a tenth of a percent of the mass of their host galaxy’s stars.

The large mass of the black hole at a young age, plus the amount of X-rays it produces and the brightness of the galaxy detected by Webb, all agree with theoretical predictions in 2017 by co-author Priyamvada Natarajan of Yale University for an “Outsize Black Hole” that directly formed from the collapse of a huge cloud of gas.

“We think that this is the first detection of an ‘Outsize Black Hole’ and the best evidence yet obtained that some black holes form from massive clouds of gas,” said Natarajan. “For the first time we are seeing a brief stage where a supermassive black hole weighs about as much as the stars in its galaxy, before it falls behind.”

The researchers plan to use this and other results pouring in from Webb and those combining data from other telescopes to fill out a larger picture of the early universe.

“Results like this show why NASA has a portfolio of elite telescopes,” said Mark Clampin, Director of Astrophysics at NASA. “Each has their own superpowers, so to speak, and they can accomplish amazing things when they join forces.”

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope previously showed that light from distant galaxies is highly magnified by matter in the intervening galaxy cluster, providing part of the motivation for the Webb and Chandra observations described here.

IMAGE....Astronomers found the most distant black hole ever detected in X-rays (in a galaxy dubbed UHZ1) using the Chandra and Webb telescopes. X-ray emission is a telltale signature of a growing supermassive black hole. This result may explain how some of the first supermassive black holes in the universe formed. This composite image shows the galaxy cluster Abell 2744 that UHZ1 is located behind, in X-rays from Chandra (purple) and infrared data from Webb (red, green, blue). Credits: X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/Ákos Bogdán; Infrared: NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/L. Frattare & K. Arcand

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