Our Musical Interlude (Friday Special Edition): Sarah Khatami's Darkness

Please enjoy this special edition of the Musical Interlude as we feature a very talented young Iranian-American Singer, Sarah Khatami:

Notations On Our World (Special Edition): On the Election in #Kenya

Africa has seen a number of key elections from the past two weeks.    The key election earlier this week was in Kenya as the Opposition has claimed fraud--and that the election results were hacked.    As our team was assessing this, we received this which we wanted to report on:

Ushahidi’s global Uchaguzi partnership crowdsourcing Kenyan election incidents shows a mostly orderly election Press Release: August 10th, 2017 Over 7000 reports sent from Kenyan citizens on election day to an incident monitoring platform pinpointed both electoral issues and peaceful activities Nairobi, 10 August 2017 - Through innovative use of a crowdsourcing platform aimed at improving official response to incidents, technology company Ushahidi’s monitoring of Kenya’s general election on 8 August 2017, in partnership with InfoNET and The Constitution & Reform Education Consortium (CRECO), gave Kenyan citizens the means to report events impacting the election process. The tagline was “Linda Kura Yako,” (“Protect your vote”).  The technology platform, known as Uchaguzi (“election” in Kiswahili), was born out of the violence that followed the 2007 Kenyan elections and has since been used to map election incidents in other countries, including the United States by the Obama campaign. By August 9th, the day following the elections, Uchaguzi had received over 7000 reports from a mix of sources. Almost 63% came in via SMS, 4% from Twitter, and 24% from other web sources, including newspaper articles. Most reports came from Kenyan citizens with the rest coming from the Uchaguzi field observers and some 700 trained field observers deployed by CRECO. Of the 7000 reports, only 104 were verified as security issues. These included political party agents "acting in a hostile manner", perpetuating "dangerous speech", and instigating "mobilisation towards violence". The largest number of reports (425) were about positive events in relation to the management of polling stations and people being pro-active about exercising their democratic right to vote and calling for a peaceful election. Some 325 voting issues were reported. Ushahidi analysis indicates that the picture of election day events provided by  Uchaguzi is one of a generally orderly voting process devoid of major acts of crime and violence, in spite of voter turnout being in excess of 15 million. Once the polls were closed, 291 reports about counting irregularities were received, along with 266 reports on polling station administration. Many of the reports attributed the irregularities to the challenges of using the KIEMS system, observers not being allowed to witness the counting process, late tallying of results due to technical issues, and party agents refusing to sign off the final results declaration forms. Uchaguzi also received a number of reports around protests over declared results, irregularities related to transportation of ballot boxes, and delays in IEBC officials announcing results at the designated times. Of all these reports, Uchaguzi escalated 136 to officials and election observers for immediate remedial action. The Uchaguzi initiative combines advanced technologies with human verification capabilities. For the Kenyan election, hundreds of volunteers from 15 countries have been working with Ushahidi’s Nairobi team to sort, research, and publish the incoming reports. An Ushahidi employee said that “working with these volunteers from around the world calls for high levels of advance planning and co-ordination but it’s exhilarating to be part of a global team working simultaneously on a single project that is live and essential to ensuring that the rights of ordinary citizens are protected.” For Nathaniel Manning, Ushahidi's Executive Director, "the project is a powerful reminder that one person at a time, no matter where he or she lives, can indeed make a difference and that the Internet can be a tool for mutual support.” An Uchaguzi volunteer handling the flurry of focused activity around one post reporting violence, wrote: “I’m so stressed, my hands are shaking.” Within 16 minutes, volunteers had pinned the report to the map, double-checked the information, and contacted the Uchaguzi field team, which escalated the report to the local authorities – who sent the police to investigate. Uchaguzi will continue to monitor and fact check the data for the rest of the week as results are announce

View of the Week (Special Mid-Week Edition): On Government Possibilities

 

Government is changing and being in Government is ever so challenging in light of the changes at the Federal Level.       Please enjoy these selections we chose on potential possibilities that can exist on how a possible future can develop that we received and curated here at The Daily Outsider courtesy of the team at Route Fifty & Defense One: 

Infrastructure eBook: How Today's Decisions Will Shape Tomorrow's Communities

Infrastructure at a Crossroads: Where Do We Go From Here?

Infrastructure is much more than roads and bridges. It’s about railways, water pipes, electrical grids, waterways, seaports, airports and plenty of other facilities and systems that we rely on. It’s about digital infrastructure, too—the type of infrastructure that’s necessary to support the maturing and emerging technologies needed to manage smart cities and resilient communities.

This eBook provides a snapshot of the challenges and questions federal, state and local government decision makers are facing when it comes maintaining and upgrading infrastructure, plus figuring out ways to finance it. 

Download Now

 

Looking at the Air Force's Future

The Future of the Air Force: Available for Download

This new Defense One eBook provides a look at the Air Force’s future, examines the increase in the service's intellectual and organizational energy towards space, their plans to test a new weapon -- a laser -- aboard one of their most beloved attack planes within the next year, the Pentagon's intent to start work on new Air Force Two and Doomsday planes, and more.

Download the eBook

  

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The Future of Military Technology | Increasingly, the human tasks on the battlefield are giving way to mechanical ones. That emerging reality will present new opportunities and challenges for a military tasked with maintaining command and control against a wide variety of adversaries, across the globe. This eBook provides a snapshot of what those efforts look like, today and in the near future.

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Federal Cybersecurity Threat Survey Report | The 2017 CIA Wikileaks, 2015 and 2016 IRS and 2015 OPM breaches have one thing in common: The criminals compromised federal systems, exposing highly confidential and valuable information. What’s going on? Why are these breaches happening, and what is enabling them? To find out, BeyondTrust commissioned a survey of senior Federal IT managers in early 2017.

Notations On Our World (Weekly Edition): On a Snapshot of the Possibilities

For this week, our team chose this courtesy of the team at Ted.Com.      We here at the Daily Outsider are taking this to heart as we contemplate the lessons and the ideas expressed this week and the window into the future it represents:

THIS WEEK ON TED.COM

Marc Raibert: Meet Spot, the robot dog that can run, hop and open doors 14:33 minutes · Filmed Apr 2017 · Posted Jul 2017 · TED2017 That science fiction future where robots can do what people and animals do may be closer than you think. Marc Raibert, founder of Boston Dynamics, is developing advanced robots that can gallop like a cheetah, negotiate 10 inches of snow, walk upright on two legs and even open doors and deliver packages. Join Raibert for a live demo of SpotMini, a nimble robot that maps the space around it, handles objects, climbs stairs -- and could soon be helping you out around the house. Watch now »

PLAYLIST OF THE WEEK What direction is the future headed? (6 talks) Explore what may be in store for our collective future and how we can plan for the unpredictable, together. Watch » 6 TED Talks • Total run time 1:51:12

THIS WEEK'S NEW TED TALKS Titus Kaphar makes art that wrestles with the struggles of the past -- while speaking to the diversity and advances of the present. In an unforgettable live workshop, Kaphar takes a brush full of white paint to his own version of a 17th-century painting, obscuring parts of the composition and bringing its hidden story into view. He asks: What happens when we shift our focus and confront unspoken truths? Watch » In 2002, the Colombian guerrilla movement known as the FARC kidnapped Ingrid Betancourt in the middle of her presidential campaign. For the next six years, Betancourt was held hostage in jungle prison camps where she was ravaged by malaria, fleas, hunger and human cruelty until her rescue. In this deeply personal talk, the politician-turned-writer explains what it's like to live in a perpetual state of fear -- and how her faith sustained her. (In Spanish with English subtitles.)Watch » Meet Françoise Mouly, The New Yorker's art director. For the past 24 years, she's helped decide what appears on the magazine's famous cover, from the black-on-black depiction of the Twin Towers the week after 9/11 to a recent, Russia-influenced riff on the magazine's mascot, Eustace Tilley. In this visual retrospective, Mouly considers how a simple drawing can cut through the torrent of images that we see every day and elegantly capture the feeling (and the sensibility) of a moment in time. Watch » Ten years ago, researchers thought that getting a computer to tell the difference between a cat and a dog would be almost impossible. Today, computer vision systems do it with greater than 99 percent accuracy. How? Joseph Redmon works on the YOLO (You Only Look Once) system, an open-source method of object detection that can identify objects in images and video -- from zebras to stop signs -- with lightning-quick speed. In a remarkable live demo, Redmon shows off this important step forward for applications like self-driving cars, robotics and even cancer detection. Watch »

READ MORE ON IDEAS.TED.COM Future: Turns out, machines might be just as "creative" as humans >> So what's left for us to do? One fascinating answer Business: 5 interview questions that will help you hire better people >> Why you should ask "What's 25 times 25?"

Notations From the Grid (W-End Edition): Just Some "Thoughts" From Past....

Our team has been in the midst of the strategic review.  We wanted to reflect the past especially as our World:

We also hope enjoy these selections that moved us:

Notations On Our World (Special W-End Edition): On @POTUS, #IranDeal & Other Thoughts...

We picked this up as this was curated courtesy of the Team at Nuzzel, one of the our curation partners we utilize, that underscores what is at hand as 2020 is at hand:

News Alert

Republican Shadow Campaign for 2020 Takes Shape as Trump Doubts Grow New York Times – Jonathan Martin – Aug 5, 8:35 AM WASHINGTON — Senators Tom Cotton and Ben Sasse have already been to Iowa this year, Gov. John Kasich is eyeing a return visit to New Hampshire, and Mike Pence's schedule is so full of political events that Republicans joke that he is acting… Shared by… 6 More info… This is as we have been assessing the swearing in of Hassan Rouhani , Iran's President, to his second and final Term as he took the oath of Office in Parliament earlier today Tehran Time accompanied by the head of the Judiciary: Over 70 Countries had sent representatives--including the Head of the European Union Foreign Policy Team who met with the Iranian Foreign Minister (expected to keep his post in the 12th Government): The Foreign Minister advised the European Union to be very wary of the moves by the Trump Administration to void the #IranDeal.   Iran's President also noted that Iran will not unilaterally  withdraw from the #IranDeal but will forceful in its' response to US Moves--including the latest sanctions.   The National Security Advisor laid out the position of the Trump Adminstration in an interview with MSNBC's Hugh Hewitt: (Update:  Right now, Venezuela has just seen the firing of the Attorney General by the new so-called Super-Legislature as the Government is making moves to consolidate its' power as the country implodes--Kenya is due to hold Presidential Elections later on this week as the leader of Rwanda was re-elected with over ninety percent of the vote....)

Notations On Our World (Special Edition): On @POTUS watch This Week..

View of the Week (Special Edition): On #India

It is a pleasure to share this tribute for a special edition of View of the Week that we released earlier on our Twitter Channel as Prime Minister Modi Paid tribute to Ex-President Mukerjee.  We also join Billions of Indians as we salute President Mukerjee:

  

Notations On Our World (Special Edition): On the Inauguration of @HassanRouhani in #Iran

Iran's President Chief of Staff Leaving the Presidency (Souce; IRNA)

Iran is witness to the inauguration of a New President as the World awaits the 12th Government of the Islamic Republic after having concluded the final Cabinet Meeting of the 11th Government--with inauguration slated for Saturday as President Rouhani     

On the eve of the President's Inauguration and the presentation of the Cabinet,  The President's Chief of Staff granted an interview noting that there will be at least a 50% change in the Ministers who are due to serve in the 12th Government after the Islamic Revolution--this is as Amnesty international has condemned  Iran's Human Rights Records and Iran also faces profound headwinds in the Economic Arena   along with the on-going aftermath of the ballistic Missile Tests.

As August Dawns.....

Welcome to August here in the Daily Outsider!!

It has been quite a month as our World has been witness to the implosion in Venezuela, the North Koreans yet again threateninng the United States as this image apparently shows missiles falling down the sky:

July was also  President Trump yet again being President Trump.    The GOP attempt at Healthcare fizzled out as the President threatened to withhold insurance reimbursements as apparently Senators were also threatened.  Beyond the US, though,  Iran and the United States seem to be on a collision course in the aftermath of Iran's latest launch of a Missile that ostensibly  was for a a Satellite.   As the US accused Iran of breaking the elements of the JCPOA, Iran also accused the US of the same in the aftermath of the Sanctions Bill that passed 98-2.    On the domestic Front,  Iran also seems to be headed for some further confrontation  with various factions as President Rouhani finalizes his cabinet.    Our team reviewed reporting reflecting the fact that Candidates for Foreign Minister, Defense Minister and Intelligence had to be vetted by the Office of the Supreme Leader before being presented to Parliament.    It is also of note that Iran's Justice Minister is also indirectly appointed by the Supreme Leader as he's due to be appointed from an approved list by the head of the Judiciary--A Supreme Leader Appointee.    

With our keen interest in Media, we have also been witness to quite month and year on that front.   We have see yet again consolidations--including moves by the supreme deal maker of all, John Malone, as his Liberty Media has taken stakes in Pandora (that we feature in our Entertainment Corner) and Discover Communication.   It is also a month that would see AT&T & Time Warner potentially come together.  

As we go dark in these pages for the Month of August, our Twitter Feed will be active with our daily updates courtesy of Nuzzel and Paper_li along with our Broadcast POD which will feature live feeds from Al Jazeera and Sky News.     Despite all the challenges at hand, we remain hopeful about our World as underscored by this recent snapshot our team received recently from the team at TED.COM

Onward to August with all its' possibilities .

THIS WEEK ON TED.COM JULY 29, 2017

TALK OF THE WEEK Grace Kim: How cohousing can make us happier (and live longer) 10:15 minutes · Filmed Apr 2017 · Posted Jul 2017 · TED2017 Loneliness doesn't always stem from being alone. For architect Grace Kim, loneliness is a function of how socially connected we feel to the people around us -- and it's often the result of the homes we live in. She shares an age-old antidote to isolation: cohousing, a way of living where people choose to share space with their neighbors, get to know them, and look after them. Rethink your home and how you live in it with this eye-opening talk. Watch now »

PLAYLIST OF THE WEEK #Goals Counterintuitive advice that will help you set and achieve your goals for the short term, the long term and those moments in between. Watch » 5 TED Talks • Total run time 51:44

THIS WEEK'S NEW TED TALKS Jimmy Lin is developing technologies to catch cancer earlier. He shares a breakthrough technique that looks for small signals of cancer's presence via a simple blood test, detecting the recurrence of some forms of the disease 100 days earlier than traditional methods. And with cancer, early detection can make all the difference. Watch » A handful of people working at a handful of tech companies steer the thoughts of billions of people every day, says Tristan Harris. And they're all competing for one thing: your attention. Harris shows how tech companies prey on our psychology for their own profit, and calls for a design renaissance in which our phones and apps encourage us to live the lives we want. Watch » Do your kidneys have a sense of smell? Turns out, the same scent detectors found in your nose are also found in some pretty unexpected places -- like your muscles, your kidneys and even your lungs. In this quick talk filled with weird facts, physiologist Jennifer Pluznick explains why they're there and what they do. Watch » Corals in the Pacific Ocean have been dying at an alarming rate. But it's not too late to save them, says TED Fellow Kristen Marhaver in this hopeful talk about why we should keep fighting to save our oceans. "Corals have always been playing the long game," she says, "and now so are we." Watch »

READ MORE ON IDEAS.TED.COM Brain: Want to understand alien intelligence? Start with the octopus » What is consciousness, and does an octopus have it too? Food: Inside a vertical ocean farm » A clever plan that grows oysters, scallops, seaweed and more Culture: Did you watch The Bachelorette this season? We did and here's why » A thoughtful talk with Aunt Vernā Myers on race, love and television

QUOTE OF THE WEEK “ From our homes, we look down into the courtyard, and depending on the time of year, we see this: kids and grownups in various combinations playing and hanging out with each other. There's a lot of giggling and chatter. There's a lot of hula-hooping. And every now and then, "Hey, quit hitting me!" or a cry from one of the kids. These are the sounds of our daily lives, and the sounds of social connectedness." Grace Kim How cohousing can make us happier (and live longer)

SINCERELY, X: PEPPER SPRAY Listen to TED and Audible's new podcast, Sincerely, X. This episode, titled "Pepper Spray," follows a woman whose visit to the store triggers a panic attack, giving listeners an inside look into those suffering from PTSD and how to help. Available now on Apple Podcasts, the TED Android app, or wherever you get your podcasts.